Do you have a bed liner?

It will scratch up, they aren't that durable when you carry stuff. I applied Hercules bed coating which protects it a bit but that gets scratched too eventually. The commercially applied coating does seem to be quite durable but when I looked last it was $600.

I would never put a plastic liner in the bed, water gets under it and rots the bed out from what I've heard.

We use a fitted rubber bed mat.

I would not go without a liner. IMO if you need the truck you need the liner. I have had slide in and sprayed liners. Sprayed is better. Some people use rubber pads on floor and it works well for them. I would think the bed finish if as delicate as the body finish, it would not take much to damage it.

I ordered a spray in bedliner from the factory. My main goal was to keep things from sliding around so much and it really hasn't been successful at that. On my last truck I put in a drop in bedliner. It was even more slippery and it wiggled around enough to rub the paint off of the bed in certain pressure points plus it trapped moisture under it that could accelerate corrosion. However, it was very useful when hauling gravel as it protected the paint very well from that abuse plus it was slippery enough that it made shoveling easier.

I ended up just using a rubber bed mat in that truck and my other trucks since then for most use were I want things to mostly stay put. Just fold the mat back now and then to clean around it and make sure that there is not much moisture or grit trapped underneath.

The aftermarket spray in liners may not be as slippery as the factory one, I haven't compared them.

The aftermarket spray in liners may not be as slippery as the factory one, I haven't compared them.
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The stuff I brushed it is fairly gritty, it will abrade you knees if you are in shorts. But I haven't compared it to the commercial stuff. It does not really stop stuff from sliding around. I'f considered one of those horse stall mats from Tractor Supply

I have a Bedrug and love it. Word of caution it's like a rug so landscaping wood chips etc get stuck in the fabric.

I don't have a bedliner.

My last two trucks had plastic bedliners. No rust in the bed. But I also stored the trucks in a barn/shop.

My current truck does not have a bedliner. But the wife keeps telling me to get the spray on...I just haven't pulled the trigger.

I think spray on liners are ideal. They don't cause any issues with rust like the mats or plastic liners can, they make the bed less slippery and they wear a lot better than the factory paint. I don't think I'll ever own a truck without a spray in liner. My dad is a retired farmer and never had anything done to his now 20 year old Super Duty. His bed is essentially bare metal at this point but it's totally functional, so you don't necessarily need any kind of liner.

Now if you have a Ford with an aluminum bed a mat or drop in liner may not be a bad idea. There shouldn't be rust issues because aluminum, and they don't seem to be quite as durable so the extra layer of protection may be helpful.

Bought my first p/u in 1976. Ended up putting a poj slide in liner in that. Don't recommend that route...seems to be the worst of all worlds.

I've since had both factory and aftermarket spray-in liners..and wouldn't have a p/u without one. I carry tools (in boxes or not), several totes of "goes with the truck gear" (tools, straps, tire chains in the winter, etc), a jack, infrequent lumber or similar goods, very infrequent loose materials (gravel, topsoil, etc), fairly frequent yard debris to haul to the dump, skis, snowshoes, hockey gear, sno-go materials, etc.

I think the spray-in bedliner really helps preserve the bed. On my previous rig, after a solid 12 years of the above-use, I found 1-2 spots where I'd either worn through or gouged through the liner.

Bought my first p/u in 1976. Ended up putting a poj slide in liner in that. Don't recommend that route...seems to be the worst of all worlds.

I've since had both factory and aftermarket spray-in liners..and wouldn't have a p/u without one. I carry tools (in boxes or not), several totes of "goes with the truck gear" (tools, straps, tire chains in the winter, etc), a jack, infrequent lumber or similar goods, very infrequent loose materials (gravel, topsoil, etc), fairly frequent yard debris to haul to the dump, skis, snowshoes, hockey gear, sno-go materials, etc.

I think the spray-in bedliner really helps preserve the bed. On my previous rig, after a solid 12 years of the above-use, I found 1-2 spots where I'd either worn through or gouged through the liner.