4 Trucks Worth Buying Used
Written by
Andrew Lisa
Edited by
Rebekah Evans
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Pickups are powerful but pricey, and as each new model year brings bigger and more expensive trucks, the used market starts to look more and more tempting — but some trucks age better than others.
When buying any previously owned vehicle, the most significant factors are reliability, longevity, depreciation and condition. These are the trucks from each major category that should vault to the top of your shortlist if you’re in the market for a used pickup.
Compact: Ford Maverick
The Maverick earns its place in the proud Ford truck lineage with a reputation for reliability, capability and genuine off-road prowess. Kelley Blue Book (KBB) has crowned the 2025 Ford Maverick with its Best Buy Award for the third year straight.
That’s saying something, considering it’s only been around for three years.
Ford unveiled the small but capable pickup in 2021 for model year 2022, which means the Maverick has spent its entire production run in KBB’s top spot — but there’s another reason its short, three-year history should attract the attention of anyone buying used.
The current model year starts at a hair under $24,000 and KBB reports the fair market value of a debut-year 2022 Maverick at a little under $20,000.
That’s decent savings, but not nearly what buyers might expect to save if they wait until 2025 when the previously owned market will be flooded with original 2022 models coming off their standard three-year leases. The law of supply and demand dictates that an influx of inventory will trigger a drop in prices, particularly since the original lessees of all those gently used Mavericks will have done their second owners a favor by gobbling up the crucial first three years of depreciation.
Midsize: Nissan Frontier
Nissan Frontiers are known as sturdy, dependable, practical pickups that pay back regular maintenance with long spells between trips to the mechanic.
According to Safford Brown Nissan Sterling, drivers can generally expect older Frontiers to go for at least 150,000 miles, while models built in the 2020s are projected to run for closer to 200,000 miles.
RepairPal ranks the Frontier as the No. 1 most reliable midsize pickup, a segment that is gaining in popularity as full-size models grow ever more enormous and expensive. RepairPal estimates that the average annual cost of maintenance and repairs for a Frontier is $470, compared to an average of $548 for midsize trucks and $652 for all vehicle models.
According to CoPilot for Car Shopping, the most reliable model years are 2009-2015. Since CarEdge data shows depreciation plateaus after nine years, the latest model in that range is your best bet. KBB cites the fair market value of an entry-level 2015 Frontier at under $10,000 — $9,581, to be exact. That’s less than half of its original $21,560 price and less than one-third of the $30,050 you’d pay for a brand-new 2025 model.
Full-Size: Ford F-150
The Ford F-150 has been America’s best-selling vehicle for so long that it has become the country’s unofficial vehicular avatar. The Chevy Silverado, on the other hand, is a proven and reliable American classic.
Naturally, they both find their way to the top of many lists that rank the best full-sized pickups to buy used.
There are plenty of arguments in favor of both, including power, payload, towing capacity, durability, tech and safety features.
But buyers searching for previously owned trucks — particularly those seeking gently used late models — might be better served focusing on depreciation.
The current model year F-150 starts at $38,710, compared to $37,000 for the Silverado. However, that fairly negligible gap quickly widens in the other direction as the Ford sheds its value while the Chevy retains its own.
According to CarEdge, a $58,840 F-150 will forfeit more than half its value in just five years and lose $31,682 to depreciation along the way. It loses more than 21% of its value in the first year alone. A Silverado with the same original price will hold nearly 63% of its value and shed just $21,865 over five years.
In short, a new F-150 is a little more expensive than a new Silverado, but in a few years, the used Ford will be a whole lot cheaper.
Heavy Duty: Ram 2500
Car and Driver has consistently ranked the Ram HD line at the top of the list of heavy-duty trucks with outsized power designed for big jobs.
A brand new Ram 2500 starts at $45,250, which is out of reach for many buyers, despite the Ram justifying its price with 410 horsepower, 850 maximum diesel torque and a towing capacity approaching 20,000 pounds.
According to CarEdge, Ram 2500s lose roughly 20% of their value in the first year of ownership and then creep down until they’re worth half as much after year seven. That puts the sweet spot around model year 2018. According to KBB, the low end of the fair market value spectrum for a 2018 Ram 2500 is just over $21,000 — roughly the same as a comparatively wimpy used Ford Maverick.
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