Round bales or square bales? Stonyfield yogurt’s dairy farmer blogger answers a reader inquiry about hay bale shape. Round bales, the newer of the forms, are easier to produce and require less manpower. They’re much larger than square bales also so there are economies of scale involved. Square bales stack neatly, however, and the smaller ones are easy to tote around. So, as with many things, you pick the shape best suited to the situation with an eye towards the bottom line.