How much to bush hog 10 acres costs depends on cutter size and terrain. At the page example rate, a 6 ft cutter on average ground gives an example total of $389.58 in 4.58 hours, a 5 ft cutter gives $467.50 in 5.50 hours, and a 15 ft cutter gives $155.83 in 1.83 hours.
How Much to Bush Hog 10 Acres by Cutter Size
The Bush Hogging Cost Calculator turns a 10 acre field into a job price in three steps. Enter the area, the cutter width and a realistic speed, then enter the terrain and your hourly rate. The calculator gives total hours, job price and bush hogging cost per acre. A wide cutter covers more ground in each pass, so it finishes sooner, and sooner means fewer hours to pay for at the same hourly rate.
Every dollar figure here is an example figure worked at the page example rate of $85 per hour. The $85 rate is an example rate only, explicitly not a market rate. Your own rate will give a different total. The live guide on bush hogging cost per acre owns the general per acre method, so use that guide for the full method behind the figures here.
How the 10 Acre Price Is Worked Out
Cost per acre equals hourly rate divided by acres per hour. Acres per hour equals cutter width in feet times speed in miles per hour times efficiency divided by 8.25. The figure 8.25 equals 43,560 divided by 5,280. That one formula ties the whole price together, because a change in width, speed or efficiency changes acres per hour, and acres per hour changes both the hours for 10 acres and the cost per acre. Use unrounded rates and round only the final value.
The live page example shows the formula in full. A 20 acre pasture with a 6 ft cutter at 4 mph in average conditions at 75 percent, at an example rate of $85 per hour, gives 6 times 4 times 0.75, which equals 18, and 18 divided by 8.25 equals 2.181818, shown on the page as 2.18 acres per hour. Hours are 20 divided by 2.181818, which equals 9.166667 hours, shown on the page as 9.2 hours. Price uses 9.17 hours times $85, which equals $779.45, shown on the page as $779. Per acre is $779 divided by 20, which equals $38.95, shown on the page as about $39 per acre. Quote $779 as shown, and never $782 from the rounded 9.2 hours, because 9.2 times $85 equals $782, which is not the page figure.
10 Acre Totals on Average Ground
Average ground uses 75 percent efficiency in the price table, and it is the middle column in the table below. All totals are example figures at the page example rate. Read your cutter row first, then read across to the hours and the total, because the hours explain the total.
| Cutter | Acres per hour | Hours for 10 acres | Cost per acre | Total for 10 acres |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 ft | 1.82 | 5.50 | $46.75 | $467.50 |
| 6 ft | 2.18 | 4.58 | $38.96 | $389.58 |
| 7 ft | 2.55 | 3.93 | $33.39 | $333.93 |
| 10 ft | 3.64 | 2.75 | $23.38 | $233.75 |
| 15 ft | 5.45 | 1.83 | $15.58 | $155.83 |
A 5 ft cutter is the dearest row, at $467.50 in 5.50 hours as an example figure at the page example rate. A 6 ft cutter gives $389.58 in 4.58 hours, a saving of $77.92 against the 5 ft row. A 7 ft cutter gives $333.93 in 3.93 hours, a 10 ft cutter gives $233.75 in 2.75 hours, almost half the 5 ft total, and a 15 ft cutter gives $155.83 in 1.83 hours, about one third of the 5 ft total.
10 Acre Totals on Open and Rough Ground
Terrain changes efficiency, and efficiency changes acres per hour, so terrain changes the price for the same cutter on the same 10 acres. Open ground uses 80 percent efficiency, average ground uses 75 percent, and rough ground uses 65 percent. The table below gives the 10 acre total and hours for each cutter on each ground type, all as example figures at the page example rate.
| Cutter | Open total | Open hours | Average total | Average hours | Rough total | Rough hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 ft | $438.28 | 5.16 | $467.50 | 5.50 | $539.42 | 6.35 |
| 6 ft | $365.23 | 4.30 | $389.58 | 4.58 | $449.52 | 5.29 |
| 7 ft | $313.06 | 3.68 | $333.93 | 3.93 | $385.30 | 4.53 |
| 10 ft | $219.14 | 2.58 | $233.75 | 2.75 | $269.71 | 3.17 |
| 15 ft | $146.09 | 1.72 | $155.83 | 1.83 | $179.81 | 2.12 |
Open ground is the cheapest column in every row, and rough ground is the dearest. For a 6 ft cutter, open ground gives $365.23 in 4.30 hours, average ground gives $389.58 in 4.58 hours, and rough ground gives $449.52 in 5.29 hours, all as example figures at the page example rate. The move from open to rough adds $84.29 and almost a full hour.
A 15 ft cutter on rough ground gives $179.81 in 2.12 hours as an example figure at the page example rate, still far below a 5 ft cutter on open ground at $438.28 in 5.16 hours. Width is a bigger lever than terrain in this table, but terrain still matters on every row.
