Electric trailer jacks and car jacks let you lay back and relax while the machine does all the heavy lifting.
Gone are the days of trying to lift heavy vehicles by manually pumping on a lever or spinning a handle while standing out under the beating sun or pouring rain. Instead, why not have a machine do it easily and efficiently for you?
Electric jacks usually consist of a machine that relies on the battery power of your vehicle to lift heavy vehicles (or trailers) a few inches into the air so you can conduct routine maintenance, change tires, or work on any other aspect of your vehicle.
Whether you are a trailer fanatic or just someone who wants a reliable way to change a flat tire in a pinch, there’s likely a model and brand out there for you.
Here’s our guide to finding the right electric trailer jack for your needs:
Table of Contents
6 Best Electric Car & Trailer Jacks
Best Overall Electric Trailer Jack: Bulldog Reese 500200 A-Frame Power Jack 4000lb
- Lift Capacity: 4000 lbs.
- Lift Range: 22” total travel distance
- Weight: 24.1 lbs.
- High Points: Includes 3 LED lights and override crank, works even if you have a weight distribution hitch system
- Low Points: Large interface. White version shows wear and dirt quickly. No auto shut-off.
Why it’s Our Top Choice:
When we look at electric jacks, we look for raw power combined with versatility and ease of use. The Bulldog Reese brings this capability to the table and then some.
With a quick and easy install, customization options with the drop leg and range, and smooth, quiet lift, this model works consistently and reliably with almost any trailer.
The drop leg can be lowered/raised manually and held in place using the supplied plunger pin kit, which makes quickly extending the jack fast and easy. Once it’s extended, the motor can quickly adjust to the correct height.
What the Experts Think:
This jack is very easy to set up, and takes less than fifteen minutes to do so. It operates quickly and smoothly when tested. It’s a bit more expensive than other options, but is very durable and comes from a quite reputable brand.
Some reviewers point out that the lack of an auto shut-off can drain battery, if you forget to turn it off. You may also need to adjust the placement or get an extra cord to reach your battery or avoid accessories mounted on your trailer.
Features and Considerations
The only real drawback this design has is its slightly larger engine and interface, meaning it can get in the way a bit.
The included LED convenience lights look great, but the lighter version does tend to show dirt and need to be cleaned more often.
If you rotate the head the wrong way, it can interfere with propane tanks, your door, or other features.
Overall, this is a smooth, powerful choice that should last for years to come.
Runner-up Overall Electric Trailer Jack: Lippert 285318 3500LB Power Tongue Jack Black
- Lift Capacity: 3500 lbs.
- Lift Range: 10.75-28.75”
- Weight: 10 lbs.
- High Points: Sleek design, small profile
- Low Points: No included cover, slow lift speed
Why it’s Our Top Choice:
The quiet lifting volume and sleek profile of this device make it a strong contender for best overall. It runs smoothly and quietly without error and is quite easy to install. Moreover, its smaller size makes it easier to work around or store when not in use.
What the Experts Think:
This is another fan favorite, and the slightly lower price point than our number one pick also makes this an appealing choice.
Reviewers largely report quiet, easy-to-use functionality. There can be some inconsistencies in manufacturing/quality control that make the mounting holes line up poorly, but once it’s installed, this is a reliable option.
Features and Considerations
Though strong enough to lift most trailers, this is a somewhat weaker engine compared to other options.
Its main drawbacks include the lack of an included cover, which makes some parts of it feel a bit exposed, as well as its relatively slow lift speed. It does make some noise, but this is only noticeable when fully extended.
Nevertheless, this is still a reliable option and features an easy installation.
Best Middling Electric Trailer Jack: Husky HB4500 4500 lbs. Brute Power Jack
- Weight: 30 lbs.
- Lift Capacity: 4500 lbs.
- Lift Range: 18”
- High Points: Manual crank handle, drop down leg for additional adjustment
- Low Points: Can be difficult to install, lights can be too dim.
Why it’s Our Top Choice:
The best-selling points of the Husky Power Jack are its reliability and smoothness.
This electric trailer jack is designed to be versatile and fit on almost any A-frame. It is adjustable so that it is stable on any terrain. Installation is easy, and it makes working on any hitch a breeze.
What the Experts Think:
This jack is ideal for someone looking for a genuinely good product that gets the job done, but isn’t super fancy.
A little bit of extra knowledge on how the different parts work may help you when using it for the first time.
Features and Considerations:
This trailer jack is tested for up to 4500 pounds, which is almost always significantly more than required to lift a trailer.
It comes with slightly fewer accessories and additional parts, however, including extra electrical connector cables. Moreover, the lighting on it can be a little bit dim, so it often needs a bit extra when working at night.
Nevertheless, it gets the job done and is easy to attach to the trailer. It has unbeatable power at this price point.
