How to Buy Hay for Horses: Buy by Weight, Check Quality and Avoid Scams

How to buy hay for horses: price by weight, not by bale

The safest way to buy hay for horses is to compare the price per tonne (or per kilo, or per ton in the US), not the price per bale. Bales come in very different sizes, so "£8 a bale" tells you nothing until you know what the bale weighs. If a seller will not tell you the weight, that is your first warning.

The timing matters now. On Oct. 6, 2026, Horse & Hound reported that the British Horse Society's advice as winter nears is not to panic, to plan ahead and to buy by weight. The same report warns about scammers. This guide covers the buying skills that outlast any one price spike.

What UK prices look like this autumn

Horse & Hound reported averages from the British Hay and Straw Merchants' Association (BHSMA): about £106 a tonne for big-bale hay, down from about £118 a year ago. Small-bale hay is dearer: roughly £156 a tonne for seed hay and £152 for meadow hay, up from £121 and £106 a year ago.

Treat those as context, not a shopping list. BHSMA describes its figures as historical records, not a price guide, and your local price will depend on cut, quality, delivery and how early you ask.

If you are outside the UK, the principle is the same. Ask for the price per ton or per kilo, then do the maths yourself. This article does not quote US or Latin American prices, because they vary too much by region and season: collect two or three local quotes instead.

For the drought, imports and what to feed when hay is short, see our hay shortage guide.

Why bale size varies (and why it breaks price comparisons)

There is no universal bale. Weight depends on the baler, how tightly it was packed, the moisture, and the crop. Small rectangular bales are often a few tens of pounds, while big round or large square bales can weigh many hundreds of kilos.

Those ranges are general ballparks, not standards. The fix is simple: ask the seller for the average bale weight, or weigh a few yourself on a hanging or platform scale.

Watch the units too. A metric tonne is 1,000 kg (about 2,205 lb), while a US ton is 2,000 lb, so two quotes can look different when they are not.

How much hay to buy for the winter

Start with how much one horse eats, then multiply. Our guide to how much hay a horse eats explains the usual rule of thumb of roughly 1.5-2% of body weight a day in forage, with less if the horse also has good grazing.

A worked example for a 500 kg (1,100 lb) horse eating 2% of body weight with no grass:

• 10 kg a day x 180 days (six months) = 1,800 kg
• Add 10-15% for waste and a safety margin = about 2 tonnes
• At a hypothetical £106 a tonne that is around £212; at £156 it is around £312

That is arithmetic, not a feeding plan. Your own horse may need more or less, and a vet or equine nutritionist can tailor it. Ask a vet before changing forage for any horse with insulin dysregulation, laminitis, Cushing's disease (PPID) or breathing problems.

Two cost-saving habits help in any market. Use a hay net or feeder that cuts trampling waste, and do not swap diets suddenly, as the BHS also advises. For the wider budget, see the cost of owning a horse.

A five-minute hay quality check

You do not need a lab to spot obvious problems. Ask to open a few bales from across the stack, not just the one on top, and check:

• Smell. Fresh hay smells sweet and clean. Musty, sour or "dusty basement" smells point to mould.
• Colour. Sun-bleached outer layers are normal, but the inside should be green. Dark brown or black hay was likely baled wet.
• Dust. Pull a flake apart. A cloud of dust can irritate the airways, especially in horses with breathing problems.
• Mould. White or black patches, or a flake that stays stuck together, mean walk away.
• Leaf and stem. Leafy, soft hay is generally more nutritious than coarse, stemmy hay.
• Weeds and foreign material. Look for wire, plastic, thistles and unfamiliar plants. Some weeds are toxic, and risky crops like Johnson grass hay deserve a second look.
• Heavy bales. A bale much heavier than its neighbours may hold extra moisture.

Extension guidance, such as the University of Georgia's, adds that moisture of about 10-17% is safe for storage and that above roughly 18-20% mould and heat damage become a risk.

Optional: forage analysis

A forage test is the only way to know a lot's real nutrient content. It matters most for horses that struggle to hold weight, need a specialised diet or have a metabolic condition. Extension services suggest sampling 10-20 bales from one lot with a core sampler and sending the mixed sample to a lab.

Store hay so you do not lose it

Buying well is wasted if the stack goes bad. A few rules:

• Keep hay dry and off the ground, on pallets or a hard base, with air able to move.
• Cover or shelter it from rain, and fix roof leaks before delivery.
• Do not stack freshly baled hay tightly if it may be damp. Very wet hay can heat and, in rare cases, catch fire.
• Store it away from the stable where possible, and keep a fire plan.
• Check a few bales every week or two for warmth, mould or a sour smell.

Hay scam red flags

Shortages attract fraudsters. In February 2026 the Telegraph reported that rogue dealers were advertising cut-price bales and promising supplies that did not exist, with some owners reportedly losing thousands of pounds. One yard manager nearly paid but noticed that the invoice's VAT number was a fake-looking "12345", and the seller had asked for 50% upfront.

Watch for these:

• Prepayment only. Be wary of large deposits from a seller you have never used. Check any new seller out before you agree to pay anything upfront.
• A price that is too good to be true. If a quote is far below everyone else's, ask why.
• No address or VAT details. Genuine businesses can give a postal address, phone number and valid tax details on the invoice. Search the company name and registration.
• No viewing. A real seller will let you, or someone you trust, see the hay and the stack.
• Pressure and social media only. "Only two loads left, pay today" via a new profile is a classic.

Safer habits: ask neighbours and your yard for recommendations, pay by a traceable method, and use your own card's protections where you can. Pay on delivery or after viewing when possible. If you think you have been scammed, contact your bank and local fraud-reporting service.

What to do next

1. Weigh or ask for the weight of what you feed now, and measure your barn space.
2. Work out your winter total using the example above, then add a margin.
3. Get two or three quotes in price per tonne or kilo, with delivery included.
4. View the hay, run the five-minute check, and consider a forage test if your horse has special needs.
5. Plan a safe storage spot before the truck arrives.
6. Keep a backup supplier, and ask your vet before changing hay for a horse with health issues.

For more feeding basics, browse our nutrition section.