Weekly fertilizer market tool
Fertilizer Price & Grain Buying Power Index
Compare fertilizer buying power against corn and soybean prices. The index measures how many bushels of grain are required to buy one short ton of fertilizer. Lower is better.
September 1, 2026
Corn fertilizer buying power
Lower ratios are more favorable| Product | Signal | Action | Current ratio bu/ton |
12M avg bu/ton |
Vs 12M | Historical percentile | 5Y avg bu/ton |
10Y avg bu/ton |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Urea46-0-0 | Signal: RED | WAIT | 132.5 | 112.2 | 18.1% WORSE | 100% | 119.6 | 109.7 |
| UAN 3232-0-0 | Signal: RED | WAIT | 111.0 | 90.1 | 23.2% WORSE | 100% | 91.0 | 83.8 |
| DAP18-46-0 | Signal: RED | WAIT | 168.3 | 172.6 | 2.5% BETTER | 81% | 152.9 | 138.8 |
| MAP11-52-0 | Signal: RED | WAIT | 171.6 | 173.3 | 1.0% BETTER | 75% | 162.3 | 146.6 |
| Potash0-0-60 | Signal: RED | WAIT | 89.0 | 85.6 | 4.0% WORSE | 86% | 109.6 | 103.4 |
Soybeans fertilizer buying power
Lower ratios are more favorable| Product | Signal | Action | Current ratio bu/ton |
12M avg bu/ton |
Vs 12M | Historical percentile | 5Y avg bu/ton |
10Y avg bu/ton |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DAP18-46-0 | Signal: RED | WAIT | 69.6 | 71.4 | 2.6% BETTER | 81% | 63.7 | 56.0 |
| MAP11-52-0 | Signal: RED | WAIT | 70.9 | 71.8 | 1.2% BETTER | 84% | 67.6 | 59.2 |
| Potash0-0-60 | Signal: RED | WAIT | 36.8 | 34.4 | 7.0% WORSE | 91% | 45.9 | 41.8 |
Your quote, your numbers
Personal Fertilizer Value Calculator
Enter the fertilizer prices you can actually buy and compare them with the grain price that fits your situation. Your personal stoplights use the same historical ranges as the market dashboard above.
| Fertilizer | Your quote $/ton |
Corn scenario | Soybean scenario | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ratio bu/ton | History | Signal | Ratio bu/ton | History | Signal | ||
| Urea46-0-0 |
$
|
— | — | ENTER QUOTE | — | — | — |
| UAN 3232-0-0 |
$
|
— | — | ENTER QUOTE | — | — | — |
| DAP18-46-0 |
$
|
— | — | ENTER QUOTE | — | — | ENTER QUOTE |
| MAP11-52-0 |
$
|
— | — | ENTER QUOTE | — | — | ENTER QUOTE |
| Potash0-0-60 |
$
|
— | — | ENTER QUOTE | — | — | ENTER QUOTE |
Personal results are a relative-value guideline only. Your local price, freight, terms, delivery timing, taxes, product availability, crop needs and grain marketing situation can materially change the economics. Confirm all prices and terms before making a purchase or sale decision.
How the fertilizer-to-grain ratio works
The index divides the fertilizer price per short ton by the grain price per bushel. For example, a ratio of 120 means it takes 120 bushels of that crop to equal the cost of one short ton of fertilizer. Because fewer bushels are required when fertilizer is relatively inexpensive compared with grain, a lower ratio represents stronger fertilizer buying power.
The stoplight is based on the current ratio's percentile within the comparable Cornbelt history. The 5-year and 10-year averages provide additional long-term context from a separate national retail fertilizer and CBOT grain benchmark and should not be treated as the exact same local price basis.
What do the dashboard columns mean?
Current ratio: bushels of grain required to buy one short ton at the current fertilizer reference.
12-month average: average of the latest 12 matched monthly Cornbelt ratio observations.
Vs 12M: how today's ratio compares with the 12-month average. “Better” means fewer bushels are required.
Historical percentile: today's rank within the comparable Cornbelt history. This drives the stoplight.
5-year / 10-year: long-term fertilizer-to-grain ratio context. These averages use a different national retail basis than the current Cornbelt signal.
Corn fertilizer ratio history
Historical bushels of corn required per short ton of fertilizer. Lower lines indicate stronger corn buying power relative to fertilizer.
Soybean fertilizer ratio history
Historical bushels of soybeans required per short ton of fertilizer. Lower lines indicate stronger soybean buying power relative to fertilizer.
