Cost to rent a Crane Truck

Basically, this is the number one question people have when looking to rent a crane: “How much will it cost to rent a crane truck?” Unfortunately, there are many variables that determine the cost of renting a crane. Let’s break them down and simplify the process for you.

You first have to determine which level of crane service you are looking for.

1. Are you looking for a crane and an operator? You are responsible for and in charge of the lift, doing all the leg work and rigging.
2. Are you looking for an all-inclusive crane service that handles everything for you?

What is the industry standard for renting a crane?

If you are looking for just the basics, which is a crane and operator. Where you are the point person in charge of the lift, the base rate of any mobile crane rental is usually an hourly rate. Unfortunately, not all cranes are equal and have different rates. Knowing what size of crane you will need directly affects the hourly rate.

For example, a smaller traditional stick crane would usually start at around $150-200 hours with a minimum of 3-4 hours. The minimum operates on the assumption that the crane company can rent the crane at least twice daily. If they have to commit the crane for the whole day to do your job, even though you might not need it for the full day, expect a 6-8 hour minimum. Time is calculated from when the crane leaves the crane yard and ends when it returns back to its point of origin. Please note: THEIR yard, NOT your job site, which is a common misconception.

There is also usually a fuel surcharge tacked on top of this, which changes daily based on the current fuel prices in your area. The hourly rate can jump significantly when you go to a larger crane. The really big cranes can run at over $10,000/day.

If you require any additional crane accessories, manpower, riggers, permits, off-duty police, traffic control, support vehicles, equipment, or higher levels of insurance, these would all be considered adders, which would be an additional charge on top of the hourly rate. Knowing beforehand what an additional crane accessory or service is is really important.

What is an all-inclusive crane service cost?

You need to call for a specific crane quote on this type of service. There are so many factors that will go into this calculation. There is no specific answer that can be thrown out here. Also, every crane company differs in how they bill some of these options.

Here are some factors that will play into the cost of an all-inclusive crane rental:

1. Size of crane.
2. Type of crane.
3. Rental of crane accessories like chains, special straps, spreader bars or glass manipulators. Anything beyond the main crane hook required to lift your load would be considered an additional accessory you must provide and/or rent.
4. Support vehicles to assist the crane. For example, huge cranes require support vehicles to carry the crane counterweights to your job site. You may also need a flatbed truck to assist with the transportation of the goods you are looking to move.
5. A person with rigging experience and a valid rigging license will need to be supplied.
6. Will additional manpower be required to assist the lift? Spotters, tagline operators.
7. Traffic control equipment and/or additional manpower to regulate traffic.
8. Government permits to operate at the location.
9. Does the government/municipality require off-duty police at your job site?
10. Are they required to write up a lift plan for the job site on your behalf?

Very Important:

You must know the answers to all these questions before booking any crane. Not knowing these answers could cost you a lot more money. You would have to reschedule the crane to return another day. This would be because you were not properly prepared or did not do all your due diligence the first time around. We always recommend talking with a crane specialist.

How does Braymore calculate the cost of renting a crane?

We listen to your feedback. While we can quote you the industry standard, we realized that most people in the general public do not like or understand how the crane industry-standard works. The industry standard works great in construction, where everyone is familiar with it. However, the general public has a very hard time understanding it, so we are trying to use a different model that should make it easier for you to understand.

For the general public, instead of the hourly rate, fuel surcharge system and extra system, we bill a base rate which includes drive-in/out time and one hour of work on site. Any additional hours over that would be at an additional charge. Let us know which extra items need to be included in your rental, we can build those into the base rate, so you have a simple rate that you can fully understand. This reduces the surprises you will get from not understanding industry standards. We ask that you ensure you give us all the information we require to make a proper quote. Not sure what those items are? That’s okay. We always recommend that you talk to a live person. This way, we can walk you through the process to help prevent those types of costly mistakes.

Want to learn more about crane costs?

Call our crane department at 416-900-0969 to speak to one of our crane specialists and learn which crane is right for you.

Or click here to request a Crane Quote