Name: Miles City Livestock Commission livestock auction prices — 2026-01-20
Creator: RaisedBeef
Published: 2026-01-20

Reporter comment USDA

As filed

Compared to last week (1-13-26): Steers under 500 lbs were too lightly tested either this week or last week to develop a full market trend, however steady undertones were noticed. Steers over 500 lbs sold mostly 5.00-10.00 lower in a narrow comparison on a lower quality offering. Heifers under 450 lbs were too lightly tested to develop any market trend. Heifers over 450 lbs sold generally steady in a narrow comparison. Demand for all feeders was good on light to moderate offerings. Demand for light weight cattle suitable to develop into yearlings was mostly good this week. A combination of factors led to lower prices this week but quality, lower CME positions and package size were three of the largest factors that weighed on the market. Most cattle were offered in smaller groups this week with no full load lots on offer. Quality this sale was mostly plain to average and significantly lower than last weeks average to very attractive offering. Several sets of backgrounded offerings were seen this week and many had excess tag. Some backgrounded offerings were pushing moderate to moderate plus flesh this week. Market activity was mostly moderate to active this week with a slightly smaller buyer pool noticed. Weigh up cows sold on moderate demand for light to moderate offerings. Feeding demand continues to remain strong. Feeding cows sold steady to 5.00 lower with fewer feeding buyers noticed this week. Slaughter cows sold 3.00-5.00 higher on breaking cows, boning and lean cows sold generally steady. One load of fed cows sold on good demand with packers and feeding buyers both bidding aggressively for cows which have been on feed. Slaughter bulls were too lightly tested to develop an accurate market trend, however higher undertones were noticed. Young age cows sold generally steady in a narrow comparison. Quality was mostly average this week. A large offering of bred cows were seen this week with many aged cows in the offering. Demand was good to very good for bred cows as a good crowd of ranchers were in the stands actively bidding on cows.

Weight class

Steers · summary 500–600 lb

Weighted average of every reported lot

500–600 lb steers averaged $489.68/cwt on 227 head, up $3.13 from the prior sale. That ranks 9 of 13 comparable sales and sits +3.45 against this barn's trailing median of $486.23.

Average price

$489.68

▲ 3.13 vs prior sale

227 head · 548 lb average

Value per head Derived

$2,683

Price × average weight ÷ 100

Grade differential Derived

$68

per head · Medium and Large 1 over Medium and Large 1-2

$4.61/cwt at this weight

vs the market

−9.03

vs MT average

+24.35 vs national

What quality paid 500–600 lb

Frame and muscle grade

Frame / muscle	Avg wt	$/cwt	$/head	Head
Medium and Large 1	551	491.20	2,706	152
Medium and Large 1-2	542	486.59	2,638	75

One grade step is worth $4.61/cwt here — about $68 a head. Across this sale the premium is widest at 700–800 lb. USDA reports each grade on its own line and never publishes the spread.

This barn's trailing prices 500–600 lb

13 sales

Steers 500–600 lb: high $512.23, low $440.01, median $486.23 across 13 sales. Sales under 10 head in this class are excluded, so a thin day cannot swing the median or the ranking.

How it compared 500–600 lb

Same class and week · spot auction only

This sale227 hd

489.68

—

MT average2 barns · 877 hd

498.71

−9.03

National average169 barns · 18,411 hd

465.33

+24.35

This barn, trailing median13 sales

486.23

+3.45

A barn can sit above the state average at one weight and below it at another — check the class you actually sell.

Slaughter cattle

By class and quality grade · $/cwt

Cull cows and bulls are graded, not weight-classed — grade is what moves the money here.

Class	Grade	Dressing	Avg wt	$/cwt	$/head	Head
Bulls	—	Average	1,792	172.55	3,093	17
Cows	Premium White 65-75%	Average	1,649	166.00	2,737	49
Cows	Breaker 75-80%	Low	1,472	162.95	2,398	24
Cows	Boner 80-85%	Average	1,356	152.71	2,071	50
Cows	Lean 85-90%	Low	1,200	142.91	1,715	67
Dairy Cows	Lean 85-90%	Low	1,170	120.00	1,404	1thin

Replacement cattle Per head

By class, stage and age

Bred stock and pairs are reported per head, not per hundredweight — these prices are never mixed with the $/cwt figures above.