Best Heavy-Duty Option: Husky 82022 Super Brute Electric Jack
- Weight: 30 lbs.
- Vertical Travel: 18”
- Capacity: 5,000 lbs.
- High Points: Can support even heavy RVs and trailers, remote operated
- Low Points: Expensive, poor customer service
Why it’s a Top Pick:
The “brute” has a ball screw for easy rolling friction, unlike the sliding friction of standard power jacks. Reducing the friction means that this jack requires less power, makes it quieter, and also ensures the product lasts long.
The large weight capacity will work with most vehicles.
What the Experts Say:
While a jack with this capacity might seem like overkill, if you have a large RV and want something you know you can rely on in the worst driving conditions, this can be a great option.
It’s quieter, more powerful, and easier to use than most of the options on the list.
It is on the expensive side compared to other options on the list. Installation can also be challenging given the design of the remote wiring and how heavy-duty it is. It can also be challenging to track down customer help; they don’t have a strong reputation for assistance.
However, this is still a highly functional, durable, and reliable choice.
Features and Considerations
The brute offers high output LED directional lighting for easy hookups, a “Power Alert” warning system when the remote is activated, a protective storage cover, and plug brackets. It also has a built-in sleep function to reduce remote power draw during garage storage.
The wireless remote works up to 40 feet away and comes with two key fobs for convenient use.
Best Budget Electric Trailer: Jack Quick Products JQ-3500B Electric Tongue Jack
- Weight: 23 lbs.
- Vertical Travel: 18”
- Lift Capacity: 3650 lbs.
- Max Height: 32”
- High Points: Included manual override crank, inexpensive, high lifting capacity
- Low Points: Hard to set up, can be noisy
Why it’s a Top Pick:
For its low price, it’s hard to beat this electric jack by Quick Products. It has the lifting capacity of many other more expensive models and operates reliably once set up.
Additionally, it comes with similar features to other models, including a weatherproof cover, manual crank, and a built-in light.
What the Experts Think:
This is another popular option particularly beneficial for those on a budget (but who still don’t want to crank up their trailer by hand). However, it’s not as well-known as other choices, which may be part of the reason it’s still inexpensive.
This jack’s main drawback comes in its setup. Many people find the process to be more complicated and challenging to get all the wiring to hook up correctly on this machine.
While more expensive machines make it more user-friendly, on this model it is up to you. Once you get it set up, however, you’re good to go.
Features and Considerations:
This model comes with a nice included soft cover to prevent damage.
For some vehicles and trailer combinations, electrical issues can make it hard to get this to work the first time around. Troubleshooting is possible but it may take some effort to track down good customer support.
The motor can be loud and is slower than other options, though again, you won’t have to do any manual labor. It’s strong enough that even long trailers and RVs should be supported.
Runner-up Budget Electric Trailer Jack: RAM Trailer Products EJ-3520-BBX Black Electric Trailer Jack with Drop Leg (3500 lb.)
- Weight: 24.3 lbs.
- Lift Capacity: 3500 lbs.
- Travel Height: 18”
- High Points: includes 7.5” drop leg, has manual override crank
- Low Points: not as durable as other options
Why it’s a Top Pick
This product does just about exactly what it says it does. It is easy to set up and has a respectable lift capacity of 3500 lbs.
Moreover, the drop leg gives it considerable ability to adjust depending on where you need it to be. It also includes a good LED light.
Additionally, this unit is very powerful – probably more so than its rating states – and can handle considerable weight.
What the Experts Think
RAM is a well-known brand, and this is a popular choice. However, some people report that this model, despite being made by a very reputable brand, tends to get stuck occasionally with age and use.
After a few years, you may find the lifting mechanism gets sticky or malfunctions, or that the wiring begins to give out with age.
Though RAM’s customer service is excellent and basic maintenance can keep it running smoothly, it might not be worth the hassle if you will be using it very often.
Features and Considerations
If it does jam, the manual override can still be used as a manual crank. If it breaks, it is usually the electric mechanism, which can jam with heavy repeated strain and use.
The company is known for exceptional and responsive customer service, which is worth something, but still may not be worth it if yours breaks at the campsite or when you need it the most.
Overall, this product is great if you are trying out an electric jack to see whether it will make your life easier or need something you won’t be using frequently. You may want to upgrade to a higher-end product for heavier or more regular usage.
The Complete Electric Car & Trailer Jacks Buyer’s Guide
What to Look For: How to Pick the Right Electric Trailer Jack
Various factors matter to different people. While this is a straightforward piece of gear, the various factors include:
- Durability
- Price
- Capacity
- Noise
- Speed
- Appearance
Some may matter more to you than others, and vice versa for other people. Here’s a quick guide to some ideas to keep in mind while narrowing down your choices:
How big is your trailer?
