ADM Grain Prices: Where to Find Cash Bids and Basis

ADM grain prices are the cash bids that Archer Daniels Midland posts for each of its US elevators and processing facilities. Every bid is a futures price, usually from CME Group’s Chicago Board of Trade, plus or minus a local basis, so the number you see depends on the location, the crop and the delivery month. You can check them on the “See Cash Bids” page linked from the ADMadvantage site, in ADM’s account apps, or by calling your nearest ADM location.

This page does not show live bids. Instead it explains how a bid is built, where to find the current one, and how to judge it. It gives dated reference prices from USDA and CME (the latest is 14 October 2026), charts of how local corn prices differ by place and season, and a calculator to test whether selling at harvest or storing pays at your elevator.

Where to see ADM grain prices

ADM does not publish one national price. Each location posts its own bids, and they move during the trading day as futures move. These are the places to look.

1. The ADMadvantage bid page. The “See Cash Bids” link on the ADMadvantage home page opens ADM’s bid board, hosted by Gradable at adm.gradable.com/market. Pick a location, then a crop and a delivery period. Best for: a quick check before you call or haul.
2. ADM’s account apps. ADM’s farmer services page says the ADM FarmView and FBN apps and websites show futures, cash bids, scale tickets, contracts and settlements. The ADMadvantage site now names ADM Access and Gradable as its apps. Ask your local office which one your account uses. Best for: sellers who already have an ADM account and want contracts and tickets in one place.
3. Your local ADM location. The adm.com site has a “Find an ADM Location” tool, and ADM says its local representatives can make decisions locally. Call to confirm the bid, the delivery window and any discounts before you load a truck. Best for: large sales, deferred delivery and contract questions.
4. USDA reports as a cross-check. USDA Market News publishes daily cash bid reports for several states, such as the Iowa Daily Cash Grain Bids report. They show the range of bids and basis across many buyers, not ADM’s own bid. Best for: judging whether one bid is high or low for your area.

When you read any bid, note four things: the futures month it is tied to, the delivery period, whether the price is delivered to the plant or at a country elevator, and the time it was posted. Two bids are only comparable when those four match.

How an ADM cash bid is built: futures plus basis

The CFTC glossary defines basis as the difference between the cash price of a commodity and the price of the nearest futures contract, usually worked out as cash minus futures. Turn that around and you get the formula behind every bid:

Cash bid = futures price + basis

Basis is usually negative in grain country, so a bid of “40 under December” means the December futures price minus 40 cents. ADM’s own contract pages use the same formula. Its Basis contract page says the contracted cash price is the futures reference price plus or minus the basis, and its Hedge-to-Arrive page says the cash price is the futures reference price plus or minus the basis, minus a service fee.

A worked example with real numbers

On 14 October 2026, December corn futures settled at 480.75 cents per bushel. That day the Iowa Daily Cash Grain Bids report from USDA AMS gave a state average corn bid of $4.38, at a basis of 43 cents under December. The sum checks out: $4.8075 minus $0.43 is $4.3775, which rounds to $4.38. For soybeans the same report gave $12.09, at 68 cents under November futures, which settled at 1,277.25 cents.

Reading the codes

Bids and USDA reports use one-letter codes for futures months. The AMS report lists them: F January, H March, K May, N July, U September, X November and Z December, among others. So “-43Z” means 43 cents under December futures, and “-68X” means 68 cents under November. Corn bids are usually tied to December, March, May, July or September contracts, and soybean bids to November, January, March, May, July, August or September, the months listed in the AMS futures table.

Chart

Iowa corn bids by region

Average cash bid, $ per bushel, current delivery, 14 October 2026

What moves the basis at your ADM location

Futures move with world supply and demand. Basis moves with what happens near you. The Iowa State University Ag Decision Maker guide on corn and soybean price basis names the main local drivers:

• Transport cost. Grain far from export routes or big processors costs more to move, so the local cash price sits further below futures. The guide notes that northwest Iowa has had lower cash prices than southeast Iowa for this reason.
• Storage and interest. These costs build up over the marketing year. The guide says cash prices tend to rise against futures from harvest through the year.
• Harvest selling. Heavy farmer selling at harvest pushes cash prices down and widens the basis. Light selling in spring tends to narrow it.
• Local demand. Ethanol plants, feed mills and livestock feeders nearby can lift local cash prices and narrow the basis.

Local demand is large in corn. The USDA Economic Research Service says most of the US crop is used at home, mainly for livestock feed and fuel ethanol. For 2026/27, the October 2026 WASDE puts corn used for ethanol and by-products at 5.65 billion bushels, about 35 percent of total use of 16.3 billion, and exports at 3.3 billion bushels, about a fifth of the crop. A processing plant that grinds corn for ethanol, sweeteners or feed is a big local buyer, which is why bids near large plants can differ from bids at a country elevator a few counties away.

