Nebraska producers, farm managers, and ag professionals now have access to the updated 2026 Nebraska Crop Budgets, a set of 84 enterprise budgets that reflect current production costs, input trends, and economic considerations for the year ahead. This year’s release includes a newly added cover crop budget and updated cost estimates across all major crop systems.
Developed using the Agricultural Budget Calculator (ABC), the 2026 budgets provide a consistent, research-based benchmark for evaluating the cost of production and making informed management decisions. With continued variability in input markets and evolving production challenges, these budgets offer timely information useful for planning.
The Nebraska crop budgets for 2026 represent statewide assumptions and should be customized to reflect each operation’s machinery lineup, land tenure, irrigation system, and input costs. Key cost and production updates include:
- Higher nutrient costs and fertilizer adjustments across most crops.
- Slightly increased pesticide application rates and product prices as producers manage greater weed and disease pressure.
- Lower anticipated diesel and gasoline prices, though machinery and equipment ownership costs continue to trend upward.
- Updated machinery depreciation, repairs, labor, and irrigation costs, reflecting both market conditions and long-term replacement needs.
A Foundation for Planning and Financial Decision-Making
Clear cost-of-production information is essential for financial resilience and operational planning. Because input prices and market conditions change rapidly, the annual Nebraska budgets are best used as a baseline, with producers encouraged to update key assumptions for their own operations. A producer's own budgets may be used to:
- Compare enterprise profitability and evaluate crop rotation decisions.
- Understand cash costs versus total economic costs, including depreciation and opportunity costs.
- Support lender discussions and capital budgeting.
- Inform crop insurance selections and risk management strategies.
- Guide marketing and pricing decisions in uncertain markets.
Produced with the Agricultural Budget Calculator (ABC)
All 2026 budgets were created within the ABC program (agbudget.unl.edu), allowing users the flexibility to:
- Import any Nebraska budget directly into their ABC account.
- Adjust input quantities, prices, labor needs, fuel requirements, machinery ownership, interest, and overhead.
- Toggle easily between cash cost and full economic cost evaluations.
This customization ensures budgets reflect real-world financial and agronomic conditions at the farm level.
Included Crop Systems
The 2026 series includes budgets for alfalfa, corn, dry edible beans, grain sorghum, millet, oats, peas, soybeans, sugar beets, sunflowers, wheat, forage options, and multiple cover crops. Input prices used in the budgets are drawn from surveys and market data collected from August to October 2025.
Find the complete 2026 Nebraska Crop Budgets at cap.unl.edu/cropbudgets and learn more about using the Agricultural Budget Calculator at cap.unl.edu/abc.