Class	Stage	Age	Avg wt	$/head	Head
Bred Cows	2nd Stage (4-6 mo)	Young (2-4 yrs)	1,360	$3,975	11
Bred Cows	2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo)	Young (2-4 yrs)	1,116	$3,555	16
Bred Cows	2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo)	Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)	1,389	$3,130	90
Bred Cows	2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo)	Aged (>8 yrs)	1,356	$2,968	396
Bred Cows	1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo)	Young (2-4 yrs)	1,022	$2,950	3thin
Bred Cows	1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo)	Aged (>8 yrs)	1,319	$2,400	5
Bred Heifers	2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo)	(<2 yrs)	905	$3,825	20

Every lot, as filed

79 lots · USDA AMS · Miles City Livestock Commission Auction - Miles City, MT

Nothing removed and nothing rounded — the same lots as the USDA report, with per-head values added.

Class	Grade / description	Weight	Avg wt	Price	Range	Per head	Head
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2Fleshy	700–750	718	310.00/cwt	310.00–310.00	2,226	3
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2Thin Fleshed	600–650	626	426.00/cwt	426.00–426.00	2,667	56
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Replacement	650–700	663	400.00/cwt	400.00–400.00	2,652	55
Steers	Medium and Large 1	750–800	759	368.00/cwt	368.00–368.00	2,793	14
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	550–600	585	419.91/cwt	410.00–448.00	2,456	92
Steers	Medium and Large 1	500–550	537	507.83/cwt	497.00–521.00	2,727	98
Steers	Medium and Large 1	350–400	386	567.70/cwt	560.00–592.50	2,191	24
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	500–550	532	508.38/cwt	502.50–509.00	2,705	10
Steers	Medium and Large 1	700–750	733	382.93/cwt	382.00–387.50	2,807	23
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	450–500	468	496.46/cwt	483.00–500.00	2,323	38
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	700–750	719	357.50/cwt	357.50–357.50	2,570	16
Steers	Medium and Large 1	550–600	576	461.03/cwt	455.00–480.00	2,656	54
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	750–800	750	331.00/cwt	331.00–331.00	2,483	9
Steers	Medium and Large 1	650–700	660	412.46/cwt	402.50–419.00	2,722	39
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	500–550	528	452.49/cwt	442.50–475.00	2,389	123
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	400–450	436	509.61/cwt	505.00–530.00	2,222	15
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Replacement	600–650	643	391.75/cwt	391.75–391.75	2,519	85
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	650–700	659	372.50/cwt	372.50–372.50	2,455	4
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	600–650	603	393.00/cwt	393.00–393.00	2,370	2
Steers	Medium and Large 1	600–650	623	429.95/cwt	422.00–433.00	2,679	131
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1Broken Mouth	—	1,353	2,500.00/head	2,500.00–2,500.00	2,500	3
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1Fleshy	—	1,585	2,800.00/head	2,800.00–2,800.00	2,800	5
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1Thin Fleshed	—	1,171	2,391.56/head	2,350.00–2,450.00	2,392	19
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1Broken Mouth	—	1,369	3,026.30/head	2,700.00–3,250.00	3,026	360
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,329	175.76/cwt	175.00–176.00	2,336	4
Steers	Medium and Large 1	450–500	463	575.00/cwt	575.00–575.00	2,662	11
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1-2	—	1,022	2,950.00/head	2,950.00–2,950.00	2,950	3
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1-2	—	1,174	3,580.44/head	3,500.00–3,700.00	3,580	11
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1-2	—	1,066	209.63/cwt	172.00–280.00	2,235	4
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1-2	—	1,258	2,650.00/head	2,650.00–2,650.00	2,650	3
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1-2Thin Fleshed	—	1,333	1,850.00/head	1,850.00–1,850.00	1,850	3
Steers	Medium and Large 1Fleshy	450–500	482	525.00/cwt	525.00–525.00	2,531	48
