Hitch class: which receiver your trailer calls for
Enter the loaded trailer weight: the calculator returns the minimum hitch class Chevrolet recommends for it, with the limits of every class.
Minimum hitch class for this trailer
Class IV
| Class name | Extra Heavy-Duty |
| Hitch types | conventional, weight-distributing, fifth-wheel or gooseneck |
| Class I | up to 2,000 lb |
| Class II | up to 3,500 lb |
| Class III | up to 5,000 lb |
| Class IV | up to 10,000 lb |
| Class V | above 10,000 lb |
The receiver, ball mount and ball each carry their own rating; the lowest one counts.
Compiled by Radif Partners · Sources and method · makers’ towing documents read October 20 to 21, 2026
Hitch classes group trailers by loaded weight and tell you the minimum hitch they call for. Chevrolet's trailering guide lists five: Class I up to 2,000 lb, Class II up to 3,500 lb, Class III up to 5,000 lb, Class IV up to 10,000 lb, and Class V above that. The first two need only a conventional hitch; from Class III a weight-distributing hitch becomes an option, and fifth-wheel and gooseneck hitches appear at Class IV. The class is a floor, not a permission. The receiver bolted to your vehicle carries its own rating, printed on its label and in the maker's towing guide, and so do the ball mount and the ball. The lowest of those ratings, the vehicle's own trailer rating, and the payload all apply at once. A 6,500 lb trailer, for example, calls for a Class IV hitch, which a Ford Explorer receiver rated 5,000 lb cannot provide.
The five classes
The table follows page 7 of Chevrolet's trailering guide, which lists the minimum recommended hitch for each trailer class. The tongue columns apply the 10 to 15% share Chevrolet asks for to the upper limit of each class, to show the order of magnitude the hitch has to carry.
| Class | Name | Loaded trailer | Tongue at 10% | Tongue at 15% | Hitch types |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | Light-Duty | up to 2,000 lb | 200 lb | 300 lb | conventional |
| II | Medium-Duty | up to 3,500 lb | 350 lb | 525 lb | conventional |
| III | Heavy-Duty | up to 5,000 lb | 500 lb | 750 lb | conventional or weight-distributing |
| IV | Extra Heavy-Duty | up to 10,000 lb | 1,000 lb | 1,500 lb | conventional, weight-distributing, fifth-wheel or gooseneck |
| V | Maximum Heavy-Duty | above 10,000 lb | depends on trailer | depends on trailer | conventional, weight-distributing, fifth-wheel or gooseneck |
Receivers as the makers rate them
A receiver is the square tube under the bumper that takes the ball mount. Each vehicle maker rates the one it fits, and Ford prints those ratings next to its towing tables. The class column places each rating in Chevrolet's scheme.
| Vehicle | Hitch | Trailer | Tongue | Class it reaches |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ford Maverick | receiver | 4,000 lb | 400 lb | Class III |
| Ford Ranger | rear step bumper | 3,500 lb | 350 lb | Class II |
| Ford Ranger | receiver | 7,500 lb | 750 lb | Class IV |
| Ford Explorer | receiver, weight-carrying | 5,000 lb | 500 lb | Class III |
| Ford Expedition | receiver, weight-carrying | 7,000 lb | 700 lb | Class IV |
| Ford F-150 | receiver, weight-distributing | 13,500 lb | 1,400 lb | Class V |
| Ford F-250 Super Duty | receiver | 22,000 lb | 2,200 lb | Class V |
Two details are easy to miss. The Ranger's rear step bumper is a hitch too, with a much lower rating than the receiver, and Ford forbids towing more than that on the bumper alone. On the F-150, the standard 2-inch receiver is rated 11,600 lb, and the reinforced receiver that comes with the Max Tow Axle 14,000 lb (Ford guide, p. 19); the 13,500 lb figure in the table is the weight-distributing limit Ford prints for the receiver. Ford's Expedition notes call for the Class IV heavy-duty trailer tow equipment above 7,000 lb, which matches Chevrolet's scheme.
The weakest link sets the class
A towing set-up is a chain: receiver, ball mount, ball, coupler on the trailer, safety chains. Each piece is stamped or labeled with its own trailer and tongue rating, and the set-up is only as strong as the lowest of them. A Class IV receiver with a ball rated for a lighter trailer is, in practice, a lighter hitch. When you buy a ball mount, match its rise or drop so the trailer sits level, and check that its rating covers your trailer's loaded weight, not its dry weight.
Trailers near a class boundary
Classes are set by loaded weight, and loaded weight grows over a season: a fuller water tank, a generator, bikes on the rear bumper. A trailer that weighs just under 5,000 lb on the day you buy it can cross into Class IV by the first long trip. When the weight sits close to a limit, plan for the class above, or weigh the trailer loaded and keep a margin. The same goes for the tongue: the share drifts with the way the trailer is packed, so a hitch chosen at the low end of the 10 to 15% range may be overloaded once heavy gear moves forward. Weigh it again after any change in how you load.
Tongue weight the hitch must carry
Tongue weight for this trailer
650 lb to 975 lb
| At 10% of the trailer | 650 lb |
| At 15% of the trailer | 975 lb |
| Fifth wheel or gooseneck (pin weight) | 975 lb to 1,625 lb |
A class is not a towing capacity
Fitting a Class IV receiver to a midsize SUV does not let it tow a Class IV trailer. The vehicle's rating, set by the maker for its frame, brakes, cooling and GCWR, stays the ceiling, and the payload still has to carry the tongue. Read the class as the minimum hitch for the trailer, then check the vehicle on its own page, such as the Explorer or the F-150. Above Class III, many vehicles also require the bars covered on the weight distribution page, and at Class V the choice between a fifth wheel and a gooseneck is discussed on the fifth wheel and gooseneck page. The towing checker puts the trailer, the tongue and the payload together.