Trailer jacks are fairly simple pieces of hardware. Most will work on the majority of trailer tongues, as long as there is some form of A-frame or tongue to attach to stably.
If you have a larger camper trailer, or your trailer is very long, this can make it a bit more challenging to hook your electric jack to your vehicle’s battery. You may need to look into an extension wire or buying an additional battery to power your jack.
How much weight do you need to lift?
Similarly, the weight of your trailer will affect the jack’s performance and how heavy-duty of a model you need. Most small cargo trailers, pop-up campers, and small boat trailers will be under the weight limits of the options on the list.
When you get into larger RV territory, or if you have a weight distributor set up, you’ll need to look for a stronger option that can handle the weight. Even if you just think you’ll get close to the limit, it can be worth sizing up, as a more powerful motor often lasts longer, lifts faster, and makes less noise, as well.
How much are you willing to spend?
Most electric jacks run upwards of $150, or as high as $300, with a few outliers on either end. Paying more often gets you better features, such as remote start, automatic shut-off, battery-saving features, or just better weight capacity or durability.
If you’re willing to sacrifice one or more of these, the cheaper options will likely work just as well. Again, jacks are fairly simple hardware and all of the options on this list should do the job, with more or fewer frills. Paying more gets you better quality and durability, and sometimes better convenience, but not necessarily more function.
Is remote use important?
On this list, only the Husky Super Brute offers a remote option – think clicking the trailer jack from your keys while walking back and forth and unloading your vehicle or trailer.
This isn’t a deal-breaker for everyone, but can be a great feature to have, especially since it can be annoying to sit and wait for the slower jacks to reach the appropriate height to turn them off.
Smart-Stop and Manual Overrides
If it can stop automatically, you don’t have to sit there and watch it to turn off when it’s at the right height. Both Husky options on this list have this feature.
You also want to make sure that your jack has a backup plan if the electrical system or automatic mechanism fail – the last thing you want is to get stuck with a jammed jack and a trailer stuck in the air on a trip.
Are speed or noise a concern?
If you’re willing to wait a few minutes for the jack to work, this may not matter to you, but a higher-quality motor will often work much faster, and with less obnoxious grinding and motor sounds.
To get up and go fast, look for a model that will lift quickly, and/or has an automatic drop-down leg which will instantly adjust.
How We Ranked Our List
The things you most want to consider while choosing the perfect jack likely include lift capacity, lift height, durability, safety, and of course price.
Based on these attributes, we’ve created a selection of what we believe to be the top options on the market so that you can pick the jack that most suits you.
Some of the more important features we considered include:
Size
Jacks vary in footprint and dimensions. This mostly makes a difference if you have low clearance, propane tanks, or other features like a rear door that may interfere with a jack underneath your trailer tongue.
Weight
While the weight of most options on this list is negligible when compared with the weight of your trailer, it can make a difference in durability and ease of installation.
Lifting Capacity
Having a higher capacity than you need isn’t necessary. However, if you have a heavy trailer, using a jack rated to less weight, even if it works, will make your motor wear out faster and get you less life out of your jack.
The last thing you want is for your jack to jam in place or stop working in the middle of a trip. Overloading your jack can also get dangerous if it fails.
When creating this ranking, we prioritized higher weight ratings on this list, while still keeping other factors such as price and noise in mind. Here’s a quick comparison:
Lift Range
How high the jack lifts and how fast are both key considerations. This will vary slightly based on your needs and trailer, but we looked for full-height options where possible.
| Electric Jack | Lift Range |
| Bulldog Reese 500200 A-Frame Power Jack 4000lb | 22” total, including 14” lift and extra 8” drop leg |
| Lippert 285318 3500LB Power Tongue Jack Black | 10.75”-28.75” |
| Husky HB4500 4500 lbs. Brute Power Jack | 18” |
| Husky 82022 Super Brute Electric Jack | 18” |
| Jack Quick Products JQ-3500B Electric Tongue Jack | 18”- 32” with drop leg |
| RAM Trailer Products EJ-3520-BBX Black Electric Trailer Jack with Drop Leg (3500 lb.) | 18” plus 7.5” drop leg |
Value
Buying an expensive jack simply isn’t worth it if it breaks immediately, causes damage, or takes hours and hours to install. While we looked for cost-effective options, we prioritized choices we thought provided good value for the money.
How Easily it Fits Onto Vehicle
Electric jacks exist for the sake of convenience. This isn’t worth it if it takes hours of struggle to set up, or the wiring stops working every time you don’t use it for a few weeks.
We considered both installation difficulty and user-friendliness down the road.
Durability
We prioritized options with good durability, protective covers, weather-proofing, and rust-resistant coatings to help ensure you get the most use possible out of your jack.
