How Much Should I Pay to Mow My Lawn?

Amazible on 31/03/2022 - 13:21
Last edited 31/03/2022 - 13:41 by 1 other user

I'm hoping members can give me an idea of what I should pay to have my lawn mowed.

Our front yard and back yard are level with no impediments to mowing. The front yard is 14m x 3m and the back yard is 16m x 4m. I can mow both lawns in around 5 minutes. Both lawns have either paths or garden edging on all sides, so line trimming is very easy and takes about 5 minutes. Blowing too is easy and takes another 5 minutes. So 15 minutes work in total. The lawns require cutting every two weeks.

I'm currently paying Jim's Mowing $40 per fortnight to cut the lawn. Is $40 about right for an outer Brisbane suburb (Moreton Bay area), too much, or too little?

Home & Garden Lawn Mowing

Comments

  • DemocracyManifest on 01/04/2022 - 14:57
    +3

    $40 is nothing, i'd charge $100 at least if it included edging. I'm surprised the guy can afford to come to your place and work for $40 after fuel. I know the Jims guys start with lower prices and obviously start to raise them, you'd be a dog to ditch them! With all this rain the work would be flat out for them

  • Gaz1 on 01/04/2022 - 16:13

    I don't think you will get a professional for much less than $40, but is airtasker or gumtree worth considering for this sort of thing?

    • cupcake on 01/04/2022 - 16:15
      +1

      AirTasker is a good idea. Someone might do it for $39.

    • nubzy on 02/04/2022 - 19:52

      You will get Johnny crackhead with a stolen mower off Airtasker, but then again you can be lucky there are some professionals who use it to pick up extra work

  • Starlight8 on 01/04/2022 - 16:30

    I'm in Sydney and my gardener charges $45p/h.

    I pay $120 down from $150 with a bit of negotiating :)

    • nubzy on 02/04/2022 - 19:54

      That's nothing… surely he has a minimum callout too? In my experience gardener cost is a minimum $50 p/h in Sydney but most are around $60-$70, double that for any hedging work. Pricing by the job is more common (and profitable) these days though.

  • justgooddeals on 01/04/2022 - 17:19

    Pay them what they quoted and you agreed to $40. Their not retiring to the south of France living next to Jamie Packer eating caviar and drinking Moët Chandon champagne on their 90 foot yacht with your $40.

    If you can’t afford the $40 do it yourself.

  • sabrelli on 01/04/2022 - 17:30
    +4

    cant speak for where you live but $40 is cheap as.

    im out in SW Sydney where minimum is $60.

    My backyard is slightly bigger than yours (6m, not 4m) and there is no way i can mow it in 2.5minutes

    but yeh if you can do it all in 15minutes, best you just DIY and save the $80/fortnight.

  • OzHunterNSW on 01/04/2022 - 17:43

    Stop paying "JIM"….. you only need to have your lawn mowed once a month, if that. How do you think "JIM" made his millions

    • IanC on 02/04/2022 - 15:22

      Could not agree more.

      Amazed any true ozbargainer would have anything to do with Jims.

      Recently had to have a Hot WS replaced and rang Metropoliton Plumbing.

      Guy turned up i from Jims and quoted $7000 plus.

      Was replaced the next day just over $3000.

      Part of the quote was $450 for a concrete tile which is $20 from Bunnings.

  • seenandunseen on 01/04/2022 - 18:14

    $40 is cheap. When you factor in transport costs etc I can't see how Jim's Mowing make any money doing this.

  • Craigo W on 01/04/2022 - 18:45

    You can mow 106m² in 5mins? That seems fast.

  • jasiano on 01/04/2022 - 19:16

    as a lawn addict that loves to mow/trim my own lawn, and then getting injured a while back and not being able to do it myself for a few months…. $40 is absolutely a good price if they do a good job… I paid $50 when I couldn't do it and would do it again if need be… I suspect it would be at least that these days for my yard.
    Like others have mentioned there are a heap of costs and not just the time they take.
    Fuel, travel time, insurance… equipment maintenance, waste disposal… they add up.

    If you think it's too much to pay and it's that easy, then as others have said you can save that money and get a mower and snipper to DIY.

  • kiwimex on 01/04/2022 - 19:39
    +2

    $40 is cheap and if you are happy with the completed job! then why look else where. Remember the person mowing the lawn has to pay for fuel to get to your home and back, maintenance on his vehicle and equipment, not to mention the cost of dumping your grass clippings. Regardless of time spent mowing $40 is a bargain…..and do not be surprised if this price jumps to $60 or even $80 in the near future.

  • StalkingIbis on 01/04/2022 - 20:03

    I certainly wouldn't go to his house, unload my gear, do the job, sort out getting paid, pack up my gear and go home to shower for $40.

