The biggest truck in the world, and how big trucks get on real roads
By Evan DavidsonUpdated Sources checked
The answer, measured
"Biggest" can mean tallest, longest, heaviest or the most cargo. We use payload, how much a truck is built to carry, because it is what makers publish in the same way and what a truck is for. By that measure, the BelAZ 75710 is the biggest truck in the world: its maker rates it at 450 metric tons The largest BELAZ mining dump truck as the centre of attractionBELAZ (manufacturer press centre), 2025. Checked 2026-10-11.Open the source.
To make that number real: a fully loaded 18 wheeler on the Interstate tops out at 80,000 lb, or about 36 metric tons, for the whole rig 23 CFR 658.17 WeighteCFR (Office of the Federal Register), 2026. Checked 2026-10-11.Open the source. The BelAZ carries more than twelve of those, in one bed.
How we chose
- Criteria: rated payload, from each maker's own page. Where a maker didn't publish a figure we could check, we left it out rather than borrow one.
- Scope: trucks built for hauling, not one-off show machines. Road-legal records are listed separately, because public-road size is set by law, not engineering.
- Date: checked October 11, 2026. Specs change as makers update models; tell us if one has moved.
The giants, side by side
| Truck | Maker's payload rating | Other published figures | Where it works |
|---|---|---|---|
| BelAZ 75710 | 450 metric tons The largest BELAZ mining dump truck as the centre of attractionBELAZ (manufacturer press centre), 2025. Checked 2026-10-11.Open the source | Maker calls it the highest payload capacity in the world | Open-pit mines |
| Komatsu 980E-5 | 400 short tons (363 metric tons) 980E-5 electric drive mining truckKomatsu, 2026. Checked 2026-10-11.Open the source | 3,500 gross hp; 1,384,500 lb gross | Open-pit mines |
| Liebherr T 284 | 363-tonne class T 284 mining truckLiebherr, 2026. Checked 2026-10-11.Open the source | 605 t gross, 242 t empty; 2,720 kW | Open-pit mines |
Notice how close the second and third trucks are. The haul truck business clusters around a few size classes, sized to match the giant shovels that load them. A truck that's a bit bigger than the shovel's bucket math is wasted space.
How to read these numbers
Metric tons, short tons and pounds. Makers outside the US use metric tons (1,000 kg, about 2,205 lb). Komatsu also quotes US short tons (2,000 lb). The same truck can look bigger or smaller depending on the unit, which is why Komatsu's 400 short tons equals Liebherr's 363 tonnes.
Payload is not total weight. Liebherr's T 284 weighs 242 tonnes empty and 605 tonnes loaded T 284 mining truckLiebherr, 2026. Checked 2026-10-11.Open the source. The truck itself weighs about two thirds as much as what it carries. For an 18 wheeler, the ratio is very different: the tractor and empty trailer are a much smaller share of the 80,000 lb.
"Up to" vs "class." A payload class is a design target. Real loads in a mine are matched to the material, the haul road and the tires.
Why they can't drive on the highway
A haul truck is far wider than a highway lane and far heavier than any road or bridge is built for. On the National Network, US trucks are held to 102 inches wide 23 CFR 658.15 WidtheCFR (Office of the Federal Register), 2026. Checked 2026-10-10.Open the source, and Interstate axle and gross limits exist to protect pavement and bridges 23 CFR 658.17 WeighteCFR (Office of the Federal Register), 2026. Checked 2026-10-11.Open the source. Mining trucks are usually shipped to a mine in pieces and assembled there, then spend their lives on haul roads the mine builds for them.
Why mines want bigger trucks
A mining company pays for every trip a truck makes, in fuel, tires and a driver's time. If one truck can carry 450 tonnes instead of 363, the same pile of rock takes fewer trips. That simple math is what pushed haul trucks to grow over the decades, and it is also what caps them. Tires, haul road width, the shovels that load them and the cost of shipping parts all set a ceiling.
The giants also live by different rules than a highway rig. They run at low speeds on roads the mine grades and waters, they usually never leave the property, and the driver climbs a stairway to reach the cab. Komatsu lists the 980E-5 at 3,500 gross horsepower 980E-5 electric drive mining truckKomatsu, 2026. Checked 2026-10-11.Open the source, close to six times the top rating Peterbilt lists for a highway tractor engine Model 579 specificationsPeterbilt Motors, 2026. Checked 2026-10-11.Open the source.
The biggest semi trucks you can buy
If "biggest" means the most truck you can register and drive on a highway, the answer is a heavy-spec Class 8 tractor. The engine is usually the first thing buyers compare: International lists the LT with a Cummins X15 at up to 565 hp International LT Series specificationsInternational Motors, 2026. Checked 2026-10-11.Open the source, and Peterbilt lists the X15 in its Model 579 at up to 605 hp and 2,050 lb-ft Model 579 specificationsPeterbilt Motors, 2026. Checked 2026-10-11.Open the source. Add a big sleeper, three drive axles and a long frame, and you have the largest everyday tractors on American roads.