Smoothness of Lift
Models vary in terms of how quietly and smoothly they lift your trailer – we looked for those that did this as easily and unobtrusively as possible.
Lights
When setting up the jack, or if you need to pull into a campsite at night, you’ll want lights. Models which embed LED lighting make this easier; we prioritized options that have this available.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Can I use a car jack on my trailer?
- There are roughly three kinds of jacks depending on the type and size of your vehicle.
- Scissor jacks are the most budget-friendly option but have the least amount of leverage and as such often have the lowest amount of lift power. However, with modern technology these things can really compete and complete most everyday tasks. Nevertheless, they benefit from being very portable and being fairly quiet while in use.
- Floor jacks are more of your everyday jack. These use hydraulics to lift an object directly upwards. They are more middling in price, but higher-end low profile floor jack models can be more expensive. This is the kind of model you would want if you have a mid-sized SUV or really any other vehicle and want to change tires easily or conduct small amounts of maintenance on your vehicle. These are more versatile than scissor jacks and slightly lighter.
- A-frame/tongue jacks are really designed for trailers. They attach onto hitches or A-frames to lift them directly upwards. These are immensely powerful and are really what you would want if you are looking to make traveling with a camper or large trailer much easier.
In other words, while in theory, you could use a car jack to lift your trailer, the only way to safely and easily do this is with a trailer jack. These are also called A-frame or tongue jacks, all referring to the same thing.
How do jacks attach to the vehicle?
They attach either with a bolt or by welding. The former is much more common for recreational use; it just takes screwing the jack onto your trailer.
They’re also easy to remove for maintenance, to replace, or when your trailer isn’t attached to your vehicle.
Weld-on models tend to be more durable, but will require professional installation. Typically, this would only apply to boating trailers exclusively used for the same purpose.
Should I get a model with wheels?
Most either have wheels or a solid foot which rests on the ground. The main decision here has to do with weight – if you are capable of pushing your trailer around manually when it’s not connected to your car, and you want or need to do so, you can look for a jack that has wheels on its feet.
Make sure that the wheels are large enough to comfortably support the weight of your trailer, or they likely will just jam on the ground instead of serving their intended purpose.
On the other hand, for most people using an electric jack for a heavy trailer they don’t want to lift up with a manual jack, a jack with a solid foot will be more stable and safer to use.
How much wiring installation will I need to do?
This depends a lot on the model you choose. You’ll need to connect the electric jack to a power source – which is typically your vehicle’s battery, or a 12V external battery in the trailer.
You may need to splice some wires to attach the wiring at first, but most models are much more user-friendly now than they were in the past.
You should be aware that electric jacks may continue to draw power from your battery when not in use – so make sure to unplug them to avoid a dead battery when you’re not expecting it.
How can I tell how much weight is on the tongue? How high a rating do I need?
Your trailer jack doesn’t need to support the full weight of your trailer – just the weight distributed on the hitch/A-frame itself. Figuring out how much this is exactly can be challenging, but a good rule of thumb is that you should have no more than 10-15% of the total weight of your trailer on the tongue.
So, provided your trailer is well-designed, you’ve loaded it well, and you know its total weight, you should be able to estimate how much your jack will need to hold.
If you have a weight distribution hitch, your jack will also be lifting part of your vehicle’s weight. This is harder to figure out, but you can always look up your vehicle’s specs and then estimate based on passengers and about half of its total weight.
What does the height mean? Does it matter?
Two measurements matter – first, how far there is between the jack’s “up” and “down” position, and the total height it can give you when fully extended. The former is important for clearance while traveling, while the latter affects how high you’ll be able to lift the trailer bar.
The options on this list should all be full height – 18”, but you may also see smaller jacks which extend only to 10” elsewhere, and these may be sufficient for small trailers and vehicles.
How long should a jack last?
That depends, again, on the quality, and the conditions you’re using it in. If you have a boat trailer and plan to drip salt water all over your electric jack on the regular, it’s a given that you probably can’t expect more than a few seasons of use out of it.
On the other hand, with gentler use and regular maintenance, electric jacks can live as long as your trailer. Look for galvanized, rust-proof materials and weatherproof coverings where applicable.
Do I really need an electric jack?
If you don’t use your trailer that often, it’s light enough to lift easily, or you just don’t want to splurge on an electric jack, you can probably survive without one.
Electric jacks are much more expensive and break easier than manual cranks, but are still often worth it if you travel a lot and/or have a heavy trailer that you can’t lift by hand.
Having the best electric jack for your trailer makes hitching up much easier than hitching up with a manual jack.
This is especially true if you have a weight distribution hitch, since you’re effectively lifting your car AND your trailer by hand every time you want to hook and unhook your trailer.
