Sell now or keep feeding
| Scenario | Sale wt | Days | $/cwt | Net $/hd | vs. sell now | Value of gain | Cost of gain | Breakeven |
|---|
Today's markets
Price slide
Your cattle across the country
| Market | Report | $/cwt | $/head | vs. your local |
|---|
Same weight, class and color. Freight to a distant barn isn't included.
Local price differences
| Compared with | Under 500 lb | 500–700 lb | 700 lb + | Pairs |
|---|
Futures for the next 12 months
The range widens with time because prices have more room to move.
Your calves, month by month
| Sell in | Weight | $/cwt | Likely range | $/head | vs. today |
|---|
Cattle supply
Market estimate: grower feed for your calves
EstimateUse the price on your feed bill for the finished TMR or mixed feed, or the market estimate above.
Prices update from USDA; type over any with what you pay. Pounds per head per day, as-fed.
| Ingredient | $/ton | DM % | lb fed |
|---|
Cost of gain
+200 lb scenario, all costsIf feed prices move
| If this goes up | Now $/ton | Feed $/hd/day | Cost of gain | Hold result |
|---|
Most I can pay for calves
What you could pay today and still break even selling heavier, at the price the market points to when you'd sell.
If they go on to finish
My farm
Set these once and come back when something changes. They're saved on this phone or computer. Rows marked Market data update on their own; the rest start with example numbers, so put in yours. Each box shows its cost per head on a +200 lb hold.
Pasture, water & supplement
Vet services
Labor & insurance
Price insurance (LRP) is under Price protection.
Interest & death loss
Price protection
Protect the sale price of the cattle you hold. Costs here come off every hold scenario; the floor shows on the Sell or hold tab.
Hauling & selling
Hide color spreads
Color gaps come from Warren County Livestock's graded sales. If your barn runs different, enter one sale's prices for the same weight class and WeighUp uses your spreads instead.
Sources and methods
WeighUp is information only. It works from the numbers you enter and published market data. It is not financial, marketing, nutrition or veterinary advice, and prices at a future sale date will differ.
| Data | Source | Updates | Latest |
|---|
Cattle prices
USDA AMS Market News weekly auction summaries, feeder Medium and Large 1-2 plain lots (Georgia and Florida: Medium and Large 1); Fancy, Fleshy and Value Added lots left out. Reports:
Futures and cattle supply
CME feeder and live cattle futures (settlements via Farmbucks and Brownfield; refreshed daily on the website) · USDA NASS Cattle on Feed, Oct 23, 2026 · USDA NASS Cattle, Jul 24, 2026 · seasonal index from University of Arkansas FSA3159.
Feed
Tennessee Daily Grain Bids, Oct 29, 2026 · USDA Grain and Oilseed Processor Feedstuff Report, Oct 8, 2026 · Rock Valley IA Hay Auction, Oct 5, 2026. Nutrient targets: NRC Nutrient Requirements of Beef Cattle (7th rev., 2000 update) as tabled by Alabama Extension; feed nutrient values from the UGA Extension feed library.
Costs
Prime rate: Federal Reserve, via FRED · Pasture rent: US average, USDA NASS 2026 via Farm Bureau, Tennessee, UT Beef & Forage Center · LRP: University of Arkansas, USDA RMA · Video sales: Superior Livestock seller information. Vet, labor, water, hauling and insurance figures are examples to replace with your own.
Color, grade, bulls and weaning
Warren County Livestock, McMinnville TN, graded feeder sales: black, BWF and Charolais pens by Choice and Good grade, bulls, and one-owner weaned and vaccinated (Value Added) lots. Each spread is the median difference between pens at the same sale and weight; weaned lots are compared with the graded-pen price at the same weight. Red, white, spotted and mixed lots, which that barn doesn't sort, use South Dakota State, 2022 sales · Arkansas (2010) and Texas studies, via Oklahoma State..
Sell or hold
If you check "wean and vaccinate before selling," holds of 45 days or more get the weaned premium; vaccine and vet costs come from My farm. Each hold scenario adds 100, 200 or 300 lb at your expected gain. Net per head is the projected sale value after shrink, commission, fees and hauling, minus feed, pasture, water, supplement, vet, labor, insurance, price protection, interest and death loss. Value of gain is the extra sale value per pound put on; when it beats cost of gain, keeping them adds money. Breakeven is the sale price a hold needs to match selling now, and odds are the chance the price ends up above it.
Price forecast
- Start from your local price. The latest USDA sale-barn report near your ZIP, at the weight you'd sell, with your hide color adjustment.
- Move it with the futures market. Scaled by how far feeder futures for your sale month sit above or below today's cash index. Local premiums and discounts carry through.
- Adjust for the season. Light calves and heavy feeders follow different seasonal patterns (University of Arkansas price index, 2011–2020). Futures already price the heavy-feeder season, so only the difference is applied.
- Show the range. Feeder futures typically swing about 20% a year. The likely range covers about 2 out of 3 outcomes; the odds on the Sell or hold tab use the same spread.
Buying calves and finishing
Most I can pay: projected sale value at the sell weight in the month you'd sell (after shrink and commission), minus feed, pasture, vet, interest and death loss for the days on feed, divided back to a price per hundredweight at the buy weight. Hide color applies here too.
If they go on to finish: live cattle futures for the month they'd reach finish weight, plus your basis. Retaining ownership compares that finished value, less feedlot cost of gain, interest and death loss, with selling them as feeders. Feedlot cost of gain of $1.10–$1.40/lb is typical with corn near $4.50.
Price protection
Put and LRP premiums are estimated with the standard option formula (Black-76) from feeder futures for the sale month, the usual price swing and the prime rate. Your broker's or agent's quote will differ; type it over the estimate. LRP premium subsidies change with coverage level, so confirm with your agent. Forward contracts, LRP or futures hedges can lock in a price if the range is more risk than you want; talk with your lender or a marketing advisor.
Feed estimate
The grower feed estimate is a least-cost mix that meets NRC protein and energy needs for your calves' weight and gain, priced at current ingredient prices plus mixing and delivery. Hay and pasture are left out because they vary farm to farm.