Going electric is becoming much more compelling
Cheaper technology and higher gas prices make battery powered equipment realistic
Oct 26, 2024
At the 2024 Equip Expo, the landscaping industry’s largest trade show, we had a chance to inspect some of the latest electric push mowers and we were left with a clear conclusion: the time for battery operated equipment has finally arrived. The machines perform as well as their gas powered equivalents, and they are cheaper when you include operating and maintenance costs.
There are two macro factors that make going electric increasingly compelling: gas price inflation relative to electricity prices, and falling battery costs.
Gas prices have gone up much faster than electricity prices over the past 25 years
Over the last 25 years gas prices have almost tripled in the US, far outstripping the increase in electricity prices. On average gas prices have gone up about 6% a year, compared to the price of electricity which increased 2.8% a year.
Gas prices have tripled in the past 25 years, electricity prices doubled
The implication of this long term trend is that the cost of operating a gas mower is growing at more than double the rate of operating an electric mower. For example, in the state of Texas which has the lowest gas costs in the US and therefore should be the most attractive for gas mowers, you would save about $500 a year in fuel costs by switching to 22” electric push mower. These savings jump to over $1,000 a year if you’re in California, the state with the most expensive gas.
Battery prices are plummeting
Over the past 10 years, battery prices have dropped over 90%. And here is the most interesting part of this trend: most experts think they will drop another 40% in the next three years. Batteries are affordable, and soon they will become really cheap.
Some people will think that this means they should wait to buy an electric mower: we disagree, we think that you should buy the mower now, and when you need to buy a replacement battery, it will likely cost a fraction of what it is today.
Battery prices are forecasted to drop 40% in the next few years
The math
What do the long term gas, electricity and battery price trends mean for a business decision today? We built a detailed model to help you analyze the total cost of ownership, which includes the upfront cost of the mower (including extra batteries), as well as operations and maintenance. The model includes:
The price for electric and gas powered mowers
Note: we wanted to make an apples to apples comparison of the runtime of an electric and a gas mower. So if we found that the amount of mowing was more than the capacity of a mower, we factored in the cost of buying extra batteries.
Amount of gas or electricity a gas / electric 22” mower consumes
The price of gas and the cost of electricity
The cost of maintenance for electric vs gas mowers
Other details in our model include things like the runtime of the batteries, how many properties a typical landscaper is mowing in a day, the cost of extra batteries needed if the runtime is less than what a typical landscaper would use, the rate of inflation and amongst others.
The results
In the first year of ownership, it is cheaper to run a gas powered push mower in states with cheap gas like Texas. This is because the savings from using electricity do not have enough time to offset the higher cost of buying an electric mower. However, in California where gas prices are double those of Texas, it is cheaper to run an electric push mower even in the first year of ownership.
However, by the time you look at the 3 year total cost of ownership, it is significantly cheaper to run an electric mower versus a gas mower, in every state. In a place like Texas you are saving over $1,200, and in California that jumps to over $4,000 in savings by going electric!
In California a high volume mower saves over $4,000 over 3 years by going electric
Where electric doesn’t work (yet)
This analysis was for self-propelled 22” mowers, the kind used by folks who mainly do residential and small commercial work. The conclusions hold up for 30” mowers.
However once you get to zero turn, or large commercial grade mowers, the numbers no longer support electric mowers. Unlike push behind mowers, carrying spare battery packs for these mowers is not realistic and cost efficient, plus the energy required to propel the mower and cut the grass renders these uneconomical for the time being. However with continued improvements in technology, lowering of costs, and the continued increase in gas prices this may change in the next 5 years.
At the 2024 Equip Expo, the landscaping industry’s largest trade show, we had a chance to inspect some of the latest electric push mowers and we were left with a clear conclusion: the time for battery operated equipment has finally arrived. The machines perform as well as their gas powered equivalents, and they are cheaper when you include operating and maintenance costs.
There are two macro factors that make going electric increasingly compelling: gas price inflation relative to electricity prices, and falling battery costs.
Gas prices have gone up much faster than electricity prices over the past 25 years
Over the last 25 years gas prices have almost tripled in the US, far outstripping the increase in electricity prices. On average gas prices have gone up about 6% a year, compared to the price of electricity which increased 2.8% a year.
Gas prices have tripled in the past 25 years, electricity prices doubled
The implication of this long term trend is that the cost of operating a gas mower is growing at more than double the rate of operating an electric mower. For example, in the state of Texas which has the lowest gas costs in the US and therefore should be the most attractive for gas mowers, you would save about $500 a year in fuel costs by switching to 22” electric push mower. These savings jump to over $1,000 a year if you’re in California, the state with the most expensive gas.
Battery prices are plummeting
Over the past 10 years, battery prices have dropped over 90%. And here is the most interesting part of this trend: most experts think they will drop another 40% in the next three years. Batteries are affordable, and soon they will become really cheap.
Some people will think that this means they should wait to buy an electric mower: we disagree, we think that you should buy the mower now, and when you need to buy a replacement battery, it will likely cost a fraction of what it is today.
Battery prices are forecasted to drop 40% in the next few years
The math
What do the long term gas, electricity and battery price trends mean for a business decision today? We built a detailed model to help you analyze the total cost of ownership, which includes the upfront cost of the mower (including extra batteries), as well as operations and maintenance. The model includes:
The price for electric and gas powered mowers
Note: we wanted to make an apples to apples comparison of the runtime of an electric and a gas mower. So if we found that the amount of mowing was more than the capacity of a mower, we factored in the cost of buying extra batteries.
Amount of gas or electricity a gas / electric 22” mower consumes
The price of gas and the cost of electricity
The cost of maintenance for electric vs gas mowers
Other details in our model include things like the runtime of the batteries, how many properties a typical landscaper is mowing in a day, the cost of extra batteries needed if the runtime is less than what a typical landscaper would use, the rate of inflation and amongst others.
The results
In the first year of ownership, it is cheaper to run a gas powered push mower in states with cheap gas like Texas. This is because the savings from using electricity do not have enough time to offset the higher cost of buying an electric mower. However, in California where gas prices are double those of Texas, it is cheaper to run an electric push mower even in the first year of ownership.
However, by the time you look at the 3 year total cost of ownership, it is significantly cheaper to run an electric mower versus a gas mower, in every state. In a place like Texas you are saving over $1,200, and in California that jumps to over $4,000 in savings by going electric!
In California a high volume mower saves over $4,000 over 3 years by going electric
Where electric doesn’t work (yet)
This analysis was for self-propelled 22” mowers, the kind used by folks who mainly do residential and small commercial work. The conclusions hold up for 30” mowers.
However once you get to zero turn, or large commercial grade mowers, the numbers no longer support electric mowers. Unlike push behind mowers, carrying spare battery packs for these mowers is not realistic and cost efficient, plus the energy required to propel the mower and cut the grass renders these uneconomical for the time being. However with continued improvements in technology, lowering of costs, and the continued increase in gas prices this may change in the next 5 years.