The fifth wheel hitch is the part of the hitch located in the bed of the pickup truck. It is a large, flat plate that is shaped like a horseshoe. The metal rails that run beneath the hitch attach to the fam of the pickup for strength.

The difference between a gooseneck hitch and fifth wheel hitch is a gooseneck trailer slides over a ball hitch in the bed of a pickup truck. A fifth wheel trailer attaches to a pickup using a hinged plate hitch. This is the same type of plate used by semi-trucks.