The biggest trucks on public roads
On public roads, the record that gets the most attention is length. Guinness World Records lists the longest road train at 1,474.3 m (4,836 ft 11 in): one Mack Titan prime mover pulling 113 trailers in Clifton, Queensland, Australia, in 2006 Longest road trainGuinness World Records, 2006. Checked 2026-10-11.Open the source. It was a record event over a short distance, not a working rig, but working road trains with several trailers do run legally in parts of Australia.
In the US, the biggest everyday trucks are heavy haul rigs. They move transformers, mining parts and wind turbine pieces on state permits, with extra axles to spread weight, escorts front and back and planned routes. These are the rigs that roll on far more than 18 wheels; see types of semi trucks for how axle setups work.
| Measure (US) | Rule without a permit |
|---|---|
| Gross weight on the Interstate | 80,000 lb 23 CFR 658.17 WeighteCFR (Office of the Federal Register), 2026. Checked 2026-10-11.Open the source |
| Width on the National Network | 102 in 23 CFR 658.15 WidtheCFR (Office of the Federal Register), 2026. Checked 2026-10-10.Open the source |
| Semitrailer length | States must allow at least 48 ft 23 CFR 658.13 LengtheCFR (Office of the Federal Register), 2026. Checked 2026-10-11.Open the source |
| Height | Set by each state, mostly 13 ft 6 in to 14 ft Federal Size Regulations for Commercial Motor VehiclesFHWA Office of Freight Management and Operations, 2026. Checked 2026-10-10.Open the source |
Want to see where a heavy load would land on those limits? The truck weight limit checker runs axle weights through the federal rules and the Bridge Formula.
Big, fast and tough are different contests
The biggest truck is a slow one. Mining trucks are built for torque, not speed, and electric drive delivers it; even battery semis rely on the same strength of electric motors, as our electric semi truck guide explains. The fastest semi truck is a lightweight custom build with no trailer. And the truck that keeps running year after year is a third contest entirely, covered in our guide to the most reliable semi truck.
For more oddities and records, see the semi truck fun facts, and for how the semi-trailer itself began, the history of the semi truck. The basics of the everyday rig are in the 18 wheeler guide.
A quick sense of scale
Put a few of the numbers on this page side by side and the gap gets easier to picture. Liebherr's T 284 weighs 242 tonnes empty T 284 mining truckLiebherr, 2026. Checked 2026-10-11.Open the source. A loaded 18 wheeler at the Interstate limit weighs 80,000 lb, about 36 tonnes 23 CFR 658.17 WeighteCFR (Office of the Federal Register), 2026. Checked 2026-10-11.Open the source. So the empty mining truck outweighs six loaded semis before it carries anything at all.
Back to normal-sized trucks
Most of the freight in America rides on trucks that would look tiny next to a BelAZ: 18 wheelers, straight trucks and hotshots. Keeping those trucks loaded is our business. We dispatch 26 ft box trucks and up, find loads that fit, negotiate the rate and bring each one to you. Learn about our truck dispatch service.
Sources: BELAZ, The largest BELAZ mining dump truck as the centre of attraction (2025); Komatsu, 980E-5 electric drive mining truck (2026); Liebherr, T 284 mining truck (2026); Guinness World Records, Longest road train (2006); eCFR, 23 CFR 658.17 Weight (2026); eCFR, 23 CFR 658.15 Width (2026); eCFR, 23 CFR 658.13 Length (2026); FHWA Office of Freight Management and Operations, Federal Size Regulations for Commercial Motor Vehicles (2026).
Questions people ask
CH 01What is the biggest truck in the world?
Measured by how much it can carry, the BelAZ 75710 mining dump truck from Belarus holds the title, with a payload its maker rates at 450 metric tons. Other giant haul trucks, like the Komatsu 980E-5 and Liebherr T 284, sit around 363 metric tons. None of them is legal on public roads; they work inside open-pit mines on purpose-built haul roads.
CH 02What is the biggest truck that is legal on the road?
There isn't one answer, because road limits depend on the country, state and permit. In the US, the federal Interstate limit is 80,000 lb gross with axle limits, and 102 in wide. Heavier and wider loads move every day on state permits with extra axles and escorts. In Australia, very long multi-trailer road trains run legally in remote regions.
CH 03How much does the biggest truck weigh empty?
We don't publish an empty weight for the BelAZ 75710 because we couldn't verify one on the maker's own pages. For a giant we could check, Liebherr lists its T 284 at 242 tonnes empty and 605 tonnes fully loaded. That empty weight alone is more than six times the federal gross limit for a loaded 18 wheeler on the Interstate.
CH 04Is the biggest truck electric?
Many of the largest mining trucks use electric drive: a big diesel engine turns a generator, and electric motors at the wheels move the truck. Komatsu calls the 980E-5 an electric drive mining truck, and BelAZ lists its biggest models under electromechanical transmission. They are not battery-powered like an electric semi.