The battle for pickup truck supremacy is not one for the faint of heart. The 2021 Ford F-150 and the 2021 Chevy Silverado have been dueling all year. In fact, the Chevy Silverado and the F-150 seem to have been in constant competition with each other for decades. Luckily, the truck world is loyal, making crossover rare. 

The 2021 Ford F-150 is one of the most useful pickup trucks that has ever been offered, yet Consumer Reports rated it fairly close to the Chevy Silverado. CR recommends neither truck, and that feels strange for such popular models. 

What is the most reliable pickup truck? 

Consumer Reports can be pretty shrewd when it comes to rating vehicles. That is part of its superpower. One of the things that will completely sink an otherwise good vehicle is the predicted reliability score. 

The 2021 Ford F-150 got a 55/100 on CR and might be the best pickup truck of all time. The PowerBoost hybrid version is otherworldly strong and can be ordered with an onboard power generator that is easily the best pickup truck feature since the bed. 

The 2021 Chevy Silverado, on the other hand, scored a 45/100 and is a much more spartan pickup truck. It doesn’t use bells and whistles to attract buyers; it relies on its power and simple utility. The Silverado is a relatively plain truck, but something tells me that is a large part of why its buyers like them. 

The problem is both trucks scored terribly on the ice dagger of predicted reliability. This score is based on the previous 10 years of that model and bases its reliability score on how many issues real owners had with their vehicles. In both cases, the previous 10 years show a bunch of issues for these trucks. 

The 2021 Ford F-150 is the most useful truck on the market

Unlike the 2021 Chevy Silverado 1500, the 2021 F-150 has a pile of killer options and configurations that make it a stand-out pickup truck. The 2021 F-150 didn’t see many dramatic aesthetic changes, but the stuff underneath the bodywork made serious strides. 

The PowerBoost hybrid is not only one of the quickest pickup trucks in the game (outside the Ram TRX and Raptor supertrucks); it has new features that make it a dream work truck. 

We talk about the hybrid power generator option a lot. Not only is it a good idea, but the execution was also phenomenal. This onboard generator can literally power an entire home and won’t drive the neighbors insane with the buzz of a typical gas-powered generator.

The 2021 Chevy Silverado is a solid pickup

Although the F-150 remains the highest-selling pickup truck in the world, the Chevy Silverado is gaining on it. The Silverado has decades of loyalty built between it and its customers.

The strength of the Silverado comes from Chevy’s great power plants. The Silverado has a power plant for every job, from the standard 4.3-liter V6 to the big mamma 420-hp 6.2-liter V8. 

Consumer Reports liked a lot about this truck. The review detailed a comfortable ride, strong motor options, a quiet cabin, and capable handling. The diesel option even gives back decent fuel economy. There is plenty to love about this truck.

Both the 2021 Silverado and the 2021 F-150 are almost great 

Although CR testers found things they don’t like about each truck, the real problem was the reliability. Both trucks have strong, reliable engines. It’s the other stuff that is likely to break. Both got poor marks for body integrity and power equipment reliability. 

Case in point, brand new 2021 Ford F-150s have already had reports of owners finding rust underneath after only months of ownership. However, the F-150 barely squeezed past the Chevy Silverado with a 2 / 5 on predicted reliability versus the 1 / 5 that the Chevy got. 

Truck owners, more than most other vehicle owners, expect their trucks to be rugged and tough. The work that trucks are intended to do requires a lot from them. If they can’t deliver on that promise, buyers might be more hesitant to spring on a new workhorse. In the world of pickup trucks, reliability is king.