Four families sit behind the phrase, and picking the wrong one wastes the hire rather than the money. Push around mast lifts start near $90 a day, slab scissors and small articulating booms sit in the middle, and a 60 ft telescopic boom lands around $400 to $700 a day before transport. Reach and the ground under the wheels decide which family you are actually in.
The four families in one paragraph
A push around mast lift raises one person straight up indoors. A scissor gives a working platform that goes only vertically but carries two people and materials. An articulating boom bends over and around obstacles. A telescopic boom trades that flexibility for straight reach and height. Price rises roughly in that order.
Working height is not platform height
Manufacturers quote working height, which adds roughly six feet to the platform floor for a person standing on it. A machine sold as a 26 ft lift puts the deck near 20 ft. Measure to the thing you are touching, subtract your own reach honestly, and then choose, because a lift one size short is a wasted delivery.
The surface decides more than the height
Slab machines have small solid wheels and need firm, level, finished ground; yards write that into the contract and will not cover damage from ignoring it. Dirt, gravel, slopes and rutted fill need a rough terrain machine with outriggers or four wheel drive, which costs several times as much and needs a bigger trailer.
What the day rate leaves out
Transport each way, fuel or charge state on return, and the damage waiver are separate lines. Harnesses and lanyards are hired separately too, and on a boom the harness is not optional. Confirm the machine arrives charged or fuelled, and what state it must come back in, before the driver leaves the yard.
Questions people ask about aerial work platform rental
Which lift do I need for a 30 ft ceiling?
Working at a 30 ft ceiling usually means a platform around 24 ft, so a 26 to 32 ft scissor or a small articulating boom. If the floor is finished and clear, the scissor is cheaper and steadier. If racking, plant or fixed seating is in the way, the boom earns its extra cost by reaching over it.
Do I need a harness in a scissor lift?
In a boom, always, because the platform can throw an occupant. In a scissor with a full guardrail system the rules are read differently, and many sites still require one as their own policy. The yard will hire you a harness and lanyard either way; ask what the site rule is before the machine arrives.
Can one person operate an aerial platform alone?
Mechanically yes, but most sites require a second trained person at ground level who can lower the platform using the emergency controls. That person also keeps the base clear of traffic. Plan the hire on two people, not one, especially outdoors or anywhere vehicles move.