Crane rates for Boise and the Treasure Valley, 2026
A small crane job in the valley usually starts around $700 plus fuel. Bigger cranes jump to an 8-hour minimum and a truck to haul their counterweight, which is where bills pass $3,000.
The rate sheet
| Crane | Rate | Billed at least |
|---|---|---|
| 17 or 23-ton boom truck | $175 | 4 hours |
| 40 to 60-ton crane | $175 | 4 hours |
| 70-ton crane | $180 | 4 hours |
| 75-ton crane | $250 | 4 hours |
| 100-ton crane | $275 | 8 hours |
| 130-ton crane | $330 | 8 hours |
Rates: COI Crane Service, Glen Allen, Virginia, pricing for 2025 and 2026, billed port to port with a certified operator. Weekends and overtime add $30 an hour. Fuel is extra: a $50 minimum, worked out at $1.00 a mile plus $6 per crane hour up to 70 tons, and $1.50 a mile plus $9 an hour above that. The 100-ton crane also needs one tractor trailer at $185 an hour, 8-hour minimum. COI does not work in Idaho, and Treasure Valley companies quote by phone, so use this as a yardstick.
Run the numbers on a Treasure Valley lift
Choose the closest job and a crane. The math uses the posted rate and minimum from the chart above. Fuel, overtime and riggers come on top.
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Why one sheet from Virginia
Crane companies around Boise give prices on the phone. COI Crane Service, near Richmond, Virginia, posts its whole price list for 2025 and 2026, from a 17-ton boom truck to a 210-ton crane, with the fuel formula and the extras. That makes it a useful yardstick, even from across the country.
Rates are port to port, so the clock runs from the yard and back, and the operator is included. The sheet says all its operators are certified.
Size barely moves the rate, until 75 tons
On this sheet a 17-ton boom truck and a 60-ton crane both bill $175 an hour with a 4-hour minimum. The first step up comes at 75 tons, $250 an hour. At 100 tons the minimum doubles to 8 hours and the crane needs a tractor trailer for its counterweight.
So if the operator suggests a bigger crane, up to 60 tons, for a longer reach, the hourly price may not change at all. Past that, ask what the travel trucks add.
Three bills from the same sheet
- $700A 40-ton crane for the 4-hour minimum, at $175 an hour.
- $820The same job on a Saturday, at the $205 weekend rate.
- $1,500A 75-ton crane for 4 hours, $1,000, plus a certified rigger for the 4-hour minimum, $500.
Sample math only. The operator prices your lift.
Price my liftLine items that show up on the bill
All of these are on the posted sheet:
- Fuel: at least $50. Up to 70 tons it is $1.00 a mile port to port plus $6 for every hour of crane use. From 75 tons up, $1.50 a mile plus $9 an hour.
- Weekend and overtime rates, $30 an hour above the regular rate on every crane.
- A certified rigger or signal person, $125 an hour, 4-hour minimum ($155 on weekends and overtime).
- A site survey and lift plan, $250.
- A man basket or material basket, $300.
- Tractor trailers for the big cranes, $185 an hour each with an 8-hour minimum: one for the 100-ton, two for the 130-ton.
- In Ada County, an ACHD temporary use permit when the crane sits in the street or on the sidewalk, $30 to $85 a day (ACHD fee schedule).
Choosing the crane
The weight of the load and the distance from the crane to where it lands decide the machine. Capacity drops as the boom reaches out, so a 900 pound hot tub set 20 feet from the truck is easy, and the same tub set 70 feet away behind a two-story house is a different job.
Most backyard, house and low-roof lifts fit a 17 to 23-ton boom truck. Long reaches and steel move into the 40 to 75-ton range. The backyard guide and the rooftop guide go into sizing.
Rate questions
What is the minimum crane charge around Boise?
On the posted sheet, 4 hours at $175, or $700, for anything up to 60 tons, plus at least $50 in fuel. Valley companies set their own minimums, so ask.
Is a bigger crane always more expensive?
Not on this sheet. Everything from 17 to 60 tons bills the same hourly rate. The price steps up at 75 tons and again at 100 tons, when the minimum goes to 8 hours.
Does a weekend lift cost more?
Yes, $30 an hour more on every crane on the posted sheet. A 4-hour Saturday lift on a 23-ton boom truck is $820 instead of $700.
Sources
- COI Crane Service, pricing for 2025 and 2026
- Ada County Highway District, permit fee schedule (Resolution 2321)
- Idaho Transportation Department, truckers handbook
- OSHA 29 CFR 1926.1408, power line safety