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We examined more than 30 paints, mats, and sprays to help you with your search for the best truck bed liner. These three types of liners were judged according to their unique sets of qualities, but overall, the shortlisted products on our list are highly durable, water or weather resistant, and easily applied or installed. Do you plan to add a new car to your collection? Check out our vehicles guide for the best models.
We placed the Herculiner Kit at the top of our list because its coating is five times thicker than normal bed liner paints. Besides being less prone to peeling and flaking, the paint provides further protection to your truck bed due to its resistance to oils, solvents, and chemicals. This product from Herculiner requires no mixing and comes with two rollers and a hand brush. Keep reading to discover the other excellent features of this roll-on bed liner paint as well as the rest of our highly recommended products.
Award: Top Pick
WHY WE LIKE IT: This dense truck bed liner paint is made of protective polyurethane. It’s a favorite among DIYers because it comes as a ready-to-use mixture, complete with a user’s manual, brush, and rollers.
Produced by automotive and chemicals firm Old World Industries, which was founded nearly 50 years ago, the Herculiner HCL1B8 contains a gallon of polyurethane and rubber granules. Its content can provide two coats for a six-foot-long truck bed.
The liner, which is five times thicker than regular roll-ons, makes the surface of your bed resistant to rust, solvents, chemicals, gas, and oils. Due to its composition, the paint won’t easily chip, flake, or peel. The brush-on product, which leaves a shiny finish, can also be applied on concrete and wood. If you are looking at liners, it might be a good time to check out the best truck floor mats as well.
Award: Honorable Mention
WHY WE LIKE IT: The high-density rubber Dee Zee DZ87005 is backed by cleats underneath and ultraviolet ray protection. The thick and tear-resistant mat mainly fits the truck beds of 2015 to 2018 Ford models.
The 0.375 inch thick mat is made of highly compressed rubber with nylon called Nyracord that resists cracking, abrasions, and fuel spills. And best of it, you just insert it and you’re good to go; no painting or application process.The rubber cleats on its backside make the mat stay put on your truck bed and allow any accumulated water under the mat to drain, preventing rust or mildew from forming. At the same time, its contoured surface helps prevent your cargo from shifting during transport.
The mat can be trimmed to size, but it’s originally designed for 5.5-foot truck beds, just like those of Ford’s F-150 pickup trucks released from 2015 to 2020. The DZ87005 measures 70″ L x 8″ W x 8″ H and weighs 45 pounds. You can compare this to the best truck bed liner mats to see which works for you.
Award: Best Budget
WHY WE LIKE IT: This popular cleated Dee Zee mat is compatible with Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra trucks. Its high-strength rubber-nylon combination makes the product durable, while its surface design ensures that your cargo stays securely in place while you drive.
The Dee Zee DZ86972 is the truck bed liner for you if you own a Chevrolet Silverado 1500 released from 2007 to 2019 or any of these trucks from the GMC Sierra series: 1500 (2007-2018), 1500 Classic (2019), 2500 HD (2007-2011), Denali (2007-2018), and Denali Classic (2019). The 0.375″-thick mat measures 65″ L x 9″ W x 7″ H and weighs 40 pounds.
You get the same thick, patented Nyracord material that keeps your truck bed protected from scratches or dents from cargo. It also features the same cleated backside that the DZ87005 has, as well as the same textured surface, so slippage is minimal to zero when hauling delicate or rough materials. Just make sure you have the best car battery charger so you can haul those materials.
Award: Lightest Heavy-Duty Mat
WHY WE LIKE IT: You get dual protection from the Dee Zee DZ86996 due to the cleated underside and anti-slip surface that the company’s quality mats are known for. Your liner won’t easily break or get damaged due to its Nyracord material, which also prevents rusting.
This mat model, which is just as thick as our other two Dee Zee mats, is designed to fit Dodge Ram 1500s and Ram 1500s released from 2008 to 2019. It measures 65″ L x 9″ W x 7″ H and weighs 37 pounds.
Like the DZ87005 and DZ86972, the DZ86996 is made to last, thanks to its tightly compressed rubber fibers and UV protection. These attributes, along with its rubber cleats, assure you that the DZ86996 is as durable as the two other Dee Zee mats on this list. For another DIY truck bed coating option that’s long-lasting, check out Custom Shop’s Custom Coat Urethane Spray-On Truck Bed Liner Kit. It can tolerate high temperatures, strong UV rays, and wet conditions while protecting surfaces from rust. For the most convenient way to achieve the best results, consider the DIY Kit Packages, where some include either a spray gun or paint roller set to help you apply the coating evenly. Another accessory that you’ll want to check out is the best jump starter.
Award: Best for DIY
WHY WE LIKE IT: Arguably the best professional spray in bedliner, U-POL Raptor’s urethane spray-in paint is fast-drying, UV-resistant, and waterproof. The six-part kit comes with a hardener and spray gun.
Whether you’ll be spray painting for the first time or you’ve had previous experience, this spray-on is fairly easy to apply once you’ve mixed three parts of the Raptor coating to one part of the hardener. The kit comes with four bottles of black base paint, a liter of hardener, and a spray gun.
The “low VOC” or low volatile organic compound level of the spray paint means this product won’t release a large amount of toxic gases that are harmful to the environment.
You’ll enjoy a scratch- and corrosion-resistant surface once your spray paint job is over. The product also helps minimize vibrations and protects your truck bed surface from UV rays. Buyers have found success with this spray-on bed liner working on rubber bed mats, concrete, wood, fiberglass, etc. Overall, this is one of the best bed spray-on liners on the market today, so be sure to check it out online. You can clean it with the best shop cloth and some cleaner. Searching for highly stable tires with a good speed and load rating? Browse our best trailer tires guide.
Our buying guide aimed to provide you with options for the best truck bed liners for each type: roll-on paints, mats, and spray-ins.
Polyurethane paints are the gold standard for truck bed liner roll-ons. They’re not only convenient to apply, but they also protect materials from abrasion, corrosion, and weathering, so they help make your truck bed withstand the elements. Although the final appearance of this type of paint is usually rubberized and opaque, there are polyurethanes that provide a glossy finish.
They’re also scratch-resistant, but the surface where they will be applied needs to be scuffed thoroughly for the spray-on to adhere easily.
And since we didn’t want to limit our recommendations to permanent products, we also looked for the best mats, which are lighter and can be changed more easily compared to molded plastic bed liners. Cleated mats effectively adhere onto your bed liner floor but can be removed for occasional cleaning and to suit your aesthetic preferences.
We also selected the bed liner solutions that you can install or apply yourself. Besides saving on professional fees, you can use your truck sooner and minimize any loss on productivity, especially if you use your truck for business.
Before choosing from the three types of bed liner products, decide on whether you want something more permanent like paint or a removable liner like a mat.
Applying a roll-on (aka a mat) is more economical than a spray product if you don’t have a high-powered air compressor to operate the air sprayer.Meanwhile, using a roller and paintbrush is more time-consuming and labor-intensive.
You may consider buying a mat or rug if you want a non-permanent liner. However, mats or rugs won’t be able to cover your entire truck bed. They will also require regular washing.
Even the best truck bed liners suffer from wear and tear. But you can make them useful for a long time if you follow these steps:
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