Home / Crane rental cost
How much does it cost to rent a crane?
Published national guides put most operated crane work at $150 to $1,200+ an hour, with a minimum. Here's how the bill is built.
Get a free quoteRough crane + operator estimate
$1,000 – $2,400
Billed hours × typical published hourly rates. Excludes travel, riggers and permits. National guide figures, not a KC quote: BigRentz, PICKHVAC.
Get a real quoteTypical hourly ranges
Small cranes about $150–$350/hr, mid-size mobile cranes $250–$600/hr, large cranes $400–$1,200+/hr (BigRentz guide).
Minimums
Most companies bill a 3 to 8 hour minimum, so the minimum often sets the price for simple lifts.
Single-day jobs
A single rooftop unit, hot tub or truss set often starts around $1,500 all-in (Sky Point Crane guide); the crane portion of a simple rooftop HVAC swap is often $500–$2,500 (PICKHVAC).
Extras
Travel or mobilization ($150–$800), riggers ($75–$175 per worker-hour) and permits or traffic control ($100–$1,500) per PICKHVAC.
How much does it cost to rent a crane and operator for a day?
Operated cranes are usually billed hourly with a minimum (often 3 to 8 hours) plus travel. Published national guides put small cranes around $150 to $350 an hour and mid-size mobile cranes around $250 to $600 an hour; a simple single-day residential or rooftop lift often starts around $1,500 all-in. Your operator gives the real number.
Why is a small job so expensive?
Most crane companies bill a minimum block of hours plus travel, so a 20-minute lift pays for the minimum.
What isn't included?
Riggers or signal persons, travel/mobilization, permits and traffic control, overtime or standby time.
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