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Free Decision ToolsForklift Decision Tools
Choose the right forklift and compare battery costs — free, no login.
Choose the right forklift and compare battery costs — free, no login.
Specifying a forklift is rarely a single decision. Capacity, mast height, power source, and duty cycle all interact — push one lever and the others move. Size for too much capacity and you overpay for a machine that is heavier, wider, and harder to maneuver than your aisles allow. Under-size the mast and your top pallet positions stay empty. Pick the wrong power source and you either fight battery downtime or pay for fast-charging infrastructure you did not need.
The Forklift Selector turns that tangle into a guided shortlist. You answer a few questions about load weight, lift height, indoor or outdoor use, and shift pattern, and it returns the forklift type, capacity class, and power source that fit — so you walk into a quote knowing roughly what you should be asking for.
The Lithium vs Lead-Acid TCO Calculator tackles the question that follows nearly every electric forklift decision: which battery actually costs less over its life. Lithium usually has a higher sticker price but lower running cost; lead-acid is cheaper up front but adds charging time, watering, battery swaps, and a spare. The calculator compares total cost of ownership across both and shows the break-even point for your shift count and runtime — the year where the cheaper-to-buy option stops being the cheaper-to-own option.
Both tools are free, run in your browser, and require no login. They are built to give you a defensible starting position, not to replace a site survey or a supplier quote.
Two tools, two jobs. Start with the Selector if you are still deciding what kind of forklift you need; use the TCO Calculator once you have settled on an electric truck and need to choose its power source. Many buyers run both in sequence.
| If you want to... | Use | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Figure out which forklift type, capacity class, and power source fit your operation | Forklift Selector | A guided shortlist matched to your load weight, lift height, environment, and shift pattern |
| Decide between a lithium and a lead-acid battery for an electric forklift | Lithium vs Lead-Acid TCO Calculator | A total cost-of-ownership comparison plus the break-even year for your shift count and runtime |
| Sanity-check capacity vs mast height before requesting quotes | Forklift Selector | A capacity and lift-height pairing that avoids over- or under-spec'ing the mast |
| Justify a higher up-front battery spend with running-cost numbers | Lithium vs Lead-Acid TCO Calculator | Side-by-side lifetime cost showing where lithium overtakes lead-acid |
| Move from a tool result to a real machine and price | Get a Quote / RFQ | A spec-ready starting point you can hand to our team for a factory-direct quote |
These tools are built for the people who actually have to put a number on a forklift decision — whether you run one machine or a fleet of fifty. They are most useful when you are scoping a purchase, replacing aging equipment, or building a business case for a power-source switch.
We build these tools to be a straight, defensible starting point — not a sales funnel. There is no login, no email wall, and no pressure to buy before you have run the numbers yourself.
Yes. Both the Forklift Selector and the Lithium vs Lead-Acid TCO Calculator run in your browser at no cost, with no account, email, or sign-up required. You can run them as many times as you want and change your inputs freely.
Treat every result as indicative — a defensible starting point, not a final spec or quote. The Selector and TCO Calculator work from the inputs you provide and standard industry assumptions. Your real forklift capacity, runtime, and total cost depend on your exact loads, aisle widths, shift pattern, and site conditions, so confirm the final numbers with a supplier.
If you are still deciding what kind of forklift you need, start with the Forklift Selector to land on a type, capacity class, and power source. Once you know you want an electric truck and need to choose its battery, run the Lithium vs Lead-Acid TCO Calculator. Many buyers use both in sequence — Selector to scope the machine, calculator to scope the battery.
Take the type, capacity, and power source the tool suggested and send them to us through the Get a Quote / RFQ page at /contact/. Our team uses your spec as a starting point to put together a factory-direct quote on electric forklifts and parts from verified suppliers.