Mini Excavator vs Skid Steer: Which Wins Small Jobs

Which Machine Is Right for Your Small Excavation Job?

The two most common machines on residential excavation jobs are the mini excavator and the skid steer. They look similar at a glance — both are small, tracked or wheeled, and operated by one person — but they are built for different work and they cost different amounts per hour. Machine choice is one of the twelve factors that drive residential excavation cost in Oregon — but it is rarely the biggest one.

Choosing the wrong machine for a job is one of the most common reasons residential excavation estimates come in higher than expected. A skid steer on a job that really needed a mini excavator can double the billable hours. A mini excavator on a job that really needed a skid steer can leave half the material unmoved at day's end.

This guide breaks down where each machine wins, where each loses, what each costs, and how experienced crews choose between them.

Industry Baseline Pricing

Hourly rates for residential excavation equipment vary by size, age, and operator experience. Use these as ranges, not quotes.

Industry Baseline Range

Equipment	Unit	Industry Baseline
Mini excavator + operator (1–3 ton)	per hour	$150 – $250+
Mini excavator + operator (3–6 ton)	per hour	$175 – $325+
Full-size excavator + operator	per hour	$200 – $350+
Skid steer + operator (compact track)	per hour	$125 – $275+
Compact wheel loader + operator	per hour	$150 – $300+
Mobilization fee	flat	$250 – $800+
Day rate (crew + mini excavator)	per day	$1,200 – $3,500+
Day rate (crew + skid steer)	per day	$1,000 – $2,800+
Minimum job callout	flat	$500 – $1,500+

These figures reflect published industry averages. Current market pricing varies significantly and actual quotes may fall well outside these ranges based on soil type, access, depth, haul-off volume, and site conditions.

Current Market Reality

The industry baseline ranges above represent ideal conditions — easy access, workable soil, shallow depth, minimal haul-off. In practice, actual project costs frequently exceed published averages by 2 to 3 times when complications arise. Oregon's clay soils, rocky terrain, unmarked utilities, permit requirements, and disposal fees can all push costs well above baseline figures. The only reliable way to know your actual cost is through an on-site assessment.

Machine choice is only one cost variable. Soil type, access, haul-off, and permit work often move the needle more than equipment hourly rates do.

What a Mini Excavator Is Built For

A mini excavator is a tracked machine with a rotating upper structure, a boom and arm with a bucket, and a blade at the front for backfilling and leveling. Sizes range from 1-ton "sidewalk" class up through 8-ton compact units.

Strengths:

• Digging depth. Mini excavators dig. A 3-ton machine typically reaches 8 to 10 feet deep. Skid steers cannot match that.
• Tight access. Narrow mini excavators (22 to 36 inches wide) fit through residential gates that full-size equipment cannot.
• Trenching. Precise, controlled trenches for utilities, drainage, footings, irrigation.
• Delicate work. The rotating house and controlled bucket let the operator dig around roots, pipes, and structures.
• Low ground pressure. Rubber tracks are easier on lawns and landscaping than a skid steer's tires or even compact tracks.
• Stump removal. With a thumb attachment, a mini excavator is the best tool for stump pull-and-root-chase work.
• Demolition. Small structures, concrete slabs, landscape walls.

Weaknesses:

• Material moving. A mini excavator is not a loader. It can spoil a pile but is slow at moving large volumes of material from point A to point B.
• Grading speed. A skid steer with a grading attachment can level a pad faster.
• Surface prep over large areas. Again, not a loader's job.

What a Skid Steer Is Built For

A skid steer (including compact track loaders, or CTLs) is a small, maneuverable loader with a bucket or attachment on an arm at the front. Skid steers are typically 2 to 5 tons.

Strengths:

• Material moving. Skid steers are loaders. They scoop, carry, and dump. Moving gravel, soil, base rock, demo debris, or mulch is their core competency.
• Grading and leveling. With a grading attachment or box blade, skid steers level pads fast — the core tool behind most small-job walkway excavations.
• Attachment versatility. Brooms, augers, forks, trenchers, snow buckets, grapples, mowers. The skid steer is the Swiss Army knife.
• Pad prep. For driveway base rock placement and compaction, a skid steer outperforms a mini excavator.
• Debris cleanup. Hauling demo debris to a dump trailer at the curb.
• Pavement and concrete work. Placement of base rock and moving cold-mix patching material.

Weaknesses:

• Digging depth. A skid steer bucket barely digs below its own frame. For trenching or any depth work, it is the wrong tool.
• Tight access. Most skid steers are 60 to 72 inches wide — too wide for many Portland or Eugene residential gates.
• Lawn damage. Even compact tracks chew up wet lawns faster than a mini excavator.
• Precision around structures. Skid steers are less controlled than a mini excavator for delicate work near pipes, roots, or walls.

When to Choose a Mini Excavator

• Anything deeper than 18 inches.
• Utility trenches (water, gas, electric, fiber).
• Footing excavation for decks, fences, retaining walls, or small structures.
• Drainage work — French drains, catch basins, storm laterals.
• Stump removal.
• Foundation work.
• Tree or root work.
• Tight-access backyards where gate width disqualifies wider equipment — common on small yard jobs across Oregon.
• Any demolition involving digging up a slab or footing.

