Land & Brush Clearing Cost Per Acre: The Real Numbers

“Land clearing cost per acre” is not one number — it’s a range that depends almost entirely on what’s growing (or buried) on the parcel. Based on aggregated 2025-2026 contractor pricing, here’s how the major categories break down:

Note what’s not in these figures: grading, leveling, and finish work are priced separately and add to the per-acre total. A quote that only covers “clearing” — cutting and removing vegetation — is not the same as one that includes “grubbing,” which is the deeper, more labor-intensive extraction of stumps, roots, and buried rock. Confusing the two is the single most common reason a clearing budget runs over (more on that distinction in the clearing vs. grubbing section below).

These numbers are aggregated from active contractor pricing surveys and will shift as fuel, labor, and disposal costs move. For the most current figures for your region, get at least three local quotes referencing your specific acreage, vegetation type, and access conditions — the ranges above are a starting budget, not a substitute for a site-specific bid.

What Land Itself Costs: USDA State-Level Values

Clearing cost is only half the budget equation — the other half is what the raw land is worth before you touch it, and what it’s worth after. USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) publishes state-by-state land values every July. The 2026 Land Values Summary puts the national average cropland value at $6,020 per acre, and the national average farm real estate value (land plus buildings) at $4,500 per acre.

State-level numbers vary enormously. North Dakota cropland averaged $2,800 per acre in the 2026 report — up 3.3% year-over-year — while Michigan cropland averaged $6,600 per acre, up 3.9% over the same period, according to DTN’s analysis of the USDA report. The national cropland average rose 3.3% over the same window. This is why “land clearing price per acre” and “land price per acre” have to be evaluated together: clearing a $2,800/acre North Dakota parcel to bring it into row-crop production is a very different capital decision than clearing a $6,600/acre Michigan parcel for the same purpose, even if the clearing contractor charges the identical rate per acre in both states.

If you’re evaluating a specific county rather than a statewide average, USDA’s QuickStats database lets you pull the underlying numbers directly: go to quickstats.nass.usda.gov, select your state, choose the “Agricultural Land” category, and filter to “Value, Measured in $/Acre.” The database updates annually each July with the prior year’s survey data, so a search in mid-2027 will return figures collected through early 2027.

What Actually Drives Your Price Per Acre

Two parcels of identical acreage can come in at wildly different quotes. The factors that move the number, roughly in order of impact:

1. Vegetation density and tree size. This is the single biggest driver — it's the difference between the $733/acre light-clearing floor and the $6,155/acre heavy-forest ceiling in the table above.
2. Whether grubbing is included. Stump grinding, root mat removal, and buried rock extraction are a separate, more labor-intensive pass. A quote for "clearing" alone often excludes it.
3. Soil type and moisture. Wet, clay-heavy, or rocky soil slows equipment and raises both time and fuel cost per acre.
4. Topography and slope. Steep or uneven ground requires specialized machinery and reduces crew productivity per acre worked.
5. Debris disposal method. On-site mulching or chipping is cheaper than hauling debris off-site; burning (where permitted) has its own permit and liability costs.
6. Site access. Remote parcels with no existing road access add mobilization cost for heavy equipment.
7. Regulatory and environmental requirements. Wetland buffers, erosion control mandates, and habitat protections can add both direct cost and schedule time.

Clearing vs. Grubbing vs. Land Clearing: Definitions That Matter

These terms get used interchangeably in casual conversation but mean distinct things on a contractor's scope of work, and the difference directly explains why quotes for the "same" job can differ by thousands of dollars per acre.

• Clearing: Removing above-ground vegetation — trees, brush, saplings, surface growth. This is what the $733–$6,155/acre ranges above generally price.
• Grubbing: Removing what clearing leaves behind — stumps, root mats, buried rock, and subsurface debris. Required if you plan to till, plant, or build on the site; skippable if you only need access or a fire break.
• Land clearing (as a project, not a task): The umbrella term covering clearing, grubbing, debris disposal, and sometimes basic grading — the phrase most people search when pricing a whole project rather than one operation.
• Brush clearing: A lighter-duty subset of clearing, focused on scrub, saplings, and understory rather than mature timber — hence its lower typical cost, $2,000–$3,500/acre versus heavy forest's $3,395–$6,155/acre.
• Clearing and grubbing (combined): The full removal-to-bare-soil scope, typical for new cropland, orchards, or building pads. Budget toward the higher end of the relevant density range when both operations are required.
• Try it: Clearing Cost Estimator

When you request quotes, specify exactly which of these you need. "Clear 10 acres" and "clear and grub 10 acres" are different jobs with different equipment, timelines, and prices — and a contractor who quotes low without clarifying scope may be pricing clearing only.

Michigan, North Dakota, and Regional Notes

Two of the states most often searched alongside land clearing costs sit at opposite ends of the USDA land-value spectrum, which matters for how a clearing budget stacks up against the underlying asset.

