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Break-even analysis report
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Break-even price calculator

Sigurd Lindquist, Certified Crop Adviser (CCA) · page updated Oct 15, 2026

Example with this page's default costs: corn at $905 an acre and 180 bu/ac breaks even at $5.03 a bushel; soybeans at $650 and 55 bu/ac at $11.82. Change any line below to get yours.

YOUR CROP AND COSTS

CROP & YIELD

Yield Checklist
  • Your APH (actual production history)
  • County average vs. your field history
  • Trend-adjusted yield for this year
  • Soil type & drainage quality
  • Planting date impact on potential
Conservative estimates protect your plan.
Fill land rent and yield from your county (optional)
Price Considerations
  • Dec corn / Nov beans for the crop year you are planning
  • Forward contract commitments
  • Harvest vs. spring delivery timing
  • On-farm storage premium potential
Pick the crop year in the price bar above.
Basis
  • Your elevator’s bid minus the futures price
  • Usually negative in the Corn Belt (e.g. -0.35)
  • Enter 0 to work in futures terms
Find yours on AGSIST cash bids: bid minus board.

INPUT COSTS ($/ac)

Don't Forget
  • Base seed cost per bag
  • Seed treatment
  • Technology / trait fees
  • Replant seed reserve
  • Inoculant (soybeans)
Don't Forget
  • Nitrogen (anhydrous, urea, UAN)
  • Phosphorus (MAP/DAP)
  • Potash (K2O)
  • Lime (amortized)
  • Sulfur & micros
  • Application fees
Soil test recommendations should drive rates.
Don't Forget
  • Pre-emerge herbicides
  • Post-emerge herbicides
  • Fungicide
  • Insecticide
  • Adjuvants & surfactants
  • Custom application fees
Don't Forget
  • Net premium (after subsidy)
  • Hail / wind endorsement
  • Replant provision
  • SCO or ECO add-on
  • Private hail policy
Ask your agent about SCO and ECO. Premium support improved for 2026.

OPERATING COSTS ($/ac)

Don't Forget
  • Fuel & lube
  • Repairs & maintenance
  • Depreciation
  • Custom hire
  • Hauling / trucking
Don't Forget
  • Hired labor
  • Owner/operator time value
  • Seasonal help
  • Benefits & payroll taxes
Don't Forget
  • Cash rent (or flex rent)
  • Property tax (if owned)
  • Drainage tile payments
  • Opportunity cost of owned land
See your county’s published rate on AGSIST cash rent by state.
Don't Forget
  • Interest on operating loan
  • Crop drying
  • Storage / bin costs
  • Marketing & basis fees
  • Farm liability insurance
  • Accounting & legal

OTHER REVENUE ($/ac, OPTIONAL)

Other revenue
  • ARC or PLC payment you expect (it is paid on base acres, so spread it over the acres in this crop)
  • Stalks, straw or other sales off these acres
Your estimate, not a sure payment. It lowers the break-even. ARC and PLC estimates by county are on AGSIST ARC or PLC.
Cost Breakdown

RESULTS

Estimates computed from the inputs at left. Defaults are a representative Upper Midwest example, not your farm. Break-even here is a cash price; the futures line adjusts it by your basis.

Total Cost/Acre$905/ac
Cost/Bushel$5.03/bu
Break-Even Price$5.03/bu
Futures needed at your basis$5.03/bu
Gross Revenue/Acre- · enter a price
Net Profit/Loss- · enter a price
Margin on total cost- · enter a price
Yield needed at market- · enter a price
Farm Total Profit/Loss
- · enter a price
Margin Indicator
-$200/acBreak-Even+$200/ac
What-If: Profit/Loss per Acre
Profit or loss per acre by yield row and futures price column

With the default example costs ($905/acre, 180 bu corn), the break-even works out to about $5.03 per bushel cash. Those defaults are an example, not your farm; your state’s extension crop budget lists each line for your area. Rent and yield move the number most: run your own lines above, then check what selling looks like against it.

Estimates from your inputs, for planning only, not financial or marketing advice. Verify against your own records and your lender or agent.

Break-even calculator: common questions

Divide your total cost per acre by your expected yield in bushels. For example: $850 per acre total cost ÷ 200 bu/ac expected yield = $4.25/bu break-even price for corn. This is the minimum cash price at which you cover all expenses. Because cash = futures + basis and basis is usually negative, the futures price you need is this number minus your basis (e.g. $4.25 cash at a -$0.30 basis means $4.55 futures). The calculator above does this as you type. To stay profitable, your market price (futures + basis) needs to exceed this number.
University budget series (Iowa State estimated costs, Illinois farmdoc, FINBIN) put total tenant corn cost at roughly $750–$1,100 per acre for 2026, or about $550–$850 without cash rent. The low end takes cheap ground and light inputs. Land is the biggest variable: 2026 USDA NASS county cash rents for non-irrigated cropland reach about $247/acre in Wisconsin and $280/acre in Minnesota, with the median county at $136 in Wisconsin and $189 in Minnesota. See your county on AGSIST cash rent by state. Fertilizer and seed are the next biggest lines in those budgets. The defaults in this calculator reflect a representative Upper Midwest tenant operation. Adjust each line for your actual costs to get your true break-even.
For a tenant, rent is usually the biggest single cost per acre, and every dollar of it lands on the break-even. Each $50 an acre of rent adds about $0.28/bu to corn at 180 bu/ac, $0.25/bu at 200 bu/ac, and about $0.91/bu to soybeans at 55 bu/ac. It comes back every year, so the rent talk with your landlord matters.
A complete break-even includes two layers. Direct inputs: seed, fertilizer (N, P, K, lime, sulfur), herbicides (pre and post-emerge), fungicide, insecticide, crop insurance premium (net of subsidy), drying, and trucking. Overhead costs: land rent or property tax/ownership cost, machinery depreciation, fuel and lube, repairs and maintenance, labor (including your own time at a market wage), operating loan interest, and general farm overhead. Many producers undercount labor and depreciation: in university budgets, own labor and machinery depreciation together commonly add on the order of $50–$120/acre to a true break-even.
The table shows profit or loss per acre for 36 pairs of yield and price. Rows are yields above and below yours, columns are prices above and below yours, and your own inputs are outlined in green. Red is a loss, green is a profit. It answers "what if yield comes up short and the price drops too?" in one look, which helps when you weigh insurance coverage levels or a forward sale.
Generated by AGSIST · agsist.com · Free farm tools · For informational purposes only. Not financial advice. Verify all inputs with your local data.