The Under-$50 Stuff Actually Worth Putting in Your F-150

Most of what we cover on this site costs three or four figures. This guide is the other end: the cheap stuff that earns its keep in an F-150 every single week. None of it adds horsepower. All of it makes the truck easier to live with, and none of it should cost more than about fifty dollars.

One thing before the list. F-150 beds come in three lengths, roughly 5.5, 6.5, and 8 feet, and cabs come in three sizes. Almost everything below is sized to one or the other, so check the listing's fitment notes against your cab and bed before you order. That is the whole trick to not returning things.

1. A bed mat

The 2015-and-newer F-150 bed is aluminum, and an unprotected bed collects dents and scrapes from anything heavy that slides. A thick rubber bed mat is the cheapest insurance in this guide. Buy the one cut for your exact bed length, not a universal roll you trim. Shop F-150 bed mats on Amazon

2. Front floor liners

Not the carpet-style mats, the molded trays with a raised lip. West Texas mud, spilled coffee, and winter slush stay in the tray instead of in the carpet, and they rinse off with a hose. Match the listing to your model year range and cab. Shop F-150 floor liners on Amazon

3. LED bed lighting

The factory bed light is one dim dome. A strip kit that runs under the bed rails turns the whole box usable after dark, which matters the first time you are strapping something down at 9 pm. Look for a kit with a switch and a fused connection. Shop truck bed LED light kits on Amazon

4. Ratchet straps that are not junk

The four-pack at the checkout aisle stretches and frays. A set rated with a real working load limit printed on the label, with coated hooks, holds a generator or a dresser without drama. Two long, two short covers most jobs. Shop ratchet tie-down straps on Amazon

5. An OBD2 scanner

When the check engine light comes on, a $25 Bluetooth scanner tells you in two minutes whether it is a loose gas cap or a misfire worth a shop visit. It reads the code, you look the code up, and you walk into the shop already knowing the conversation. Shop Bluetooth OBD2 scanners on Amazon

6. A tailgate assist strut

The F-150 tailgate is heavy, and on trims without the factory damper it free-falls the last foot. An assist strut is a one-beer install that makes the gate lower itself gently instead of slamming. Check the listing's year range carefully, since tailgate hardware changed across generations. Shop F-150 tailgate assist on Amazon

7. A recovery strap and soft shackles

Not for rock crawling, for the day a neighbor is stuck in a bar ditch. A proper kinetic recovery strap with soft shackles lives behind the seat and weighs nothing. Never use the checkout-aisle tow strap with metal hooks for a recovery pull; that is how hooks become projectiles. Shop recovery strap kits on Amazon

8. A phone mount that actually holds

Dash-mounted navigation beats a phone in the cupholder every time. The vent clips die in truck-cab summer heat; the ones that clamp to the dash or screen bezel survive. Look for metal in the arm, not all plastic. Shop truck phone mounts on Amazon

9. Seat covers for the work truck

If the truck earns its living, neoprene or canvas covers on the front seats cost a fraction of what a seat reupholstery costs later. Buy the set listed for your seat style, since captain's chairs and benches take different covers, and check whether your seats have side airbags; good covers have marked seams that let the airbag deploy. Shop F-150 seat covers on Amazon

What to skip

Skip the hitch-mounted cup holders, the stick-on chrome trim, and anything advertising horsepower from a plug-in module. If a $30 part claims power gains, it is selling you a story.

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