Husqvarna 455 Rancher vs Husqvarna 550 XP Mark II

Husqvarna / Gas

Husqvarna 455 Rancher

50cc class

~$589

4.6/5 Lowe's

Check price on Amazon

Husqvarna / Gas

The Husqvarna 455 Rancher costs about $160 less; the Husqvarna 455 Rancher has more engine (55.5cc); the Husqvarna 455 Rancher swings a longer bar (20 in); the Husqvarna 550 XP Mark II is lighter at 11.7 lb on the same basis.

Spec	Husqvarna 455 Rancher	Husqvarna 550 XP Mark II
Approx. price	~$589with 20" bar and chain	~$749with 16", 18", or 20" bar and chain
Engine class	50cc classby displacement	50cc classby displacement
Power type	Gas	Gas
Use case	Farm & Ranch	Professional
Engine	55.5 cc	50.1 cc
Rated power	2.6 kW	3 kW
Bar length	20 in	18 in
Single-pass cut	about 18 in	about 16 in
Bar range	13-24 in	13-20 in
Chain	3/8" pitch / .050" gauge	.325" pitch / .050" gauge (X-Cut SP33G)
Weight	13.2 lbpowerhead only	11.7 lbpowerhead only
Warranty	2-year consumer (extendable to 4 with fuel registration)	2-year consumer / 1-year commercial

Tinted cells mark the better figure on that row alone: more engine, longer bar, lighter, cheaper. A lighter weight is only a win on the same basis.

What owners like and complain about

Husqvarna 455 Rancher

Two decades of proven reliability — the definition of a known quantity
4.6-star Lowe's aggregate across roughly 700 reviews
Genuinely pulls its 20-inch bar in hardwood
Parts, bars, and chains stocked everywhere from Lowe's to rural dealers
Smart Start, fuel pump, and inertia chain brake as standard
Tolerates neglect that would kill fussier saws

The chain tensioner runs out of travel on this short frame — after a few years the screw reaches its limit and the chain goes slack mid-cut, and the fix is to break a drive link out
A weak bar oiler is the complaint owners repeat most about the 455/460 family; one sold his saw over it
13.2 lb powerhead is heavy for 55cc — fatigue shows on long days
Vibration is noticeably stronger than modern pro saws
Forum consensus favors the CS-590 on value and the MS 271 on refinement
Consumer crankcase — not rebuildable pro construction
At $589 it has crept into striking distance of better saws

Husqvarna 550 XP Mark II

Class-leading power-to-weight — 3.0 kW in an 11.7 lb package
Mark II revision put the original's air-leak reputation behind it
AutoTune self-adjusts for altitude, fuel, and filter condition
Factory X-Cut SP33G chain is sharp and smooth out of the box
Magnesium crankcase built for rebuild-and-run-again pro life
Light enough and smooth enough to run at full output all day, though fallers who run both rate the Stihl MS 261 as the less vibey saw in the cut

Crank-bearing failures are still reported on Mark II saws despite Husqvarna calling the problem fixed — one dealer stopped stocking them over it
Dealer-only pricing runs $660-760 — double a big-box 50cc saw
Wants to be run at full throttle; feels flat when lugged
AutoTune requires a dealer with diagnostic gear for deep service
Overkill money for occasional weekend cutting
20-inch bar is its ceiling — big-wood buyers need the 562/572

Husqvarna 455 Rancher in full Husqvarna 550 XP Mark II in full More matchups