Tractor and agricultural machinery finance
Tractor and agricultural machinery finance funds tractors, combines, sprayers, balers, telehandlers and wider agri-kit, spreading the cost over the long working life of farm machinery. Specialist agricultural lenders and manufacturer finance arms dominate, and finance is often timed around the rhythm of farm income and subsidy payments. The usual routes are hire purchase, which is typical and gives ownership at the end, and sale-and-leaseback, which releases capital from machinery a farm already owns. The machinery is the security and agri-kit holds value well over UK farm cycles, which keeps lenders comfortable. Underwriting weighs the farm trading history, the asset and the timing of income against the repayment schedule. For arable, livestock and dairy farms and agricultural contractors, financing the machinery rather than buying outright keeps cash free for seed, feed, fuel and the long gaps between harvest income and subsidy receipts.
At a glance
- Category
- Agriculture
- Typical tickets
- £25,000 to £300,000+
- Typical term
- 60 to 84 months
- Best finance type
- Hire purchase typical; sale-and-leaseback for releasing capital from owned kit.
How financing tractor and agricultural machinery works
On hire purchase the lender funds the machine and you own it at the end after fixed instalments. On sale-and-leaseback the lender buys machinery you already own, pays you the cash and leases it back, releasing capital tied up in the fleet. Specialist agri lenders structure repayments around seasonal income and subsidy timing, which a generalist lender cannot always do. The machine is the security throughout.
Typical terms
Terms commonly run 60 to 84 months to match machinery life. Repayments can sometimes be shaped around harvest and subsidy cycles. Used-machine valuations vary by farm type and engine hours, which drives the deposit and rate.
Who it suits
Arable farms, livestock and dairy operations and agricultural contractors investing in or refreshing machinery. Hire purchase suits farms buying new or replacement kit; sale-and-leaseback suits farms that need to release cash from machinery they already own.
What to check
- Subsidy timing such as BPS or SFI, which affects cashflow around finance payments.
- Used-machine valuations, which vary by farm type and hours run.
- Whether repayments can be shaped around seasonal income.
- Maintenance and downtime costs across a long term.
Why asset finance fits
Agri machinery holds value well over UK farm cycles. Manufacturer finance arms are competitive.
New to the structures? The guide to hire purchase, finance lease, operating lease and refinance explains how each route is taxed and accounted for, and the asset finance cost compare calculator puts them side by side on the same asset.
Top sectors
- Arable farming
- Livestock and dairy
- Agri contractors
Top UK lenders
- Manufacturer finance (John Deere Financial, AGCO Finance, CNH Industrial Capital, Kubota Finance)
- Specialist agri lenders (Oxbury Bank)
- Aldermore
Watch outs
- Subsidy timing (BPS / SFI) affects cashflow planning around finance payments.
- Used-machine valuations vary by farm type and hours.
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Open tractor and agricultural machinery finance eligibility checker →Last reviewed: 2026-04-26.