Average Travel Trailer Weight (2026 Data)

A travel trailer is never lighter than on the day it leaves the factory. Taking the average of 130 current floor plans from 5 makers, an empty travel trailer weighs 5,767 lb¹ (2,616 kg¹), while the maximum loaded weight the same trailers are rated for averages 7,442 lb¹; the gap is everything an owner adds, from water and propane to food, bedding and bikes. The lightest floor plan weighs 2,515 lb¹ empty and the heaviest 10,530 lb¹, 4.19 times¹ as much, so the average is a starting point for comparing trailers, not a promise about any single one.

Size follows the same pattern. The average floor plan stands 10 ft 7 in¹ tall with its roof air conditioner, sits on a body 95.8 in¹ wide, and floor plans with slide-outs from the two makers that publish the extended width open to 11 ft 4 in¹ across on average. Length is the best single guide to weight: each extra foot adds about 298.6 lb¹ of empty weight, close to 3,000 lb¹ for every 10 ft. The sections below cover weight by length and by the foot, tongue weight, cargo and tow ratings, height, width and length, and then how many new travel trailers reach dealers each year and where they go.

How much a travel trailer weighs, empty and loaded

The average of 130 current floor plans from 5 makers is 5,767 lb¹ (2,616 kg¹) empty. That is the unloaded or dry weight: the trailer as built at the factory, without cargo, water in the tanks, propane or dealer-installed options. Spec sheets print it under several names, such as unloaded vehicle weight, dry weight or base weight, and all of them describe the same empty trailer. The median floor plan weighs 5,826 lb¹, only a little above the mean, so a handful of very heavy or very light models do not pull the average far.

The second weight on every spec sheet is the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR): the most the loaded trailer may weigh, a rating set by the builder rather than a scale reading. Across the same floor plans the average GVWR is 7,442 lb¹ (3,376 kg¹) and the median 7,600 lb¹. Most floor plans are mid-weight: the most common band is 6,000 to 6,999 lb empty, with 32 floor plans¹, while 25¹ weigh under 4,000 lb and only 7¹ weigh 9,000 lb or more.

The sample takes the travel-trailer floor plans we collected from 26 product lines on five makers' current model pages, model years 2026 and 2027, and counts each floor plan once; sales per floor plan are not published, so the average is not weighted by how many of each were sold, and the sample does not show how many trailers of each kind are sold. Not every line is in it: the 2027 Jay Flight and 2027 Colt are not covered, and the Jay Flight figures are for the 2026 Jay Flight SLX. Makers not covered include Forest River (all its brands), Keystone, Grand Design, KZ and others such as Heartland and Dutchmen, whose floor plans we did not collect for this edition, and the makers covered may build only a minority of the travel trailers sold.¹ Counting each maker equally instead of each floor plan gives 5,890 lb¹, about 123 lb¹ more.

Weight by length band

Length explains most of the difference between one trailer and the next. In our sample of 128 floor plans with a stated overall length, the average travel trailer weight by length climbs from 3,034 lb¹ for floor plans under 20 ft to 8,919 lb¹ for those 36 ft and longer, 2.94 times¹ as much. A straight line through those 128 floor plans¹ rises 298.6 lb¹ per foot, and length and weight move together closely (correlation 0.936¹). In round numbers, each extra 10 ft of trailer adds about 3,000 lb¹ of empty weight.

The rated maximum grows with length too, but the room left for cargo does not keep pace. Floor plans of 24 to 27.9 ft average 7,309 lb¹ GVWR against 5,364 lb¹ empty, leaving 1,945 lb¹ for cargo. Every longer band offers about the same, between 1,889 lb¹ and 1,910 lb¹, so a longer trailer adds weight faster than it adds carrying capacity.

Small travel trailers

Short trailers hold the lightest weights. Counting anything under 22 ft overall as small, the average weight of a small travel trailer in our sample is 3,485 lb¹ empty across 22 floor plans¹, with an average GVWR of 4,577 lb¹. Rounding overall length to the nearest foot, the average weight of a 20-foot travel trailer in our sample is 3,490 lb¹ across six floor plans; 21 ft averages 3,640 lb¹ (eight floor plans) and 22 ft 3,825 lb¹ (12).

