How much can a 2026 Toyota Highlander tow?

5,000 lb with the 2.4L turbo gas engine (XLE, XSE, Limited and Platinum) and 3,500 lb for every Highlander Hybrid (XLE, Limited and Platinum). All 2026 Highlanders are AWD.

What is the max towing capacity of the Highlander Hybrid?

3,500 lb on every 2026 Highlander Hybrid grade (XLE, Limited, Platinum), 1,500 lb less than the gas models.

What is the GVWR of a 2026 Highlander?

5,970 lb for the gas grades and 6,000 lb for the Hybrid grades (standard seating). Curb weight runs from 4,376 lb (XLE gas) to 4,595 lb (Hybrid Limited and Hybrid Platinum).

What is the Highlander GCWR or tongue weight limit?

Toyota does not publish a GCWR or tongue weight rating for the 2026 Highlander on toyota.com. Check the owner's manual and your hitch's own rating. Our guidance, not a rule: aim for a tongue weight of about 10% of the loaded trailer weight.

Is the Grand Highlander's towing capacity the same?

Not necessarily. The Grand Highlander is a separate, larger model with its own ratings; this page covers the Highlander and Highlander Hybrid only.

2026 Toyota Highlander Towing Capacity, Payload and GCWR

How much can the 2026 Toyota Highlander tow?

5,000 lb Max conventional towing (2,268 kg)

Not published Max fifth wheel or gooseneck

Not published Max payload

Not published Max conventional tongue load

Toyota rates the 2026 Toyota Highlander to tow up to 5,000 lb (2,268 kg) on a ball hitch in 4 configurations, for example XLE, 2.4L turbo 4-cylinder, AWD. Source: Toyota USA, 2026 Highlander Full Specs, Towing and Weight (toyota.com).

A maximum is one truck, not yours. The rating that applies is the one for your exact cab, bed, engine, drive, axle and packages, and it is printed on the labels in the driver's door opening. Find your row in the table below, then check payload and GCWR as well: a truck often runs out of payload before it reaches its tow rating.

2026 Toyota Highlander towing capacity chart

Conventional (ball hitch) ratings, one row per configuration Toyota prints, grouped where the guide repeats a figure. Pounds are Toyota's figures; kilograms are converted from them.

2026 Toyota Highlander: maximum loaded trailer weight by configuration, conventional hitch
Configuration	GCWR	Max trailer	Needs	Source
XLE, 2.4L turbo 4-cylinder, AWD	Not published	5,000 lb 2,268 kg	GVWR 5,970 lb; curb weight 4,376 lb (standard seating).	Toyota USA, Full Specs, Weights/Capacities, model 6953
XSE, 2.4L turbo 4-cylinder, AWD	Not published	5,000 lb 2,268 kg	GVWR 5,970 lb; curb weight 4,420 lb (standard seating).	Toyota USA, Full Specs, Weights/Capacities, model 6959
Limited, 2.4L turbo 4-cylinder, AWD	Not published	5,000 lb 2,268 kg	GVWR 5,970 lb; curb weight 4,453 lb (standard seating).	Toyota USA, Full Specs, Weights/Capacities, model 6956
Platinum, 2.4L turbo 4-cylinder, AWD	Not published	5,000 lb 2,268 kg	GVWR 5,970 lb; curb weight 4,453 lb (standard seating).	Toyota USA, Full Specs, Weights/Capacities, model 6957
Hybrid XLE, 2.5L hybrid, AWD	Not published	3,500 lb 1,588 kg	GVWR 6,000 lb; curb weight 4,515 lb (standard seating).	Toyota USA, Full Specs, Weights/Capacities, model 6965
Hybrid Limited, 2.5L hybrid, AWD	Not published	3,500 lb 1,588 kg	GVWR 6,000 lb; curb weight 4,595 lb (standard seating).	Toyota USA, Full Specs, Weights/Capacities, model 6966
Hybrid Platinum, 2.5L hybrid, AWD	Not published	3,500 lb 1,588 kg	GVWR 6,000 lb; curb weight 4,595 lb (standard seating).	Toyota USA, Full Specs, Weights/Capacities, model 6967

About the figures.

Toyota prints GVWR and curb weight for each 2026 Highlander but no payload, GCWR or tongue rating. GVWR minus curb weight is not a published payload; use the Tire and Loading Information label on your door pillar.

The Grand Highlander is a different, larger model with its own ratings and is not covered here.

What the Highlander needs to tow its rating

These come from Toyota's own documents, cited in the sources below.

