Trailer weight calculator
Start from the trailer's empty weight and add what you carry in it. The total is the loaded weight, which is the figure a towing rating is measured against.
Enter the trailer's empty weight to start adding it up.
Empty weight and loaded weight
The weight on a sales sheet is usually the trailer as it left the factory, with empty tanks and nothing in the cupboards. What the vehicle has to pull is the trailer with water, propane, batteries, food and gear on board. Fresh water alone is 8.34 pounds a US gallon.
The trailer has a limit too
A trailer's own sticker gives its gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR), the most it may weigh loaded. Enter it and the calculator shows how close you are. Many people shop for a tow vehicle against the trailer's GVWR, since that is the most the trailer should ever weigh.
With a loaded weight in hand, see which vehicles are rated for it, or check it against your own vehicle.
Common questions
Why not use the weight in the brochure?
The brochure usually gives the empty weight. A towing rating is a limit on the trailer as you tow it, with water, propane, batteries and gear on board.
How much does water weigh?
Fresh water weighs about 8.34 pounds per US gallon, so a full 40 gallon tank adds about 334 pounds.
Is an added-up weight as good as a scale?
No. It is an estimate from the figures you enter. A public weighbridge gives the real loaded weight and is worth a visit before a long trip.
Other calculators
- Towing calculator. Pick your vehicle and build, enter what your trailer weighs, and see it beside the published rating and your payload.
- Towing capacity by VIN. Enter a VIN to decode the year, model, engine and drive, then see the published ratings that fit.
- Tongue weight calculator. Enter your trailer's loaded weight to see the weight on the hitch and the payload it leaves.