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1-2Broken Mouth	—	1,268	2,250.00/head	2,250.00–2,250.00	2,250	2
Dairy Cows	Lean 85-90%	—	1,170	120.00/cwt	120.00–120.00	1,404	1
Cows	Breaker 75-80%Return to Feed	—	1,675	151.00/cwt	151.00–151.00	2,529	1
Cows	Breaker 75-80%Return to Feed	—	1,383	167.75/cwt	167.75–167.75	2,320	15
Cows	Breaker 75-80%	—	1,627	156.21/cwt	152.00–159.00	2,542	7
Cows	Breaker 75-80%	—	1,510	150.00/cwt	150.00–150.00	2,265	1
Cows	Boner 80-85%Return to Feed	—	1,341	162.93/cwt	156.00–167.00	2,185	24
Cows	Boner 80-85%	—	1,418	151.25/cwt	147.00–155.00	2,145	2
Cows	Lean 85-90%	—	1,114	110.08/cwt	105.00–115.00	1,226	12
Cows	Boner 80-85%Return to Feed	—	1,353	144.83/cwt	131.00–153.00	1,960	11
Cows	Lean 85-90%Return to Feed	—	1,230	156.85/cwt	151.00–165.00	1,929	45
Cows	Lean 85-90%Light Weight	—	985	115.00/cwt	115.00–115.00	1,133	1
Cows	Lean 85-90%	—	1,210	85.00/cwt	85.00–85.00	1,029	1
Bulls	—	—	1,974	181.39/cwt	178.00–185.00	3,581	4
Bulls	—	—	1,720	161.96/cwt	152.00–173.00	2,786	5
Cows	Lean 85-90%	—	1,185	124.43/cwt	121.00–126.00	1,474	8
Cows	Boner 80-85%Return to Feed	—	1,398	171.00/cwt	171.00–171.00	2,391	5
Cows	Boner 80-85%	—	1,317	117.63/cwt	115.00–122.00	1,549	5
Cows	Boner 80-85%	—	1,442	128.88/cwt	125.00–131.00	1,858	3
Bred Cows	Medium 1	—	987	3,500.00/head	3,500.00–3,500.00	3,500	5
Bred Heifers	Medium 1	—	859	3,750.00/head	3,750.00–3,750.00	3,750	10
Cows	Premium White 65-75%	—	1,649	166.00/cwt	166.00–166.00	2,737	49
Bulls	—Return to Feed	—	1,459	161.26/cwt	159.00–165.00	2,353	4
Bulls	—Return to Feed	—	1,870	175.00/cwt	175.00–175.00	3,273	1
Bulls	—	—	2,090	192.67/cwt	192.00–194.00	4,027	3
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,360	3,975.00/head	3,975.00–3,975.00	3,975	11
Bred Heifers	Medium and Large 1	—	950	3,900.00/head	3,900.00–3,900.00	3,900	10
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	974	280.23/cwt	262.50–305.00	2,729	4
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,394	3,146.34/head	2,925.00–3,300.00	3,146	87
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1-2Broken Mouth	—	1,110	2,305.23/head	2,200.00–2,500.00	2,305	9
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	950	273.19/cwt	220.00–292.00	2,595	31
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	650–700	662	385.00/cwt	385.00–385.00	2,549	3
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2	500–550	541	435.00/cwt	435.00–435.00	2,353	14
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	550–600	594	420.25/cwt	400.00–424.00	2,496	27
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2Thin Fleshed	450–500	451	575.00/cwt	575.00–575.00	2,593	8
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2Thin Fleshed	550–600	595	408.00/cwt	408.00–408.00	2,428	42
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	400–450	436	536.76/cwt	530.00–540.00	2,340	6
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	600–650	635	414.22/cwt	412.00–420.00	2,630	20
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2	550–600	570	385.00/cwt	385.00–385.00	2,195	3
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	450–500	486	542.68/cwt	507.50–575.00	2,637	21
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2	350–400	398	505.00/cwt	505.00–505.00	2,010	10
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	750–800	795	352.00/cwt	352.00–352.00	2,798	3
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2Thin Fleshed	400–450	441	475.00/cwt	475.00–475.00	2,095	17
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2Thin Fleshed	500–550	503	455.00/cwt	455.00–455.00	2,289	40
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2	400–450	422	484.03/cwt	475.00–490.00	2,043	13
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2	650–700	663	352.50/cwt	352.50–352.50	2,337	5
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2Thin Fleshed	500–550	508	528.00/cwt	528.00–528.00	2,682	38

How this sale compares

Montana weighted averages

One sale is one barn on one day. The state ladder is every Montana auction USDA reported that week, weighted by head — the fairer test of whether a lot sold well.

Montana feeder prices, every weight →Every state and region →