By Ron Haugen
North Dakota State University Extension has released projected crop budgets for 2026. These budget projections serve as guides for farmers in the state and are organized by multicounty region.
Returns and costs can vary considerably between producers within a region, and projected profits vary by region and crop. The budgets estimate returns to labor and management, with no consideration of price and yield variability or risk.
“There is no perfect comparison of crops because there are different levels of labor, management and risk to consider,” says Ron Haugen, NDSU Extension farm management specialist.
A warm, wet fall in 2025 contributed to higher-than-average soil fertility levels, explains Haugen.
"As a result, fertilizer application rates should be lower in most regions,” says Haugen. “However, fertilizer prices are up, so the overall fertilizer cost per acre will be higher than 2025.
Source : ndsu.edu