UK agricultural tractor registrations are showing uneven patterns across power bands and regions, with larger machines suffering the steepest declines while some mid-range models and southern regions see growth.
Industry figures for January to September 2025 reveal that registrations of tractors over 240hp have slumped by more than 30% compared with the same period last year.
Below this level, the fall was more modest at 11%, with registrations in the 121–160hp category down only 5%, according to the Agricultural Engineers Association (AEA).
The trend persisted into the third quarter, when high-horsepower models again saw a double-digit drop, down 15% on last year.
By contrast, mid-range machines between 101–150hp were up 11% year-on-year, while the 201–240hp bracket also posted gains.
Analysts at the AEA say the divergence reflects the “very different financial situations facing the arable and livestock sectors this year.”
Despite some pockets of growth, registrations remain low by historic standards across the power range, highlighting what the sector body described as an “ongoing lack of confidence throughout agriculture.”
Regional data paints a similarly mixed picture. Over the first nine months of 2025, the sharpest falls were recorded in the Midlands and East of England, areas where arable farmers dominate.
Declines were much smaller in the South of England and Northern Ireland, with the South West even posting a slight year-on-year increase.
In the third quarter, the South West was joined by the South East, South Wales, Southern Scotland and Northern Ireland in recording annual growth.
But upland regions fared much worse, with sizeable drops in North Wales, Northern Scotland and Yorkshire suggesting farmers there are especially cautious about investing in new kit.
With confidence low and margins squeezed, the tractor market is running unevenly — and the road to recovery looks far from smooth.
