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Crane truck, hiab or mobile crane? What crane hire costs in 2026

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Price guide cover: crane truck, hiab or mobile crane, and what crane hire costs in 2026

Short answer: pick the machine before you compare prices. A crane truck (often called a hiab) carries your load on the road and lifts it at each end. A Franna or a mobile crane only lifts. South East Queensland operators that publish rates charge by the hour, and most set a minimum hire. Published crane truck rates vary widely: the marketplace iSeekplant lists $70 to $120-plus an hour on its Gold Coast page depending on size, while JKR Group lists its large hiab from $190 an hour with a four-hour minimum. Franna cranes run $145 to $200 an hour on operators’ own pages. Check whether GST, crew and fuel levies are included. Travel time from the depot usually counts, so where the operator is based matters.

Crane truck, hiab, Franna or mobile crane?

Crane trucks are often called hiabs after Hiab, the most popular brand, according to the plant-hire marketplace iSeekplant. WorkSafe Queensland calls the machine a vehicle loading crane: a crane mounted on a vehicle to load and unload it.

Your job

Usually suits

What decides it

Deliver a shipping container, site shed or machinery and set it down

Crane truck

The load’s weight against what the crane can lift at the reach needed

Spa or pool from the supplier into a backyard

Crane truck, or a slewing mobile crane if it must go over the house

Distance from where the truck can park to where the spa sits

Timber packs, trusses or roofing onto a building

Crane truck

Height and reach to the drop point

Lift and carry heavy items around one site (steel, precast, plant)

Franna (pick-and-carry crane)

Weight, ground conditions and tight access

Heavy or long-reach lifts: roof plant, steel beams, over a building

Slewing mobile crane (city or all-terrain)

Weight multiplied by radius, and room to set up

Capacity is not the number on the machine. JKR Group’s 25-tonne Franna lifts 25 tonnes at a 1.41 m radius but 2.3 tonnes at 15.71 m. Ask what the machine lifts at the reach your job needs.

What drives the price

  • Hours, including travel. The three SEQ operators we found with published rates all charge by the hour, and the clock usually starts at their depot. JKR’s minimum runs depot to depot; Mighty Cranes charges travel time of “½ hr x ½ hr”. iSeekplant’s Gold Coast page says travel is charged at the hourly rate.

  • Minimum hire. All three state one (see the table).

  • Crew. Mighty Cranes and JKR list dogmen or riggers separately. Ask whether the operator’s time is in the hourly rate.

  • Fuel levy and after hours. JKR adds 5% and charges overtime outside 6:00 am to 2:30 pm on weekdays. iSeekplant’s Gold Coast page puts fuel levies at typically 8.5 to 10%.

  • Permits and traffic control if the crane sits on the road or footpath.

Published rates in South East Queensland

Machine

Published rate

Minimum

GST

Source

Large hiab truck

From $190/hr, plus 5% fuel levy (operator not stated)

4 hours, depot to depot

Excluded

JKR Group, Brisbane and Gold Coast (rates valid to 31 Dec 2026)

20 t / 25 t Franna

$145 / $170 per hour, plus “½ hr x ½ hr” travel

2 hours

Excluded

Mighty Cranes, Capalaba (updated 17 June 2026)

25 t Franna

From $200/hr, plus 5% fuel levy (operator not stated; see labour)

3 hours

Excluded

JKR Group

12 t to 25 t Franna

$170 to $225/hr

“A minimum amount of hours”

Not stated

Big Rhino, Rocklea (updated Aug 2024, older)

22 t city crane / 35 t all-terrain / 80 t all-terrain

$170 / $200 / $320 per hour

80 t: 4 hours

Excluded

Mighty Cranes

50 t / 100 t all-terrain

From $300 / $450 per hour (operator not stated)

4 / 6 hours

Excluded

JKR Group

Dogman or rigger

$70/hr (Mighty Cranes); from $110/hr (JKR)

JKR: 3 hours

Excluded

Mighty Cranes; JKR Group

For comparison, the marketplace iSeekplant’s Brisbane guide (30 June 2026) lists Franna wet hire at $155 to $260 an hour for 12 to 25 tonnes, excluding GST and mobilisation, and says most Brisbane suppliers set a four-hour minimum. Its Gold Coast crane truck page lists $70 to $90 an hour for small crane trucks (up to 10 tonnes), $90 to $100 for medium (10 to 20 tonnes) and $100 to $120-plus for large, with an operator (undated; GST not stated). That’s well below JKR’s published hiab rate, and the page doesn’t explain the gap. Treat every figure as a starting point.

