Crane Size Calculator: What Size Crane Do I Need?

How the calculator works

Every capacity comes from a manufacturer's published load chart: main boom, outriggers fully extended, with the most counterweight the chart lists. The charts say they are a guide and not for running a crane.
For your distance we use the next distance the chart lists, which has the lower number.
A boom only counts if its tip reaches 15 ft above your height, for the hook block and slings. We assume the boom pivots about 6 ft off the ground.
A crane fits when your load is under 75% of its chart number. In the US Army Corps of Engineers safety manual, a lift at 75% of the load chart or more is a critical lift that needs a written plan. The margin also covers the hook block and rigging, which come off the chart number.
Link-Belt's charts already stop at 85% of the load that would tip the crane on outriggers. That margin is the manufacturer's, not extra room for you.
The rates are the published ranges on our crane cost page. The companies are the ones we list whose own websites name a crane about that size.

This is a rough guide, not a lift plan. Soft ground, power lines, outrigger room, a jib or a different crane change the answer. The crane company makes the final call from its own load chart and a lift plan.

Sources: USACE EM 385-1-1, section 16.H, critical lifts (OSHAcademy course text) · Carrier 48FC rooftop unit specs · Hansen Pole Buildings, truss weight · Bullfrog S200 swim spa specs · Urban Forestry South, weight of green logs (PDF, from USDA Technical Bulletin 479)

The load charts we use

The tonnage in the name is the top rating, right next to the crane. The last column shows what is left at 50 ft.

Crane	Load chart	Setup on the chart	Top rating	At 50 ft
30-ton boom truck	National Crane NBT30H, page 10	Main boom (29 to 100 ft), outriggers fully extended, no jib	60,000 lb	5,850 lb
40-ton boom truck	National Crane NBT40, page 16	Main boom (31 to 127 ft), outriggers fully extended, 360°, no jib	80,000 lb	9,000 lb
60-ton hydraulic truck crane	Link-Belt HTC-8660 II, page 19	Main boom, 15,100 lb counterweight, outriggers fully extended, 360° rotation	120,000 lb	14,100 lb
90-ton hydraulic truck crane	Link-Belt HTC-8690, page 26	Main boom, 39,500 lb counterweight, outriggers fully extended, 360° rotation	180,000 lb	32,700 lb
110-ton hydraulic truck crane	Link-Belt HTC-86110, page 25	Main boom, 48,600 lb counterweight, outriggers fully extended, 360° rotation	220,000 lb	37,200 lb
210-ton all-terrain crane	Link-Belt ATC-3210, page 29	Main boom, 115,500 lb counterweight, outriggers fully extended, 360° rotation	420,000 lb	77,900 lb

Capacities in pounds, copied from each chart (research/charts.mjs reads them). A 40-ton boom truck lifts 80,000 lb close in and 6,500 lb at 60 ft.

What the crane company will ask you

Have these answers ready and the quote comes back faster and closer to the final bill.

What it is and what it weighs, plus anything it sits on. A spec sheet or a photo of the nameplate helps.
Its size, and where it is now: on a truck, on the ground or on a roof.
Where it has to go: how high, and how far from where the truck can park. That distance is the reach.
Where the truck can park: street, driveway or lot, and whether the ground is firm and level for the outriggers.
Anything overhead: power lines, trees, roof edges and signs.
The date and time, and whether the lift has to be early or on a weekend.
Who rigs the load and who signals, your crew or theirs.
Street permit: if the truck has to sit in the street, who pulls it.

Know the weight, distance and height? See what size crane it takes.

Typical lifts

Rooftop HVAC units

Set or swap rooftop units on stores, offices and apartments. Most take a boom truck.

482 to 2,174 lb · 15 to 30 ton boom truckCompanies and costs

Roof trusses

Set trusses on houses, additions, garages and pole barns with a boom truck or crane.

120 to 350 lb each · boom truckCompanies and costs

Hot tubs and swim spas

Lift a hot tub or swim spa over the house or fence when there is no side access.

790 to 2,720 lb empty · 15 to 75 tonCompanies and costs

Tree removal

Crane-assisted removal for big or dead trees over houses, garages and lines.

Trees over 80 ft · 10 ton and upCompanies and costs

Signs

Pylon and monument signs. Small signs go up with a boom truck.

1,500 to 5,000 lb · 10 to 30 ton (RiggingForce)

Steel beams, shipping containers, sheds, machinery, boats: most crane companies do them. See all crane companies or boom trucks.

Questions

How do I measure the distance?

From the center of the crane, the turntable behind the cab, to the center of where the load lands. If the crane parks in the street, measure from the middle of its lane to the spot on the roof or in the yard. Add a few feet if you are not sure where it can park.

Why does a big crane lift so little far out?

A crane tips when the load times its distance gets too large, and a long boom also weighs more. So the rating drops quickly as the load moves out. The tonnage in a crane's name is only what it lifts right next to the crane.

Does this replace a lift plan?

No. It is a rough guide from published charts. The crane company picks the crane from its own load chart, the ground, the setup and a lift plan, and for big or tight lifts it plans the lift in detail.

What will the crane company ask me?

The weight, where it sits now, where it goes, how high, where the truck can park and what is overhead. See what the crane company will ask you.

Which crane do I need?

Your lift