Data last updated: August 2026. This page is refreshed annually. Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), Indeed salary data, PayScale compensation data, and HomeAdvisor/Angi national contractor surveys.
Setting prices for landscaping services is part science, part local market knowledge. This guide covers 2026 pricing benchmarks for common landscape services — per-job flat rates and per-hour rates — drawn from industry surveys, HomeAdvisor/Angi data, and regional market research.
Landscape Service Pricing: Quick Reference Table
| Service | Typical Unit | Low | Average | High |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lawn mowing (small yard) | Per visit | $35 | $55 | $85 |
| Lawn mowing (medium yard) | Per visit | $50 | $80 | $130 |
| Lawn mowing (large yard, 1+ acre) | Per visit | $100 | $175 | $350 |
| Edging and trimming | Per visit | $30 | $55 | $100 |
| Leaf removal / cleanup | Per visit | $100 | $250 | $600 |
| Mulch installation | Per cubic yard installed | $65 | $100 | $150 |
| Hedge / shrub trimming | Per hour | $50 | $75 | $120 |
| Tree trimming (small tree) | Per tree | $150 | $350 | $700 |
| Tree trimming (large tree) | Per tree | $500 | $1,200 | $3,000 |
| Tree removal (small) | Per tree | $200 | $600 | $1,200 |
| Tree removal (large) | Per tree | $800 | $2,500 | $6,000 |
| Sod installation | Per sq ft installed | $0.90 | $1.75 | $3.50 |
| Lawn seeding / overseeding | Per sq ft | $0.08 | $0.18 | $0.40 |
| Fertilization program (full season) | Per property/season | $200 | $450 | $900 |
| Irrigation system installation (residential) | Total system | $2,000 | $4,500 | $9,000 |
| Irrigation blowout / winterization | Per visit | $50 | $100 | $175 |
| Landscape design (residential) | Total project | $500 | $2,500 | $7,500 |
| Full landscape install / redesign | Total project | $5,000 | $18,000 | $75,000 |
| Patio / hardscape installation | Per sq ft | $15 | $30 | $60 |
| Snow removal (per visit, average driveway) | Per visit | $30 | $65 | $150 |
| Annual maintenance contract (residential, full service) | Per year | $1,200 | $3,500 | $8,000 |
Tired of tracking rates on spreadsheets?
The trades businesses that consistently hit top-of-market rates use job-costing software to know exactly what each job costs — and price accordingly. Jobber and Housecall Pro both include built-in estimating and job-costing tools that show your true cost-per-job so you stop leaving money on the table.
Compare the top job-costing tools for trades →
Looking for Jobber alternatives? Start your free Jobber trial today and see how it compares for your trade business.
How to Price Landscape Services
Production Rate Pricing (The Right Method)
The most reliable way to price lawn maintenance and landscape work is production rate pricing: how many square feet of lawn can your crew mow, edge, and clean up per hour? Then set a price per thousand square feet that covers your cost plus margin.
Example for mowing:
- Crew size: 2 people
- Production rate: 25,000 sq ft/hour (mowing + edging + blowing)
- Fully loaded crew cost: $80/hour (wages + equipment + fuel + overhead)
- Target markup: 40%
- Price per 1,000 sq ft = ($80 / 25) x 1.40 = $4.48 per 1,000 sq ft
- A 7,000 sq ft yard = $31.36 — round up to $35 minimum
Per-Hour Rate for General Landscape Labor
For design, installation, and specialized work, bill at $50–$85/man-hour depending on skill level and market. Add a 20–30% equipment surcharge for heavy machinery (skid steers, excavators, chippers). Never bill at your tech’s wage rate — that ignores overhead, insurance, equipment depreciation, and profit.
Mulch and Material Markup
Mulch purchased at $22–$35/cubic yard should be billed at $65–$125/cubic yard installed. This covers material, delivery, labor, and equipment time.
Annual Contracts vs. Per-Visit Pricing
Annual maintenance contracts generate the most predictable revenue and the highest lifetime value per customer. Price annual contracts at 10–15% below per-visit pricing to incentivize commitment, but spread billing monthly so customers don’t feel the winter payment burden.
Tired of tracking rates on spreadsheets?
The trades businesses that consistently hit top-of-market rates use job-costing software to know exactly what each job costs — and price accordingly. Jobber and Housecall Pro both include built-in estimating and job-costing tools that show your true cost-per-job so you stop leaving money on the table.
Ready to try the best-rated FSM platform? Start your free Jobber trial today — no credit card required.