Fertilizer buying-power details by product
Use these product summaries to compare today's fertilizer-to-grain exchange with recent and long-term history. Ratios are expressed as bushels of grain per short ton of fertilizer.
Urea fertilizer buying power 46-0-0
132.5 bushels of corn per ton currently buys one short ton of Urea. The 12-month average is 112.2 bushels per ton. The current reading is at the 100th percentile of comparable Cornbelt history, producing a RED / WAIT signal. Long-term context: 5-year average 119.6, 10-year average 109.7 bushels per ton.
UAN 32 fertilizer buying power 32-0-0
111.0 bushels of corn per ton currently buys one short ton of UAN 32. The 12-month average is 90.1 bushels per ton. The current reading is at the 100th percentile of comparable Cornbelt history, producing a RED / WAIT signal. Long-term context: 5-year average 91.0, 10-year average 83.8 bushels per ton.
DAP fertilizer buying power 18-46-0
168.3 bushels of corn per ton currently buys one short ton of DAP. The 12-month average is 172.6 bushels per ton. The current reading is at the 81st percentile of comparable Cornbelt history, producing a RED / WAIT signal. Long-term context: 5-year average 152.9, 10-year average 138.8 bushels per ton.
69.6 bushels of soybeans per ton currently buys one short ton of DAP. The 12-month average is 71.4 bushels per ton. The current reading is at the 81st percentile of comparable Cornbelt history, producing a RED / WAIT signal. Long-term context: 5-year average 63.7, 10-year average 56.0 bushels per ton.
MAP fertilizer buying power 11-52-0
171.6 bushels of corn per ton currently buys one short ton of MAP. The 12-month average is 173.3 bushels per ton. The current reading is at the 75th percentile of comparable Cornbelt history, producing a RED / WAIT signal. Long-term context: 5-year average 162.3, 10-year average 146.6 bushels per ton.
70.9 bushels of soybeans per ton currently buys one short ton of MAP. The 12-month average is 71.8 bushels per ton. The current reading is at the 84th percentile of comparable Cornbelt history, producing a RED / WAIT signal. Long-term context: 5-year average 67.6, 10-year average 59.2 bushels per ton.
Potash fertilizer buying power 0-0-60
89.0 bushels of corn per ton currently buys one short ton of Potash. The 12-month average is 85.6 bushels per ton. The current reading is at the 86th percentile of comparable Cornbelt history, producing a RED / WAIT signal. Long-term context: 5-year average 109.6, 10-year average 103.4 bushels per ton.
36.8 bushels of soybeans per ton currently buys one short ton of Potash. The 12-month average is 34.4 bushels per ton. The current reading is at the 91st percentile of comparable Cornbelt history, producing a RED / WAIT signal. Long-term context: 5-year average 45.9, 10-year average 41.8 bushels per ton.
Fertilizer value index questions
What is a fertilizer-to-grain ratio?
It is the number of bushels of corn or soybeans required to equal the cost of one short ton of fertilizer. The ratio allows fertilizer and grain markets to be compared on the same purchasing-power basis.
Why is a lower ratio better?
A lower ratio means fewer bushels of grain are required to buy the same ton of fertilizer. That indicates stronger grain purchasing power relative to fertilizer.
What do the green, yellow and red signals mean?
Green is at or below the 30th percentile of comparable history, yellow is above 30% through 70%, and red is above 70%. The colors are relative-value guidelines rather than price forecasts.
Are these the fertilizer prices at my local dealer?
No. Local fertilizer and grain prices can differ because of freight, basis, volume, supplier, timing, availability and other market factors. Always confirm current prices and terms in your local area.
How often is the index updated?
The tool is designed for weekly market updates. The update date displayed at the top of the dashboard shows the most recent ratio snapshot currently published.
Should I buy fertilizer just because the signal is green?
No single indicator should determine a purchasing decision. Use the index as one market guideline alongside your actual supplier quote, grain bid, agronomic plan, cash flow, storage and logistical needs.
Can I compare my own fertilizer quote?
Yes. Use the Personal Fertilizer Value Calculator above to enter the price you can actually buy, along with the corn or soybean value you want to compare. The calculator returns your own ratio, historical percentile and stoplight. Entries are calculated in your browser and are not saved by this plugin.
Current fertilizer buying conditions
Corn buying power currently shows wait: Urea, UAN 32, DAP, MAP, Potash.
Soybeans buying power currently shows wait: DAP, MAP, Potash.
The signal is a relative-value indicator, not a forecast of the absolute fertilizer or grain price. It is designed to identify periods when grain has historically stronger or weaker purchasing power versus fertilizer.