Boom lift hire cost
Last updated
Boom lift hire prices by size
Boom lifts are priced machine only, excluding VAT. A certified operator is added on request, and delivery on a truck or trailer is its own line.
| Size (working height) | Type | Per day | Per month |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12–16 m | Articulating, electric or diesel | R2,600–R3,450 | R32,500–R37,000 |
| 16–22 m | Articulating, diesel 4x4 | R4,000–R5,450 | R29,500–R58,000 |
| 20–30 m | Telescopic, diesel 4x4 | R6,300–R7,650 | R47,000–R84,000 |
| 30 m+ | Telescopic, diesel 4x4 | R8,500–R14,000 | R73,500–R136,000 |
These rest on few price points per size, so treat them as a guide; your exact price comes back in writing on WhatsApp.
Day rate or monthly rate?
On every size, the monthly rate costs about the same as seven separate days. On the 12–16 m class, seven days at the day rate come to R18,200–R24,150, against R32,500–R37,000 for the month. So for anything longer than a week (cladding, painting, steel erection, a shopping-centre fit-out), ask for the monthly rate.
Example: one month, 16–22 m boom, in Midrand
Fixing cladding and gutters along a new warehouse.
| Example quote (for illustration only) | Amount |
|---|---|
| 16–22 m boom lift (diesel articulating), 1 month at R29,500–R58,000 a month machine only | R29,500–R58,000 |
| Transport both ways to Midrand | R1,300–R3,840 |
| Example total, excl. VAT | R30,800–R61,840 |
Articulating or telescopic boom lift?
Both put a basket with people and tools at height; they reach it differently.
Articulating (knuckle) boom
The boom has several pivot points, so it goes up and over obstacles that would block a straight boom: over a canopy, between steel members, or above machinery in a factory. It sets up close to the building and is the usual choice from 12 to 22 m.
Telescopic (straight) boom
One or more boom sections extend in a straight line. Telescopic booms have more horizontal outreach than any other type of aerial work platform, so they're the pick when you need the most height and reach together, or when the machine must stand far back from the work.
On Genie booms the model name tells you the machine: Z is articulating and S is straight (telescopic), and the numbers are the basket floor height in feet and, on Z booms, the outreach in feet. Working height is the basket floor height plus about 2 m.
| Our size | Typical model | Basket floor | Working height | Outreach |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12–16 m | Genie Z-34/22 or similar | about 10.5 m | about 12.5 m | about 6.8 m |
| 12–16 m | Genie Z-45/25 or similar | about 13.9 m | about 15.9 m | about 7.5–7.7 m |
| 16–22 m | Genie Z-60/37 or similar | about 18.2 m | about 20.2 m | about 11.2 m |
| 20–30 m | Genie S-65 or S-85 or similar | about 19.8 m or 25.9 m | about 21.8 m or 27.9 m | about 16.5 m or 22.7 m |
| 30 m+ | Genie SX-125 or similar | about 38.1 m | about 40.1 m | about 24.4 m |
Basket load: the articulating booms in these sizes carry 227 kg, which is two people with hand tools. The current telescopic models carry 300 kg, or 454 kg with the boom kept inside a smaller working range. A boom lift is for people, not for lifting glass, pipes or aircon units; for loads, use a telehandler or a crane truck.
How to pick the height and outreach
- Height of the work: measure to the highest point anyone must reach. That's your working height.
- Where the machine can stand: measure the distance from there to the work. That's your outreach. Height and outreach don't peak together: at full outreach the basket sits lower than its top height.
- What's in between: a canopy, a wall, a roof edge or machinery calls for an articulating boom that goes up and over.
- The ground: boom lifts are heavy. Even a 12–16 m machine weighs several tonnes, and the big telescopics weigh far more, all on four tyres. It needs firm, level ground, and can't go onto suspended slabs, over trenches or onto soft fill without checking.
Example: gutters 14 m up on a warehouse, behind a 4 m-deep loading canopy. You need about 14 m working height with about 5 m of outreach over the canopy. A Z-45/25-class articulating boom (about 15.9 m working height, about 7.5 m outreach) suits it; a scissor lift can't, because it only goes straight up. We check your numbers against the machine's range chart before we quote.
Boom lift vs cherry picker vs scissor lift
All three are mobile elevating work platforms. In South Africa, "cherry picker" usually means a truck- or trailer-mounted boom that sets up on stabilisers, while "boom lift" means a self-propelled machine you can drive along a building with the basket up.
| Machine | Best for | From |
|---|---|---|
| Boom lift (self-propelled) | Long facades, steel frames, cladding and painting on site, moving along the building | R2,600–R3,450 a day, machine only |
| Cherry picker (truck or trailer) | One spot reached from a road or driveway: signs, lights, gutters | R2,400–R4,000 a day with operator |
| Scissor lift | Straight up over a flat floor: ceilings, lighting, ducting | R1,000–R1,500 a day, machine only |
If you're working one spot from the street, a truck-mounted cherry picker with its operator is usually the quicker hire. If the crew must move along 50 m of building over several days, a self-propelled boom saves setting up again at every bay.
