There are several main types of excavators. The backhoe excavator is the most commonly used type on job sites and is efficient with functions beyond just excavation. Crawler excavators, also known as compact excavators, have high horsepower and are used for mining and heavy duty tasks. Suction excavators, also called vacuum excavators, use a suction pipe to carry away loose soil and debris. Dragline excavators are the largest type and are used for large-scale applications, with two subtypes being on-site and standard mobile draglines.