Setting Your Hourly Rate
Setting your hourly rate is one of the most important decisions you can make when it comes to your lawn care company.
Set your rate too low, and you won’t make any money. Set your rate too high and you won’t get any work.
So what is a good hourly rate?
Well, it depends on a few factors including your local market. But the average hourly rate for a lawn care company ranges between $55 and $85 per man-hour.
We conducted a survey a few years ago to see what lawn care pros charge for their services. We found that 78% of lawn care pros charge at least $60 per man-hour.
However, ultimately you will need to dig into your local market a bit deeper to see what your rate should be.
Now with that hourly rate in mind, let’s take a look at how to price a lawn based on that rate.
Cost Of Fertilizing Your Lawn
Your lawn needs the proper nutrients to look its best and your soil does not always have enough nutrients. This is where fertilizer comes in. Fertilizing your lawn is the best way to improve the health and appearance of your lawn.Fertilizers contain the necessary minerals and nutrients that your grass needs to grow to its full potential. But it is important to note that different types of grass require different fertilizers.
- The minimum cost for lawn fertilizer is $0.08/sf
- The maximum cost for lawn fertilizer is $0.48/sf
If you do not have the time or the tools to fertilize your lawn on your own, you can hire a contractor to do the job. If you hire a contractor, the cost of fertilizing your lawn is about $12-$15/hr. You can also hire a lawn care expert or professional lawn care company, which will bring your lawn fertilizing cost up to about $60 per hour, on average. The more experience someone has, the more it will cost. That said, if you go with an expert you will do the least amount of work and you will likely get the best results.
Know Your Operational Costs
Your lawn care business costs money to run, and everything you do, from sunup til sundown, drinks some of your revenue.
So, find your operational costs:
- Equipment Maintenance
For example, if you offer lawn mowing services, you need to factor in the cost of materials and material transportation.
Add up all of these costs. Then, you’ll have a baseline dollar amount that must be made on every job to break even. By the way, you can easily find this information using Service Autopilot.
But heres the good news because you know you get to keep every dollar after this number. The key is to figure out what the perfect profit margin should be
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Faqs About Push Lawn Mowers
1. What is the best push lawn mower to buy?
The PowerSmart DB8621CR 21 170cc 2-in-1 gas mower offers the best bang for your buck when it comes to push lawn mowers.
2. How hard is it to push a reel mower?
Not too hard if you mow your lawn every week and dont have a lot of weeds. In fact, reel mowers are lighter than other mowers because they dont carry a power source.
3. What is the easiest lawn mower to push?
Of our top picks, the Sun Joe 24V-X2-17LM-CT 17-inch 48V cordless electric mower is the easiest to push because its the lightest one that isnt a reel mower. For a mower that requires even less effort, check out self-propelled lawn mowers.
How Much Does Lawn Care Cost Per Month
Landscapes and Lawns! They definitely add on to the amazing aesthetic of your property. Dont they?
Well, they will keep being that jewel if you keep maintaining it all through. Yes, maintenance is the key for impeccable properly manicured lawns with enhancing features of landscaping. So, this guide is all about the maintenance costs involved to keep the glaze of your lawn all year round.
Uninterrupted service and focused attention to your yard are the 2 primary factors that will ensure the beauty of your curb appeal as keeping the health of your yard as well. Now, to help do so, there are different parameters in which the lawn care cost factors fit in, like the region, labor, and the material cost. Not to forget the yard size and the climatic conditions as well.
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Diy Or Hire A Lawn Care Expert In My Area
When youre trying to find average lawn care pricing in New Zealand, you might start to wonder whether its a task you can tackle yourself. However, can you really put a price on convenience? Actually, you can, and youd be surprised at how little difference there is between hiring someone to mow your lawns, and doing them yourself.
You can put a reasonably hefty price tag on your time. Any time you spend mowing your lawns is time youre not spending with your family and friends. You also have to find a lawnmower for sale thats reasonably affordable, and that process is not easy either.
Once you buy the mower, you have to purchase fuel for it, pay for tuning costs, and servicing as well. If there are any mower repairs, then you have to do these too. And what about storage? The average property size is only getting smaller, which means that fewer people have garages and tool sheds in which to put their mower. No one wants to end up with a lawnmower in their laundry or living room.
It all sounds like a bit of a hassle, doesnt it? It might be easier to find someone in lawn care to hire who can do the job without you having to lift a finger.
