Rent or Own a Skid Steer Slide in your own numbers and see which side you land on
We rent skid steers and we sell them, so we get paid either way, which is exactly why we can be straight with you about which one makes sense.
The answer comes down to one thing, how many days a month the machine would actually be working for you. Move the sliders below and the calculator shows your monthly cost both ways, where the break even sits, and how close you are to it.
Rent vs Own, Month by Month
Your monthly cost
Monthly cost at every level of use from 1 to 22 working days. The white line is you.
The starting values are placeholders so the sliders have somewhere to start, not PDQ prices. Rates change by machine, attachment, dates and branch, so call the branch nearest your job for a real quote and plug it in. You can also tap any number and type it.
Three Things No Calculator Can Price
An owned machine is always in your yard. A rental might not be during fire season clearing or the week after the first big storm, and if that matters to you, the gap above is what you are paying for it.
If a rental goes down mid job we swap it and your crew keeps working, but when yours goes down it sits in a shop queue earning nothing.
Owning gets different tax treatment and holds resale value if the hours and records are clean. See our Section 179 guide and warranty guide.
Where Most People Land
Rent. You are nowhere near break even, and every cost in the owning column stays off your books.
Buy. Cost per hour drops hard once the machine is busy, and availability stops being a phone call.
Rent for a season and keep the invoices, because twelve months of real spend beats any estimate.
That is a fair reason, just use the calculator to see what the convenience costs you each year.
Still choosing the machine? See the compact track loader guide, the Kubota loader lineup, or which attachments earn their keep.
Five Questions Worth More Than the Math
- What are the day, week and month rates on this machine with this attachment?
- What lands on the invoice that is not on the rate sheet, like delivery, waiver, fuel and cleaning?
- If it goes down mid job, how fast does a replacement reach my site?
- If I buy, where is the nearest shop that services it, and do you stock wear parts?
- Does any of my rental go toward a purchase, and on what terms?
Rental terms are on our rental policies page, and how Kubota financing works covers the buying side.
Straight Answers
How much does it cost to rent a skid steer?
It depends on how long you need it, the attachment, delivery distance and the branch, so we do not publish one rate. Call the branch nearest your job with the machine, attachment and dates for a real number.
Is it cheaper to rent or buy a skid steer?
It depends on how many days a month the machine would work. Renting costs nothing in slow weeks, while owning costs the same every month whether it works or sits. For most homeowners and small crews, renting wins.
How many days a month before buying makes sense?
There is no universal number. Divide your full monthly cost of owning by your quoted day rate to get break even days, or use the calculator on this page to see it with your own numbers.
What does owning cost beyond the loan payment?
Insurance, wear parts like filters, tires or tracks, a trailer and sometimes a bigger truck, yard space, your own hours hauling and servicing it, and depreciation, which happens whether the machine worked or not.
Does the rental rate include delivery, attachments and the damage waiver?
Usually not. Machine, attachment, delivery and damage waiver are typically separate lines, so ask for the full invoice picture rather than the headline rate.
Can rental payments go toward buying the machine?
Sometimes, depending on the machine, how long you rent and the hours on the unit. If you keep renting the same machine, ask early, because these terms are easier to set up at the start.
Yes, This Is an Ad
Call any branch for real rental and purchase numbers, or bring your calendar in and we will run the math with you at the counter, including the costs that make owning look worse. If it lands on rent we book you a machine, if it lands on buy we quote you one, and we have been doing it this way since 1952.
Rentals, Parts & Service
Tell us what you need and which branch is closest. A real person from that branch gets back to you.