The Skid Steer Buying Guide: Wheels, Tracks, Size Classes and Used-Market Realities

No machine is sold used in greater numbers in the United States than the compact loader. Rental fleets buy them by the thousand and sell them at three or four years old; contractors buy them as a first machine; landscapers, farmers, municipalities and homeowners with acreage buy them for everything. The result is a used market with enormous choice, where the difference between a sound ex-rental unit and a worn-out one is invisible in a photograph and obvious in ten minutes at the yard. This guide covers how the machines are classified, what the specifications actually mean for the work, and what to inspect.

What a skid steer is, and is not

A skid steer loader steers by driving the wheels on one side faster than the other, skidding the slower side; a compact track loader does the same on rubber tracks. Both carry a loader arm with a universal attachment plate, auxiliary hydraulics to power attachments, and a cab with a seat bar or lap bar interlock. The category stretches from machines that fit through a garden gate to units with over 100 horsepower and a rated operating capacity above 4,000 pounds. Manufacturers call the whole group compact loaders; in conversation, “skid steer” often means both.

Size classes and rated operating capacity

The number that matters is rated operating capacity (ROC): half of the tipping load for a wheeled machine, and 35 percent of the tipping load for a tracked one, under the relevant standards. It is the load the manufacturer says you can carry safely in a bucket at full height. Horsepower is secondary; a machine with plenty of ROC and modest horsepower will carry its load, while a powerful machine with low ROC will tip.

Radial versus vertical lift

A radial lift machine has a single pivot at the back of the loader arms, so the bucket swings through an arc, reaching furthest forward at mid-height. That geometry gives better breakout force and visibility at ground level, which suits digging, grading, backfilling and work below the machine. A vertical lift machine uses a linkage that keeps the bucket moving almost straight up, so maximum reach is at full height, where you need it to clear a truck side or a hopper. Vertical lift machines generally have higher ROC for the same frame and are the choice for loading and material handling.

Manufacturers mark the difference differently. Bobcat uses the model number’s last digit pattern and its own documentation; Caterpillar’s D3 series uses the second digit (a 262 is vertical lift, a 246 radial); Deere designates vertical lift within the G series specifications. Check the specification, not the shape of the arms, because linkage designs vary.

Wheels versus tracks

The choice between a skid steer and a compact track loader is a choice about ground and money. Tracks spread the machine’s weight over a much larger area, so a CTL floats on soft, wet or sandy ground where a wheeled machine would dig in, works earlier after rain, and grades more smoothly. Tracks also cost more to buy, more to maintain and more to replace, and they wear fast on asphalt and concrete. Wheels are cheaper, faster on hard surfaces, easier to service, and better for demolition, snow and paved yards. Florida’s sandy soils and wet seasons explain why CTLs are so common in that state; the same machine on a Phoenix parking lot would be a mistake.

Hydraulics and attachments

A compact loader is a hydraulic power unit with a seat, and attachments are where it earns money. Standard auxiliary flow on medium and large frames runs roughly 20 to 25 gallons per minute, enough for buckets, forks, grapples, augers and brooms. High-flow options push 30 to 40 gallons per minute at higher pressure for cold planers, mulching heads, trenchers and large snow blowers. If the work needs high flow, the machine must have it from the factory; it cannot be added cheaply. Check that the auxiliary couplers are the flat-face type, that they connect under pressure, and that the case drain line is present for attachments that need one.

The attachment plate follows the SAE J2513 universal interface on nearly every machine sold in North America, so attachments interchange between brands. Check the coupler’s wedges, pins and, on power couplers, the hydraulic lock. Attachments included in a sale should be inspected as seriously as the machine: a worn bucket edge is cheap, a worn mulcher head is not.

Bobcat, Caterpillar, Deere and the rest

Bobcat invented the category and still sells the most. The current R-series and the earlier M-series (S and T model numbers) are everywhere, parts are cheap and every shop knows them. Caterpillar’s D3 series, from the 226 to the 299, carries the dealer network and a reputation for cab comfort and electronics; the XPS designation on models such as the 272D3 XPS indicates the high-performance, high-flow configuration. John Deere’s G series, from the 312 to the 332 and the tracked 317 to 333, is strong in the Midwest and South and shares a dealer network with its agricultural line. Kubota, Case, New Holland, JCB, Takeuchi, ASV and Gehl all make competitive machines; the deciding factor on a used purchase is more often the nearest dealer than the badge.

The used market and its traps

Most used compact loaders under five years old are former rental units. That is not bad news: rental fleets service on schedule and keep records. It does mean a machine was operated by many people who did not own it, so controls, doors, glass, couplers and anything that could be hit have been. It also means hours can be high for the age. Compact loaders store engine hours in the controller; ask the dealer to show the electronic hours alongside the meter, and treat a mismatch as a serious question.

The specific traps are these. Drive motors on track loaders leak at the sprocket seal and are expensive; look for oil behind the sprockets. Lift arm and cylinder pins wear quickly on machines that have carried heavy attachments; rock the arms. Wheeled machines have chain cases on each side that need the right oil level and chain tension; a dry or over-tight chain case is a sign of neglect. Tracks and undercarriage on a CTL can represent a large share of the machine’s value. And the engine on anything over about 74 horsepower sold since 2014 carries a diesel particulate filter and often SCR; regen history and fault codes matter.

Inspection checklist

A compact loader can be inspected thoroughly in half an hour. Work through the list in order, and write down what you find next to each item.

Four compact loaders from one listing

The Florida dealer in our profile listed four large-frame compact loaders when we reviewed its inventory in October 2026: a 2023 Caterpillar 262D3 with 1,634 hours at $18,865, a 2023 Caterpillar 272D3 XPS with 462 hours at $40,810, a 2022 Bobcat S770 with 2,297 hours at $28,490 and a 2022 John Deere 330G with 183 hours at $36,960. All four are vertical lift machines built for loading and heavy attachments; the 272D3 XPS is the high-flow, high-performance variant and the most capable of the group. The 262D3 and the S770 carry hours consistent with rental service and should be checked for pin wear and coupler condition; the 330G’s very low hours for its age are a reason to check for long storage rather than wear. Each asking price should be compared with completed auction results before negotiating, and the 262D3’s price in particular is low enough relative to typical asking prices for that model that a buyer should want to understand why.