Spray On For Permanent Protection

Spray on liners often are seen as the premium liner choice. They certainly rank at or near the most expensive. Professional spray on liners provide a custom, finished look since every liner is a custom fit. The liners are after all paint coatings, but it is special paint. The material is a two-part, fast drying paint that contains lots of rubbery texture. The guaranteed durability of the liners is partly due to the thickness of the coating. A typical spray on liner takes almost 5 gallons of liquid paint to do the job

For a permanent liner that's repairable and tough, a spray liner is a great choice.

Plastic May Be Better

That's because the plastic liners are so tough. Thick plastic material used for these is all but impossible to damage. It protects beds from scratches, but the thick liners also cushion impacts and almost completely eliminate dent damage too. Cheaper than spray liners, plus easily changed if it gets beat up or damaged.

Carpet For Padding

Carpet bed liners work especially well under tonneau covers or bed caps. Carpet makes the best bed liners if you need cushioning and if you like non-skid material. Not that carpet liners aren't tough, it's just that carpet is harder to keep clean if the hauling gets grimy.

Roll On For Cheap

You can get the look of a sprayed on liner for a lot less money by doing it yourself. A roll on bed liner looks almost just like a professional version. It's not as durable though, simply because do-it-yourself liners aren't nearly as thick. Though not as tough as the pro version, it may be plenty good enough especially for older pickups that mostly need a freshening up.

What About Mats?

Now here's a deal. Cheap bed mats, either carpet or rubber, can protect as well in some cases as much more expensive choices. In fact it makes sense to put a mat over a more expensive liner just to protect the liner itself. Mats are the cheap liner that protects even better than many more expensive ones.

Truck liners protect truck bed paint and let you use your truck like a truck. Each liner design has best applications. No matter what your budget either, there's a liner to help you protect your truck.