Slate Makes It Official: $24,950 for America's Cheapest Truck
The number everyone's been waiting for is here: $24,950. That's the official starting price for the Slate Truck pickup, announced today alongside the opening of preorders. The SUV version — available in Squareback or Fastback body styles — starts at $29,950. Both prices are before a destination fee that Slate hasn't disclosed yet.
At $24,950, the Slate isn't just the cheapest electric truck in America. It's the cheapest truck in America, period. For context, a 2026 Ford Maverick starts at $29,990.
What You Get
Every Slate rolls off the line at the Warsaw, Indiana factory as an identical vehicle: a single-cab, 2-seat, gray pickup truck with a 5-foot bed. No touchscreen, no stereo, no frills. From there, customization is the entire point — Slate is launching with 200+ accessories, and over 80% of them cost under $500. Want color? A vinyl wrap runs about $500 for self-install, or roughly $1,000 with professional installation.
The specs landed with a few notable changes from earlier plans. Instead of the two-battery setup that was previously announced (52.7 kWh standard / 84.3 kWh extended), Slate went with a single 64 kWh lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) battery offering an estimated 205 miles of range (EPA rating still pending). The truck makes 181 horsepower and 195 lb-ft of torque from a single rear-mounted motor, weighs roughly 4,000 pounds, and claims an 8.0-second 0-60 time — though Edmunds says it feels quicker thanks to the instant electric torque. Charging is via NACS at up to 120 kW, with 20-80% in about 30 minutes on a DC fast charger, or a full charge in 4 hours on Level 2 at home.
The truck numbers are surprisingly strong: 1,550 lbs of payload (which actually beats the Ford Maverick's 1,500 lbs) and 2,000 lbs of towing capacity. There's also a 7 cubic-foot frunk with a drain plug up front. The body panels are made of dent-resistant glass-injected polypropylene composite and can be swapped with a screwdriver — no body shop needed.
The SUV Option
Spending the extra $5,000 for the SUV kit gets you a Squareback or Fastback body, rear seats (which reviewers report are surprisingly roomy), rear side airbags, a structural roll-bar framework, and 5-passenger capacity. The hardtop is removable, Wrangler-style. You can order it factory-installed ($29,950) or as a DIY flat-pack for a long afternoon with friends.
How to Order
If you're one of the 160,000+ people who put down a $50 reservation, your preorder costs $250. If you're new, it's $300. Preorder customers will be able to configure their truck with accessories, wraps, and body style before delivery. No dealership visits required — Slate is selling direct and servicing through a network of over 3,000 RepairPal-certified shops nationwide.
What It Means
Slate has been the most-watched startup on this tracker for a reason, and today's pricing validates the hype. The $24,950 price point undercuts every truck and nearly every EV on the market. The switch from NMC to LFP battery chemistry is a smart move — LFP is cheaper, more thermally stable, and better at handling repeated deep charge cycles, which helps explain how they hit this price point. The loss of the extended-range battery option is a trade-off — 205 miles won't be enough for everyone — but it keeps production simple and the price floor low.
Multiple outlets (Edmunds, Cars.com, KBB) published first-ride impressions today, and the consensus is positive: the truck feels more finished than earlier prototypes, the ride quality is solid, and 181 hp feels punchier than the spec sheet suggests. The main knock so far is wind noise at higher speeds, which may improve before production.
First deliveries are targeted for Q4 2026. The factory body shop is complete, the trim line is being installed, and Slate says it's on track. We'll be watching closely.