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The safest trucks for 2026: Work hard, stay safe
Ford F-150, Ram 1500, and Chevrolet Silverado don’t qualify
By Alex Leanse, Writer
Illustration by MotorTrend Staff
Photographer: Ryan Lugo
Date: April 09, 2026
While many pickup trucks are engineered with a focus on size, strength, and durability, providing inherent safety advantages, this does not guarantee that every truck is safe. Only a select few stand out as the safest pickups for crash prevention and protection in evaluations by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).
IIHS has updated its testing methodologies, and as a result, only two trucks have earned the 2026 Top Safety Pick+ designation—the highest possible rating. In addition, two other new trucks still meet the 2025 testing criteria to secure the second-best Top Safety Pick designation. We list these models below, including their corresponding scores on the NHTSA five-star scale.
2026 Toyota Tundra TRD Pro
2026 Toyota Tundra
In the category of traditional pickup truck performance, the Toyota Tundra trails its competitors in ride refinement, all-terrain capability, and towing and hauling capacity. However, its main full-size truck rivals do not offer the same level of safety assurance. The Tundra retains several strengths, such as a spacious interior, a robust twin-turbo V-6 engine with available hybrid assistance, a configurable gauge cluster, and a muscular exterior design.
In the Crew Cab configuration, the 2026 Toyota Tundra achieves IIHS Top Safety Pick status and a five-star overall safety rating. The smaller Extended Cab earns the top “Good” score in various crashworthiness tests but is not rated by NHTSA. All models come equipped with Toyota Safety Sense 2.5, a suite of driver-assist and active safety features that includes front automatic emergency braking, lane keep assist, adaptive cruise control, road sign recognition, and automatic high beams. Higher-end Tundra trims also add blind-spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert with trailer coverage.
Read Our Experts’ Full Toyota Tundra Review
2025 Hyundai Santa Cruz XRT
2026 Hyundai Santa Cruz
While some may argue that it is not a “true” pickup truck, the unibody-based Hyundai Santa Cruz might be the ideal choice for certain drivers. Its blend of crossover driving dynamics with truck bed utility makes the Santa Cruz a practical companion for daily commuting, weekend adventures, and home improvement projects. Within the compact pickup segment, the Ford Maverick offers better capabilities, but it does not achieve the same high safety scores as the Santa Claus.
The 2026 Hyundai Santa Cruz receives IIHS 2025 Top Safety Pick status and an overall five-star rating from NHTSA. Its standard safety and assist features include front automatic emergency braking, rear and side cross-traffic alert, lane keep assist, blind-spot monitoring, and automatic high beams.
Read Our Experts’ Full Hyundai Santa Cruz Review
2024 Tesla Cyberbeast
2026 Tesla Cybertruck
With its angular, stainless-steel exterior, the Tesla Cybertruck looks like it could pose a safety risk if drivers aren’t careful. However, occupants are very well protected inside the vehicle, as the 2026 Cybertruck earns Top Safety Pick+ status and a five-star overall rating. This pickup truck remains unconventional in its design but offers clever storage solutions, a comfortable ride, and excellent handling, partly due to its all-wheel steering system.
Like all Tesla vehicles, the Cybertruck is equipped with numerous driver-assist and active safety features, such as front automatic emergency braking, obstacle-aware acceleration, lane departure warning, lane keep assist, blind-spot monitoring, adaptive cruise control, and a rain-sensing windshield wiper (singular). Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (Supervised) technology is available at an additional cost.
Read Our Experts’ Full Tesla Cybertruck Review
2025 Rivian R1T Dual
2026 Rivian R1T
Combining luxury, off-road capability, and sporty performance, the Rivian R1T is an electric truck that promises to delight drivers with a unique ownership experience. It also functions effectively as a pickup truck, offering lifestyle-oriented utility, innovative storage solutions, and solid towing capacity. The range and charging performance are also strong, regardless of which of the available powertrains is equipped.
The 2026 R1T earns Top Safety Pick status using IIHS’ 2025 criteria. Standard active safety and driver-assist features include automatic emergency braking, rear cross-traffic alert, blind-spot monitoring, lane keep assist, adaptive cruise control, and automatic high beams. Rivian continues to advance its self-driving technology, utilizing the R1T’s array of cameras, sensors, and redundant controls to ensure driver safety and performance.
Read Our Experts’ Full Rivian R1T Review
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