It was a tough decision. Skidsteer or Tractor with a loader? Our homestead was growing fast and we really needed a piece of equipment to help around the place. Everyone seemed to have an opinion or recommendation. Here is what we considered and what helped us make the final decision.
Do you need to maneuver in tight spaces?
Skid steer works best but if you have patience you can often get by with a tractor. Depends on how tight your spaces are. We needed to maneuver around trees and clean inside tight sheds so the skid steer had an advantage here.
Will you be harvesting crops with the equipment?
If yes you will definitely want a tractor. However if you just need the equipment to prepare the ground and you can harvest by hand then a skid steer can work too.
Loading & unloading equipment or supplies a lot?
A skid steer comes with a loader by default. However, you can get a tractor with a loader. It just may end up costing a bit more than the skid steer for something with the same lift capacity and age.
Will you be hauling a trailer a lot?
If you need to haul a trailer a lot and can’t use one of your other vehicles than you probably want a tractor. Skid steers have trailer hookups on the front but you either need to drive the trailer backwards or the skid steer backwards the whole time. Not optimal for lots of hauling but works fine for around a small homestead.
Do you need to work in muddy or marshy areas? A skid steer will get stuck more often than the tractor will. Still with some careful work with it’s bucket it can frequently get it out faster. Still the larger wheels on the tractor are very helpful in this situation. This is especially true if the tractor is front wheel assist or 4x4.
Got a nice lawn?
A skid steer will tear up a nice lawn worse than a tractor unless it happens to be a tracked one or you are very careful on your turns.
Steep slopes on your property?
A tractor is less tippy than a skid steer. If you have a lot of traveling to do on steep hills you will probably want a tractor. A skid steer can handle it if you are careful but it can be rather scary.
Clearance issues?
Do you height issues? Low sheds to clean or branches to duck under. In our case we had small sheds we wanted to pull into for cleaning. A tractor tends to need more headspace for the same lift capacity. Especially if the tractor has a cab.
Maintenance
Tractors are easier and sometimes cheaper to maintain. It can be rather hard to access some of the parts when working on a skid steer because of how compact it is.
Upfront Costs
Newer skid steers and tractors are both rather expensive. To get a newer tractor with a front loader you will probably have a slightly higher initial cost but you will save money on attachments. Skid steer attachments tend to cost a bit more than tractors. If you are really tight on cash it is relatively easy to get a really old tractor with a loader and take care of the tasks around the farm. It won’t be the most convenient but it can get the job done.
Our decision! We ended up selecting a New Holland L221 skid steer with 3000 hours for the first piece of equipment on our homestead. For starters we needed something that could lift at least a 1200lbs bale and this does it easily. Our homestead is only 24 acres and everything is very compact and close to each other. The maneuverability of the skid steer has been super helpful around the farm. 19 of our acres are woods or marsh. The skid steer was perfect for maneuvering between the trees while clearing brush. A tractor would have taken at least twice as long to get everything cleared with the tree puller while leaving all the nice trees. For our pastures we use a skid steer rototiller to prep the ground for planting and we either harvest by hand or let the animals harvest it for us. Since we only have a few acres to take care of it isn’t too hard to plant things with a push or ATV spreader. I really like how easy it is to adjust the skid steers position when loading and unloading the trailer. I had the hitch damaged on my trailer because a guy loading hay with a tractor let the clutch slip. It rammed the back of the trailer and damaged the hitch on the suburban. Never had that kind of an issue with a skid steer.
Cons: So far nothing expensive has broken on the skid steer. The New Holland L221 skid steer was designed to be maintainable without taking everything apart or jacking it up. It hasn’t been too bad so far. It does have very touchy controls. Will need to get the sensitivity reduced someday. It can be rather scary starting out with a skid steer because of how easy it is to put it on 2 wheels. However with the motor so close to the ground it is much harder to actually tip over than you would expect. Just keep the bucket near the ground when moving and you should be fine. We did get stuck twice in the marshy section of the woods but were able to use the bucket to push our way out.
Overall: The skid steer was a great decision for our homestead with all the woods and loading we do. It helped clear a woodland pasture, till the garden & pastures & we use it to move hay and feed every few days. It was the perfect way for us to start out with our homestead. Eventually I do hope to get a compact tractor or toolcat for the farm as we expand the tasks on the farm but so far we can do everything we need with the skid steer. Hope this helps with your decision as well.