The effect of place shows clearly in USDA’s monthly survey of prices farmers receive. In August 2026, the average corn price ranged from $4.07 a bushel in North Dakota to $5.53 in North Carolina among the states shown below, according to the NASS Agricultural Prices report of 29 September 2026. All of these states price against the same CBOT futures, so much of the gap reflects local basis: distance to buyers, local demand and freight.

Chart

Corn price received by state

$ per bushel, monthly average paid to farmers, selected states

Reference grain prices with dates and sources

Because ADM’s bids change by the minute, the useful thing a page like this can give is a set of dated reference prices. Each line below measures something different, so compare like with like.

Chart

US season-average corn price

$ per bushel received by farmers, marketing years September to August; 2026/27 are forecasts

Futures settlements are exchange prices for a contract month. The Iowa figure is an average of elevator bids for current delivery. The NASS price is what farmers were paid on average for grain sold in the month. The WASDE number is USDA’s forecast of the average price farmers will receive over the whole marketing year. None of them is an ADM bid, but together they show whether the bid in front of you is in line with the market.

Iowa corn bids by region

The Iowa report also splits bids by region. On 14 October 2026, average country elevator bids for corn ran from about $4.35 in the northeast to $4.41 in south central Iowa, while the Council Bluffs terminal elevators in the southwest averaged $4.55. The report does not give a reason. The ISU guide links lower cash prices to the cost of moving grain to processors and export markets.

What USDA expects for the season

The October 2026 World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates lowered the 2026/27 season-average corn price by 10 cents to $4.70 a bushel. It cut the all-wheat price by 10 cents to $6.30, citing larger stocks and the prices reported so far, and left the soybean price at $12.00. Even after the cut, the corn forecast is above the $4.16 estimated for 2025/26 and the $4.24 for 2024/25.

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How ADM grain prices change through the year

Cash prices have a seasonal shape. The NASS monthly series for US corn shows prices received in each month of the September to August marketing year. In the 2025-26 year, prices started at $4.00 in September 2025, dipped to $3.93 in October, and peaked at $4.48 in May 2026. August 2026 came in at $4.45, against $3.96 a year earlier.

Chart

US corn price received by month

$ per bushel, marketing years September to August

The same NASS table shows when farmers sell. October was the busiest month of 2025-26, with 12.9 percent of the year’s corn marketings, and 16.2 percent the year before. Heavy selling at harvest is the reason the ISU guide gives for basis being wide at that time of year. For an ADM seller, that means harvest bids often carry a weaker basis than bids for delivery later in the season, when the buyer has to pay to draw grain out of storage.

That pattern is not guaranteed. In some years futures fall after harvest and wipe out any basis gain. In its September 2026 update of the Illinois crop budgets, the University of Illinois farmdoc team raised its 2026 budget prices to $4.95 for corn and $12.20 for soybeans, based on futures trading and harvest delivery cash bids. The authors suggested that pricing more than the usual share of the 2026 crop at harvest may be warranted after the recent price rise. Other years can call for the opposite choice.

ADM contract types that use the basis

Once you understand futures plus basis, ADM’s contract menu makes more sense. Several of its contracts fix one part of the price now and leave the other part for later. ADMadvantage describes these three:

• Cash contract. You pick a posted cash bid for a delivery window, now or later, and are paid cash on delivery. Best for: sellers who like today’s full price.
• Basis contract. You lock in only the basis for a delivery period and set the futures part before a deadline. ADM says this suits a seller who expects futures to improve but fears the basis may weaken. Best for: a strong local basis with weak futures.
• Hedge-to-Arrive (HTA). You lock in the futures reference price and set the basis later, before delivery. The cash price is futures plus or minus basis, minus a service fee. Best for: good futures prices with a basis you expect to improve.

The ADMadvantage menu also lists Spot, Forward Contract, Deferred Pricing, Minimum Price, Storage, 1×2 Seasonal Price, Price Accumulator, Price Daily, Price Max, Price Point and Offers (target prices). ADM notes that its Basis and HTA contracts are not futures or options contracts. Terms, fees and deadlines differ, so read each contract with your ADM representative.

Sell at harvest or store? Check the numbers

Storing grain only pays if the later bid beats today’s bid by more than the cost of storage and the interest you give up while you wait. Follow these steps:

1. Get today’s bid. Note the futures month and the basis for spot or harvest delivery.
2. Get a deferred bid. Ask for the bid for delivery in the month you would sell stored grain, and note its futures month and basis.
3. Price your storage. Use the commercial storage rate, or your own bin cost per bushel per month, including drying, handling and shrink.
4. Add interest. Money tied up in grain costs your loan rate, or the interest you could earn.
5. Compare per bushel. Enter the numbers in the calculator below.

