Excavator Rental in Amarillo, TX
Excavator rental in Amarillo turns on three things: how deep and how long the cut runs, how much room the machine has to swing, and what is buried in the way. Caterpillar's examples include the 303 CR, a 7,817 lb mini with a 104.3 in dig depth on its standard stick, and the full-size 320 at 49,800 lb with a 22 ft maximum digging depth. The USDA rates the slowly permeable Pullman soils large in extent on the Southern High Plains. Two rules come with every dig: Texas 811 says state law requires a call at least two business days before excavating, and OSHA requires a protective system in any trench 5 feet or deeper unless it is cut entirely in stable rock. Below are the sizes, national rates, add-ons, rules and what a free written quote needs from you.
$150 to $350 a day for a mini excavator, national (Angi, updated July 2026) · full pricing guide
An excavator is a digging machine on tracks or wheels: a boom, a stick and a bucket mounted on an upper body that swings over the undercarriage. Caterpillar's four examples show the spread. Its small mini, the 303 CR, weighs 7,817 lb, has a track width of 61 in (1550 mm) and a dig depth of 104.3 in with the standard stick or 116.1 in with the long one, per Caterpillar's 303 CR specifications. The 305 CR, a larger mini, lists 12,688 lb with a cab in its heaviest setup and 134.6 in of depth on the standard stick. The 320 is the full-size example at 49,800 lb, a 22 ft digging depth and 172 hp, and the 336 is the large one at 81,100 lb and 300 hp. Minis handle service lines, footings and drains; the heavier classes take on building pads, utility mains, ponds and plant-site cuts.
These are national figures, not Amarillo prices. A national rental marketplace's excavator guide dated March 19, 2026 averages $719 a day, $2,021 a week and $5,108 a month across all sizes. Its mini row (1.5 to 4 tons) runs $150-$400 a day, $450-$1,200 a week and $1,200-$3,200 a month, and its mid-size row (13 to 25 tons) $700-$1,500 a day. Angi, updated July 2026, puts a mini at $150 to $350 per day and a crawler excavator at $750 to $1,200 per day. The extras add up: Angi lists delivery and pickup within 10 miles at $60 to $100 total plus $3 to $4 for each added mile, the marketplace estimates a mini's diesel at $50-$130 a day, and it puts a damage waiver at 10-15% of the rental. Our Amarillo cost page sets these beside the other machines.
Two rulebooks apply. Texas Utilities Code section 251.002(5) defines excavating as using mechanized equipment of any kind to disturb soil to a depth of 16 or more inches, and section 251.151 of the Utilities Code requires notice to the one-call center no earlier than the 14th day and no later than the 48th hour before work begins, weekends and legal holidays excluded. Before any digging, either we or you make that call; Texas811 adds that "Getting the lines marked is a FREE service." In the trench, federal OSHA's Subpart P governs: spoil 2 feet back from the edge, a ladder, stairway or ramp within 25 feet of travel once a trench reaches 4 feet, and a protective system at 5 feet unless the cut is entirely in stable rock. The digging section of our permits guide sets out the full steps.
Ground and weather around Amarillo set the pace. The Pullman series, which the USDA rates large in extent and finds dominant on its Bushland research farm, has slow permeability and a subsoil that is 35 to 50 percent clay, and the USDA says the Randall-series soils on playa floors are "frequently ponded for very long periods in most years." OSHA wants a competent person to inspect an open trench after every rainstorm, and the Weather Service's 1991-2020 normals make June through August the wettest stretch. The big digs nearby: Fermi America says it has completed bathtub excavation for all six power islands at Project Matador in Carson County (August 13, 2026), and a City official called the Lawrence Lake pump station project "the equivalent of putting a five-story building in the ground" (May 28, 2026). Our Panhandle and Carson County page follows the Carson County projects.
A quote starts with four answers: the machine or the work (trench length and depth, a pad, a pond), the ground and access (gates, slopes, overhead lines, a playa nearby), the address, and how long you need it. We put the quote in writing at no charge before anything is delivered, listing the machine class, bare or with an operator, the day, week or month rate, delivery and pickup, attachments such as a hydraulic thumb ($50-$100 a day in the marketplace guide) or a breaker ($150-$300 a day), the damage waiver and each tax line. The maker's operating information goes out with the machine. Backfill and cleanup often go faster with a skid steer or track loader, and a trench that also needs loading may suit a backhoe loader instead.
