Crop breakevens / Cotton
What an acre of cotton costs, and what it has to make
The University of Arkansas 2026 budget for furrow-irrigated B3XF cotton comes to $1,216.16 an acre to grow 1,200 pounds of lint, before the landlord's 25% share. Counting that share at the budget's 63 cents, it's $1,450.12 an acre, or about $1.21 a pound of lint. The budget also counts $179.82 an acre of cottonseed, which brings the lint breakeven down to about $1.06.
Updated October 5, 2026
- Cost per acre
- $1,450.12
- Budget yield
- 1200 lb/acre
- Breakeven price
- $1.21 per lb
Run it with your numbersOpens the free calculator with these numbers filled in, ready to change.
Where the money goes
| Per acre | Share | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Seed | 8% | $113.05 |
| Fertilizer | 11% | $165.10 |
| Chemical | 14% | $205.34 |
| Fuel/Labor | 39% | $571.42 |
| Land rent | 16% | $233.96 |
| Other | 11% | $161.25 |
| Total | $1,450.12 |
From University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture, 2026 B3XF cotton budget (furrow irrigated, 1,200 lb lint), grouped into Fencerow's six lines. Fuel/Labor in these examples covers all machinery costs (ownership, fuel, repairs), hauling, drying, irrigation, and labor. Insurance, interest, and miscellaneous costs are under Other. Lint only: the budget also counts $179.82 an acre of cottonseed, which this leaves out, so the breakeven shown is about 15 cents a pound higher than the budget's. Fuel/Labor includes hauling and ginning; Other includes module covers, storage, classing, and the boll weevil fee. Land rent is the landlord's 25% share at budget yield and price.
- Harvest and ginning. Hauling and ginning run $120 an acre, harvester ownership $118.57, and module covers $19.60. Cotton is expensive to get out of the field.
- Chemicals across the season. $205.34 an acre: $112.36 of herbicides, $69.60 of insecticides, $19.58 of defoliants, and $3.80 of growth regulator.
- Fertilizer. $165.10 an acre, led by 275 pounds of stabilized urea at $88.50.
Ten years of USDA prices and yields
| Year | US average price received | US average yield |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $0.62/lb | 852 lb/acre |
| 2024 | $0.63/lb | 892 lb/acre |
| 2023 | $0.76/lb | 900 lb/acre |
| 2022 | $0.85/lb | 953 lb/acre |
| 2021 | $0.91/lb | 820 lb/acre |
| 2020 | $0.66/lb | 854 lb/acre |
| 2019 | $0.60/lb | 832 lb/acre |
| 2018 | $0.70/lb | 884 lb/acre |
| 2017 | $0.69/lb | 905 lb/acre |
| 2016 | $0.68/lb | 867 lb/acre |
Source: USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, Quick Stats (national, marketing-year price received; final annual yield). Years USDA hasn't published yet are left out, not estimated. This product uses the NASS API but is not endorsed or certified by NASS.
What changes the answer for your farm
- Count the cottonseed. At the budget's 0.9 ton an acre and $199.80 a ton, cottonseed is worth $179.82. Leave it out and your lint breakeven looks about 15 cents a pound worse than it is.
- Yield moves the price you need. If you spend for 1,200 pounds and pick 1,100, the same $1,450.12 works out to about $1.32 a pound instead of $1.21.
- Crop share versus cash rent. This budget's land cost is the landlord's 25% share, $233.96 an acre at budget yield and price. A cash rent stays fixed whatever the crop brings.
These are one university's numbers, not yours. Put in your own costs, yield, and price, and keep them by field from year to year. Free for up to three fields.
Other crops
- Corn breakeven $911.98/acre, $4.32/bu
- Soybeans breakeven $679.11/acre, $11.13/bu
- Rice breakeven $1,304.74/acre, $17.06/cwt
- Wheat breakeven $297.01/acre, $4.79/bu
- Grain sorghum breakeven $814.94/acre, $7.76/bu