# Working Height vs Platform Height: Scissor Lift Guide

> Canonical page: https://equiphire.com.au/working-height-vs-platform-height/. Last updated 26 October 2026.

## The short answer

Platform height is how high the platform floor goes. Working height is platform height plus about 2 m, the industry allowance for an average person standing on the platform and reaching up. Measure your work against working height, and if any of the work is outside, use the machine's outdoor figure.

## What a 19ft machine name means

A "19ft scissor lift" is a size class. The 19 feet (about 5.8 m) describes the platform floor at full height, not how high you can work. On a typical 19ft machine the working height is closer to 7.8 m. The same pattern runs up the range, so read the metric figures on the machine page rather than converting the name.

Manufacturers round and some model names are older than the current specification, so two machines in the same class can differ by 100 to 300 mm. When you are close to the limit, use the figure for the exact model.

## Both figures on our current fleet

## Why outdoor height can differ

Wind loads a raised platform, so many machines carry a lower rating outdoors than indoors. The outdoor rating can cut the height, the number of people allowed, or both, and some machines are rated for indoor use only. For example, the LGMG SC0610EL-2 is rated to 8.8 m working height indoors with up to two people, but 7.5 m outdoors with one person. The rating is on the machine's plate and in its manual; plan an outdoor job to the outdoor figure.

## What the 2 m allowance assumes

It assumes a person of average height, standing upright with hands raised, on a level platform. It does not allow for two-handed work at full stretch, lifting a panel overhead or leaning over the guardrail. If the task needs force or control, choose a machine whose working height sits comfortably above the work.

Stay inside the platform and guardrails. Getting on or off the platform at height is only acceptable where the manufacturer's manual and your site's risk assessment specifically allow it; it is not something to plan around by default.

## The other figures that decide the hire

Height and access figures and what to compare them withFigure | What it is | Compare it with |

Platform height | Platform floor at full elevation | Overhead clearance at the work position |

Working height | Platform height plus about 2 m | Height of the work |

Outdoor working height | The rated height when used outside, where it differs | Height of any outdoor work |

Outreach | Sideways reach of a boom basket | Distance from where the machine can stand to the work |

Width | Machine width at its widest point | Narrowest door, gate or aisle on the route |

Stowed height | Height with the platform lowered | Door heads, roller doors and car park headroom |

## Clear height at the work

Ducts, lights and services stop the platform below its maximum. Measure at the exact work position, not at the doorway.

## Next step

If you know the height but not the access, the width and site access guide covers the measurements to take, and what size scissor lift do I need walks through the whole choice. To match a machine now, try help me choose or browse electric scissor lift hire. Above a scissor lift's reach, or where something is in the way, compare boom lifts.

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