Sources
- HomeAdvisor/Angi Landscaping Cost Survey, 2025–2026
- National Association of Landscape Professionals (NALP) Industry Data
- LawnStarter and GreenPal market pricing research, 2025
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS data, 2026
How to Price Landscaping Services for Profit
The rates above show what the market pays. Pricing for profit means knowing your costs precisely enough to set a minimum job rate that covers labor, equipment, overhead, and a margin. Most landscape contractors who struggle with profitability are underestimating one or more of these costs — particularly equipment wear and overhead.
A simple framework for pricing any landscape service:
- Labor cost: Multiply your loaded hourly rate (wages + payroll taxes + workers’ comp) by estimated hours. A two-person crew at $18/hour each, with 35% burden, runs about $48.60 per hour total.
- Materials markup: Apply 15–25% markup over your supplier cost on mulch, plants, stone, and other materials.
- Equipment: Allocate a daily or hourly rate for trucks, trailers, mowers, and specialty equipment. Many contractors use $15–$30/hour per major machine.
- Overhead: Add 20–25% to your direct costs to cover insurance, office, marketing, and administrative overhead.
- Profit margin: Add 10–20% net profit target on top of total costs.
For recurring maintenance accounts, route density matters as much as the hourly rate. A crew servicing six properties on the same street in an hour generates more revenue per labor-hour than one servicing six properties spread across town.
Managing multiple landscape crews and clients? Start your free Jobber trial today — built for lawn care and landscaping businesses that are scaling up.
Landscape Software That Helps You Quote and Schedule Faster
Manual estimating on paper or spreadsheets creates delays and errors that cost lawn care businesses real money. When a potential customer calls for a quote and waits three days for a written estimate, you lose the job to whoever shows up first.
Field service software designed for landscaping solves this by letting you build estimates in the field from a mobile app, send them for digital signature, convert them to scheduled jobs, and generate invoices automatically on completion. Platforms like Jobber are specifically popular with lawn care and landscaping businesses because the workflow — quote, schedule, complete, invoice — matches how the industry actually operates.
Key features landscaping businesses should look for in software:
- Route optimization for recurring maintenance accounts
- Photo documentation for completed jobs and customer records
- Automated recurring billing for maintenance contracts
- GPS tracking for crew accountability and customer communication
- Online payment processing to reduce accounts receivable time
For a detailed comparison of options, see our guide to the best landscaping software for 2026.
Building Recurring Maintenance Revenue in Your Landscape Business
The most profitable landscape businesses generate a large share of their revenue from recurring maintenance agreements rather than one-time projects. Mowing contracts, seasonal cleanups, irrigation management, and fertilization programs all create predictable revenue that improves cash flow and reduces the cost of customer acquisition over time.
Pricing recurring work correctly is different from pricing one-time projects. The goal is to price maintenance agreements so that the fully loaded cost of the service — including labor, equipment, materials, and overhead allocation — is covered by the contracted price, with a net margin target of 15–25%. Many landscape businesses underprice recurring work because they calculate only direct labor cost without including equipment depreciation, fuel, and overhead.
Route density is critical to recurring maintenance profitability. A crew that can complete eight maintenance stops in an eight-hour day on tightly grouped routes generates significantly more revenue than the same crew completing five stops spread across town. Building route density should be a core part of your sales and territory strategy.
Seasonal Pricing and Demand Fluctuations
Landscape services are highly seasonal in most markets. Spring and fall are peak demand periods for cleanup, planting, and mulching. Summer demand concentrates on irrigation and mowing maintenance. Winter creates downtime for many landscape businesses unless they offer snow removal or holiday lighting installation.
Seasonal pricing adjustments can help manage demand and labor availability. Some landscape contractors charge premium rates for spring cleanup appointments to manage the surge, then use those margins to carry lower-demand periods. Others use off-season time for crew training, equipment maintenance, and selling agreements for the following season.
Tracking Chemical Application Records for Compliance
If your landscaping business applies fertilizers, herbicides, or pesticides, you likely face state licensing and record-keeping requirements. Most states require licensed applicators to log the date, location, product name, EPA registration number, application rate, total amount applied, and target pest for every treatment. Failing to maintain these records — or losing them — can result in fines or license suspension.
Field service software built for landscaping often includes chemical application logs that prompt technicians to enter this information in the field immediately after treatment. Records are stored digitally, timestamped, and tied to the customer’s property record. When a state inspector asks for your application logs from the past two years, you can pull and export them in minutes rather than hunting through paper files.
Proper chemical record-keeping also protects you from liability. If a customer claims your treatment killed their ornamental plants six months later, having a precise application record — showing exactly what was applied, at what rate, on what date — is your best defense. Digital records with GPS coordinates and technician signatures carry more weight than handwritten logs.