Pickup Trucks

The cheapest pickup trucks you can buy in 2025

William Irvin Lewis

MotorTrend

Almost across the board, pickup truck prices are creeping upward. In reality most of this is due to worth rise, but formerly cheap trucks like the Tacoma’s recent creation are going somewhat upmarket, while the worth creep affecting the cheapest pickups like the Maverick appears to be due to automakers capitalizing on unexpected achievement. For now, the cheapest work trucks you can buy can still be had for under $40,000, but the trims most consumers buy are in the $50,000 to $60,000 range.

Of course, worth isn’t the only metric by which to assess a truck, but it’s an significant one. If you desire to explore other ways pickup trucks stack up against each other, MotorTrend’s proprietary algorithm provides the ultimate source of automotive data by combining over 75 years of our own instrumented act, comfort and efficiency testing on more than 5,000 vehicles. That data is fused with decades of expertise from former heads of design, engineering and our own car buying encounter experts. Built by statisticians and honed by automotive experts, MotorTrend’s Ultimate Car Rankings will assist in finding your perfect vehicle.

Here are the cheapest trucks you can buy in the U.S.

10. 2025 GMC Sierra Pro 2WD | $39,200 (MT est.)

Although the base worth of the 2025 GMC Sierra’s Pro 2WD work truck trim seems reasonable, like the other packed-size affordable pickup trucks the Sierra Pro 2WD is exclusively meant to be a bare-bones work truck. To that point, any color besides white is already a $495 upcharge. Granted, you can get a lot done with this regular-cab truck on steel wheels. The base 2.7-liter turbocharged engine is stout, as is the truck’s handling, all while providing a maximum payload of 2,240 pounds.

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10. 2025 GMC Sierra Pro 2WD | Pros and cons

worth: $39,200 (MT est.)
Base Horsepower: 310
Base Torque: 430
Maximum Payload: 2,240 pounds
Maximum Towing Capacity: 9,400 pounds

9. 2025 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 WT 2WD | $38,995

For base packed-sizers, one of the most affordable pickup trucks is the 2025 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The Silverado’s options and available features are excellent, especially when you step up to models like the Silverado ZR2. But beyond a solid 2.7-liter turbocharged inline-four base engine with 310 horsepower, what you get for the base worth isn’t exceptional. The base Silverado’s interior is particularly lacking, but it makes up for it with towing and payload numbers that make the Work Truck base trim moniker ring factual. For a distribution workhorse, the base Silverado does the job.

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9. 2025 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 WT 2WD | Pros and cons

worth: $38,995
Base Horsepower: 310
Base Torque: 430
Maximum Payload: 2,260 pounds
Maximum Towing Capacity: 9,500 pounds

8. 2025 Ford F-150 XL | $38,960

America’s bestselling vehicle for decades running is also the cheapest truck on the economy in the packed-size category, appealing to a wide range of buyers with an incredible range of trim levels. At the base level, the F-150 is powered by a 5.0-liter V-8 with 400 horsepower, and all F-150s regardless of engine use a 10-speed automatic. The interior of the base 2025 Ford F-150 might not provide the gilded encounter of the Ford truck’s higher-complete trims (that are now approaching $100,000 for fully loaded models), but it’s noticeably superior to much of its competition while being not insignificantly cheaper.

8. 2025 Ford F-150 XL | Pros and cons

worth: $38,960
Base Horsepower: 400
Base Torque: 410
Maximum Payload: 2,230 pounds
Maximum Towing Capacity: 12,900 pounds

7. 2025 GMC Canyon Elevation 2WD | $38,595 (MT est.)

The cheapest trucks that adhere to traditional body-on-frame archetype are midsizers like the 2025 GMC Canyon. The Canyon has grown in recent generations and is now similar in size and capability to the packed-size trucks of yesteryear, though with more punch and a smaller, turbocharged base engine. Every GMC Canyon from the base model on up is powered by the most powerful version of the corporate 2.7-liter turbocharged inline-four, rated at 310 hp and 430 lb-ft — which are the same power and torque figures this engine gets in the larger GMC Sierra 1500. Recently refreshed for the 2023 model year, we’ve found the updated Canyon’s overall ride and dynamics to be very excellent for a truck regardless of trim.

7. 2025 GMC Canyon Elevation 2WD | Pros and cons

worth: $38,595 (MT est.)
Base Horsepower: 310
Base Torque: 430
Maximum Payload: 1,640 pounds
Maximum Towing Capacity: 7,700 pounds

6. 2025 Ford Ranger XL | $34,815 (MT est.)

Vastly improved and rebuilt from the ground up, the recent-creation 2025 Ford Ranger promises more options than any other midsize truck available in the U.S. The base powerplant is a carryover from the previous model, a 2.3-liter turbocharged I-4 making 270 hp and 310 lb-ft of torque paired to a 10-speed automatic transmission — the 2.7-liter EcoBoost V-6 on higher trims isn’t an alternative on the XL. The Ranger isn’t the least expensive midsize truck, but according to Ford, the 2025 Ranger is the most factory-customizable.

