Ford will not have a truck contender in the 2027 North American Truck of the Year competition, ending a six-year stretch in which the automaker won or fielded a high-profile pickup in the race. NACTOY jurors are scheduled to compare four trucks in October: the Chevrolet Silverado 1500, GMC Sierra 1500, Ram 1500 TRX SRT, and Slate Truck.

The four pickups are part of a broader group of 25 “Best of 2027” contenders selected from 56 eligible vehicles. NACTOY plans to invite all 25 to its October comparison event, although the organization has not released a confirmed finalist list or a detailed schedule for the awards cycle. It has also cautioned that some contenders may not be drivable when the jurors meet.

The 2027 NACTOY truck contenders

This year's field spans a wider range of price, powertrain, and mission than a typical half-ton truck comparison. Slate's electric pickup starts at $24,950 and takes a deliberately basic approach, with crank windows and no factory audio system. The company is accepting orders and building pre-production examples, but availability remains limited.

At the other end of the field is the Ram 1500 TRX SRT. Stellantis lists the high-performance pickup at about $103,000, with a supercharged 6.2-liter Hemi V8 producing 777 horsepower. Its inclusion puts a six-figure performance truck in the same award race as Slate's entry-level EV.

General Motors has two candidates in the initial group. The Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500 represent updated versions of the established full-size pickup formula. Both had to qualify as new or substantially changed to enter NACTOY's pool of eligible vehicles for 2027.

Why Ford is absent

Ford's last NACTOY Truck of the Year win came in 2023 with the F-150 Lightning. The automaker then won the award with the Super Duty, Ranger, and Maverick in successive years. For 2027, however, the current F-150 generation is too old to qualify under NACTOY's rules, having launched for the 2021 model year, and no other Ford truck is considered new or substantially changed.

Ford also stopped producing the current battery-electric F-150 Lightning in December 2025 while it reworked its pickup EV strategy. The company has discussed a next-generation extended-range Lightning for later in the decade, but it has not provided timing for a 15th-generation F-150.

What the field means for truck shoppers

Ford's absence is an eligibility gap rather than a judgment on the F-150's quality. Still, it leaves Chevrolet, GMC, Ram, and Slate with a clearer path to the award in a category Ford has frequently dominated in recent years.

The result will also offer a snapshot of where the truck market is moving. The Silverado and Sierra defend the conventional full-size pickup, the TRX SRT emphasizes extreme performance, and Slate brings a low-cost electric alternative. The winner will be announced after jurors evaluate a field that reflects increasingly different definitions of what a truck can be.