MU’s ARC/PLC Payments Explorer gives producers simple way to compare potential payments under different price and yield scenarios.
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COLUMBIA, Mo. – University of Missouri researchers have developed a free online tool that helps crop producers compare potential payments from federal farm safety net programs to make more informed enrollment decisions.
The ARC/PLC Payments Explorer, developed by MU’s Rural and Farm Finance Policy Analysis Center (RaFF), lets producers compare potential payments from two major federal programs: Price Loss Coverage (PLC) and Agricultural Risk Coverage at the county level (ARC-CO). The tool covers eligible crops in counties across the United States and shows how payments could change under different commodity prices and yield scenarios.
PLC and ARC-CO are designed to help producers weather tough years, but they work differently. PLC focuses on low commodity prices, while ARC-CO protects against declines in county-level crop revenue caused by lower prices, poorer yields or a combination of both. Which option offers the most protection can vary from year to year.
A third option, ARC-IC, bases payments on individual farm revenue. It is not included in the Payments Explorer because the farm-specific data needed to calculate potential payments is not publicly available.
ARC and PLC are available for barley, chickpeas, canola, corn, crambe, dry peas, flaxseed, grain sorghum, lentils, mustard seed, oats, peanuts, rapeseed, rice, safflower, seed cotton, sesame seed, soybeans, sunflower and wheat. The deadline to enroll in the 2026 programs is Dec. 11.
“Choosing between ARC and PLC can be a difficult decision, particularly when prices and yields are uncertain,” said Alejandro Plastina, associate professor of agricultural finance and RaFF director. “The Payments Explorer helps producers evaluate potential outcomes using county-specific data and their own assumptions about prices and yields.”
Along with federal crop insurance, PLC and ARC form the backbone of the farm safety net for U.S. crop producers. The programs are designed to help producers manage risks associated with lower commodity prices and reduced crop revenue.
Using the Payments Explorer is straightforward, Plastina said. Producers select a county, crop and irrigation practice, then enter an expected marketing-year average price and the PLC yield assigned to their farm. The tool then estimates potential payment rates per enrolled acre under both programs.
Users can compare a baseline price scenario with scenarios in which prices are 10% higher or lower. For ARC-CO, the tool also examines multiple county-yield scenarios so producers can see how local growing conditions could affect payments.
Another feature calculates the county yield at which ARC-CO and PLC would generate the same payment under a given price scenario. The Payments Explorer also shows how often county yields in recent years have fallen below that level, giving producers historical context as they weigh their options.
The estimates are not guarantees of future payments, Plastina notes. Actual payments depend on final prices, yields and program rules, so producers should use the tool as one source of information when evaluating enrollment choices.
Plastina developed the Payments Explorer with senior research associate Kyra Palange and postdoctoral fellow Tayatorn Pongspikul.
Producers interested in enrolling in the 2026 programs should contact their local USDA Farm Service Agency office. The Dec. 11 deadline applies to both program election and enrollment. Producers who do not submit an election by that date will keep their 2025 election for covered crops but will be ineligible for payments for the 2026 program year.