When to Choose a Skid Steer

• Grading a pad once excavation is done.
• Placing and spreading base rock.
• Moving material across open yards.
• Pavement and concrete debris cleanup.
• Final site cleanup and haul to a curb-side dumpster.
• Snow removal (Central and Eastern Oregon).
• Attachment-based work — brushing, mowing, auger post-hole work, light grading.
• Surface-level leveling on open lots.

When You Need Both (and Most Residential Jobs Do)

The honest answer on almost every small residential excavation job is: you need both.

A typical driveway replacement looks like this:

1. Mini excavator breaks up the old slab and excavates to subgrade.
2. Skid steer loads debris into dump trucks for haul-off.
3. Mini excavator cleans up edges and addresses any subgrade repair.
4. Skid steer spreads and rough-grades base rock.
5. Plate compactor or roller finishes compaction.

A good residential excavation crew brings both machines on any job of meaningful size. A crew that only has one tool may end up using the wrong one.

Cost Comparison on a Typical Residential Job

Consider a hypothetical single-car driveway replacement in the Willamette Valley:

• Mini excavator only (3-ton): More hours to move material to the street. May be cheaper per hour but takes 30 to 50 percent longer on the "moving material" phase.
• Skid steer only (compact track): Cannot dig the depth for proper subgrade prep. Either leaves an inadequate base or forces hand work.
• Both machines together: Fastest total completion time, often lowest total cost, best-quality finished base.

The goal is not the lowest hourly rate. The goal is the lowest total cost with acceptable quality, and that usually means the right combination of machines.

Oregon-Specific Factors That Affect Machine Choice

Willamette Valley Clay

In clay, digging depth and bucket strength matter. A mini excavator handles clay subgrade better than a skid steer. In wet clay, a skid steer is more likely to get stuck and tear up the ground.

Central Oregon Rock

In Bend, Redmond, and high-desert jobs, rock changes everything. A mini excavator with a hydraulic breaker is the right tool for basalt. A skid steer with a hydraulic breaker works for smaller rock and surface demo but cannot replace a dedicated excavator-mounted breaker on serious rock work. Our rock removal excavation guide covers how this work is actually priced.

Tight Portland and Eugene Lots

In inner-Portland and older Eugene neighborhoods, gate width often dictates machine choice. A 36-inch mini excavator is the workhorse; a skid steer may not fit at all. Expect crews to work with smaller equipment and slower production on these lots.

Hillside Work

On sloped lots — South Hills in Eugene, West Hills in Portland, bench lands in Hood River — mini excavators work better than skid steers. The rotating house gives the operator more working angles on slope, and tracks handle uneven ground more safely than wheels or even compact tracks.

When DIY Makes Sense vs. Hiring a Pro

Rentals are available for both machine types. A homeowner comfortable with equipment can rent a 1 to 3-ton mini excavator or a compact skid steer for a day or weekend.

DIY may be reasonable when:

• The job is small and simple.
• No utilities are within 10 feet.
• No depth or precision is critical.
• You have experience operating the machine or have committed to the rental's operator training.

Hire a pro when:

• Any work near utilities is involved.
• Any footing or foundation work is involved.
• You need multiple machines.
• You need attachment-based work (breaker, auger, thumb).
• The job requires a CCB-licensed contractor (over $1,000 in Oregon).

Get a Free Excavation Estimate

The right machine for your job depends on depth, access, material volume, and what comes after the excavation. Our crews run both mini excavators and skid steers, and we match the machine to the work — not the other way around.

Get a free excavation estimate or learn more about our excavation services. See examples of completed work on our project portfolio and browse more planning content in our resources section.

FAQ

What is the difference between a mini excavator and a skid steer? A mini excavator is built to dig — it has a rotating upper, a boom and arm, and a bucket designed for depth and precision. A skid steer is a loader — it has a bucket on a front-mounted arm and is designed to scoop, carry, and dump material. Both are small residential machines, but they are built for different tasks.

Which is cheaper per hour, a mini excavator or a skid steer? Skid steers are generally cheaper per hour — often $125 to $275+ per hour with operator, versus $150 to $350+ for a mini excavator. But cheaper per hour does not mean cheaper per job. Using the wrong tool can double total hours billed.

Can a skid steer dig a trench? Not effectively. Skid steers can scrape shallow trenches a few inches deep, but they are not designed for trenching. For utility trenches, drainage, or any depth work, a mini excavator is the right tool. Attachment-based skid-steer trenchers exist but are narrow and shallow compared to what a mini excavator can cut.

Which is better for tight residential access? Mini excavators. The narrowest machines (22 to 36 inches wide) fit through residential gates that no skid steer can clear. For inner-Portland or older Eugene backyards, a mini excavator is often the only practical machine.

How long does a typical residential excavation job take with these machines? A small-to-medium residential job typically runs 1 to 3 days on-site with the right combination of mini excavator and skid steer. Bigger jobs (ADU pads, pool excavations, complex drainage) can extend to a week or more. Single-machine jobs often take 30 to 50 percent longer than two-machine jobs of the same scope.

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