The calculator does not forecast prices. It only does the arithmetic on the numbers you enter. Grain marketing involves price risk; check the contract terms with your buyer and get advice from a qualified farm business adviser or broker before you act.

Try the numbers for your own farm below.

How to compare ADM bids with other buyers

A searcher who asks for a reliable grain price benchmark usually needs three things: the futures price, the local basis and a neutral survey. These are the public ones:

• CBOT futures from CME Group set the common base for corn, soybeans and soft red winter wheat. KC wheat futures do the same for hard red winter wheat.
• USDA AMS daily state bid reports show bid and basis ranges by region for many buyers, as in the Iowa report.
• NASS prices received show what farmers were paid on average each month, by state.
• WASDE gives USDA’s season-average price forecast each month.

To compare an ADM bid with a co-op, an ethanol plant or another processor, line up the same futures month and delivery period. Then add your own freight to each buyer and subtract any known fees or discounts. The buyer with the highest number left after freight is the best bid for that load, even if its posted price is not the highest.

ADM says it runs hundreds of elevators and processing facilities. If you farm between two of them, check both bids. The basis at a processing plant and at a country elevator nearby can differ by more than the cost of the extra miles.

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Where crop size fits into ADM grain prices

Futures, and so every ADM bid, respond to how big the crop is. In its Crop Production report of 9 October 2026, USDA NASS forecast US corn for grain at 16.0 billion bushels, with an average yield of 181.2 bushels per acre, which would be the second-highest corn crop on record. It forecast soybeans at a record 4.56 billion bushels, with a yield of 53.1 bushels per acre.

NASS also warned that the forecasts were based on data collected before harvest was complete, and said there is a 90% chance, based on 20 years of results, that the final number will fall in these ranges: 15.5 to 16.6 billion bushels for corn and 4.35 to 4.77 billion bushels for soybeans. When the estimate moves inside those ranges, futures move, and the bid at your ADM location moves with them.

Your own crop size matters as much as the national one. Knowing how many bushels you will have helps you decide how much to price ahead and how much to store. Satellite crop monitoring, such as the Farmonaut Satellite + AI Farm Monitoring System, shows how each field’s vegetation changes through the season, which can help you spot weak areas before harvest. For a simple per-field estimate, see our guide to grain and crop yield calculators.

▶ How satellite NDVI maps show crop stress across a field before it is easy to see from the ground. · 4:09

How we checked the numbers

Every price on this page has a date and a named source. Futures settlements and Iowa bids come from the USDA AMS Iowa Daily Cash Grain Bids report for 14 October 2026. Monthly and state prices come from the NASS Agricultural Prices report released 29 September 2026. Season averages come from the WASDE reports of September and October 2026. ADM contract terms come from ADM’s own adm.com and ADMadvantage pages, read in October 2026. We do not show ADM’s live bids, because they change during the trading day; always confirm the current bid with ADM before you sell.

Related pages on our site: Farmonaut web app, Agro-Admin App, Farmonaut API, satellite weather API docs, crop loan and insurance tools, carbon footprinting, product traceability, fleet management and IoT in cotton farming.

FAQ

Where can I find ADM cash bids near me?

Use the “See Cash Bids” link on the ADMadvantage site, which opens ADM’s bid board at adm.gradable.com/market, and pick your location. Account holders can also see bids in ADM’s apps, or call the nearest ADM location found with the locator on adm.com.

How is an ADM grain price calculated?

Each cash bid is a CBOT futures price for a set month plus or minus the local basis. For example, on 14 October 2026 the Iowa average corn bid of $4.38 was December futures at $4.8075 less a 43-cent basis (USDA AMS).

Why is the ADM bid lower than the futures price?

The basis is usually negative because the grain still has to be stored, handled and shipped to a final market. The ISU Ag Decision Maker guide lists transport, storage and interest, harvest selling and local demand as the main reasons basis changes.

Can I lock in the basis and price the futures later?

Yes. ADM’s Basis contract fixes the basis for a delivery period and lets you set the futures part before a deadline. Its Hedge-to-Arrive contract does the reverse and charges a service fee. Check the terms with your ADM representative.

What is a reliable grain price benchmark?

Use CBOT futures for the market level, the USDA AMS daily state bid reports for local basis, NASS prices received for what farmers were paid, and the monthly WASDE for the season-average forecast. Each measures something different, so compare like with like.