Cost Of Seeding Your Lawn
Lawn seeding is another great way to improve and/or maintain the long-term health and vibrancy of your lawn. It depends on how large of a lawn you have, but the average cost of seeding your lawn is between $850 $1,700. The more area you need seeded the higher the price because it will take longer, and you will need more seed to finish the job.
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Check Out The Lawn In Question
You should always check out your customers lawn before giving them a quote, regardless of whether you charge by the hour or by size.
Your customer can say they just want their lawn mowed, but once you arrive, you may notice that some extra care is required before you can mow. As a result, additional services need to be included in the estimate you offer them.
For example, you might discover that what your customer may think is overgrown grass is actually weeds, requiring weed control on top of regular mowing.
Youll want to inspect the lawn so you can assess its condition and determine what type of treatment it needs. This ensures that you deliver an accurate estimate from the beginning and avoid surprising your customer with extra charges later.
Popular Lawn Care Services & Costs
- Residential or Commercial
- Landscaper Insurance
Prices you will pay for lawn services will vary based on your yard size, the location of property, current health of the yard, and if it’s a residential or commercial property. Climate also makes a big difference, especially in wet climates. This will dramatically increase your yearly cost because the rate of growth of your grass.
Typically, a lawn care service provider will provide a quote based on the square feet of the yard and if there are any obstacles. This means you can get a fairly accurate lawn care quote just from a phone call or instantly here on HomeGuide.
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How To Calculate Lawn Mowing Cost And Time
Let’s go through some examples to clear up any doubts that may still be lingering.
When it comes to calculating the costs, the calculations are really simple:
When it comes to calculating mowing time, what you need to do is multiply the speed of your mower by the width of its deck. Remember to take efficiency into account – unfortunately, you’ll rarely mow one hundred percent of your lawn on the first try.To calculate mowing time, you would have to follow these steps:
6 km/h * 50 cm * 80% = 0.24 ha/h.
How Do I Know If Im Getting The Best Price For Lawn Care
Lawn Love offers competitive pricing starting at $29. Not only are we extremely affordable, we also guarantee the quality of your service, unlike most alternative and more expensive solutions.
Still not sure? We want you to feel good about your decision so weve made our pricing as transparent as possible up front. If you want to shop around, you can! Enter your information for your own instant personalized price. If you dont like what you see, you have no obligation to book with us.
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Lawn Care Costs: Things To Consider
Charging the right grass-cutting service price is key for professionals. Youll need to maximize your earnings per hour, account for your overhead overhead costs, and ensure youre making a regular profit.
Lets take a look at some of the business costs contractors need to consider when thinking about lawn care prices.
Cost Of Weeding Your Lawn
Wedding your lawn is also very important maintenance. Removing unwanted and unsightly weeds is a sure way to improve the appearance of your lawn. If you have a regular lawn care professional who does your weekly mowing and trimming, you can ask them to get rid of the weeds on their next visit. There are a couple ways to go about weeding your lawn. You can pull them regularly or you can kill them with chemicals designed for the job for a more permanent solution.
The average cost of weeding is about $12 and $40 per hour, depending on which method you choose and how many weeds you have. Using weed killer is usually the more expensive route and cost closer to the $25 – $40 per hour mark since you are paying for labor and the chemicals.
Many weed killers are environmentally safe and pet friendly, but some are not. Be sure to consult a lawn care professional before making decisions on which path to take.
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Costing Of Lawn Maintenance
On a general note the cost of lawn maintenance costs within a range of $100 to $500 entirely based on the kind and amount of services, also the maintenance company hired and the landscaper you happen to work with. There are innumerable packages that you can choose from which covers a particular section of services. They are clubbed together to make it convenient for the property owner to opt. Take a look at such kind of service package below:
Keeping Commercial Clients Happy
Most commercial clients are considered easy clients because their property manager is the main point person in your relationship. They have few demands, and generally just want those boxes checked and their expectations met.
The best way to win these types of clients is to show them that you care, that youre doing the job properly, and that youre not missing anything.
That means that you need to keep track of the notes you make on their account, and ensure that your crew completes all the work they want.
From the start you should make notes of the job requirements during the site walkthrough with the client.
Using quoting software, like Jobber, helps you to add materials, services, and labor as you go so that you dont have to worry about remembering to add them later on.