The per acre prices behind these totals are the page table values at the $85 example rate and 4 mph. On open ground they are $44 for 5 ft, $37 for 6 ft, $31 for 7 ft, $22 for 10 ft and $15 for 15 ft. On average ground they are $47, $39, $33, $23 and $16 in the same order. On rough ground they are $54, $45, $39, $27 and $18 in the same order. Quote those page values exactly.
Why Cutter Size Moves the Price So Much
Cutter size moves the price because it moves acres per hour, the divisor in the cost per acre formula. A 5 ft cutter at 4 mph and 75 percent gives 1.8182 acres per hour. A 10 ft cutter at the same speed and efficiency gives 3.6364 acres per hour, exactly twice the rate, so the hours for 10 acres halve and the total halves at the same hourly rate. A 15 ft cutter gives 5.4545 acres per hour, three times the 5 ft rate. For the rate behind the price, use the Bush Hog Acres Per Hour Calculator to check the acres per hour figure for your own cutter.
A wide cutter needs a tractor that can carry it and power it, and a field that lets it use its full width without constant turns and stops. Small or irregular fields use 55 to 65 percent efficiency, average fields use 70 to 75 percent, large rectangular fields use 80 to 85 percent, and ideal fields with GPS guidance use 85 to 90 percent. The ideal band is 85 to 90 percent, never 88 to 90 percent.
Why Terrain Moves the Price
Terrain moves the price through efficiency. For a 6 ft cutter, the rate is 2.3273 acres per hour on open ground, 2.1818 on average ground and 1.8909 on rough ground. Those rates give 4.30 hours, 4.58 hours and 5.29 hours for 10 acres, and totals of $365.23, $389.58 and $449.52 at the page example rate. For more on what efficiency means, use the guide on understanding field efficiency.
Walk the field first, because hidden stumps, wire and rocks are the biggest risk to time and equipment. If the growth is unknown or the ground is rough, quote rough ground per hour, because when growth is unknown, an hourly rate protects you. When the field is mixed, price it in parts rather than at one average efficiency, so the rough part carries its own slower rate and higher total.
How to Price Your Own 10 Acres
Start with the hours, not with the total. Enter 10 acres, your cutter width, a realistic speed and the terrain that matches your field, then read the hours the calculator gives. A lower speed or a lower efficiency gives higher hours and a higher total.
Then enter your own hourly rate. The $85 rate in this post is an example rate only, explicitly not a market rate, so do not copy it into a quote without thinking. The calculator turns your rate into a job price by multiplying hours by rate. For a check on your own rate, the live page suggests checking local custom rate surveys, since many university extension services publish typical rates for comparison. Use the guide on custom farming rates where extension survey rates are mentioned as a check, never as a price to copy.
Add travel and minimums after the cutting price, because small jobs far away need a travel fee or minimum charge. The travel fee is added after hours times rate, so it matters most on a small job or a far job. Set the travel fee and the minimum charge from your own costs, not from a competitor figure.
For the time detail behind these prices, use the guide on how long to bush hog 10 acres. That post is time for 10 acres, not price. For a second check on a job total, use the Cost Per Acre Calculator and enter the same hours and rate a second way.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How much to bush hog 10 acres with a 6 ft cutter on average ground?
A: The example total is $389.58 in 4.58 hours at the page example rate of $85 per hour and 4 mph, worked from 2.1818 acres per hour. That is $38.96 per acre unrounded, shown in the page table as $39 per acre.
Q: How much to bush hog 10 acres with a 5 ft cutter?
A: The example total is $467.50 in 5.50 hours on average ground at the page example rate, $438.28 in 5.16 hours on open ground, and $539.42 in 6.35 hours on rough ground, all at 4 mph and the $85 example rate.
Q: How much to bush hog 10 acres with a 15 ft cutter?
A: The example total is $155.83 in 1.83 hours on average ground at the page example rate, $146.09 in 1.72 hours on open ground, and $179.81 in 2.12 hours on rough ground, all at 4 mph and the $85 example rate.
Q: Why does rough ground cost more for the same 10 acres?
A: Rough ground uses 65 percent efficiency in the price table, against 75 percent on average ground and 80 percent on open ground. Lower efficiency gives fewer acres per hour, so 10 acres takes more hours, and more hours at the same hourly rate gives a higher total.
Q: Is the $85 rate a market rate for bush hogging?
A: No. The $85 rate is an example rate only, explicitly not a market rate. Every dollar figure in this post that comes from that rate is an example figure at the page example rate. Enter your own rate in the calculator to price your own field.
Q: How do I check a 10 acre quote with the calculator?
A: Enter 10 acres, your cutter width, a realistic speed, the terrain that matches the field and your own hourly rate, then read total hours, job price and cost per acre.
Price Your 10 Acres From the Hours
How much to bush hog 10 acres costs comes down to hours, and hours come down to cutter size, speed and terrain. A 6 ft cutter on average ground gives $389.58 in 4.58 hours as an example figure at the page example rate, a 5 ft cutter gives $467.50 in 5.50 hours, and a 15 ft cutter gives $155.83 in 1.83 hours. Enter your own rate and price the job from the hours the calculator gives.
