If you’ve spent any time at the local co-op lately, you know the talk has shifted from the "good old days" of cheap diesel to the reality of the 2026 season. Honestly, figuring out what to pay for a combine and a grain cart feels like a moving target. You want to be fair, but you don't want to overpay just because the guy down the road has a shiny new Lexion. That's where the iowa state custom harvest rates come in. They aren't laws, but they're basically the closest thing we have to a rulebook in the Iowa dirt.
I’ve looked at the numbers from the latest Iowa State University (ISU) Ag Decision Maker surveys, and the trend is pretty clear. Rates are creeping up. For the 2025/2026 cycle, we’re seeing an overall hike of about 5% across the board, though some specific harvest tasks are jumping even higher.
The Real Numbers for 2025 and 2026
Let’s get into the weeds. If you're looking at combining corn with a chopper head, the average is sitting right around $48.15 per acre. For soybeans, it’s a bit lighter at $41.90.
But wait. That’s just for the combine.
Most of the time, you aren’t just hiring a combine. You need the whole "custom farming" package. If you’re looking at the full deal—combine, grain cart, and hauling it to the farm storage—you’re looking at closer to $71.95 per acre for corn and $67.55 for soybeans.
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Why the jump?
Last year, diesel was projected at roughly $3.66 per gallon for these surveys. If you’ve been at the pump recently, you know that number is... optimistic. ISU economists, including Ann Johanns, have pointed out that a simple 50-cent increase in fuel prices can bump custom rates by another 5%.
Here is a quick look at some of the common individual rates being reported:
- Corn Combining (Chopper Head): $48.15 average (Ranges from $38.00 to $65.00)
- Soybean Combining: $41.90 average (Ranges from $35.00 to $55.00)
- Hauling Corn (Grain Cart): $9.50 per acre
- Truck Hauling (to market, 25 miles): $0.20 per bushel
- Silage Chopping: $82.05 per hour (This one varies wildly based on the rig)
It’s Not Just About the Average
I’ve seen guys get into heated arguments over 50 cents an acre. The reality is that the iowa state custom harvest rates are just a starting point for a conversation. If you have 40-acre "pocket" fields with tight turns and a bunch of telephone poles, you’re going to pay more than the guy with a flat, 640-acre section.
Custom operators have to account for "nuisance time." If they’re spending half their day unfolding headers and dodging sinkholes, they’re losing money.
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Factors that move your rate:
- Field Size and Shape: Big, square fields are cheap. Small, irregular ones are expensive.
- Trash and Yield: If you’re pulling 250-bushel corn, that combine is moving slower and burning more fuel than in a 160-bushel drought year.
- The "Neighbor" Discount: Kinda sounds funny, but local proximity matters. If the operator doesn't have to haul their equipment 20 miles down the highway, they’re usually willing to shave a few bucks off the per-acre cost.
Labor is the Wild Card
Finding a reliable operator who won't dump the header into a rock is getting harder. General farm labor rates for 2026 are hovering around $24.05 per hour, which is a 4% increase from just a year ago.
If you're hiring someone with specialized skills—like someone who can troubleshoot a Precision Planting monitor or manage a high-speed planter—you're likely looking at even higher wages. The survey notes that most of these rates include fuel and labor, but if you’re providing the fuel, you need to back that out of the equation.
What Most People Get Wrong
One big misconception is that these rates are a "set price." They aren't. About 54% of the responses in the ISU survey come from the service providers themselves, while only 25% come from the people hiring the work. There's a bit of a bias there.
Also, don't confuse custom rates with cash rent. I’ve seen people try to use the harvest rate to justify their rental price, but they are two completely different animals. Cash rents in Iowa for 2025 averaged about $288 per acre, but that varies tremendously by the CSR2 (Corn Suitability Rating) of your soil.
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Negotiating Your 2026 Contract
If you're the one hiring, don't just hand over a check based on the average. Talk about the "whole farm" value. Are you hiring the same person for tillage, planting, and spraying? Bundling services usually gives you some leverage.
On the flip side, if you're the custom operator, you have to know your ownership costs. Using the survey is great, but it doesn't pay your equipment note. If you bought a combine at 8% interest, your "true cost" might be $10 an acre higher than the guy who paid cash for his rig five years ago.
Actionable Steps for the Season
- Get it in Writing: Even if it's your cousin. Write down the rate, who pays for fuel, and what happens if the crop is down and the combine has to crawl.
- Adjust for Fuel: Build a "fuel trigger" into your agreement. If diesel hits $4.50, the rate goes up $X. If it drops, it goes down. It keeps things fair for everyone.
- Check the Soil: If you’re in South Central Iowa, your rates will naturally look different than someone in the Northwest corner where the ground is flat and the yields are massive.
Understanding the iowa state custom harvest rates is really about managing risk. You’re trading a fixed cost for the uncertainty of owning a $500,000 machine that might sit in the shed 10 months of the year. Whether you’re the one in the cab or the one writing the check, keep the lines of communication open. A bad harvest is stressful enough without fighting over the bill in November.
To get your specific numbers ready, sit down with the 2025/2026 Ag Decision Maker FM 1698 report. Use the included worksheets to plug in your own fuel and labor costs. This ensures you aren't just following the crowd, but actually protecting your farm’s bottom line.