Spraying cost per acre for a 60 ft boom sprayer at 10 mph and 85 percent efficiency is $2.43 as an example figure at the $150 per hour example rate. The sprayer covers 61.82 acres per hour, so a 160 acre field takes about 2.59 hours and costs about $388.24 at that rate. Chemical cost is not included.
What Spraying Cost Per Acre Means
Spraying cost per acre is the machine and operator cost of one spray pass spread over one acre. It is not the full cost of the spray job, because the chemical you apply is priced separately and is not an input on this calculator.
The Cost Per Acre Calculator works out the machine part only. You enter the hourly cost of the machine and operator, plus working width, travel speed and field efficiency. The calculator works out acres per hour, then divides your hourly cost by that rate to give cost per acre, plus the hours and the total job cost.
Your hourly cost carries the most weight in the answer. The calculator page lists what belongs in it: fuel and lubricants, repairs and maintenance, ownership costs, labour, and a share of overheads. No dollar figure for any part is given on the page, so enter your own figures.
The Boom Sprayer Worked Example Step by Step
The boom sprayer preset is 60 ft wide, travels at 10 mph and runs at 85 percent efficiency. Use those values as the starting point, and change them only when your own sprayer and field call for different values.
Step one works out acres per hour: width times speed times efficiency divided by 8.25, where 8.25 equals 43560 divided by 5280. For the preset, 60 times 10 times 0.85 equals 510, and 510 divided by 8.25 equals 61.818182, shown as 61.82 acres per hour.
Step two works out spraying cost per acre: hourly cost divided by acres per hour. At the page example rate of $150 per hour, 150 divided by 61.818182 equals 2.426471, shown as $2.43 per acre, explicitly not a market price.
Step three works out the hours: field size divided by acres per hour. For 160 acres, 160 divided by 61.818182 equals 2.588235, shown as about 2.59 hours. Step four works out the job cost: hours times hourly cost plus travel. With $0 travel, 2.588235 times $150 equals $388.24 as an example figure at the page example rate.
Why Spraying Is the Cheapest Per Acre of the 12 Presets
Spraying is the cheapest per acre of the 12 presets at the example rate because the boom sprayer has the widest working width and the fastest travel speed in the preset table. Width and speed multiply together in the acres per hour formula, so the same hourly cost spreads over far more acres.
| Machine | Width and speed | Acres per hour | Cost per acre at the $150 example rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boom sprayer | 60 ft, 10 mph, 85 percent | 61.82 | $2.43 |
| Row planter | 30 ft, 5.5 mph, 75 percent | 15.00 | $10.00 |
| Field cultivator | 24 ft, 6 mph, 85 percent | 14.84 | $10.11 |
| Combine | 30 ft header, 4.5 mph, 75 percent | 12.27 | $12.22 |
| Grain drill | 15 ft, 5.5 mph, 75 percent | 7.50 | $20.00 |
| Disc harrow | 14 ft, 5 mph, 80 percent | 6.79 | $22.10 |
Every figure above is an example figure at the $150 per hour example rate, for a 160 acre field with $0 travel. The boom sprayer covers 61.82 acres per hour, more than four times the row planter at 15.00. The planter and the cultivator sit close at $10.00 and $10.11 per acre, because the cultivator runs faster and at higher efficiency, while the combine shows the reverse: a 30 ft header at only 4.5 mph and 75 percent covers 12.27 acres per hour and costs $12.22 per acre.
What the $2.43 Figure Leaves Out
Chemical and product cost is not in this calculator, and no chemical figure is added in this blog. The calculator has no input for product price, rate or volume, so it cannot work out a chemical cost per acre. Work out the product cost separately from your own product price and application rate, and add it to the machine cost per acre.
Travel and setup cost is an optional input, with a default of $0, added to the job cost, not to the cost per acre. The page gives no travel fee amount, so enter your own figure when the drive is long enough to matter. A small field far from the yard can carry a travel cost that lifts the job total even though the per acre machine figure stays low.
Refill time, mixing time and road travel are also outside the acres per hour figure, which measures field time only. A sprayer covering 61.82 acres per hour still needs time to refill the tank, and that time is not in the 2.59 hours for a 160 acre field. For speed by sprayer type, see spraying speed by sprayer type.
How Field Size Changes Hours and Job Cost
Field size does not change spraying cost per acre on its own, because cost per acre equals hourly cost divided by acres per hour. What field size changes is the hours and the total job cost, shown below for the boom sprayer preset at the $150 per hour example rate, with $0 travel and 85 percent efficiency.
| Field size | Hours | Job cost at the $150 example rate |
|---|---|---|
| 40 acres | 0.65 | $97.06 |
| 80 acres | 1.29 | $194.12 |
| 100 acres | 1.62 | $242.65 |
| 160 acres | 2.59 | $388.24 |
| 320 acres | 5.18 | $776.47 |
Hours equal field size divided by 61.818182 acres per hour, and job cost equals hours times $150. A 40 acre field takes about 0.65 hours and costs about $97.06 as an example figure at the page example rate, while a 320 acre field takes about 5.18 hours and costs about $776.47.