Licences: who needs what

Most crane operators need a high risk work licence. The classes, from WorkSafe Queensland and SafeWork NSW:

  • Crane truck (vehicle loading crane), class CV, if the crane’s capacity is 10 metre-tonnes or more. WorkSafe Queensland defines that as any point on the load chart where radius (m) × load (t) is 10 or more. A CV holder can sling the load in normal use. WorkSafe Queensland requires a licensed dogger when the crane places loads in elevated or remote positions, or when the operator is working under a slewing crane licence instead.

  • Franna (non-slewing mobile crane), class CN, for capacity over 3 tonnes.

  • Slewing mobile crane: C2 up to 20 tonnes, C6 up to 60, C1 up to 100, C0 over 100.

Rules are changing. On 5 December 2025, Safe Work Australia published amendments to the model WHS Regulations so that slewing crane licences no longer cover CV or CN work. In 2026 it is consulting on lowering the CV threshold to 1 tonne and removing the 3-tonne CN threshold. On 12 October 2026, the Queensland and NSW regulator pages still showed C2 covering both. Model laws change state rules only when each state adopts them, so ask the regulator if it matters. As a customer, ask for the operator’s licence class before the day.

Road and footpath permits

If the crane truck, its outriggers or the load will occupy the road, verge or footpath, the local council usually needs to approve it first.

  • City of Gold Coast, “Temporary road closures”: approval, issued under Local Law 11, is needed for any activity affecting a road, verge, footpath, or traffic or parking lanes. A traffic management plan is needed if pedestrians are detoured or the road is interfered with. Minimum notice is 10 business days, or 15 for a closure with a detour. A Queensland Police permit may also be needed.

  • Brisbane City Council, “Road closure permits”: a temporary lane or road closure assessment covers things like “moving of cranes and other equipment in or out of a building site”. Apply through the Road Corridor Permit System at least 20 full working days ahead. The application fee is $341 excluding GST, and Queensland Police approval follows. Council also notes you may need further approval to use a crane. Its “Footpath works and permits” page says to allow 20 days.

  • Northern Rivers (NSW): section 138 of the Roads Act 1993 requires the roads authority’s consent for work in, on or over a public road. We couldn’t find a crane-specific page for Tweed or Byron Shire, so ask the council early.

Some operators arrange permits and traffic control for you, so ask whether it’s included in the quote. iSeekplant estimates a traffic plan and permit for an inner-Brisbane lift at $1,200 to $3,500.

How to get an accurate quote

Operators quote tighter when they all get the same details. A Localdex crane truck request asks for:

  1. Pickup location: the suburb the load is collected from.

  2. Delivery location: the suburb it’s going to.

  3. Required date and time.

  4. Load weight (kg): check the manual, delivery docket or label rather than guessing.

  5. Site contact (optional): who will be there on the day.

  6. Notes (optional): the load’s dimensions, photos of access at both ends, the distance from where the truck can park to the set-down point, overhead power lines, trees, slopes or soft ground.

Then compare quotes like for like, as in our house painting price guide:

  • What’s the hourly rate, the minimum hire, and when does the clock start?

  • Is GST included? Is there a fuel levy?

  • Are the operator, dogman or rigger, and lifting gear included?

  • Who arranges permits and traffic control, and is that priced in?

  • What are the rates outside normal hours?

  • What happens if the lift is called off for wind or rain?

Getting quotes through Localdex

Localdex lets you describe the job once and send it to the businesses that can do it, up to three. Nothing is sent until you approve the request. Businesses get the job details you approve, and we don’t share your account name or email (anything you type into the job details is shared). It’s free for customers and covers South East Queensland and Northern Rivers NSW.

Request crane truck quotes

Coast2Coast is a crane truck and hiab hire business on Localdex that serves the Gold Coast, Brisbane, the Sunshine Coast and the Northern Rivers.

If you run a crane or transport business, see localdex.com.au to list it.

FAQ

How much does crane truck hire cost per hour? Published figures vary: iSeekplant’s Gold Coast page lists $70 to $120-plus an hour depending on size, and JKR Group lists its large hiab from $190 an hour with a four-hour minimum. Add travel from the depot, and check the minimum hire and whether GST is included.

What’s the difference between a hiab and a crane truck? Usually none. Crane trucks are often called hiabs after the best-known brand of truck-mounted loading crane.

Is a Franna cheaper than a crane truck? Not necessarily. The published SEQ rates overlap. A Franna doesn’t carry your load on the road, so a job that needs transport may also need a truck.

Do I need a permit to use a crane on my street? If the crane or load uses the road, verge or footpath, check with the council. Gold Coast asks for at least 10 business days’ notice, and Brisbane 20 full working days for a closure.

What licence does a crane truck operator need? In Queensland, a CV high risk work licence if the crane’s capacity is 10 metre-tonnes or more. An operator on a slewing mobile crane licence instead needs a licensed dogger, as does any lift placing loads in elevated or remote positions.

Sources

Rates are indicative and were current as of 12 October 2026. They’re not a quote.

Written by Localdex

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