Variety of Tonneau Covers: Hard and Soft Tonneaus, Fiberglass, Retractable & More

Learn More about Tonneau Covers & Accessories

Whether you need a soft or hard tonneau cover, a tonneau lighting system, or any other truck bed accessories, you've arrived.  Tonneau covers take a lot of abuse.  At work, at play, and over all the miles in between, your tonneau deals with the rain, snow, and wind so the contents of your bed can stay dry and secure.  That's why you need a tonneau tested to take all the punishment it's dealt.  When it comes to caring for your tonneau cover and outfitting it with the high-tech, durable accessories you need to get the job done, we've got everything from bed-lighting systems to integrated toolboxes to tailgate seals.  Our brands are battle- and road-tested for maximum quality and durability, and all of them offer affordable, stylish tonneau solutions.

Most Common Tonneau Cover Question

Hard Tonneau or Soft Tonneau Cover?... Don't forget Retractable Tonneau Covers!
This question isn't as easily answered as in years past. Manufacturers today have blurred the lines between traditional hard tonneau covers and soft tonneau covers by integrating unique designs, advanced materials and clever engineering. The question also excludes a third type of tonneau; the retractable tonneau cover. To provide a basic overview, and a bit of history, here are the advantages and benefits of the different types of truck bed covers available today:

Hard Tonneau Covers

Hard tonneau covers are generally the most secure type of tonneau cover and provide the most strength but are heavy and cumbersome (especially traditional fiberglass tonneau covers). This means that truck owners that need to make use of their entire bed often, and the airspace above the rail, need to call in a favor from a buddy and clear out adequate space in the garage to carefully remove the bulky fiberglass truck bed cover and store it until it will be reinstalled.

We've come a long way, however, from the original fiberglass tonneau covers of the past. Here are the most common types of hard tonneau covers available today:

TRADITIONAL HARD TONNEAU COVERS:
Hard tonneau covers for pickup trucks are often considered the best looking of all bed covers and, because they are usually made of fiberglass or hard plastic composites, can usually be painted to match the color scheme of your truck. They typically mount at the back of the bed, closest to the cab, with heavy duty hinges. Gas shocks provide lift assistance as the bed cover is opened in the much the same way as a car's trunk lid. Well designed hard bed covers enhance the body lines of the truck can appear factory installed. Keyed locks and durable materials make them a popular choice for security conscious truck owners.

FOLDING TONNEAU COVERS:
Hard tonneau covers that fold in multiple locations are becoming more popular and many different models are now available. Folding tonneau covers offer easier access to all areas of the truck bed than solid hard tonneau covers and even make it possible to fill a portion of the bed above the rail without removing the tonneau cover.

RETRACTABLE HARD TONNEA COVERS:
Retractable hard tonneau covers strike a balance between the terrific bed access provided by soft tonneau covers and the security of hard tonneau covers. All of this function, however, often is at the expense of appearance. While retractable bed covers are always "flush mount" (flush with the rails and with a flat surface) they lack the sleek lines of traditional hard covers. The solid, sculpted top of a traditional hard truck bed cover is replaced by "slats" and some kind of box at or near the cab. The box is the storage container in which the slats roll up when ordered to do so, either by spring assisted human power, or full electric power (something that provides a certain amount of elegance in and of itself. There is something wonderful about pressing a button and watching your truck bed cover disappear, especially when your hands are full).

LIGHTWEIGHT HARD TONNEAU COVERS:
Some companies are now manufacturing hard bed covers from advanced composites making them extremely lightweight and thus much easier to remove, even by a single person. While most composite tonneau covers offer an unpaintable factory finish and/or texture there are a few paintable composites on the market.

Soft Tonneau Covers

Soft tonneau truck bed covers, sometimes called "roll-up bed covers", are extremely versatile. They don't fall as neatly into specific types or categories as do hard tonneau covers so we we'll provide an overview of the various design styles in a more organic fashion here.

Companies have had many years to find creative ways of improving designs to accommodate the variety of uses that owners put their soft bed covers through. Soft tonneau covers are typically comprised of an aluminum frame, a tarp, made of heavy duty vinyl, and aluminum bows to provide structure. The frame typically mounts to the bed rails with some variety of clamp system and the tarp is then secured to the frame with either snaps, "peal and seal" systems (a sort of plastic tongue and groove system), or hook and loop (Velcro).

The tarp is typically rolled up and secured close to the cab to allow for quick and complete bed access. In some models the bows roll with the tarp and in others the bows must be removed and stored separately. The quick bed access provided by soft tonneau covers make them popular among those that regularly use all of their bed and/or transport items that are taller than the rail of the truck bed. Temperature plays a critical role, however. The tarps all tend to expand and contract with temperature swings which can make securing them, especially with snaps, difficult. Of the three most common varieties of securing mechanisms the snaps tend to be the most fickle, the peal and seal is less so and the hook and loop the most forgiving.

Some companies also offer soft tilt open and folding truck tonneau covers. These provide quick bed access as the tarp does not have to be removed and reinstalled each time the bed is used. They borrow hinge systems and gas strut lift assistance from their hard tonneau cousins but can usually be more quickly removed and stored in a much smaller space (after being broken down) than a solid or folding hard tonneau cover. Again, security and appearance are the two primary differences between these truck tonneau covers.