A 2026 Ford F-350 is rated to tow up to 25,000 lb on a ball hitch with single rear wheels and 28,000 lb with dual rear wheels. On a gooseneck, a dually goes to 38,000 lb. Every one of those top figures needs the High Output 6.7L diesel.
Ford F-350 Super Duty Towing Capacity: Conventional, Fifth Wheel and Gooseneck
At a glance
- Most on a ball hitch: 25,000 lb with single rear wheels and 28,000 lb as a dually, on a 2026 truck with the High Output diesel.
- Most on a gooseneck: 38,000 lb as a dually, or 27,600 lb with single rear wheels.
- Payload decides a fifth wheel: a 2026 dually Crew Cab 4x4 with the High Output diesel can carry 5,850 lb, the same truck with single rear wheels about 4,200 lb.
On this page (9)
- How much can an F-350 tow, by model year
- Can an F-350 pull a big fifth wheel?
- Which 2026 F-350 gets the top rating
- Single rear wheel or dually?
- Gas or diesel
- Hitch, trailer brakes and weight distribution
- Finding your own truck's number
- The F-350 against the F-250, and that 40,000 lb headline
- Common questions
How much can an F-350 tow, by model year
Find your year first. The F-350 jumped in 2023, when Ford added the High Output 6.7L diesel. Each figure below is that year's highest conventional (ball hitch) rating, and it belongs to one specific cab, box, axle and tire combination.
| Model year | Most it can tow | Engine |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 18,000 lb single rear wheel, 21,000 lb dually | 6.7L diesel |
| 2018 | 18,000 lb single rear wheel, 21,000 lb dually | 6.7L diesel |
| 2019 | 18,000 lb single rear wheel, 21,000 lb dually | 6.7L diesel |
| 2020 | 20,000 lb single rear wheel, 21,200 lb dually | 6.7L diesel |
| 2021 | No figure: Ford no longer hosts a 2021 guide | Not stated |
| 2022 | 20,000 lb single rear wheel, 21,200 lb dually | 6.7L diesel |
| 2023 | 25,000 lb single rear wheel, 28,000 lb dually | 6.7L High Output diesel |
| 2024 | 25,000 lb single rear wheel, 28,000 lb dually | 6.7L High Output diesel |
| 2025 | 25,000 lb single rear wheel, 28,000 lb dually | 6.7L High Output diesel |
| 2026 | 25,000 lb single rear wheel, 28,000 lb dually | 6.7L High Output diesel |
Each row comes from that model year's own Ford RV & Trailer Towing Guide: 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020 on Ford Pro, the 2022 fleet edition, then 2023, 2024, 2025 and 2026 on ford.com. No 2021 document with the F-350 tables is on a Ford server, so that year is left blank rather than copied from a neighboring year. For 2017 through 2022 the dually figure is Ford's weight-distributing one.
Can an F-350 pull a big fifth wheel?
Usually yes, and the limit is almost never the tow rating. It is what the truck can carry. Ford counts fifth-wheel king pin weight as 15% of the loaded trailer, so a 15,000 lb fifth wheel presses 2,250 lb (15,000 x 0.15) into the bed before you load a single bike.
On a 2026 single-rear-wheel Crew Cab 4x4 with the long box, the High Output diesel and 18-inch all-season tires, Ford's Super Duty technical specifications list 4,192 lb of maximum payload. Subtract that pin weight and 1,942 lb is left (4,192 minus 2,250, calculated) for passengers, gear, fuel and the hitch itself. The same truck as a dually is rated for 5,850 lb, which is why heavy fifth wheels end up on duallies.
Ford calculates both its payload and its tow ratings with no cargo and a 150 lb driver and passenger, so run the payload sum with your own truck's label figure.
Tip: A conventional travel trailer is easier on the bed. Ford puts conventional tongue load at 10% of the loaded trailer, so a 10,000 lb trailer takes 1,000 lb of payload where a 10,000 lb fifth wheel takes 1,500 lb.
Which 2026 F-350 gets the top rating
The three hitch types have three different ratings, and the body that earns each one is not the same truck.
| Hitch type | Most it can tow | What it needs |
|---|---|---|
| Ball hitch, single rear wheel | 25,000 lb | High Output diesel, Crew Cab 4x4 long box, 3.55 axle, 18-inch all-season or all-terrain tires |
| Ball hitch, dually | 28,000 lb | High Output diesel, Crew Cab, 4.10 axle |
| Fifth wheel, single rear wheel | 27,400 lb | High Output diesel, Regular Cab 4x4, 3.55 axle, all-terrain tires |
| Fifth wheel, dually | 35,000 lb | High Output diesel, 4.10 axle |
| Gooseneck, single rear wheel | 27,600 lb | High Output diesel, Regular Cab 4x4, 3.55 axle, all-terrain tires |
| Gooseneck, dually | 38,000 lb | High Output diesel, Regular Cab 4x2, 4.10 axle |
Figures from the F-350 pages of the 2026 Ford RV & Trailer Towing Guide, which lists every cab, box, axle and tire combination. Ford names no tow package for the F-350: the configuration earns the rating, and the only equipment printed beside the top cells is the tire fitment.
Tip: On the same single-rear-wheel truck, the fifth-wheel and gooseneck numbers sit far above the ball-hitch one, and they peak on the short Regular Cab. That Regular Cab is rated 20,000 lb on a ball hitch and 27,400 lb on a fifth wheel hitch.
Single rear wheel or dually?
