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Farmland Cash Rent — 2025 NASS Averages

What ground actually rents for, per USDA\u2019s survey — and a scenario tool for your negotiation, not a fake appraisal.

Rent scenario calculator

Illustrative planning estimate based on published survey averages and your assumptions. It is not an appraisal, an offer, or legal, tax, or investment advice. Actual rent depends on parcel productivity, improvements, water, access, lease terms, local demand, and negotiation — verify current local data and get professional review before signing a material lease.
Baselines: USDA NASS Cash Rents (2025 reference year, released Aug 2025). County detail: NASS county cash-rent releases and QuickStats (quickstats.nass.usda.gov). Next NASS release: late August 2026 — this page updates that week. Reviewed July 2026

2025 NASS state averages — all 48 published states ($/acre)

StateCropland (non-irrigated)Irrigated croplandPasture
U.S. average$147$244$15.50
Alabama$76.50$142$25
Arizona$334$1.90
Arkansas$52$154$22
California$40$483$16
Colorado$33$183$7
Connecticut$81.50
Delaware$104$189
Florida$56$268$20
Georgia$82.50$238$36
Hawaii$190$443$12
Idaho$63$284$15
Illinois$264$272$49
Indiana$225$274$53.50
Iowa$274$267$65
Kansas$64$167$23.50
Kentucky$166$209$35
Louisiana$84.50$130$23
Maine$77.50$145$33
Maryland$120$227$59
Massachusetts$88.50$298$32
Michigan$143$260$35
Minnesota$199$224$34.50
Mississippi$99.50$180$22.50
Missouri$148$212$38.50
Montana$32.50$104$8.30
Nebraska$166$286$28.50
Nevada$160$10.50
New Hampshire$60
New Jersey$73.50$150$47.50
New Mexico$18.50$152$4.10
New York$82.50$173$31
North Carolina$105$140$31
North Dakota$83$191$23.50
Ohio$184$212$31
Oklahoma$36$101$18
Oregon$110$264$11
Pennsylvania$109$178$44
South Carolina$49.50$118$20.50
South Dakota$136$226$31
Tennessee$115$189$26
Texas$36.50$114$7.70
Utah$34.50$120$5.50
Vermont$68$31
Virginia$68$120$28
Washington$75.50$438$8.60
West Virginia$44.50$16
Wisconsin$161$259$45
Wyoming$16$80$7.50

All 48 published states shown — pulled directly from USDA NASS QuickStats (2025 Cash Rents survey, August 2025 estimates; retrieved July 19, 2026). "—" means NASS did not publish a 2025 estimate for that category (small irrigated acreage, limited pasture rental market, or data-quality suppression). Alaska and Rhode Island have no published 2025 cash-rent estimates. Heads-up when comparing against news coverage: widely quoted figures like "U.S. cropland $161" or "Nebraska $226" are all-cropland averages (irrigated + dryland blended) — this table separates the two, which is why some numbers differ from headlines. County-level detail: NASS county releases (e.g., NE, KS, SD, TX).

Using this without getting burned

The state average is a conversation starter; the county average is the real baseline, and NASS publishes those free every August. From there, the honest adjustments are parcel facts both sides can see: drainage/tile, irrigation, soil productivity index, field size and shape, road access, and what rights come with the ground (hunting retained or included changes real value — see our hunting lease page). Enter your own low and high percentages above — canned adjustment factors pretend a precision that doesn't exist, and some of these factors are already baked into your county's average.

Timing note for negotiations: NASS releases new cash rent data every late August. If you're negotiating a fall lease, the fresh county numbers land right on time.