Certificates, safety and what you prepare
- Operator certificate: code C53 (mobile elevated work platform) from an accredited training provider, required by reg 18(11) of the Driven Machinery Regulations, 2015. The licence card is valid for up to 24 months. On a construction site, the Construction Regulations (reg 23) add a medical certificate of fitness, written authorisation and a daily pre-use inspection.
- Load test: a thorough examination and performance test by a lifting machinery inspector of a registered lifting machinery entity at intervals of no more than 12 months (reg 18(5)(a)); work platforms aren't retested at each new site within that period (reg 18(5)(c)). If you hire, keep the latest test and service records in a register on site (reg 18(7)(b)). We send copies before the machine arrives, on request.
- Harness: everyone in the basket wears a full-body harness clipped to the basket's anchor point.
- Power lines: nobody may come inside a line's safety clearance in person or with objects without permission from the utility that runs the line (Electrical Machinery Regulations, reg 19(5)). Arrange a switch-off or written clearance with Eskom or the municipality first.
- Wind and weather: the operator lowers the basket when the wind passes the machine's limit. Leave a spare day on long outdoor jobs.
- Access: gate width, ramps, and a clear, firm route from where the delivery truck offloads to the work.
More on safety and certificates and lifting machinery load tests.
How boom lift hire works
- WhatsApp the job: working height, outreach, what's in the way, indoor or outdoor, the ground, the town and the dates.
- We confirm in writing: the machine, day or monthly rate, delivery as its own line, and an operator if you need one.
- Pay the deposit to book.
- Your boom lift arrives with copies of its load-test certificate on request. If it breaks down, you get a replacement machine or no charge for the downtime.
We deliver across all 9 provinces; local prices are on plant hire in Johannesburg, Pretoria, Cape Town and Durban. Booking step by step: how it works.
WhatsApp us the height and reachQuestions people ask
How much does it cost to hire a boom lift per day?
Machine only, excluding VAT: R2,600–R3,450 for a 12–16 m articulating boom, R4,000–R5,450 for 16–22 m, R6,300–R7,650 for a 20–30 m telescopic and R8,500–R14,000 for 30 m+. Delivery inside a main centre is R1,300–R3,840 there and back, and a certified operator is added on request. If the job runs more than about a week, the monthly rate works out cheaper.
Can I hire an electric boom lift?
Yes. Electric and bi-energy (battery with a small diesel generator) articulating booms suit indoor work in warehouses, malls, atriums and factories: no exhaust on battery power and less noise. They need firm, level floors. For outdoor sites on gravel or compacted ground, take a diesel 4x4 boom. Tell us indoor or outdoor when you ask for a price.
Do you hire trailer-mounted boom lifts?
Yes. A trailer-mounted boom, such as a Genie TZ-34/20 or similar, gives 12.19 m working height and 5.59 m outreach, carries 227 kg and weighs 1,431 kg, so it fits through gates and works in gardens and courtyards. Sizes and prices are on cherry picker hire, because in South Africa most people call it a cherry picker.
Do I need a licence to operate a boom lift?
Yes. A boom lift is a mobile elevated work platform (code C53 in the National Code of Practice, 2024), and the Driven Machinery Regulations (reg 18(11)) forbid anyone to operate it without a certificate of training from an accredited training provider. If you hire the machine only, your operator must hold one; if not, add our certified operator to the hire.
Where can I find a boom lift for hire near me?
We deliver boom lifts with or without an operator to all 9 provinces. Inside a main centre delivery is R1,300–R3,840 there and back; further out it's charged per kilometre from the nearest main centre, for example: Hartbeespoort is about 39 km from Pretoria by road. Transport for a boom lift there and back usually comes to R3,360–R4,060, shown as its own line on your quote. Send the town on WhatsApp for the exact price.
Related
Sources we checked
- Genie full family specifications 2024 (CE): working height, width, outreach and lift capacity for Z and S booms
- Genie: telescopic boom lifts, and telescopic vs articulating
- Genie TZ-34/20 and TZ-50 trailer-mounted boom specifications
- Driven Machinery Regulations, 2015 (GN R.540), regulation 18: lifting machines
- National Code of Practice for Training Providers of Lifting Machine Operators, 2024 (Notice 5588): crane codes incl. C53
- National Code of Practice, 2024: clause 14, certification
- Construction Regulations, 2014 (GN R.84), regulation 23: construction vehicles and mobile plant
- Electrical Machinery Regulations, 2011 (GN R.250), regulation 19: overhead power lines
Need a boom lift?
WhatsApp us the job, the town and the dates. We confirm the machine, the start date and the price in writing before the machine moves.
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