What is the best Encore zero-turn mower?

For most buyers, the Encore Caliber (52"-60" decks, Kawasaki FX-series V-twins in the 23.5-25.5 HP range, 12 MPH top speed) is the best overall pick in Encore's current lineup, and it carries the longest mower warranty Encore offers: 3 years parts and labor plus a 10-year deck shell term. Buyers on a tighter budget who don't need the extra speed fit the Encore Edge (48"-60" decks, roughly 23 HP Kawasaki V-twins, 9 MPH top speed, 2-year warranty), and crews needing the widest commercial deck should look at the Encore Prowler (61"-72" decks, 28 HP Kawasaki FH770D, 10-gallon fuel tank).

What's the difference between the Encore Edge and Encore Caliber?

Speed and warranty, mainly. Per Encore's own spec pages, the Edge tops out at 9 MPH forward with a 2-year mower warranty (plus a 10-year deck shell term), while the step-up Caliber reaches 12 MPH forward and carries a 3-year parts-and-labor warranty on top of the same 10-year deck coverage. Deck sizes overlap (both top out around 60"), so the real decision is whether the faster ground speed and extra warranty year on the Caliber are worth the price step up.

Is Encore sold on Amazon?

No. Encore sells through its authorized dealer network, the same pattern as most commercial-grade zero-turn brands we cover — Ferris, Scag, Ariens' Gravely Zenith line, and Grasshopper among them. Encore's own website doesn't list MSRP pricing at all; it routes shoppers to a dealer locator and a financing page instead. Use the Amazon links on this page to shop replacement parts, oil, filters, and blades.

Is Encore's Edge the same as Ariens' Edge?

No — they're unrelated mowers from two different manufacturers that happen to share a model-line name. Encore's Edge is a 48"-60" deck, Kawasaki-powered lineup. Ariens sells its own, completely separate "Edge" series — a smaller 34"-42" deck entry-level zero-turn with its own engine options. If you're comparing listings by name alone, double-check which company actually made the mower before assuming you're looking at the same machine.

Has Encore had any recalls?

We found no CPSC recall on record for any Encore zero-turn mower, current or discontinued, as of this writing. That's a cleaner record than several brands we cover that do have documented recalls (Bad Boy, Bobcat, John Deere's ZTrak line among them), though the absence of a recall isn't itself proof of anything beyond what's been reported to the commission.

Best Encore Zero-Turn Mower 2026: Edge, Caliber & Prowler Compared

Quick Answer: The Encore Caliber (52”-60” decks, Kawasaki FX-series V-twins, 12 MPH top speed) is the best overall pick in Encore’s current lineup, backed by the longest warranty Encore offers — 3 years parts and labor plus a 10-year deck shell term, per Encore’s own spec pages. Buyers who don’t need the extra speed save money on the Encore Edge (48”-60” decks, roughly 23 HP Kawasaki V-twins, 9 MPH, 2-year warranty), and commercial crews running the widest decks want the Encore Prowler (61”-72” decks, 28 HP Kawasaki FH770D). One honest catch worth knowing up front: Encore’s own site publishes no MSRP for any of these three lines — only a dealer locator and financing offers — so expect to request a quote rather than find a sticker price online.

Encore doesn’t get mentioned on its own merits very often on this site — it’s shown up exactly once before now, as one of several brands a universal LED light kit happens to fit. That’s a strange footnote for a company with a genuinely interesting history: Encore Manufacturing was founded in Beatrice, Nebraska, in 1988 by Dick Tegtmeier, who had co-founded Exmark a few years earlier before leaving to start his own mower company in the same small Nebraska town. Here’s how Encore’s current three lineups — Edge, Caliber, and Prowler — actually compare.

Encore zero-turn mowers, compared

Line	Best for	Deck	Engine	Top Speed	Warranty
Caliber	Best overall	52", 60"	Kawasaki FX-series, 23.5-25.5 HP	12 MPH	3-yr parts/labor + 10-yr deck
Edge	Best value / lighter duty	48", 52", 60"	Kawasaki V-twin, ~23 HP	9 MPH	2-yr + 10-yr deck
Prowler	Best commercial / widest deck	61", 72"	28 HP Kawasaki FH770D	10 MPH	2-yr + 10-yr deck

1. Encore Caliber — Best Overall

Encore Caliber (52" & 60" configurations)

Best overall · Kawasaki FX-series V-twins, 23.5-25.5 HP · 12 MPH top speed

Encore's step-up residential/light-commercial tier, with 52" and 60" deck options, weighing in at 1,035-1,200 lbs depending on configuration, per Encore's own Caliber spec page. Cutting height runs 1.0"-5.5", and all four current Caliber models carry Kawasaki FX-series engines in the 23.5-25.5 HP range.
The only Encore line with a 3-year parts-and-labor mower warranty — a full year longer than both the entry Edge and the flagship commercial Prowler, on top of the same 10-year deck shell term every Encore line carries.
Pricing isn't published by Encore itself. The clearest data point we found: one Ohio dealer listed the same Caliber model (EC60FX921V5S) at $8,100 for a new 2025 unit and $10,400 for the 2026 model year — a roughly 28% jump at that single dealer, not a confirmed industry-wide trend, since Encore doesn't publish MSRP for anyone to check it against.

