Illinois farmers will invest approximately $229 per acre on fertilizer for corn and $61 per acre for soybean nutrients in 2026, according to a recent survey conducted by University of Illinois agricultural economists.
The projected costs for growers are slightly elevated from 2025, reflecting farmer sentiment in Illinois and across the Midwest. Seventy-three percent of the 262 farmers surveyed expect higher fertilizer costs in the year ahead.
Fertilizer prices have come down from 2022 peaks but remain high relative to crop prices, notes Gary Schnitkey, professor and agricultural economist. That fact is what makes prices today such a high pain point for growers.
“If you go back and compare anhydrous ammonia prices to what they were in 2017 through 2020, they are still higher than back then, and we had roughly the same corn price. So you’re going to see that cause a tilting away from corn profitability,” says Schnitkey. He adds that the costs cited are based on data reported by the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS).
The next three slides show Illinois fertilizer costs for nitrogen, DAP and MAP, and potash. Paulson and Schnitkey say Extension economists in other parts of the country are also able to provide farmers with state-specific cost information for key nutrients:
One of the questions the economists wanted to get answered had to do with what pricing strategies farmers use to buy their corn and soybean fertilizer products.
Forward purchases and volume discounts were the most common strategies farmers reported using, the economists found.
“We recognize that there’s probably other things folks do, but we couldn’t include every option in the survey,” Paulson says.
The economists asked farmers about what kinds of information and resources they use to determine their nitrogen application rate. Farmers were instructed to check all options that applied.
Thirty-three percent of the respondents said they refer to at least three sources of information to determine their application rates for nitrogen.
Maximum yield for dollars invested in fertility can be identified using the MRTN (Maximum Return to Nitrogen) calculator, Schnitkey says. MRTN application rates provide the most profitable nitrogen rate for corn by considering both the agronomic response to nitrogen and the economic prices of nitrogen fertilizer and corn.
Farmers Are Focused On Keeping Nutrients In The Field
Along with that, farmers were asked to weigh in on what factors were most important to them as they consider application timing. Of the eight options highlighted, the three of most importance to farmers are: nutrient losses, fertilizer prices and spring weather, in that order.
Schnitkey noted that as farmers evaluate nitrogen timing to keep in mind that anhydrous ammonia applied in the fall will benefit from a nitrogen stabilizer to keep product in the field. “That can cost $14 or $15 per acre, and might be something farmers want to weigh as they determine when to apply products and which ones they use,” he says.
One of the key takeaways Paulson and Schnitkey found was the value farmers see in getting quotes from multiple retailers on fertilizers — even if the farmer decides to do most or all of their business with a single, preferred supplier.
Forty-four percent of the farmers surveyed reported soliciting quotes on fertilizer from two retailers; 24% from three retailers and 8% from four or more retailers.
“In general, we see there’s probably more retailer options within an area than you might solicit price quotes from, and you probably solicit quotes from more people than you actually make purchases through,” Paulson says. “Quite a few farmers actually are only purchasing from one or two retailers; whereas, most people have three or four retailers in their area, and might get information from two or three of them.”
One of the takeaways Schnitkey notes the survey unveiled is that farmers are aware of the retailer consolidation underway in the marketplace and are concerned. “That is a big deal for farmers,” he says.
You can watch the podcast in its entirety here: Overview of Fertilizer Market Trends and Management Decisions for 2026
Your next read: Breaking Down the 4 Biggest Challenges Facing the Ag Economy
