It’s a common dilemma for all sorts of folks, not least those owning a hobby farm, ranch, or other working property: skid steer vs tractor?
As trusted suppliers of all manner of skid-loader attachments for customers across the U.S. and Canada, we’ve got some thoughts on the matter! The following guide, we hope, will help “steer” you (if you’ll pardon the pun) to the right machine for your needs.
Now, bear in mind we’re specifically comparing skid steers with the types of tractors they’d realistically be “competing” against in the workhorse department: i.e., compact or subcompact tractors, not bigger, high-power, heavy-duty utility tractors.
A skid steer, also known as a skid-steer loader or simply skid loader, is a class of heavy machinery with synced left and right sets of wheels that operate independently of one another. This allows for tight, zero-radius turns via a skidding sort of move (hence the name). Front (and sometimes rear) attachments of all sorts—from brush-cutters, grapples, and tillers to pallet forks, augurs, buckets, and backhoes—can be affixed to skid steers.
Skid-steer loaders are ubiquitous in warehouses and maintenance yards, where their exceptional maneuverability allows operators to efficiently load and haul in tight spaces.
But skid loaders are now widely used in all sorts of different settings and for all sorts of different uses. From farms and ranches to restoration sites and landscaping yards, you’ll often see skid steers employed to clear brush, dig holes and trenches, grade terrain, and till agricultural and garden plots.
Skid steers can also be fantastic tools for snow management: not just snow-plowing, but also snow-blowing and sweeping.
The two chief advantages of a skid loader are (the aforementioned) maneuverability and versatility. From hoisting palettes and installing fence posts to clearing out a dense understory or shrubland and stacking up wood, the zero-radius turning ability and across-the-board attachment compatibility these machines offer come in handy big-time for many property owners.
High-performing as they are across all sorts of construction, industrial, agricultural and land-management applications, skid steers do have their limitations. They aren’t typically very well suited for towing or pulling loads behind them, for example. And they aren't the quickest machines, mind you.
Tractors are time-tested machines designed with standard wheels or tracks for heavy-duty traction and power. Although the word “tractor” can refer to a wide variety of vehicles (including the tractor unit of a tractor-trailer or semi-truck), used on its own most folks will assume you’re talking about a farm or agricultural tractor—including larger utility tractors as well as the compact and subcompact models we’ll mostly be referring to here, as these would be a typical alternative to consider against a skid loader. Such machines may be open-cab or enclosed-cab in design.
Originally innovated for the agricultural sector, that’s still the classic setting for the traditional tractor, which can be used for plowing, harrowing, tilling, cultivating, seeding, transplanting, baling, spraying, and many other farm tasks. Compact tractors may also be employed for mowing/cutting, loading, and other sundry around-the-property uses, including for landscaping and gardening work.
Tractors are great for hauling loads of all sorts—their foundational purpose—and can support both front and rear attachments at once. They’re also quite speedy considering their bulk.
Tractors aren’t particularly maneuverable or nimble, and, while nobody would claim they aren’t plenty versatile (especially when it comes to agricultural implements), they can’t quite compete in the jack-of-all-trades department with a skid loader.
It’s also often a more time-consuming and labor-intensive job to switch out attachments on a tractor versus on a skid steer.
If most of your acreage is given over to cultivated fields and you’ve got lots of discing and the like to do, you’re probably going to want to think about a tractor. The same goes if you want something that can haul heavily loaded-down trailers. A tractor is also going to zip you around faster than a skid steer if you regularly need to cover a lot of ground.
But if you need a machine up for a wide variety of typical land-management and property-upkeep tasks, it’s hard to beat the up-for-anything versatility of a skid loader. It can handle a lot of the jobs that a compact or subcompact tractor can—including, in some cases, by using a front attachment and pushing forward to substitute for the hauling power of a tractor—and is often better-suited for many others, such as plowing snow, grading roads, and cutting brush.
Here’s an important point in the whole skid steer-vs.-compact tractor debate: More than a few people end up getting both! That may or may not be an option for you, but there’s no question it’s nice to be able to capitalize on the strengths of both kinds of machines.
Whether you’re using a skid loader in place of a tractor or adding one to your fleet of machines, turn to Prime Attachments for the finest skid-loader attachments on the market! Get in touch with our team today to learn more about what we offer and how to choose the perfect implement for your skid-steer job.