8 Truck Bed Accessories That Pair Perfectly with BAK Tonneau Covers

Having a reliable truck is crucial for all lifestyles and occupations, and accessorizing your ride is just as important. Drivers personalize their trucks with helpful add-ons like trailer hitches, bedliners, racks, carriers, toolboxes, and cross bars to fit their needs. Before they get to all the extra bells and whistles, though, one of the most popular accessories for commercial and everyday pickups is a tonneau cover. These handy covers keep dirt and mud out of the bed and secure items for travel or hauling.

BAK Industries is a heavyweight contender in the tonneau cover market, with multiple covers built to suit all types of truck owners. From the BAKFLIP hard-folding covers, to quality rolling and retractable models, the manufacturer covers everything from a quick day trip to the beach to a long day on the job site.

What’s more, BAK’s line of tonneau covers is compatible with most of the other essential truck bed accessories drivers need for a truly personalized and customized setup. Keep reading for a breakdown of some popular categories that play well with BAK’s covers.

Fifth-Wheel & Gooseneck Trailers

The RV lifestyle exploded over the past couple of years, with veteran and new owners scooping up every teardrop, fifth wheel, and travel trailer in sight from 2020-2021. And while some experts see the numbers leveling off compared to what they were during the peak of a socially-distant summer, it’s still a popular pastime for lots of Americans.

BAK’s tonneau cover is fifth-wheel friendly, making it a perfect companion to a camping setup. The covers offer plenty of protection for your tents, coolers, blankets, camping grills, and other essentials for the campsite. Since no one likes a soggy camping experience, there’s a set of EPDM seals on the cover to shield all the gear in the bed, whether it’s a light sun shower or pummeling overnight monsoon.

BAK’s tonneaus also offer a hefty amount of weight capacity. Some models, like the F1 tonneau, can hold up to 400 evenly-distributed pounds. If you need a clean, flat surface to set aside a few pieces of gear while you get settled into your campsite for the night, you’ll have one at-the-ready with BAK.

Outdoor Recreation Accessories

Maybe your idea of hitting the outdoors means really immersing yourself in nature. If that’s the case, BAK’s tonneaus also pair well with other components, perfect for hitting the mountains, river, or canyon.

A couple standout items include:

• Kayak carriers:  BAK offers a unique kayak cradle for its CS rack for more accessible transport.
• Rooftop Tents, ski racks, bike racks, and cargo baskets: Some brands like KB Voodoo offer hi-rise cross bars, perfect for outdoor essentials like these.

Overlanding Racks

There’s “roughing it,” and then there’s REALLY roughing it. Overlanders generally want the best in outdoor gear, and BAK’s tonneaus offer the durability required for living off the grid for extended periods in challenging conditions. Pair them with Overlanding essentials like the Putco Venture TEC Rack, a fully compatible rack for BAK covers with most trucks. (NOTE: Double-check your truck make and model for compatibility. Some Venture TEC Racks – like Toyota Tacoma & Jeep Gladiator – won’t work with a tonneau since they mount on the inside of the bed.)

The TEC rack’s 6061 T6 aluminum construction and 1,000-pound static weight capacity combined with BAK’s weatherproof, reliable build makes for the perfect combo to unplug and head off-road.

Bedliners

Securing what you have in your truck bed is vital, but equally important is preserving the life of the truck bed itself. One of the best ways to get more years out of a truck bed is with a bedliner, whether that’s a drop-in, spray-on, or BedRug-style liner.

These handy accessories protect from wear that happens easily over time, with heavy items sliding in and out of the bed and dirt or dust that might sneak in while the tonneau is open.

The BedRug line of bedliners, in particular, gives drivers an easy-to-install, durable option to protect the bed from all types of abuse, stains, and skids. Plus, BAK’s tonneaus work with several aftermarket bed rail caps that were not equipped by the factory.

These liners are easy to clean, even with volatile substances like oil or battery acid. They are stain and UV-resistant too, so they’ll stand up to the harshest conditions. And they feature an anti-skid surface, so anything you’ve got in the bed will stay in place and won’t roll around with those bumpier roads or sharper turns. Best of all, these liners install easily with BAK’s tonneaus for a complete internal and external bed protection package.

Headache Racks

While they’re typically associated with work trucks, headache racks are a fantastic addition to any truck since they provide more tie-down points, rear windshield protection, and installation points for additional components like sport lights.

For performance-ready racks, look no further than BACKRACK. Built by BAK’s sister company, these heavy-duty racks pair perfectly with BAK tonneaus. The manufacturer makes hardware to install the cab guards with its tonneaus and even has a “build my rack” tool, so drivers can quickly determine which rack to pair with their tonneau.

Contractor & Overhead Racks

BAK offers a set of rack-integrated covers for tonneau users who want the utmost security and reliability for work trucks. The BAKFLIP CS (Contractor Series) features a racking system compatible with its F1 or G2 tonneaus with plenty of tie-down points for everything from ladders to piping and lumber.

If you need an all-in-one solution, there’s also the BAKFLIP CS Tonneau Cover and Rack, a complete system that features the racking and cover in a single set. Along with a convenient no-drill installation, there’s a key locking tailgate for the cover to secure high-value goods like power tools.

Work Truck Accessories

Work truck accessories for BAK tonneaus don’t end at racking. Other options on the market give drivers the chance to customize their job truck further with other add-ons.

Some standouts include:

• Ladder Racks: Thule TracRac SR is compatible with the BAKFLIP MX4, perfect for hauling ladders to the jobsite.
• Toolboxes: If you need a bit more organization inside the bed to keep tools from jostling around, BAKBox2 is the best option. Designed to pair with BAKFlip truck bed covers for a perfect fit, it helps keep your truck bed organized, so you always know where everything is.

Off-Roading Fun

Okay, maybe off-road vehicles aren’t really a “truck bed accessory,” but they’re a popular toy for scores of Americans who like to take that driving experience onto the windy roads and dirt paths. BAK’s rolling and folding covers make the perfect companion for any driver looking to pair a tonneau with their favorite two-wheeled or four-wheeled ride. In fact, if you need to haul motorcycles or ATVs, all you need to do is roll up the cover close to the cab, and you’re ready to go.

Whether you’re looking for a sturdy option to protect your tools in harsh UV sunbelt areas, guard your camping gear against a heavy-duty hailstorm, or simply secure your truck bed with a BAK cover that turns your truck bed into a lockable storage compartment, you’ll find a tonneau that fits your racking and lifestyle needs with BAK Industries.