Below 20 ft the numbers rest on very few trailers. In our sample, the average weight of a 16-foot travel trailer comes from one floor plan, at 3,150 lb¹, and the 17-ft row is the average of two floor plans, 3,300 lb¹. In our sample, the average weight of an 18-foot travel trailer is again a single floor plan, which happens to be the lightest in the sample at 2,515 lb¹. That is why the 18-ft figure sits below the 16-ft one: single floor plans are examples, not averages.

Weight by the foot, 24 to 32 ft

In the middle of the range, where most floor plans sit, each one-foot step averages four to 12 floor plans. In our sample, the average weight of a 24-foot travel trailer is 4,698 lb¹ (seven floor plans), and the average weight of a 25 ft travel trailer in our sample is almost the same at 4,702 lb¹ (four).

The step to 26 ft is bigger: in our sample, the average weight of a 26-foot travel trailer is 5,489 lb¹ (eight). The average weight of a 27 ft travel trailer in our sample then dips to 5,341 lb¹ (six).

In our sample, the average weight of a 28-foot travel trailer jumps to 6,357 lb¹ (10 floor plans), yet the average weight of a 30-foot travel trailer in our sample is lower, 6,113 lb¹ across 12 floor plans.

In our sample, the average weight of a 32-foot travel trailer is 7,133 lb¹ (eight floor plans). Length is not the only driver: floor plans of the same length differ in layout and in the number of slide-outs, so a one-foot step can go down as well as up. How length is measured matters too, because every figure here uses overall length, from the hitch coupler to the rear bumper, while the number in a model's name is often a shorter box length.

Product lines, makers and records

Averages by product line run from 10,230 lb¹ for the heaviest line to 2,772 lb¹ for the lightest, a spread that largely follows the length mix of each line, as the length bands above show.

Maker averages differ by up to 3,449 lb¹, from 4,490 lb¹ to 7,939 lb¹, mostly because each maker builds a different mix of lengths: the maker with the heaviest average also has the longest average floor plan, 403 in¹ or about 33.6 ft. Height separates the makers as well. One maker's trailers average 114 in¹ tall, while the other four average between 124 in¹ and 137 in¹.

At the extremes, the heaviest floor plan weighs 10,530 lb¹ empty and measures 40.3 ft, and the lightest weighs 2,515 lb¹ at 17.5 ft. Three floor plans share the tallest height, 143 in¹.

An empty scale reading is only half the story: part of that weight rests on the tow vehicle.

Tongue weight, cargo and tow ratings

Tongue weight

In our sample of 130 floor plans, the average tongue weight of a travel trailer is 704 lb¹ (319 kg¹) empty: the share of the trailer's weight that presses down on the hitch ball. On average that is 12.1%¹ of each floor plan's dry weight (median 11.9%¹), and it ranges from 230 lb¹ to 1,320 lb¹ across the floor plans. A common tow-vehicle guideline caps the tongue load at 200 lb⁷ for trailers up to 2,000 lb and sets it at 10%⁷ of loaded weight for conventional trailers above that, against 15%⁷ king-pin weight for a fifth wheel. Applied to the average GVWR, 10% is 744 lb¹, so the loaded trailer, not the empty one on the spec sheet, sets the load the hitch has to carry.

Cargo

In our sample of 130 floor plans, the average cargo weight in a travel trailer, measured as the most it may carry, is 1,675 lb¹ (760 kg¹): the GVWR minus the empty weight. That is 22.7%¹ of the rating on average, from 350 lb¹ in the tightest floor plan to 3,771 lb¹ in the roomiest. Water uses it up quickly: a gallon weighs 8.34 lb⁸, so the average fresh tank of 47.1 gallons¹ holds about 393 lb¹ when full. That is close to a quarter of the average cargo allowance before any food, gear or propane goes aboard.

Coupler height

In our sample, the average travel trailer tongue height, the height of the coupler that drops onto the hitch ball, is 21.5 in¹ (0.55 m¹) across the 68 floor plans¹ whose makers publish it. It ranges from 18 in¹ to 28 in¹, and the two makers that list it differ by about 3 in on average, 19.6 in¹ for one and 23.0 in¹ for the other. That difference decides how far a hitch has to drop or rise to keep the trailer level.

