How is seed cost per acre calculated?

Cost per seed is bag price divided by seeds per bag. Multiply that by your seeding rate (seeds per acre) to get seed cost per acre. For example, a 280 dollar bag of 80,000 seeds is 0.0035 per seed; at 34,000 seeds per acre that is about 119 dollars per acre.

Why express seed cost per bushel?

Dividing seed cost per acre by expected yield gives seed cost per bushel of production, which lets you compare it directly against the grain price and other per-bushel input costs. It reveals what share of each bushel's value the seed consumes.

How does this help compare seed varieties?

A higher-priced hybrid is worth it only if its yield advantage outpaces its cost premium. Calculate cost per bushel for each variety; the one delivering the lowest seed cost per bushel of realised yield, at equal agronomics, is the better economic choice.

What is a seeding rate?

Seeding rate is the target plant population per acre, set on the planter. Corn commonly runs 30,000 to 38,000 seeds per acre; soybeans 120,000 to 160,000. Higher rates raise seed cost per acre and only pay off if they lift yield enough to cover the extra seed.

Should I use a planted or harvested seeding rate?

Use the planted (drop) rate, because you pay for every seed planted regardless of emergence. If you want a stand-establishment cost, divide by the expected germination and emergence percentage to find cost per established plant.

Seed Cost Per Acre Calculator

Seed is one of the largest cash inputs in row-crop farming, and the headline bag price hides the figure that actually matters: cost per acre at your seeding rate, and cost per bushel of the crop you expect to harvest. This calculator converts bag price and seed count into both, so you can compare varieties on equal terms.

How it works

Cost flows from per-seed up to per-acre and then per-bushel:

cost per seed   = bag price / seeds per bag
cost per acre   = cost per seed × seeding rate (seeds/acre)
cost per bushel = cost per acre / expected yield (bu/acre)

Expressing seed cost per bushel puts it on the same basis as the grain price and every other per-bushel input, making it easy to see what share of each bushel’s value the seed consumes.

Example and tips

A 280 bag of 80,000 corn seeds is 0.0035 per seed; planted at 34,000 seeds per acre that is 119 per acre. At a 220 bu/acre yield expectation, seed costs about 0.54 per bushel. When weighing a premium hybrid, compare cost per bushel, not bag price: a variety costing 30 more per bag is justified only if its yield gain lowers, or at least holds, its seed cost per bushel while keeping the same agronomic fit.