Landscape Contractors Rate Top Brands

Landscape contractors subscribed to Green Industry Pros magazine were asked to rate some of today’s leading brands of key landscaping equipment, engines, work trucks and turf herbicides. Survey respondents were given the options of No opinion, Don’t like them, Like them, and They are the best! The below brand favorability ratings are based on the percentage of respondents who chose either “Like them” or “They are the best!”

EDITOR’S NOTE:  Few contractors said they “don’t like” a given brand, as only a handful of brands had more than 15% of contractors say they “don’t like them”. Thus, a lower favorability rating is largely the result of a lack of brand recognition, i.e. contractors answering “no opinion”.

Now onto the brand favorability ratings.

ENGINES

Honda   91%

Kawasaki   88%

Kohler   79%

Kubota   46%

Vanguard (Briggs & Stratton)   31%

Subaru   28%

Yanmar   23%

ZERO-TURN RIDING MOWERS

Exmark   67%

Toro   49%

Scag   47%

John Deere   43%

Walker   42%

Kubota   37%

Ferris   31%

Gravely   29%

Hustler   28%

BOB-CAT   27%

Grasshopper   27%

Wright   27%

Dixie Chopper   26%

Husqvarna   23%

Snapper Pro   15%

Cub Cadet   13%

Bush Hog   12%

Bad Boy   9%

Encore   8%

Land Pride   4%

BigDog   3%

Country Clipper   3%

Worldlawn   2%

Altoz   none

STAND-ON MOWERS

Exmark   36%

Wright   35%

Toro   28%

Scag   27%

John Deere   25%

Gravely   12%

Dixie Chopper   4%

Encore   2%

Worldlawn   2%

INTERMEDIATE WALK-BEHIND MOWERS

Exmark   60%

Toro   39%

Scag   37%

John Deere   27%

BOB-CAT   22%

Gravely   19%

Ferris   15%

Snapper Pro   12%

Hustler   10%

Wright   9%

Encore   5%

Worldlawn   3%

BigDog   2%

SMALLER (I.E. 21”) WALK-BEHIND MOWERS

Honda   62%

Toro   49%

Exmark   41%

Gravely   15%

COMPACT TRACK LOADERS

Bobcat   59%

Caterpillar   43%

John Deere   35%

Case   27%

Kubota   27%

New Holland   24%

Takeuchi   13%

Gehl   12%

JCB   11%

Komatsu   10%

Mustang   8%

Terex   7%

Volvo   7%

EXCAVATORS

Bobcat   44%

Caterpillar   37%

Kubota   34%

John Deere   24%

Case   22%

Komatsu   11%

JCB   10%

Takeuchi   10%

Yanmar   10%

Hitachi   9%

New Holland   9%

Gehl   8%

Volvo   7%

Hyundai   5%

Kobelco   5%

Terex   5%

Mustang   4%

STRING TRIMMERS

Stihl   73%

Echo   60%

Shindaiwa   53%

RedMax   43%

Husqvarna   28%

Tanaka   16%

Maruyama   13%

Honda   10%

Oregon PowerNow   2%

Dolmar   1%

efco   1%

Worx   1%

BACKPACK BLOWERS

Stihl   67%

Echo   56%

RedMax   46%

Shindaiwa   39%

Husqvarna   27%

Maruyama   10%

Tanaka   7%

efco   1%

Dolmar   none

CHAINSAWS

Stihl   84%

Husqvarna   51%

Echo   45%

Jonsered   17%

RedMax   13%

Tanaka   4%

Maruyama   3%

Efco   1%

WORK TRUCKS

Ford   79%

Chevy   74%

GMC   58%

Ram   39%

Isuzu   37%

Toyota   26%

Freightliner   20%

Super Lawn Truck   18%

Mitsubishi   13%

Sprinter Van   13%

Western Star   8%

TURF HERBICIDES

Bayer   55%

Monsanto   50%

PBI/Gordon   45%

Dow   42%

Syngenta   39%

BASF   37%

Nufarm   25%

FMC   23%

Valent   16%

Quali-Pro   15%

Fiesta (Engage Agro USA)   5%

Arysta Life Science   3%