Toyota USA: "All Highlander 2.4-L turbo gas powered models have a 5,000-pound towing capacity." Every hybrid grade is rated up to 3,500 lb.
Toyota USA: "For towing, all Highlander gas models include Trailer Sway Control (TSC)." toyota.com lists Trailer-Sway Control as standard on every 2026 grade.
Toyota brochure: "Before towing, confirm Stop and Start Engine System is disengaged." and "Never tow beyond a vehicle's published towing capacities."

Payload, tongue weight and GCWR: the limits you hit first

Our guidance, not a rule. This is how the ratings above fit together, not a figure from Toyota.

The tow rating is only one of five limits. The trailer's tongue weight sits on the truck, so it comes out of payload along with every passenger and everything in the bed, and it loads the rear axle. The truck and trailer together must stay under GCWR. A truck with a big crew and a full bed can reach its payload or GCWR with a trailer well under its tow rating. Run your own numbers in Can I tow this?, which checks all three at once and names the one you hit first, or work through them one at a time with the payload calculator and the tongue weight calculator.

2026 Toyota Highlander towing capacity in Canada

Matches. Toyota Canada lists a 2,268 kg (5,000 lb) towing rating for the four gas grades and 1,588 kg (3,500 lb) for the three Hybrid grades, all AWD, the same lineup as the US. Source: Toyota Canada Newsroom, Now on sale: The 2026 Toyota Highlander and Highlander Hybrid (Nov. 10, 2025) .

On a Canadian truck the certification label gives GVWR in kilograms, labelled both GVWR and PNBV (Motor Vehicle Safety Regulations (C.R.C., c. 1038), s. 6(1)(e)(i)). The figures to trust are the ones on your own door opening.

Check your own Highlander

Towing capacity by VIN: what a VIN decode tells you, and where your real rating is printed.
Can I tow this?: payload, tongue weight and GCWR checked together for your truck and trailer.
Payload calculator: what is left on your sticker after people, gear and the tongue.
Tongue weight calculator: the target tongue weight for your trailer.
Hitch class finder: which receiver class covers your trailer and tongue weight.
Towing capacity by vehicle: every truck and SUV we have a page for.

Sources

Every document below was opened and read on the date shown. Ratings are the maker's; we have not tested them.

Toyota USA, 2026 Highlander Full Specs, Towing and Weight (toyota.com): 2026 Highlander towing capacity / GVWR / curb weight (lb, standard seating config.) by model code: XLE 6953 5,000 / 5,970 / 4,376; XSE 6959 5,000 / 5,970 / 4,420; Limited 6956 5,000 / 5,970 / 4,453; Platinum 6957 5,000 / 5,970 / 4,453; Hybrid XLE 6965 3,500 / 6,000 / 4,515; Hybrid Limited 6966 3,500 / 6,000 / 4,595; Hybrid Platinum 6967 3,500 / 6,000 / 4,595. Trailer-Sway Control standard on every grade. No payload, GCWR or tongue rating printed. Quoted: "Towing capacity (lb.)" Checked 2026-10-24.
Toyota USA Newsroom, 2026 Toyota Highlander Gets Standard All Wheel Drive Across the Lineup (Sep. 5, 2025): The 2026 Highlander comes in four gas grades (XLE, XSE, Limited, Platinum) and three hybrid grades (XLE, Limited, Platinum), all AWD. Gas models are rated 5,000 lb; all hybrid grades up to 3,500 lb. All gas models include Trailer Sway Control. Quoted: "All Highlander 2.4-L turbo gas powered models have a 5,000-pound towing capacity." Checked 2026-10-24.
Toyota, 2026 Highlander brochure, Info and Disclosures, footnotes 6 and 85: Toyota tells Highlander owners to disengage the Stop and Start Engine System before towing and to never tow beyond a vehicle's published towing capacities; the brochure cites an up to 5000 lb towing capacity for the 2.4L turbo. Quoted: "Before towing, confirm Stop and Start Engine System is disengaged." Checked 2026-10-24.
Toyota Canada Newsroom, Now on sale: The 2026 Toyota Highlander and Highlander Hybrid (Nov. 10, 2025): In Canada the 2026 Highlander gas grades (XLE, XSE, Limited, Platinum AWD) are rated 2,268 kg (5,000 lb) and the Hybrid grades (XLE, Limited, Platinum AWD) 1,588 kg (3,500 lb), matching the US figures. Quoted: "With a 2,268 kg (5,000 lb) towing rating, these Highlanders include Trailer Sway Control to help rein in unwanted trailer movement." Checked 2026-10-24.