Landscaping Cost Calculator

Build a landscaping job price from mulch, sod, plants, crew hours and your margin

Updated 2026-10-01

Materials

Mulch bed area

sq ft

Mulch depth

Mulch price per cubic yard

Sod area

sq ft

Sod waste allowance

Sod price per sq ft

Plants and shrubs

Average price per plant

Labor and price

Crew-hours

hrs

Loaded labor rate per hour

Delivery and disposal

Target margin

Quote price: $1,640.00
Job cost: $1,230.00
Profit: $410.00
Markup on cost: 33.3%
Mulch to order (2.78 exact): 3.0 cu yd
Mulch cost: $120.00
Sod (525 sq ft with waste): $315.00
Plants: $180.00
Labor: $540.00

Mulch yd³ = sq ft × inches ÷ 12 ÷ 27, rounded up to the next half yard. Price = job cost ÷ (1 − margin %). Use your own supplier prices.

Your numbers stay on this device. The page link keeps your inputs, so a bookmark or shared link reopens these results.

Enter the mulch bed area and depth, the sod area, the plants, the crew-hours and your prices. The calculator works out the cubic yards of mulch to order, the sod with waste, the materials and labor cost and the price that gives your target margin. Use your own supplier prices: the defaults are an example, not a national average. Nothing is stored or sent.

Worked example: a front-yard refresh

300 sq ft of beds at 3 inches of mulch is 300 × 3 ÷ 12 = 75 cubic feet, or 2.78 cubic yards; order 3 yards at $40 = $120. 500 sq ft of sod plus 5% waste is 525 sq ft at $0.60 = $315. Twelve shrubs at $15 are $180. Materials total $615.

Twelve crew-hours at a loaded $45 an hour is $540 of labor and delivery and disposal is $75, so the job costs $1,230. At a 25% margin the price is $1,230 ÷ 0.75 = $1,640, leaving $410 of profit, a 33.3% markup on cost.

Front-yard refresh, cost to price
Line	Quantity	Cost
Mulch, 3 in deep over 300 sq ft	3.0 cu yd	$120.00
Sod, 500 sq ft + 5% waste	525 sq ft	$315.00
Shrubs	12	$180.00
Crew labor	12 h × $45	$540.00
Delivery and disposal		$75.00
Job cost		$1,230.00
Price at 25% margin		$1,640.00

How much mulch to order

Cubic yards = area in sq ft × depth in inches ÷ 12 ÷ 27. Bulk yards usually come in half-yard steps, so the calculator rounds up to the next half yard.

Mulch cubic yards by bed area and depth
Bed area	Depth	Exact	Order
100 sq ft	2 in	0.62 cu yd	1.0 cu yd
300 sq ft	3 in	2.78 cu yd	3.0 cu yd
500 sq ft	3 in	4.63 cu yd	5.0 cu yd
1,000 sq ft	2 in	6.17 cu yd	6.5 cu yd
1,000 sq ft	3 in	9.26 cu yd	9.5 cu yd

Margin, not markup

The price here is cost ÷ (1 − margin). A 25% margin means a quarter of the price is profit; adding 25% to cost would only give a 20% margin. The markup vs margin calculator converts between the two.

Load the labor rate: wage plus payroll burden, from the labor cost calculator.
Include dump fees, equipment rental and fuel for the haul in delivery and disposal.
Quote recurring maintenance separately from the install; the lawn mowing price calculator handles per-cut pricing.
Put the materials, quantities and what is excluded on the written quote so the client sees what the price buys.

Keep the numbers in a spreadsheet

Ready-made Excel and Google Sheets templates that pick up where this calculator stops. One-off purchase, instant download.

Quote / Estimate Template Spreadsheet
Professional quote with validity date, tax, deposit and acceptance signature.
$7See template
Invoice Template + Invoice Log Spreadsheet
Auto-totalling invoice with tax, discount and balance due, plus an overdue-flagging log.
$7See template

Frequently asked questions

How do you estimate a landscaping job?

Add the materials (mulch, sod, plants, stone), the crew labor at a loaded hourly rate and delivery or disposal, then divide by (1 − your target margin). A $1,230 job at a 25% margin is priced at $1,640.

How many cubic yards of mulch do I need?

Multiply the bed area in square feet by the depth in inches, divide by 12 and then by 27. 300 sq ft at 3 inches is 2.78 cubic yards, so order 3.

How much extra sod should I order?

Around 5% for simple rectangles and more for curved beds and lots of cuts. 500 sq ft with 5% waste is 525 sq ft.

What margin should a landscaping business use?

Set it from your overhead and profit goal rather than a rule of thumb, and check finished jobs against the estimate. The calculator shows the matching markup so you can compare.

How do I send the estimate to the customer?

Write the line items into a quote with your validity date and terms. Instant Quote Maker does that on your phone and turns the accepted quote into an invoice.

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As an Amazon Associate, ExpressBizTools earns from qualifying purchases. Product links are affiliate links. Calculations are for general planning and are not tax, legal, or financial advice.