Michigan

Michigan cropland averaged $6,600 per acre in the 2026 USDA NASS report, up 3.9% from the prior year — one of the faster year-over-year gains among the states NASS tracks, per DTN's coverage of the report. Because Michigan land values sit above the $6,020 national cropland average, clearing cost as a share of total project cost tends to be proportionally smaller there than in lower-value states — the same $2,000–$6,000/acre clearing bill is a smaller fraction of a $6,600/acre asset than it would be against a $2,800/acre one.

Michigan-specific clearing-cost data broken out by county or vegetation type is not published by a federal agency; the state-level cropland value above comes from USDA NASS, but per-acre clearing quotes are a private contractor market. Get three local bids referencing your specific parcel to establish a Michigan-specific number.

North Dakota

North Dakota cropland averaged $2,800 per acre in the same 2026 report, up 3.3% year-over-year — among the lowest state averages USDA tracks, well below the $6,020 national figure. That gap is exactly why "north dakota land price per acre" gets searched as its own query: buyers comparing North Dakota to national or Corn Belt averages are checking whether the state is under- or over-priced relative to the rest of the country. Based on the 2026 NASS data, it sits well under the national average.

NASS does not publish a public interactive per-county price map for North Dakota; the figure above is the statewide average from the July 2026 summary. For a county-level breakdown, use the QuickStats tool linked above and filter to North Dakota counties directly.

Cost-Share and Assistance Programs

Brush and woody-species clearing on agricultural land is one of the few clearing scenarios with a federal cost-share option. USDA's Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), administered through the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), pays a per-acre rate for brush management and removal of encroaching woody species as a conservation practice — not for general land development clearing, but specifically for rangeland and pasture brush encroachment.

Payment rates run $50 to $300-plus per acre depending on state and brush density, per aggregated NRCS/state program guidance. That's a meaningful offset against the $2,000–$3,500/acre national brush-clearing average, though it rarely covers the full cost — EQIP is a cost-share, not a full reimbursement, and payment rates are set annually by each state NRCS office.

EQIP contracts require an approved conservation plan before work begins, so this isn't something you apply for after clearing is done. If brush encroachment on grazing or crop land is part of your project, contact your local NRCS field office before hiring a contractor — enrolling first can materially change your net cost per acre.

Equipment, Debris Disposal, and Cost Control

The equipment a contractor brings — and what you do with the resulting debris — moves the per-acre number as much as the vegetation itself does.

• Forestry mulchers: Grind standing brush and small trees in place, leaving mulch as ground cover. Common for the lighter end of the brush-clearing range since there's no hauling cost.
• Skid steers with brush attachments: Efficient for scattered brush and saplings on accessible, relatively flat ground.
• Excavators and track loaders: Required once you're grubbing — pulling stumps, root mats, and buried rock rather than just cutting what's above ground.
• Bulldozers: Used for pushing over larger trees and consolidating debris into burn or removal piles on heavier jobs.
• Dump trucks: Needed only if debris is hauled off-site rather than mulched, chipped, or burned in place — and this is one of the larger swing factors in a final bill.

On-site mulching or chipping is consistently the cheapest disposal path because it avoids hauling and tipping fees entirely. Off-site hauling is usually the most expensive line item after the clearing labor itself, so ask every contractor to itemize disposal separately from clearing — a low headline per-acre rate can hide a disposal charge added afterward.

Clearing Before You Clear: Satellite Site Assessment

For mining and mineral exploration projects, clearing and grubbing costs compound quickly across large lease areas — every access road, drill pad, and stockpile zone adds acreage to the bill. Farmonaut's satellite-based mineral detection platform screens a project area before any ground crew mobilizes, identifying likely ore zones, viable access routes, and structural hazards so clearing crews are deployed only where the data supports it.

If you're scoping a lease or claim for clearing, get a satellite-based site read before crews mobilize. Get a quick quote here or contact us for a consultation.

Frequently Asked Questions

Conclusion: Price the Land and the Clearing Together

Clearing cost per acre and land price per acre are two separate numbers that only mean something when read side by side. A $2,800/acre North Dakota parcel and a $6,600/acre Michigan parcel can face the identical $2,000-$3,500/acre brush-clearing bill — but that bill represents a very different share of the total investment in each case. Use the ranges in this guide as a starting budget, run your own numbers through the calculator above, and always get a scope-specific quote that states plainly whether grubbing is included.

• ✔ Brush clearing: $2,000-$3,500/acre national average; heavy forest: $3,395-$6,155/acre.
• 📊 Check USDA NASS's July land-values report, or QuickStats for county detail, before budgeting against land value.
• ⚠ Confirm whether a quote includes grubbing — it's the most common line item left out.
• 🌱 EQIP cost-share ($50-$300+/acre) can offset brush-clearing cost on qualifying agricultural land.
• 🔍 For mining leases, get a satellite site read before committing to ground clearing: contact us or get a quote now.