6. 2025 Ford Ranger XL | Pros and cons

worth: $34,815 (MT est.)
Base Horsepower: 270
Base Torque: 310
Maximum Payload: 1,805 pounds
Maximum Towing Capacity: 7,500 pounds

5. 2025 Nissan Frontier King Cab S 4×2 | $33,560

Although the 2025 Nissan Frontier is one of the cheapest trucks in the midsize segment and it was recently refreshed, it’s not one of the best choices in its segment. It comes in at the bottom of the midsize truck pack in our Ultimate Rankings, as the competition has moved on from the low-tech, low-refinement package the Frontier still offers. Standard energetic safety features are lacking, driving dynamics are uncouth, and the transmission doesn’t always recognize what gear to be in. The Frontier tows well, looks excellent, and has the second-lowest worth of all base midsize trucks, but that just isn’t enough for it to keep pace with the other trucks in its segment.

5. 2025 Nissan Frontier King Cab S 4×2 | Pros and cons

worth: $33,560
Base Horsepower: 310
Base Torque: 281
Maximum Payload: 1,620 pounds
Maximum Towing Capacity: 7,150 pounds

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4. 2025 Toyota Tacoma SR RWD | $33,500 (MT est.)

Coming very close to the versatility of the Ranger (if not eclipsing it) is the 2025 Toyota Tacoma, and it has a more affordable base worth to boot. The beloved Taco has been thoroughly updated for the 2024 model year (check out our first drive of the 2024 Tacoma), and like most of the rest of the midsize segment it has recent engines, a recent transmission (with a manual transmission discretionary on lower-level trucks), and recent looks. The least expensive Tacoma features a 2.4-liter turbocharged four-cylinder that makes just 228 hp, making it significantly less powerful than its midsize rivals. But it should be more than competitive in other areas, including interior space.

4. 2025 Toyota Tacoma SR RWD | Pros and cons

worth: $33,500 (MT est.)
Base Horsepower: 228
Base Torque: 243
Maximum Payload: 1,710 pounds
Maximum Towing Capacity: 6,500 pounds

3. 2025 Chevrolet Colorado WT 2WD | $34,000 (MT est.)

The Chevrolet Colorado was our most recentMotorTrend Truck of the Year, so there’s no rationale to ponder the mostly unchanged 2025 model won’t be just as excellent. Being the cheapest truck in the midsize segment is enjoyable, but providing the most worth across its trim range is excellent. The Colorado does both, leveraging a great powertrain (for 2025, the only engine available is the powerful 2.7-liter turbocharged I-4 making 310 hp and 430 lb-ft), solid infotainment and technology, and all the capability of a solemn truck without the driving dynamics of a tractor. While packed-size trucks continue to chase bigger towing and payload numbers, the Colorado gives you what you require in a solemn truck, for less.

3. 2025 Chevrolet Colorado WT 2WD | Pros and cons

Base Horsepower: 310
Base Torque: 430
Maximum Payload: 1,710 pounds
Maximum Towing Capacity: 7,700 pounds

2. 2025 Hyundai Santa Cruz SE | $29,895

Truck people tend to be traditionalists, which is why many turn their noses up at the affordable, economical, yet unorthodox 2025 Hyundai Santa Cruz. Unlike “solemn” trucks, the compact Santa Cruz is not built on a traditional ladder frame, but rather on a unibody structure that also underpins Hyundai cars and crossovers. The outcome is much less towing and payload capability but improved fuel economy and carlike handling. That “much reduced payload” is still 1,411 pounds, but make sure that payload is compact, as the Santa Cruz comes with a tiny 4-foot bed. On document, the base engine isn’t impressive for a roughly two-ton vehicle, especially in terms of torque. It’s a niche vehicle, but it’s a excellent fit for the niche.

2. 2025 Hyundai Santa Cruz SE | Pros and cons

worth: $29,895
Base Horsepower: 191
Base Torque: 181
Maximum Payload: 1,411 pounds
Maximum Towing Capacity: 5,000 pounds

1. 2025 Ford Maverick XL FWD | $25,515

“Lovable” and “useful” are the two words most 2025 Ford Maverick owners would likely use to describe their truck. The cheapest truck on the economy is a unibody offering like the Santa Cruz, but with more traditional styling and a 2.0-liter turbocharged base engine with 250 horsepower (the 2.5-liter four-cylinder hybrid is hyper-efficient at 41/33 mpg city/highway; it used to be the base engine but is now a $1,750 alternative on base trims). The Maverick drives well, and its bed is genuinely useful, especially with over 1,500 pounds of payload capacity. The Maverick isn’t quite as capable in some areas as the Santa Cruz, but it strikes a better equilibrium of what most compact pickup truck buyers desire and require.

1. 2025 Ford Maverick XL FWD | Pros and cons

worth: $25,515
Base Horsepower: 238
Base Torque: 277
Maximum Payload: 1,500 pounds
Maximum Towing Capacity: 4,000 pounds