Dual rear wheels change both sides of the equation, and they change payload most. Same 2026 Crew Cab 4x4 with the 8-foot box and the High Output diesel, the single-rear-wheel fifth-wheel and gooseneck figures on all-terrain tires:
- Payload: 4,192 lb single rear wheel, 5,850 lb dually.
- Ball hitch: 25,000 lb single rear wheel, 28,000 lb dually.
- Fifth wheel: 25,600 lb single rear wheel, 34,900 lb dually.
- Gooseneck: 26,600 lb single rear wheel, 35,900 lb dually.
The fifth-wheel and gooseneck peaks in the table above, 27,400 and 27,600 lb single rear wheel and 35,000 and 38,000 lb dually, belong to the Regular Cab, not the Crew Cab.
Every F-350 dually carries a 14,000 lb gross vehicle weight rating, where the single-rear-wheel versions run from 10,100 lb to 12,400 lb depending on engine and tires. If your trailer's pin weight plus family and gear is anywhere near 4,000 lb, the dually is the honest answer.
Gas or diesel
All four 2026 engines tow, but the ceiling moves a long way. Highest 2026 conventional rating by engine, single rear wheel first:
- 6.8L gas V8: 18,100 lb, or 18,700 lb as a dually with the heavy-duty payload package.
- 7.3L gas V8: 19,500 lb, or 22,000 lb as a dually.
- 6.7L diesel: 23,200 lb, or 27,000 lb as a dually.
- 6.7L High Output diesel: 25,000 lb, or 28,000 lb as a dually.
The 7.3L gas V8 is worth a look for a mid-weight trailer, since the dually version is rated for 7,635 lb of payload against 6,935 lb for the High Output diesel. Ford's 2027 guide keeps the same maximums and lists only those two F-350 engines.
Hitch, trailer brakes and weight distribution
The factory receiver is rated 25,000 lb with a 2,500 lb maximum tongue load on a single-rear-wheel F-350, and 28,000 lb with a 2,800 lb tongue load on a dually. A Tremor is rated 18,200 lb and 1,820 lb. Those capacities are also on a label on the receiver itself.
A 2.5-inch receiver is standard across the 2026 Super Duty pickups. The exception is the dually Crew Cab with the High Output diesel and the 4.10 axle, which gets a 3-inch receiver, and that is the truck earning the 28,000 lb rating.
From 2023 on, Ford prints the same trailer figure for weight-carrying and weight-distributing hitches, and publishes no trailer weight above which an F-350 needs weight distribution. If you do run load bars, Ford recommends restoring 50% of the front axle load. Trailer brakes are a separate matter: Ford notes that many states require a braking system on trailers loaded over 1,500 lb, and recommends functional brakes on anything towed, because the truck's own brakes are rated for the truck at its gross vehicle weight rating, not for the whole combination. NHTSA's towing page covers the same ground for drivers.
Fitting a gooseneck ball or a fifth-wheel hitch to a bed that did not leave the factory with the hitch prep package is structural work, and it is a job for a shop that does it properly.
Tip: Ford rates its gooseneck hitch ball at 27,500 lb on the 2-5/16 inch ball and 40,000 lb on the 3-inch ball. On a dually rated for 38,000 lb, the smaller ball is not enough by Ford's own figure.
Finding your own truck's number
The Safety Compliance Certification Label on the left front door lock facing or the door latch post pillar carries your gross vehicle weight rating, the rear axle rating and, below the bar code, the two-digit AXLE code that tells you whether you have the 3.55 or the 4.10. With your engine, cab, box and axle in hand, read your own row in your model year's guide rather than the headline figure. The step-by-step lookup walks through it, including Ford's own VIN-based towing calculator for 2020 and newer trucks.
The F-350 against the F-250, and that 40,000 lb headline
Ford's 40,000 lb Super Duty towing claim belongs to the F-450 with its high-capacity gooseneck tow package, not to any F-350. The F-350's own ceiling is 38,000 lb on a gooseneck.
Against the F-250, the F-350 adds a dual-rear-wheel version, and it needs no named axle package to reach its ratings, where the F-250 requires the High-Capacity Axle Upgrade Package for conventional towing above 18,200 lb. For a big fifth wheel, compare the two trucks' own door labels rather than the model names.
Common questions
How much can a Ford F-350 tow?
A 2026 F-350 with the 6.7L High Output diesel is rated up to 25,000 lb on a ball hitch with single rear wheels and 28,000 lb as a dually, each on one specific cab, box, axle and tire combination. Gas versions are lower, from 18,100 lb for the 6.8L V8, and a 2017 to 2019 F-350 topped out at 18,000 lb with single rear wheels.
How much can an F-350 dually tow?
A 2026 F-350 dually with the High Output diesel and the 4.10 axle is rated for 28,000 lb on a ball hitch and 38,000 lb on a gooseneck, the gooseneck figure on a Regular Cab 4x2. Dually payload runs from 5,850 lb up to 7,774 lb, which takes the 6.8L gas V8 Regular Cab 4x2 with Ford's heavy-duty payload package.
What is the difference between F-250 and F-350 towing?
The F-350 is the first Super Duty pickup offered with dual rear wheels, so it reaches ratings the F-250 does not. The F-250 needs Ford's High-Capacity Axle Upgrade Package for conventional towing above 18,200 lb, while Ford names no equivalent package on the F-350.
How much can an F-350 tow with a gooseneck?
For 2026, up to 38,000 lb as a dually with the High Output diesel and the 4.10 axle, or up to 27,600 lb with single rear wheels on a Regular Cab 4x4 with all-terrain tires. Earlier trucks are lower: a 2019 dually was rated 32,400 lb on a gooseneck.