Daily rental rate for a compact excavator, used as the benchmark mid-size unit for local equipment rental pricing in Texas (2026)
A typical Texas range, the local factors behind it, and the tools to price your own project.
Reviewed for 2026, updated September 8, 2026.
What drives the cost in Texas
Texas is a huge, competitive rental market, and rates vary widely between Houston, Dallas, Austin and San Antonio and the rural stretches in between. Yards commonly pass through a unit property tax on heavy equipment rentals in addition to sales tax, which shows up as a separate line. Hurricane season affects the Gulf Coast, summer heat slows crews statewide, and oil and gas activity drives swings in heavy equipment demand.
Tips for Texas buyers
- Look for a unit property tax line on heavy equipment quotes.
- Ask about hurricane policies for Gulf Coast rentals from June through November.
- Compare quotes from several yards in the big metros, since competition can produce real differences.
Ranges are hedged planning estimates derived from a national typical range and a local index, not quotes. Typical daily rates for a small to mid size compact excavator from a local rental yard tend to land in this range, but it varies widely with machine size, attachments, rental length, delivery distance and how busy the local market is; weekly and monthly rentals usually work out to much less per day.
Price your project
- Equipment Rental Rate Calculator: Estimates the daily rate a rental business needs to charge for one piece of equipment to recover its cost, cover shop overhead and reach a target profit margin.
- Rental Fleet Size Calculator: Estimates how many units of one equipment item a rental business needs to stock to cover its bookings, including turnaround time between rentals and a buffer for peak months.
- Rental No-Show and Double-Booking Cost Calculator: Estimates how much revenue a rental shop loses each year to reservations that never get picked up and to double-booked equipment, and how much a deposit policy claws back.