{"id":29289,"date":"2023-02-11T15:24:03","date_gmt":"2023-02-11T22:24:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/movinginsider.com\/?p=29289"},"modified":"2023-09-07T08:06:42","modified_gmt":"2023-09-07T15:06:42","slug":"what-size-hitch-ball-do-i-need-for-my-trailer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/blog\/2023\/02\/11\/what-size-hitch-ball-do-i-need-for-my-trailer\/","title":{"rendered":"What Size Hitch Ball Do I Need For My Trailer?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/Untitled-design-3-1024x1024.png\" alt=\"hitch balls\" class=\"wp-image-55179\" style=\"width:416px;height:416px\" width=\"416\" height=\"416\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/Untitled-design-3-1024x1024.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/Untitled-design-3-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/Untitled-design-3-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/Untitled-design-3-768x768.png 768w, https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/Untitled-design-3-640x640.png 640w, https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/Untitled-design-3.png 1080w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 416px) 100vw, 416px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Choosing The Right Hitch Ball<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The journey of finding a&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/MovingSupplies\/1\/Ball-Mounts\/?utm_campaign=uhaulsm&amp;utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=hitch&amp;utm_content=20230906-whatsizehitchball\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">hitch ball<\/a>&nbsp;may seem overwhelming. Because there are different specs, you need to look into them. Let us be your guide to finding the right ball for your trailer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So, the first is knowing that there are only three standard sizes in the United States:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/MovingSupplies\/Hitch-Balls-Mounts\/Hitch-Balls\/2-Hitch-Balls\/?mid=424&amp;utm_campaign=uhaulsm&amp;utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=hitch&amp;utm_content=20230906-whatsizehitchball\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">2 inch<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/MovingSupplies\/Hitch-Balls-Mounts\/Hitch-Balls\/2-5-16%E2%80%9D-Hitch-Ball-With-1-1-4%E2%80%9D-Shank\/?id=18976&amp;utm_campaign=uhaulsm&amp;utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=hitch&amp;utm_content=20230906-whatsizehitchball\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">2-5\/16 inch<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Considering how many different trailers a company like U-Haul offers, you think getting the right size and weight capacity would be tricky. Honestly, it&#8217;s less complicated. All U-Haul trailers use a 1-7\/8&#8243; or 2&#8243; ball. Because of this, you only need to pay attention to weight capacity. Smaller options, like the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/Trailers\/4x7-Utility-Trailer-Rental\/FS\/?utm_campaign=uhaulsm&amp;utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=trailer&amp;utm_content=20230906-whatsizehitchball\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">4&#215;7 Utility Trailer<\/a>, require a 2,000-pound rated ball and the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/Trailers\/Auto-Transport-Rental\/AT\/?utm_campaign=uhaulsm&amp;utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=trailer&amp;utm_content=20230906-whatsizehitchball\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Auto Transport<\/a> will require, at minimum, a 5,000-pound capacity ball. But depending on the total combined weight of the vehicle being towed and the trailer, you may need a higher weight capacity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You can haul any cargo trailer with a 1-7\/8&#8243; or 2&#8243; ball with a 5,000-pound capacity! So, if towing a vehicle, the capacity must equal or exceed the total combined weight being towed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Finding Your Hitch System Rating<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Add-a-little-bit-of-body-text-1.png\" alt=\"Hitch System Rating examples\" class=\"wp-image-55046\" style=\"width:-304px;height:-254px\" width=\"-304\" height=\"-254\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Add-a-little-bit-of-body-text-1.png 940w, https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Add-a-little-bit-of-body-text-1-300x251.png 300w, https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Add-a-little-bit-of-body-text-1-768x644.png 768w, https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Add-a-little-bit-of-body-text-1-640x537.png 640w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 940px) 100vw, 940px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>A hitch system is only as strong as its lowest-rated component. This is why locating your hitch system rating is important. So, to find this, compare the ratings of the hitch, ball, and ball mount (shown above). The hitch system rating is the lowest rating among those parts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Hitch Rating<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>First is the maximum tow weight rating. This can usually be found on a label on the hitch itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Hitch Ball Rating<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Next, find your hitch ball rating on the top of the ball or around the base of the shank.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Ball Mount Rating<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And lastly, the rating for a ball mount is usually on a label on the mounting plate or along the shaft that goes into your receiver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you need more information on how to check the rating of your hitch ball, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/Trailers\/HitchGlossary\/HitchSystemRatingPopup\/?utm_campaign=uhaulsm&amp;utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=hitch&amp;utm_content=20230906-whatsizehitchball\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">click here<\/a>! And for more tips on growing your business, follow us on our social pages:&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/uhaul\">X (formally Twitter)<\/a>,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/uhaul\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Facebook<\/a>, and&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/uhaul\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Instagram<\/a>!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Choosing The Right Hitch Ball The journey of finding a&nbsp;hitch ball&nbsp;may seem overwhelming. Because there are different specs, you need to look into them. Let us be your guide to finding the right ball for your trailer. So, the first is knowing that there are only three standard sizes in the United States: Considering how [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":179,"featured_media":55012,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[497,2740,999,2311,195],"tags":[498,1873,1872,112,505,175,178,184],"class_list":["post-29289","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ask-the-expert","category-hitch","category-towing-trailers","category-trailers-3","category-trailers","tag-ask-the-expert-2","tag-handy-hitch-hints","tag-hitch-balls","tag-moving","tag-moving-tips","tag-towing","tag-trailer","tag-u-haul"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29289","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/179"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29289"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29289\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":57469,"href":"https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29289\/revisions\/57469"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/55012"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29289"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29289"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uhaul.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29289"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}