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Caterpillar Excavator Examples: Weight, Depth, Bucket Force
Four Caterpillar models show how the class scales, from a mini with a 61 in track width to the large 336 at 81,100 lb. Match the depth column to your deepest cut and the weight column to the trailer and the ground it must cross.
| Example model | Cat's class | Operating weight | Maximum dig depth | Bucket digging force |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cat 303 CR | Mini | 7,817 lb | 104.3 in (standard stick) | 6,385 lbf |
| Cat 305 CR | Mini, larger | 12,688 lb (cab, heaviest setup) | 134.6 in (standard stick) | 11,061 lbf |
| Cat 320 | Medium (full-size) | 49,800 lb (reach boom) | 22 ft | 31,586 lbf (ISO) |
| Cat 336 | Large | 81,100 lb | 8210 mm (printed as 26.11 ft) | not recorded |
Caterpillar's published figures for each model and setup; stick, bucket and setup change real depth and force. Cat prints the 336's depth as 26.11 ft beside 8210 mm; the metric figure shows that means 26 feet 11 inches, not 26.11 decimal feet. Each model stands for its class and says nothing about what we own; "not recorded" means we did not take that figure.
Signs the Job Needs an Excavator, Not a Shovel
Hand tools and walk-behind trenchers cover small holes. Each condition below is something you can see before you call; it points to an excavator, and in most cases it brings a rule that changes how the dig is planned, priced and quoted.
- The hole or trench will reach 16 or more inches deep, the depth at which Texas law counts mechanized digging as excavation.
- Part of the cut goes 5 feet deep or more, where OSHA calls for sloping, benching, a support system or a shield unless the walls are stable rock.
- The dig sits on a playa floor, where the USDA describes the clay soils as frequently ponded and, when dry, cracked 40 in deep or more.
- Locate paint or flags mark a buried line within 18 inches of where the bucket must go, the tolerance zone Texas811 describes.
- The work is in a City of Amarillo street or alley, where utility excavation needs a permit from the Street Division first.
- The spoil pile will be large, and OSHA wants excavated material kept at least 2 feet back from the edge or held by a retaining device.
OSHA's Trench Rules, Line by Line, for an Amarillo Dig
OSHA's excavation standard, 29 CFR 1926 Subpart P, governs the trench itself. Section 1926.651 starts before the first cut: the estimated location of buried lines is determined and their owners contacted, and the exact location is found by "safe and acceptable means" as the dig closes in. Once the hole is open, spoil and equipment stay at least 2 feet from the edge or behind a retaining device. A trench 4 feet deep or more needs a stairway, ladder or ramp placed so no worker travels more than 25 feet sideways to reach it, and where low oxygen or a hazardous atmosphere exists, the air is tested before anyone enters a trench deeper than 4 feet. A competent person inspects the excavation, the ground beside it and any protective system daily before work and after every rainstorm.
The cave-in rule sits in 29 CFR 1926.652(a)(1): every worker in the excavation is protected by an adequate protective system unless the cut is entirely in stable rock, or is less than 5 feet deep and the competent person sees no indication of a potential cave-in. The default slope, when no other option is used, is no steeper than one and one-half horizontal to one vertical, 34 degrees from horizontal. OSHA's Appendix B allows 3/4:1 for Type A soil and 1:1 for Type B, and sloping or benching deeper than 20 feet must be designed by a registered professional engineer. The text of 29 CFR 1926.652 is short enough to keep in the truck.
Pullman Clay, Playa Floors and Caliche Under the Bucket
A bucket in the Pullman or Randall soils of the Southern High Plains digs clay, and the USDA's soil descriptions say what kind. Pullman soils, which the USDA rates large in extent, formed in clayey wind-laid deposits of the Blackwater Draw Formation. Their surface layer is 27 to 40 percent clay and their subsoil 35 to 50 percent, their permeability is slow, and their typical profile shows cracks 1.0 cm wide running through a horizon. Lime collects with depth: the calcic horizon starts 76 to 150 cm (30 to 60 in) down, and one horizon of the typical profile holds about 40 percent calcium carbonate by volume. Playas change the picture.
Texas Parks and Wildlife counts approximately 19,300 of them in the Texas High Plains, and the Randall soils on their floors lie 10 to 50 feet below the surrounding plain, hold 50 to 60 percent silicate clay, are frequently ponded for very long periods in most years, and open cracks 1 to 5 cm (0.4 to 2 in) wide to 102 cm (40 in) or more when dry. The Handbook of Texas adds the caprock: calcium carbonate under the plains formed a hard layer commonly called caliche. Before delivery, check whether the site holds water after rain, how deep the lime layer sits where you dig, and whether the trench walls are cracked clay that the competent person must judge. The USDA's Pullman series description has the full profile.