Tow ratings

In our sample of 130 floor plans, the average tow weight of a travel trailer, read as the weight a tow vehicle has to be rated for, is the loaded weight, and the safe planning figure for it is the GVWR: 7,442 lb¹ on average. Measured that way, a 7,500-lb tow rating covers 64 of 130¹ current floor plans at their full rating (49.2%¹). A 5,000-lb rating covers 23¹ (17.7%¹), a 10,000-lb rating covers 115¹ (88.5%¹), and only a 13,500-lb rating covers all of them.

Height

In our sample of 128 floor plans with a listed height, the average travel trailer height is 127.2 in¹, or 10 ft 7 in¹ (3.23 m¹), measured to the top of the roof air conditioner or the tallest standard fitting. On the 52 floor plans¹ that list the body height both without and with the air conditioner, the body averages 122.3 in¹ and 131.1 in¹ with it, so the roof unit adds 8.8 in¹ on average. Most floor plans stand between 10 ft and 11 ft 7 in, 89 of 128¹ of them. Counted another way, 53¹ (41.4%¹) stand 11 ft or taller, and the tallest reach 143 in¹, or 11 ft 11 in.

No federal rule limits vehicle height; states set their own, and most limits fall between 13 ft 6 in and 14 ft.⁹ At 13 ft 6 in, which is 162 in¹, the tallest floor plan still has 19 in¹ to spare and the average one 34.8 in¹, close to 2 ft 11 in. Height also sorts the product lines: the lowest line averages 108 in¹, 9 ft, and the tallest 142.7 in¹.

Inside

In our sample of 130 floor plans, the average travel trailer interior height is 79.8 in¹, about 6 ft 8 in¹ (2.03 m¹), and it varies far less than the outside: from 76 in¹ to 85 in¹ across all 130 floor plans. The gap between the outside and the inside, close to 4 ft on the average floor plan, is the floor, frame and wheels underneath and the roof with its air conditioner above.

Height is fixed on the road; width changes the moment the trailer is parked.

Width

In our sample of 130 floor plans, the average width of a travel trailer is 95.8 in¹ (2.43 m¹) with the slide-outs closed, and the typical body is exactly 8 ft: 86 of 130¹ floor plans measure 96 in. Another 14¹ are narrower and 30¹ wider, the widest bodies at 101.5 in¹ to 102 in¹.

That upper end is the legal ceiling. On the National Network of highways, no state may set a width limit other than 102 in¹⁰ (8 ft 6 in, 2.59 m¹), except Hawaii, which keeps 108 in¹⁰, and anything wider needs a state permit.¹⁰ The average body leaves 6.2 in¹ of that allowance unused.

Slide-outs

Slide-outs change the picture once the trailer is parked. In our sample, the average width of a travel trailer with a slide out is 135.9 in¹, or 11 ft 4 in¹ (3.45 m¹), across the 42 floor plans¹ with a slide whose makers publish the extended width. The slides add 39.5 in¹ to the body on average, and the widest floor plan opens to 171 in¹, 14 ft 3 in. Fully extended, these floor plans average 33.9 in¹ wider than the road limit, so slides are opened only once the trailer is parked.

Slide-outs are now the norm. Of the 54 floor plans from the two makers that list a with-slides width, 42¹ (77.8%¹) have at least one slide. In full-year 2025, 69.16%¹¹ of all conventional travel trailers shipped to dealers had slide-outs, against 97.80%¹¹ of fifth-wheel trailers, 19.40%¹¹ of truck campers and 2.05%¹¹ of folding camping trailers.

Length

In our sample of 128 floor plans with a stated overall length, the average travel trailer length is 330.4 in¹, or 27.5 ft¹ (8.39 m¹), measured overall from the hitch coupler to the rear bumper; the median is 335.5 in¹, about 28 ft. Floor plans run from 16.25 ft¹ to 40.3 ft¹. The two most populated bands are 20 to 23.9 ft, with 38¹ floor plans, and 28 to 31.9 ft, with 39¹; only 11¹ are 36 ft or longer. Because a model's name often quotes the shorter box length, the overall length on the spec sheet is the one to check against a campsite, a driveway or a storage space.