Small fields can still cost more per acre in practice, because more turns and stops cut efficiency below the 85 percent preset. For the time side, see how long to spray 100 acres.
How Efficiency Changes Spraying Cost Per Acre
Efficiency is the part of spraying time that covers fresh ground at full width, after turns, overlap and stops. The preset uses 85 percent, described on the calculator as very good, for open and regular fields. The table below shows what happens when efficiency moves while width, speed and hourly cost stay fixed.
| Efficiency | Acres per hour | Cost per acre at the $150 example rate |
|---|---|---|
| 90 percent | 65.45 | $2.29 |
| 85 percent | 61.82 | $2.43 |
| 80 percent | 58.18 | $2.58 |
| 75 percent | 54.55 | $2.75 |
| 70 percent | 50.91 | $2.95 |
| 65 percent | 47.27 | $3.17 |
| 55 percent | 40.00 | $3.75 |
At 90 percent the rate rises to 65.45 acres per hour and the cost falls to $2.29 per acre as an example figure at the page example rate. At 55 percent the rate falls to 40.00 acres per hour and the cost rises to $3.75 per acre, with only the efficiency changed.
The calculator page FAQ suggests 75 to 85 percent for most field work. Ideal fields with GPS guidance use 85 to 90 percent on this site, and that ideal band is 85 to 90 percent, never 88 to 90 percent. Small or irregular fields use 55 to 65 percent, average fields use 70 to 75 percent, and large rectangular fields use 80 to 85 percent. Pick the band that matches the field. For the full choice, see what field efficiency should I use for spraying.
Two Passes and Other Ways the Figure Moves
Most spray programmes need more than one pass, and each pass carries its own machine cost. Two passes at the preset cost $4.85 per acre as an example figure at the $150 per hour example rate, worked as two times $2.426471, and three passes cost $7.28 per acre on the same basis. The chemical cost for each pass sits on top, so keep the machine total and the product total in separate columns.
Speed moves the figure in the same way as efficiency, because both feed the acres per hour formula. A slower speed covers fewer acres in the hour, so the cost per acre rises. Do not enter a speed you cannot hold while keeping the spray pattern even and the boom steady.
Boom width moves the figure too: a narrower boom covers fewer acres per hour, so the cost per acre rises, so enter the working width you actually spray. Your own hourly cost moves the figure in direct proportion: double the hourly cost and the cost per acre doubles.
How to Work Out Your Own Spraying Cost Per Acre
Start with the preset, then change one input at a time. Open the calculator, pick the boom sprayer, and check that it loads 60 ft, 10 mph and 85 percent. Enter your field size, then replace the $150 example rate with your own hourly cost. Read the cost per acre, the hours and the total job cost.
Next, adjust the efficiency to match the field, since a wrong efficiency is the most common source of a wrong cost per acre. A large rectangular field with GPS guidance can hold 85 to 90 percent, while a small or irregular field may sit at 55 to 65 percent.
Then add any travel and setup cost, and add the product cost separately from your own product price and application rate. Keep the two additions visible, so a reader can see how much of the job total is machine time, travel and product. Check the result with a second pass count and a second field size before you quote it, and quote the machine cost per acre with the rate and the efficiency beside it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is spraying cost per acre for a 60 ft boom sprayer?
A: It is $2.43 per acre as an example figure at the $150 per hour example rate, at 10 mph and 85 percent efficiency. Chemical cost is not included.
Q: How do you work out spraying cost per acre?
A: Work out acres per hour as width times speed times efficiency divided by 8.25, then divide your hourly cost by acres per hour. For the preset that gives 61.82 acres per hour, and $150 divided by 61.82 equals $2.43 per acre as an example figure.
Q: Why is spraying the cheapest per acre of the 12 presets?
A: Because the boom sprayer has the widest width and the fastest speed in the preset table, at 60 ft and 10 mph, giving 61.82 acres per hour, so the same $150 per hour example rate spreads over far more acres.
Q: Does spraying cost per acre include chemical cost?
A: No. Chemical cost is not in this calculator, and no chemical figure is given in this blog. Work out the product cost separately and add it to the machine cost per acre.
Q: How long does it take to spray 160 acres with a boom sprayer?
A: About 2.59 hours at 60 ft, 10 mph and 85 percent efficiency. The job cost is about $388.24 as an example figure at the $150 per hour example rate, with $0 travel. Refill time is not in that time.
Q: What efficiency should I use for spraying cost per acre?
A: Use 75 to 85 percent for most field work. Ideal fields with GPS guidance use 85 to 90 percent, average fields use 70 to 75 percent, and small or irregular fields use 55 to 65 percent.
Plan Your Spray Cost From the Calculator
Spraying cost per acre for the boom sprayer preset is $2.43 per acre as an example figure at the $150 per hour example rate, from 60 ft, 10 mph and 85 percent efficiency giving 61.82 acres per hour. That low figure comes from width and speed, not from a low hourly rate, and it covers the machine and operator only. Enter your own hourly cost, efficiency and field size on the Cost Per Acre Calculator, add your product cost separately, and quote the machine figure with the rate beside it.
