Top 10 Biggest Excavators in the World

An excavator also known as a hydraulic excavator, boom excavator, or mining excavator, is a machine consisting of a wheeled or truck-type support frame on which the operator's platform, engine, hydraulic system, and pivot tower connecting the arms are mounted.

This huge earth excavating machine is no doubt critical equipment used in the construction and forestry industry for a number of applications including digging the ground, rock crushing, grapples, handling forks, demolition tools, and more. This versatility makes excavators important not just for earthwork at construction sites, but also for the handling of heavy material, demolition, mining, quarrying, and forestry.

Now there are different types of excavators around the world. Each with different strengths and sizes based on operating weights.

Below, we have listed the top ten biggest excavator machines, based on their weight and height:

1. Caterpillar 6090 FS Excavator:

Substantially, the largest among the other models of excavators, CAT 6090 FS is 7.32 Ft long, 5.25 ft wide and 7.05 ft tall. The powerful beast has a working weight of 1000 tonnes, a 4,500 horsepower engine, and a 52 cubic meter bucket capacity with a 93.6-tonne payload. Such that it takes not more than 4 passes to load the largest CAT 797 trucks. The monster machine is equipped with two Cummins QSK60 engines, rated at 1680 kW/2250 HP each.

2. Bucyrus RH 400 Excavator:

The second entry to the Biggest excavators listing, Bucyrus RH400 owned by Caterpillar, was originally launched by Terex in Germany in 1997 but Bucyrus acquired the mining equipment division of Terex in 2010.

With an operating weight of 980 tonnes, Bucyrus RH400 offers a 4,570 horsepower engine and a 50 cubic meter bucket capacity that enable the machine to excavate around 9900 tons of load each hour.

3. Hitachi EX 8000-6 Excavator:

Hitachi EX 8000-6, is one of the largest excavator machines among Hitachi equipment and stands in third place in the world's biggest excavator list. Manufactured in Japan in 2012, the mining excavator weighs around 837t and is available with both shovel and backhoe attachments with 40 cubic meter loading and 43.3 cubic meter capacity. Equipped with Cummins engine capacity of 2x 1450 kW / 1944 HP, the versatile machine takes just five passes to load the largest Hitachi dump truck, E4000AC-3.

4. Liebherr R9800 Excavator:

The Liebherr R9800 is Apparently the fourth biggest excavator in the world. Popular in Australia and across Europe, Liebherr R9800 boasts an operating weight of 810 tonnes and a 4,060 horsepower engine. The excavators come with alternative engine options including MTU 12V 4000 or Cummins 16V QSK 60 diesel engines, or an electric drive version.

5. Demag H740 OS Excavator:

The excavator machine in fifth place is from Demag. This is the largest excavator built by abrasive oil sands works of KMC Mining in Canada. The excavators are available with an operating weight of 744 tonnes and 3280 kW/4000 HP power engine and a 40 cubic meter bucket capacity. It is fueled by two 16 chamber CAT 3516B diesel motors producing 4,000 hp at 1,800 RPM.

6. Komatsu PC8000-6 Excavator:

One of the biggest mining excavators in the Japanese manufacturing portfolio, Komatsu PC8000 is the most powerful and largest excavator the company makes. With an operating weight of 710 tonnes, a 4082 horsepower engine, and a 42 cubic meter bucket capacity, they are popular hydraulics excavating machines in South Africa and Australia. The Komatsu PC8000 is supported by two Komatsu SDA16V160 diesel engines that offer a combined output of 4,020 horsepower at 1,800 revolutions per minute.

7. Liebherr R996 B Excavator:

The seventh world's biggest excavator from Liebherr, R996 excavator’s operating weight with a shovel attachment and backhoe attachment version is 676tons and 672tons respectively.

With a cab height of 9.26m and an undercarriage length of 10m, a width of about 7.9 m, and a bucket size of 38m³, the ultra-large excavator giant is powered by twin Cummins K1800E diesel engines with a total output of 3,000hp/ 2240 kW at 1,800rpm.

8. Caterpillar 6060/6060 FS Excavator:

Ranked at 8 positions in the list, CAT 6060 in both face shovel and backhoe variants offers a bucket payload of around 61 tonnes (67 tonnes) per pass. The CAT-793 mining truck is an efficient 4-pass match with the 6060, and the CAT 794 AC mining truck is just a 5-pass match.

The excavators come with twin Cat 3512E engines optimized for high performance, fuel-efficient operation, and a total rated power output of 2240kW/3000 HP.

9. Komatsu PC5500-6 Excavator:

The operating weight of these models is up to 552 tonnes. Available in both excavator and face shovel configurations, they can handle a wide range of mining applications.

The excavators are fitted with twin Komatsu SDA12V159E-2 Tier 2 engines with a total rating of 1880 kW/2520 HP. While the electric version of the excavator comprises two squirrel-cage induction motors with a rated output of 1,800kW.

10. Hitachi EX5600-6 Excavator:

With a standard operating weight of 522 tonnes, the Hitachi EX5600 model launched in 2012, spots its place as one of the biggest excavators in the world. The EX5600-6 is offered in both backhoe and loader shovel configurations.

With the undercarriage dimension of 9.35 meters (31 feet) × 7.4 meters (24 feet) respectively. Here, the loading shovel bucket capacity is 27 cubic meters (954 cubic feet), and the capacity for the backhoe version is increased to 29 cubic meters (1,029 cubic feet).

Find a range of Small and Big Excavators on Farmtender Today!

Looking for a used or new excavator for your next construction or farm site? Home to an extensive range of excavators or earthmovers and other farming equipment, Farm tender offers a range of excavator buckets, hydraulic thumbs, grabs, and even mini excavators for sale.

From top excavator brands like Kubota, Caterpillar, Yanmar, Bobcat, Komatsu, JCB, Hitachi, Takeuchi, Case, Kobelco, Sumitomo, and others.