Whether you plan on taking out your UTV on the track once a month or every other weekend, investing in a winch is a great idea. A winch is the kind of device it’s better to have mounted on your side by side than to regret that you don’t have one. It can get you or your friends out of sticky situations. The tricky part is knowing what size winch you should get for your UTV. Here is where I come in.

The golden rule of selecting winches for UTVs is to get one that has 1.5x more pulling power than the four-wheeler’s weight. You can follow the guide below:

While following the 1.5x rule of thumb, you should be able to pick the right winch for your side by side. However, you should try and get a winch with a bit more pulling power because you might need more power when pulling a side by side in an incline or out of the mud.

So, you are ready to invest in a winch? This is a great investment that all offroad riders should make. I know that investing in important gadgets like UTV winches is scary because you want to make the right choice and this is why I will present the best winch power capacity for the top 31 most popular UTV models. Let’s jump into it.

In general, the most popular side by sides weigh in at 1,500 lbs. If this is the case for your UTV, you should invest in a winch with a minimum of 2,250 pulling power. You can find out the weight of your UTV by checking the owner’s manual. The information will be available under the “Specifications” section.

If you bought a used UTV and don’t have access to the manual, you can find the weight by Googling the quad’s make and model. Or you can check out the list I prepared below. Here are the top 31 most popular side by sides and what type of winch is recommended for them.

UTV ModelWeightRecommended Winch PowerCan-Am Maverick Turbo1,399 lbs2,000 lbs pulling powerPolaris RZR S 9001,204 lbs1,800 lbs pulling powerPolaris RZR XP Turbo1,500 lbs2,250 lbs pulling powerCan-Am Commander Limited1,291 lbs2,000 lbs pulling powerArctic Cat Havoc1,755 lbs2,600 lbs pulling powerYamaha YXZ100R SE1,561 lbs2,300 lbs pulling powerHonda Pioneer 1000 EPS1,538 lbs2,300 lbs pulling powerKawasaki Mule Pro1,595 lbs2,300 lbs pulling powerKawasaki Teryx1,543 lbs2,300 lbs pulling powerCan-Am Maverick Max1,585 lbs2,300 lbs pulling powerPolaris General 4 10001,857 lbs2,800 lbs pulling powerTextron Wildcat 4x LTD1,536 lbs2,300 lbs pulling powerCan-Am Defender Max1,287 lbs1,900 lbs pulling powerYamaha Wolverine1,311 lbs2,000 lbs pulling powerCF Moto ZForce 10001,230 lbs1,800 lbs pulling powerCFMoto UForce 10001,520 lbs2,300 lbs pulling powerJohn Deere Gator RSX860M1,443 lbs2,300 lbs pulling powerYamaha Viking EPS1,431 lbs2,300 lbs pulling powerPolaris Ranger 5001,065 lbs1,600 lbs pulling powerPolaris Ranger 5701,073 lbs1,600 lbs pulling powerKawasaki Mule 4000 Trans1,514 lbs2,300 lbs pulling powerHonda Talon 1000X1,490 lbs2,300 lbs pulling powerHonda 1000X-41,735 lbs2,600 lbs pulling powerCan-Am Maverick Trail 10001,349 lbs2,100 lbs pulling powerCan-Am Maveric Sport Max DPS1,697 lbs2,500 lbs pulling powerYamaha YXZ1000R1,521 lbs2,200 lbs pulling powerYamaha YXZ1000RSE1,555 lbs2,400 lbs pulling powerYamaha X2 XT-R 8501,609 lbs2,400 lbs pulling powerArctic Cat Prowler Pro1,585 lbs2,300 lbs pulling powerArctic Cat Prowler 5001,095 lbs1,600 lbs pulling powerKubota RTV5001,358 lbs2,000 lbs pulling power

There you have it. These are the top 31 most popular side by sides and the UTV winch pulling power they need. You can use the search function by pressing on “CTR/Command + F” to find your model. If the model is not listed here, you can find one that has the same weight to determine what is the best winch for you.

Sidenote: The trick to selecting the best winch for your UTV is to get one that is a bit more powerful than what is recommended. The reason behind this is that you need to take into consideration that pulling will get harder when you do it in an incline or from mud, for example.

A piece of advice that I wish someone had told me before buying my first winch is to also consider what type of ATVs or UTVs my friends are riding. Because more than often, I will be the one who has to pull their vehicle out of sticky situations.

Are you looking to modify your UTV for the winter season? If yes, you might be interested in this article where I show if ATV tracks fit on side by sides.

I’ve been riding offroad for a while, and I know from personal experience that mounting a high-quality winch on your vehicle is essential to get out of bad situations, especially if you ride with friends who don’t have a winch. My favorite winch is the one made by the folks at Champion Power Equipment. What’s cool about this winch is the fact that it can be mounted both on ATVs and side by sides. It is available with multiple pulling power options that start at 2,000 lbs and go up to 12,000 lbs. While this might seem like an overkill, it’s always better to have more pulling power than required. For example, you will be able to pull a regular vehicle or a UTV that is stuck in mud up to the footrest.

The winch is easy to use. It comes with a wireless remote that works by pressing a single button. To make things even better, you don’t have to go to a mechanic’s shop to have the winch mounted. This is thanks to the fact that it comes with all the tools needed to mount it yourself. Nonetheless, here is a quick breakdown of the main features that the Champion Power Equipment ATV/UTV winch offers:

Investing in a heavy-duty UTV winch is always a good idea. You never know when you need it, and it’s always better to be safe than sorry when it comes to offroad activities. From the looks of it, the average weight of a side by side is 1,500 lbs. Therefore, you should make sure that the winch you select has a pulling power of at least 2,300 lbs.