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How much should you charge for lawn mowing?

Price each lawn from what it costs your crew: time on the property, the drive to get there, fuel and your share of overhead. Add the margin you want, and the calculator gives you a price per cut and per month.

Average drive from the previous stop.

Wage plus payroll costs.

Fuel and wear for the drive to this customer.

Insurance, phone, software, equipment payments and other fixed costs.

Your overhead is spread across these. Use your average across the year.

The share of the price you keep after costs. 30% of a $100 visit is $30.

$61 per visit

$266 a month

Cost per visit: $46 · Profit per visit: $15

Wages $28 · Fuel and materials per visit $3 · Vehicle $5 · Overhead $10

That's $88 for each hour the job takes, including the drive.

Driving to this customer is 29% of the job's time and costs you $13 a visit. See what driving costs across all your routes

Keep the drive out of your margin

Routova groups each day's stops by area and orders them by real road drive times, so less of every visit goes to the road. Route optimization is on every plan, from $49 a month.

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What goes into a lawn care price

Time on the property depends on more than size: slopes, gates, beds to edge around and where the trailer parks all add minutes. Time a few typical lawns and use the average. Count every crew member's wage for the drive as well as the mowing, because the whole crew rides between stops.

How this calculator works

It adds up the cost of one visit: wages for everyone on the job for the time on site and the drive, materials, vehicle cost, and your monthly overhead divided by your visits each month. Then it sets the price so that your chosen margin is left after those costs: price = cost ÷ (1 − margin). The monthly and yearly figures multiply the price by the visits in that period.

Why the drive belongs in the price

Customers don't see the drive, but you pay for it on every visit. If your stops are spread out or in a poor order, the same price earns you less. Shorter drives lower the cost of every visit without changing what the customer pays.

Questions

Should I price by the square foot or by the lawn?
Square footage is a starting point, but time is what you pay for. Two lawns the same size can take very different times, so this calculator prices from minutes on site.
How do I account for the off-season?
Enter your average visits per month across the whole year, not just peak season, so summer prices also cover the winter months when overhead keeps running.
What do other lawn care companies charge?
It varies a lot by area. This calculator starts from your own costs so every price covers them. Compare the result with local quotes before you set your rates.

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