From one floor plan to the whole market: how many of these trailers are built, and where they go.

How many travel trailers are built

Conventional travel trailers are the bulk of the RV business. Makers shipped 232,530¹¹ of them to dealers in the US and Canada in 2025, 67.9%¹¹ of the 342,220¹¹ RVs of all types, and 5,101¹¹ fewer than the 237,631¹¹ of 2024. Shipments are counted when units leave the factory for a dealer, so they measure production for sale, not retail sales or registrations.

The last ten years were a boom and a bust. Shipments peaked at 423,775¹² in 2021, the high point of the ten-year series, and 2025 was 45.1%¹¹ below it; the low point was 205,408¹³ in 2023. Travel trailers' share of all RVs moved between 65.5%¹⁴ and 71.2%¹¹ with no steady direction, rising, falling and rising again, so the series is shown as a table without a trend line, since a straight line would not describe it.

Shipments also swing within the year. In 2025 the busiest month was March, with 26,482¹¹ units, and the quietest was November, with 14,000¹¹; March shipped 1.89 times¹¹ as many. Both years peaked in spring and slowed in July.

Among all RV types, conventional travel trailers outnumber the next type, fifth-wheel travel trailers, by more than three to one: 232,530¹¹ against 65,632¹¹, or 3.54 times¹¹ as many. All motorhomes together, Type A, B and C, came to 36,029¹¹ units in 2025.

Texas received 9.62%¹¹ of 2025 travel trailer shipments, about 22,369¹¹ units and 1.48 times¹¹ the share of California, at 6.48%¹¹. Florida (4.66%¹¹), Michigan (4.21%¹¹) and Ohio (3.76%¹¹) follow. Canada took 10.20%¹¹, about 23,718¹¹ units, more than any single state. These are dealer destinations, the states where trailers were shipped for sale, not where their owners register them.

The smallest shares went to Rhode Island, 0.04%¹¹, Alaska, 0.19%¹¹, and Delaware, 0.26%¹¹, while Hawaii received 0.00%¹¹. The 50 states together took 89.71%¹¹; Canada took nearly all of the rest.

What the numbers mean when you tow

For anyone matching a trailer to a tow vehicle, the rated weight matters more than the empty one. The average floor plan weighs 5,767 lb¹ empty but is rated for 7,442 lb¹, and just over half of current floor plans need more than a 7,500-lb tow rating at their full rating: 66 of 130¹, against 64¹ that fit within it. For a trailer loaded to the average rating, the 10% tongue-load guideline puts about 744 lb¹ on the hitch.

Brakes are a matter of law as well as physics. Many states require a separate braking system on a trailer that weighs more than 1,500 lb⁷ loaded, along with a breakaway switch,¹⁸ and the lightest floor plan in the sample already weighs 2,515 lb¹ empty. Size limits bite less on the road. The average trailer stands 34.8 in¹ under a 13 ft 6 in height limit, and its closed body is 6.2 in¹ narrower than the 102-in¹⁰ width limit; with its slides open it is far wider, which only matters once it is parked.

Conclusions

1. The spec-sheet weight is the lightest. In our sample, 130 current floor plans average 5,767 lb empty but are rated for 7,442 lb, a cargo allowance of 1,675 lb, and a full fresh tank alone takes about 393 lb of it.^{1 8}
2. Length predicts weight, roughly. In our sample, about 3,000 lb per 10 ft holds across the range, yet the average 27-ft floor plan (5,341 lb) is lighter than the average 26-ft one (5,489 lb), so the floor plan matters more than the last foot.¹
3. Law sets the width. In our sample, 86 of 130 bodies are exactly 96 in wide, all within the 102-in limit. On the floor plans that list both, the roof unit adds 8.8 in; the average tallest height is 10 ft 7 in, 34.8 in under a 13 ft 6 in limit.^{1 10}
4. Half need a big tow rating. In our sample, only 64 of 130 floor plans fit within a 7,500-lb rating at their full GVWR, and 23 within 5,000 lb.¹
5. Slide-outs are standard. Conventional travel trailers were 67.9% of all RVs shipped in 2025, and 69.16% of them had slide-outs; floor plans with slide-outs from the two makers that publish it open to 11 ft 4 in on average when parked.^{11 1}