Who doesn't love a fun pickup truck? Americans buy pickups for a variety of different reasons: towing ability, all-terrain capabilities, and the endless uses with their large cargo bed come to mind instantly. However, it's easy to say safety is a major incentive for new car buyers to pull the trigger on a pickup. By and large, they're the biggest cars on the road, and they've got no plans of getting any smaller. However, as we've seen before, size doesn't always equal safety, and not all pickups are created equal — which is why it's important to look into a truck's safety features.
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) does a phenomenal job of showing us where safety differs car to car, or in this case, truck to truck. Since 1959, the nonprofit has researched the safety of cars on the road and analyzed the safety of modern vehicles and their systems down to the core. They then grade models based on crashworthiness, crash avoidance, and mitigation. This is further divided into ranks: good, acceptable, marginal, and poor. Here are the five safest pickups on the road today, according to IIHS stats.
Toyota's third generation of the full-size pickup, the XK70 Tundra, began production in December of 2021, and has reached a popularity that's usurped the legendary Dodge Ram in market share. The 2025 model year saw a plethora of new options, including a TRD Rally Package with Baja-inspired visuals, increased towing capacity with a Wi-Fi trailer camera, and more. More importantly, it takes the crown as the safest truck on the market for the 2025 model year, earning the IIHS's Top Safety Pick+. It's the only truck on our list to feature a perfect score for safety for all three primary crash tests: getting a "good" rating on the small and moderate front overlaps and side collision.
Only one issue has been recalled for the current-generation Tundra, as possible debris from the factory during engine machining could have caused damage to bearings in the crankshaft. Not a life-threatening fault, but Toyota's still promised to replace the engine in "all involved vehicles" on the house.
When Rivian debuted the R1T and R1S at the LA Auto Show in 2018, it caught many into car culture and the automotive industry by surprise. Firstly, because there was a new all-electric marquee entering the fight...one that wasn't run by Elon. Secondly, because the Irvine-based automaker wasn't going for the space-age people-caring approach Tesla embraced to reel in buyers. Instead, they chose a five-seat pickup and a seven-seat SUV as their launch models.
The R1T and R1S have been a major hit, and their "Gen 2" iterations were launched last year. Despite similar looks, almost everything got worked under the skin, with updated motors and battery packs, a redesigned interior and infotainment system, and other features, with over 600 components upgraded or changed.
That overhaul also includes a brand new suite of safety equipment. Known as the Rivian Autonomy Platform, the R1T's eleven onboard cameras have eight times the megapixels as Gen 1, and are able to see three times farther than the launch model. That's helped get the R1T another year as one of the IIHS's top safety picks for pickups in 2025, with a perfect score on the small overlap front and side crash tests. It remains one of the safest trucks on the road, EV or not.
We somehow found a stranger truck than the all-electric one, although Hyundai swears their Santa Cruz certainly is not a truck. When it debuted in 2022, the Korean marquee branded the Santa Cruz as an "adventure vehicle." Your guess is as good as ours for what Hyundai meant by that, but what we've learned is that it's the ultimate cross between pickup and crossover...the demitruck, if you will.
For its third birthday, a handful of updates came with the 2025 model year. Brand new looks are the headliner, as the Santa Cruz was given a facelift similar to the revamped Tucson. On top of this is the brand new off-road focused XRT, kitting it out with front tow hooks, all-terrain tires, and 18-inch rims. Across all trims is a reworked interior, with a new, larger driver display and infotainment screen.
The Santa Cruz is still one of the safest small pickups on the market, according to the IIHS, which made it one of their top safety picks last year. With a perfect score in the small overlap and side crashes, it's one of the safest small pickups available. Or not. Cause it's not a pickup. Supposedly.
The Second "Yoda" to make the list, the Mexican-made Tacoma shares the throne with the Santa Cruz as the safest small pickups in the market. It's also one of the newest trucks on this list, with the fourth-generation N400 Tacoma starting production in 2023.
Every Tacoma has the same turbocharged 2.4-liter Inline four, but buyers do have the option for the I-Force Max hybrid, with an additional 50 horsepower available for deployment. It's also one of the last trucks to still offer a manual, with a 6-speed box offered in the TRD Sport and Off-Road Trims. Good luck trying to get your hands on one, though...
On top of perfect scores in the small overlap and side crashes, the onboard crash avoidance system stands out, with the IIHS giving perfect scores to front crash prevention for vehicle-to-vehicle and pedestrian safety. All this combines to make the Tacoma one of the safest small trucks for sale, and puts it on the throne with the Santa Cruz as a Top Safety Pick in 2024.
It's not the Silverado, but Chevy's medium-sized pickup that makes our list in the form of the third-generation Colorado. Given the same 2.7-liter straight four seen in the Silverado and donating its mechanics to the GMC Canyon, the Colorado made its third-gen debut early in 2023. New for 2025 is a handful of exterior colors and a new Midnight Edition Package for the Trail Boss, Z71, and ZR2. The package elevates the Colorado with black badging, black rims, and a roof-mounted light.
Although it lacks the same crash prevention capabilities as its mid-size competitors in the form of the Tacoma and Santa Cruz, what the Colorado doesn't have in silicon it matches in structure, getting the exact same scores on the small overlap, moderate overlap, and side crash tests as the Hyundai and Toyota. Headlights are really what put the Colorado at the back of the list, however, as the WT, LT, and Trail Boss all had poor performance ratings. If you can ditch the halogens in the lower trims and go for the LED-equipped Z71 or ZR2, you'll be just fine in the dark with a little more safety.