Digging in an Amarillo Street, Alley or Right-of-Way
A dig in the City of Amarillo's right of way needs City paperwork before the machine unloads. The City defines its right of way as land it owns or controls, including roadways, streets, sidewalks, alleys and easements, and its Right of Way Division takes permit applications only through the e-Builder software. The City says fees depend on the type of work; its listed ROW permit fee is $260.00 plus a $10.00 technology fee, and working in the right of way without a permit costs $500.00 a day plus the same technology fee. The permit form asks for five business days on projects that need no permanent structure and under 1000 linear feet of facilities, and ten business days for the rest.
Utility excavation in a City street or alley needs a Service Line Permit from the Street Division, filed with excavation and restoration plans, a bond or cash security and insurance. The hours rule reads "No work is allowed on weekends or between 6:00 pm and 7:00 am on weekdays, unless approved by the City Engineer," emergencies aside, and a traffic control plan goes to Traffic Engineering for review before setup. Towns nearby write their own rules: Dumas will not issue a right-of-way work permit until the 811 call is made, as our Dumas page explains. When a quote covers street work, it names the permits the dig needs.
Mini, Full-Size or Large Excavator: Choosing the Class
Choose the class from depth, reach, weight on the trailer and room to swing, then read the published rates. Caterpillar's examples carry its own class names, while the marketplace guide sorts by tons, so match them by weight rather than by name.
Mini excavator
Caterpillar's minis weigh 7,817 lb (303 CR) and 12,688 lb (305 CR) and list dig depths of 104.3 in and 134.6 in on standard sticks. Angi prices minis at $150 to $350 per day, while the marketplace guide splits 1.5-4 ton minis at $150-$400 a day from 5-10 ton small machines at $400-$700. Its delivery figure for minis under 4 tons is $200-$400 roundtrip. Minis suit digs inside fences.
Full-size excavator
The marketplace's mid-size row, 13 to 25 tons, runs $700-$1,500 a day, $2,100-$4,500 a week and $5,500-$12,000 a month, and it prices delivery for 5-25 ton machines at $300-$500 roundtrip. This class suits building pads, deeper utility trenches and ponds. Cat's full-size and large examples are in the table above; the guide's rows go by tons, not models.
Large excavator
The marketplace's large row, 30 to 50 tons, starts at $1,500-$3,000+ a day, and its delivery note for 30-plus-ton machines reads $500-$1,000+ roundtrip with a lowboy trailer and possibly oversize permits. Our heavy haul and machinery moving page covers the TxDMV side of that move. Mass digging on plant and project sites fits here.
The marketplace guide prints day, week and month figures, so price the job at the length you expect. With someone in the seat, the marketplace adds $400-$800 a day for the operator, and HomeGuide (February 2026) lists $100 to $300 per hour for an operator who brings a mini excavator, backhoe or skid steer.
Excavator Rental FAQs
How much is it to rent a mini excavator for a day near Amarillo?
Angi, updated July 2026, puts a mini excavator at $150 to $350 per day nationally, and HomeGuide (February 2026) says renting your own mini runs $200 to $700 per day depending on size and features. Neither is an Amarillo price. Delivery, fuel, attachments, a damage waiver and Texas sales tax on a bare rental come on top, and our written quote shows each one on its own line.
Do I have to call 811 before I dig with a mini excavator?
Yes in almost every case. Texas law counts mechanized digging that disturbs soil to 16 or more inches as excavation, and Texas811 says to call at least two business days ahead, weekends and holidays excluded. Utilities then have 48 hours, holidays not counted, to mark their lines. Asked whether shallow digging still needs a call, Texas811's FAQ answers "Yes." If you hire a contractor, the contractor makes the call.
How deep will a mini excavator dig?
It depends on the model and the stick. Caterpillar lists the 303 CR at 104.3 in with the standard stick and 116.1 in with the long stick, and the larger 305 CR at 134.6 in standard and 144.5 in long. Past that, the full-size Cat 320 lists 22 ft. Plan the trench walls with the depth: OSHA wants a protective system at 5 feet or deeper unless the cut is entirely in stable rock.
Is there sales tax on an excavator rental in Texas?
Yes, on a bare rental. Under the Comptroller's Rule 3.294, receipts from leasing equipment without an operator are taxable, and so are damage waiver fees and the transportation charges a lessor bills for delivery and pickup. Inside Amarillo the combined rate is 8.25 percent, the 6.25 percent state rate plus 2 percent local. The same rule treats a machine furnished with its operator differently, and the written quote we send sets out each charge and the tax on it, if any.
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