Rex says
Money math without the spreadsheet headache. Plug in your numbers and I'll show you exactly where the dollars land.
Try a scenario
Click to load — tweak from there.Inputs
Result
Tenant net — cash rent
-$13,200
Landlord net — cash rent
$78,000
Tenant net — crop share
$32,400
Landlord net — crop share
$32,400
Gross revenue per acre
$836
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How to use this
- 1Enter acres.
- 2Enter expected yield (bu/acre).
- 3Enter expected price ($/bu).
- 4Enter total input cost ($/acre).
- 5Enter cash rent rate ($/acre).
- 6Enter landlord's crop share (%).
- 7Read your tenant net — cash rent on the right — it updates as you type.
- 8Hit Share to keep the scenario or send it to someone.
About this calculator
Cash rent gives the landlord certainty and the tenant all the upside and risk; crop share splits both but requires the landlord to also share input costs, which many absentee landowners don't want to do. This calculator runs the same yield, price, and cost assumptions through both arrangements so a landlord or tenant can see which one nets more under a given scenario, and how sensitive that answer is to price and yield swings. A common structure is a 50/50 crop share with the landlord paying half of fertilizer, seed, and chemical costs, versus a flat cash rent per acre with the tenant bearing all input costs and price risk. Neither is universally better — it depends on how much risk each party wants to hold.
Worked example
Using the values the calculator loads with:
Inputs
- Acres: 300
- Expected yield: 190 bu/acre
- Expected price: 4.4 $/bu
- Total input cost: 620 $/acre
- Cash rent rate: 260 $/acre
- Landlord's crop share: 50 %
Results
- Tenant net — cash rent: -$13,200
- Landlord net — cash rent: $78,000
- Tenant net — crop share: $32,400
- Landlord net — crop share: $32,400
- Gross revenue per acre: $836
What each field means
Inputs
- Acres
- The acres used in the calculation. Starts at 300 so you have a working example on load.
- Expected yield (bu/acre)
- The expected yield used in the calculation, measured in bu/acre. Starts at 190 bu/acre so you have a working example on load.
- Expected price ($/bu)
- The expected price used in the calculation, measured in $/bu. Starts at 4.4 $/bu so you have a working example on load.
- Total input cost ($/acre)
- The total input cost used in the calculation, measured in $/acre. Starts at 620 $/acre so you have a working example on load.
- Cash rent rate ($/acre)
- The cash rent rate used in the calculation, measured in $/acre. Starts at 260 $/acre so you have a working example on load.
- Landlord's crop share (%)
- The landlord's crop share used in the calculation, measured in %. Starts at 50 % so you have a working example on load. Accepted range: 0–100 %.
Results
- Tenant net — cash rent
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars and shown as the headline result. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Landlord net — cash rent
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Tenant net — crop share
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Landlord net — crop share
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Gross revenue per acre
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
FAQ
Which arrangement do tenants generally prefer?
Tenants who are confident in their yields and expect prices to hold or rise usually prefer cash rent because they keep 100% of the upside after a fixed cost. In a bad yield or price year, cash rent hurts them more since the landlord still gets paid in full.
Why would a landlord choose crop share over a higher cash rent?
Crop share aligns incentives — the landlord benefits directly from good yields and shares the pain of a bad year, which can matter more to landowners who want a long-term stake in the farm's productivity rather than pure income certainty.
How do you set a fair cash rent rate?
Most areas benchmark off USDA NASS county cash rent surveys and a target of 30-40% of expected gross revenue, adjusted for soil productivity index and drainage. Landlords and tenants should revisit the number annually as commodity prices shift.
Can the split differ from a straight 50/50?
Yes, common variations run 40/60 or 60/40 depending on who supplies which inputs — a landlord contributing tile drainage or lime typically negotiates a larger share, while one contributing nothing beyond land often settles for less than half.
Accuracy and limitations
- Results are estimates before tax, fees, and inflation unless an input explicitly covers them.
- Rates are treated as fixed for the whole period — variable-rate products will drift from this projection.
- This is educational maths, not financial advice. Check anything contractual with the lender or your accountant.
Related tools
Cite this calculator
Writing about this topic? Grab a citation — every link helps keep these tools free.
RevenueLab. (2026). Cash Rent vs Crop Share Calculator. Retrieved from https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/cash-rent-vs-crop-share
<p>Source: <a href="https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/cash-rent-vs-crop-share" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Cash Rent vs Crop Share Calculator — RevenueLab</a> (2026).</p>
Source: [Cash Rent vs Crop Share Calculator — RevenueLab](https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/cash-rent-vs-crop-share) (2026).