The truck has been the backbone of America since the 1930s. In 2019, pickups represented over 3.1 million vehicle sales in the U.S., accounting for a little over 20 percent of all vehicles in operation.

Pickups are popular for a number of reasons: they are versatile, can carry a lot of cargo and tow heavy loads, and have high ground clearance to allow them to go off-road.

However, they also come with their own set of safety risks. For example, the lack of airbags in early models meant that there was no protection for front-seat passengers during collisions.

In response to this issue, manufacturers have been adding airbags to their pickup models since the 1990s which led to the development of a wide array of safety features such as automatic emergency braking systems and blind spot detection systems to make them safer than ever before.

In general, safety is the number one priority for manufacturers of pickup trucks. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) imposes strict safety regulations for all new cars and trucks registered in the United States.

When it comes to vehicle safety, many people wrongfully assume that larger vehicles are safer in the event of an accident because of all the extra metal and materials involved. However, that’s not always the case. According to the attorneys at Panish Shea Boyle Ravipudi, a truck’s design language and the safety technologies used in the vehicle have a much larger effect on safety when it comes to accidents.

Although the baseline for safety has been raised over the years, there remains a significant difference in safety between one pickup truck model and another. Some models’ steel bodywork is better able to withstand impacts than others. Here are our findings in the pursuit of finding the safest pickup trucks that money could buy in 2022.

Ford F-150

The infamous Ford F-150 truck is one of the most common trucks on the road today. The truck is the main offering in the F-series pick-up trucks segment from Ford and has been the best selling vehicle in the U.S. for over 40 years.

For the year 2022, the Ford F-150 is number 1 on the list of safest vehicles in the U.S. according to the NHTSA. The truck went through a redesign in 2021 that added additional reinforcements to the frame to improve the protection of passengers in frontal crashes.

With a roof strength that could handle forces of over 27,000 lbs., you can clearly see how the F-150 was designed with safety in mind as a top priority. Those are only a couple out of many reasons why it was chosen as the safest pick-up truck in 2022.

Dodge Ram 1500

The Dodge Ram 1500 comes in a close second to its cousin the F-150. Introduced in 1981, the Ram has been a serious contender for best truck prizes competing against Ford and Chevrolet.

Having won Motor Trend magazine’s Truck of the Year award 8 times including 3 consecutive years in 2019, 2020, and 2021, the Dodge Ram 1500 is one of the best and safest trucks money could buy.

After the freshest redesign in 2019, the manufacturer strengthened the C-pillars of the vehicle frame to better protect occupants. Furthermore, rigidness has been added to the roof that is now able to withstand over 22,000 lbs. of force.

Honda Ridgeline

The Honda Ridgeline is the one and only pickup truck produced by famous Japanese manufacturer Honda. The current model was originally released in 2017, with updated versions coming out annually.

The truck scored exceptionally well in crash tests and was able to get the best rating in all tests except the crash worthiness on the passenger side, the high beam headlights and the ease of use of the child latch which all got an acceptable rating.

Nissan Titan

The Titan is Nissan’s main full-size pickup truck that is manufactured here in the United States. Named after the Titans from Greek Mythology, this truck is meant to be a serious contender to rivals Toyota, Ford, GM, Dodge, and others.

Beginning with the 2020 model, the manufacturer worked on including new airbags surrounding the driver and passengers. Additional changes were made to the vehicle’s structure to deliver a safer, more rigid product.  This helped the truck score great across all factors except headlights because of glare issues.

Chevrolet Silverado

The Chevrolet Silverado is among the best selling trucks in the USA, reaching almost 12 million cars sold so far for just this model. It has been redesigned in 2022, releasing an updated model that has improved in safety, technology, and usability.

The Silverado shares a platform with another infamous American truck: the GMC Sierra. Both trucks scored well in the safety ratings of 2022, with great scores all around except for the passenger side footwell structure safety and the headlights causing unnecessary glare.

Toyota Tundra

The Toyota Tundra pickup truck has been in production since 1999. The Tundra is undeniably one of the best trucks on the road and has won Motor Trend’s Truck of The Year award twice. Additionally, it is the first full size pickup truck from a Japanese manufacturer to be built in the United States.

Being that the 2021 model is largely based on the structural design in use since 2007, the truck is fairly rigid and scored exceptionally well in safety tests except for the foot area for the driver which scored an acceptable score.

Goal & Takeaways

If you’re a truck enthusiast, then you should definitely get acquainted with these vehicles. If you don’t own one yet, the list above can help you buy a safer vehicle if it is in your future. The doors are still open to see some of the most innovative designs and technologies come to fruition in these vehicles in the coming years.

We hope that after reading our list of the safest trucks, you will make an informed decision as to which one you should purchase in 2022. Keep in mind that there is no such thing as a perfectly safe car or truck, but there are ones that are safer than others.