2. Encore Edge — Best Value / Lighter Duty

Encore Edge (48", 52" & 60" configurations)

Best value / lighter duty · Kawasaki V-twin, ~23 HP · 9 MPH top speed

Encore's entry tier, with 48", 52", and 60" deck options at 950-1,018 lbs and a 1.0"-4.75" cutting height range, per Encore's own Edge spec page. Top speed caps at 9 MPH forward / 4 MPH reverse — noticeably slower than the Caliber's 12 MPH.
Carries a 2-year mower warranty plus the same 10-year deck shell term as every other Encore line — a full year shorter than the Caliber above it, despite overlapping deck sizes.
Don't confuse this with Ariens' own, completely unrelated "Edge" series (34"-42" decks, entry-level) — two different manufacturers picked the identical model-line name. See our best Ariens zero-turn mower guide for Ariens' lineup.

For other sub-$10k residential picks across every brand this site covers, see our best residential zero-turn mower guide.

3. Encore Prowler — Best Commercial / Widest Deck

Encore Prowler (61" & 72" configurations)

Best commercial / widest deck · 28 HP Kawasaki FH770D · 10 MPH top speed

Encore's widest-deck commercial tier (61K28A3 and 72K28A3), both built on a 10-gauge fabricated steel deck, 1,300 lbs, with a 10-gallon fuel tank and a 1"-5" cutting height range adjustable in 1/4" increments, per Encore's own Prowler spec page. Both configurations share the identical 28 HP Kawasaki FH770D engine.
The genuine catch: despite being Encore's biggest and most expensive line, the Prowler carries the same 2-year mower warranty as the entry Edge — not the longer 3-year term the mid-tier Caliber gets. Warranty length doesn't scale up with deck size or price here; see our zero-turn mower warranty guide for how that compares against other brands' commercial tiers.
Not Amazon-stocked — same dealer-network-only pattern as Ferris, Scag, and Gravely's Zenith line.

For how the Prowler’s 72” deck stacks up against other brands’ widest commercial decks, see our best commercial zero-turn mower guide.

An Exmark co-founder’s second company, now owned by someone else entirely

Encore Manufacturing was founded in 1988 in Beatrice, Nebraska, by Dick Tegtmeier — who had co-founded Exmark a few years prior before leaving to start his own mower company in the same small town, according to industry trade-press coverage at the time of his passing. That’s a direct parallel to this site’s Bad Boy/Spartan and Hustler/Big Dog ownership stories, except the twist here runs the other direction: after a tough stretch for the business, Tegtmeier sold Encore around 2008-2011 to Worldlawn Power Equipment, a China-based manufacturer, on the condition that production stay in Beatrice — which it reportedly still does. Exmark, the company Tegtmeier left to start Encore, has been a wholly owned subsidiary of The Toro Company since 1997 (see our best Exmark zero-turn mower guide). Two mower brands born from the same Beatrice, Nebraska founder now sit under completely unrelated corporate parents — one a publicly traded American lawn-equipment company, the other a Chinese manufacturer.

We found no CPSC recall on record for any current or past Encore zero-turn model as of this writing.

The bottom line

The Encore Caliber is the best overall pick for most buyers — the fastest ground speed and longest warranty Encore offers. Buyers who don’t need 12 MPH top speed save money on the Encore Edge, and crews needing the widest commercial deck want the Encore Prowler — just don’t expect its size to buy a longer warranty than the Caliber gets. Whichever line you land on, Encore isn’t sold on Amazon or listed with a published MSRP anywhere online, so budget time for a dealer quote. See our zero-turn mower warranty guide for how Encore’s terms stack up against every other brand covered on this site.

Last updated: October 24, 2026 — deck sizes, weights, engine options, cutting heights, and warranty terms verified directly against Encore’s own Edge, Caliber, and Prowler spec pages (encoreequipment.com). Pricing data point (Caliber EC60FX921V5S, $8,100 2025 vs. $10,400 2026) sourced from a single Ohio equipment dealer’s listings, disclosed as single-dealer data since Encore publishes no MSRP of its own. Company founding and Worldlawn acquisition history verified against trade-press coverage (Rural Lifestyle Dealer, Lawn & Landscape) of Dick Tegtmeier’s career; Exmark’s 1997 Toro acquisition cross-checked against the existing, separately-verified Exmark guide on this site. Ariens’ separate “Edge” line confirmed via Ariens’ own regional product pages and current dealer listings. No CPSC recall found for Encore as of this writing.