Your secret weapon in keeping your client happy will undoubtedly be your CRM and job checklist . That way, you never miss a step with each phone call, email, or site visit.
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Lawn Care Bid Template
Would you believe that many lawn care operators are underbidding yards by 20%, costing them potentially thousands of dollars every single year? In my conversations with dozens of operators, Iâve unfortunately found this to be true.
If youâve been mowing grass for a while and feel like thatâs you, itâs not too late! Keep reading and we can walk through this together.
If youâre just starting out, then letâs get this right from day one so you donât leave money on the table. And be sure to read our Ultimate Guide to Starting a Lawn Care Business if you haven’t already.
Fortunately, there are a few simple best practices weâre about to unpack that will be helpful guide rails as you get experience pricing yards.
Using these tips, I have been able to get 20%, and sometimes 50% OVER my target rate. Iâll explain how below. Toward the end of this article, weâll take all of the tactics and boil it down into an example to show how this all works.
To stay on topic, weâll give pointers on how to price lawn mowing jobs, not landscaping jobs.
Letâs dive in.
What Influences Lawn Mowing Costs
There are several lawn mowing cost factors to consider when pricing your jobs.
For example, does your lawn mowing service only include lawn mowing, or will you offer other services such as leaf removal and clean-up as part of a package?
Other factors to consider include:
- Size of the yard.
- Location of the job site.
- Local weather conditions.
Its important to note that location plays an important role in determining the cost of lawn care.
As a result, you should price differently for residential and commercial properties. The same goes for warmer climates where grass may grow quicker and colder climates that require winterization.
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Best Push Lawn Mowers Of 2022
If you dont mind putting in a little elbow grease, push lawn mowers are some of the best and most affordable options for small- to medium-sized lawns. Were here to help you wade through the hundreds of models on the market with this ranking of the best push lawn mowers money can buy.
Weve collected picks for any preference, whether you want something big and powerful or small and efficient. The gas-powered, electric, and reel mowers on this list represent the best combinations of power, ease of use, and price tag.
Now, lets get into the details so you can figure out which of the 10 best push lawn mowers is best for you.
How To Quote A Lawn Mowing Job
Quoting a lawn mowing job requires you to strike a balance between earning profits and giving a fair price to the client.
When quoting a lawn mowing job, you can use one of these three approaches:
- Time-based rate: Most new lawn care professionals charge by the hour because its a straightforward and transparent way to price jobs. With this pricing method, you can also factor in equipment setup and cleanup in your hourly rates, earning you an extra bit of cash before and after work.
- Square footage rate: Pricing your job by how many square feet youre mowing is a fair pricing method for businesses. However, this approach doesnt factor in whether a clients lawn has hilly terrain or trees, which can throw off your calculations and extend job hours.
- Flat rate: The simplest pricing model is to charge a flat rate regardless of the time you take to complete the job. This is best used for recurring clients.
Keep in mind that not all yards are large enough for you to turn a profit. So you dont lose money working on especially small lawns, consider setting a minimum rate or price.
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How To Raise Your Lawn Care Pricing Without Losing Great Clients
No one and I mean no one wants to pay more for anything.
Youre raising my prices? My yard didnt get any bigger, so why should it cost more?
The stubborn client is every lawn care business’ worst nightmare. As a result, many lawn care business owners are afraid that a simple lawn care pricing increase will bring out the worst in people.
And it will
if you dont do it right.
- How high is too high?
- What number should you aim for?
- When should you raise prices, and how frequently?
Use these 5 simple steps to properly raise your lawn care prices without losing your best clients.
Diy Vs Professional Lawn Care Costs
DIY lawn care is a simple way to cut costs over the long run, though its got significant up-front costs. A gas-powered push mower typically costs between $200 and $400. If you have a large property, youll probably need a riding mower. Those usually run from $800 to $2,000.
Fertilizer varies from $20 to $150 or more. Fertilizer with rented equipment is less expensive, while an all-inclusive DIY kit is more expensive. Hedge trimmers run from $50 to $300. While a pro costs more over time, you get quality work and expertise that keeps your lawn healthy and beautiful.
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Identify Your Target Market
Keep your eyes all around to check what other dealers are offering and at what prices. If you have a successful service provider near you, check what makes him stand out and try to inculcate better plans in your services.
Develop contacts with the service providers in your target market and understand their pricing plans. This will help you frame profitable pricing for your own lawn care service.