    Yes there's economy of scale for the mower guy, but if you do it yourself, you dont get that, so that's what youre paying to have taken off your hands….as well as owning, servicing and storing the equipment.

  • BertieBrown on 01/04/2022 - 20:05

    I think the issue is that it’s not just the actual time doing the job, but I can understand how people get tripped up thinking that way.

    They are paying for insurance, maintenance of their machinery, consumables (petrol, trimmer line), getting to and from jobs, rego on vehicles/trailer.

    As a homeowner, we just whack out the tools and crack on with it — the professional has more overheads and expenses they will calculate into each job quote.

  • knk on 01/04/2022 - 20:09
    +2

    How any one can think that someone going to their house for $40 is even worth their while, let alone expensive is absolutely ridiculous.

  • MontyMacaw on 01/04/2022 - 20:11
    +1

    I once had a guy offer to mow my lawns. He was literally a local yokel. When he was broke my lawns were almost bald but when he had a win on the TAB I might not see him for weeks. Ah the memories - btw I am allergic to lawn mowing. It sux!

  • Breno785au on 01/04/2022 - 20:46
    +2

    Lol imagine if this poor mower guy had his days filled with 15min $40 jobs all day every day.

    • yokel on 02/04/2022 - 03:02

      And every customer salty AF that he just wants the regular business at that price point.

  • yokel on 02/04/2022 - 09:26

    Get a landscaper to do some mowing strips for the edges to make the job easier. Get battery operated mower and edge trimmer. As someone else said, get concrete or paving etc done if you want to decrease the area even further. Assuming you are able bodied and even have a full time job + family I’d say an hour a month is not a big deal mate.

    • Euphemistic on 02/04/2022 - 10:01

      What’s the point of getting edge strips if you still nerve an edger?

      • Agret on 02/04/2022 - 10:24

        They keep the edge of the lawn even and make it easier to just do it in 1-2 passes. If the edges have become uneven it's a trickier job.

  • Mattsmowingnym on 02/04/2022 - 09:30

    I would be charging $55 at a minimum, so i think your getting a good rate.

  • figarow on 02/04/2022 - 09:44

    How Much Should I Pay to Mow My Lawn?

    Depends how much you're asking and if you're negotiable.

  • darkchoc on 02/04/2022 - 10:23
    +2

    It's a fair price. It's actually a good price for someone reliable that turns up on time.

    Suggested way to cut costs: reduce frequency to 3 weeks or 4 weeks.

  • Wayne7497 on 02/04/2022 - 16:15
    +1

    I only need to do my lawn n garden once a year. I use a 5lt spray pack of ROUND UP! Job done 10 minutes

    • zonra on 02/04/2022 - 16:41

      Are you me?

  • EFC94 on 02/04/2022 - 18:00
    +3

    OP, I will pay you $40 to watch you do that in 15 minutes. As someone who use to mow lawns for a living, you’re the type of customer that is best avoided. I’d generally charge a minimum of $50 for a lawn.

    You also need to consider wear and tear and equipment and car, fuel for equipment and car, time spent driving to your job, tax, possible dump and franchise fees. There’s a lot more to it than just a quick “15 minute” lawn mow.

  • nubzy on 02/04/2022 - 20:01
    +2

    I just started mowing lawns on the side, cheapest lawn I have is $30 which is a 15 minute job. It only works if you have another job nearby on the same day, and to be honest it should have been quoted at double that. In Sydney it is not at all uncommon to earn $100-$200 per lawn, there are lots of high end gardens here and time poor high income earners. Even a front naturestrip you can expect to pay $60-$70. Mowing is hot and sweaty work, and you come home with dirt and grass all over you but it is good exercise and nice to be out in the fresh air rather than sitting at a desk all day. Then of course you have quality commercial grade tools which are expensive to buy and need to be maintained, public liability insurance, fuel, transit times, unload/pack-up, laundry costs etc… You can't expect to pay nothing for these services.

  • eappel on 02/04/2022 - 20:11

    Get a robotic automatic Lawn Mower @ ~$1500 - (52 x$40 = 2080) = ~$500 for beer and garden chair

    https://www.amazon.com.au/WORX-WR139E-Landroid-Robot-Mower/d…

  • zombie hunter on 03/04/2022 - 10:16

    Do you have any kids ?. Pocket money for mowing the lawn

  • HelpMeiCantSee on 03/04/2022 - 10:58

    $40 sounds more than fair enough. They bring the equipment and manpower, and do it to a standard that suits you, I’d have no problem with that.

    Other option is getting a local kid to mow it (can even use your gear), cheap for you and good income and exercise for the kid.

  • Grapplingwithfire on 03/04/2022 - 11:30
    +2

    $40 is very cheap in my opinion.
    Lets break it down

    $40 Fortnightly (Average 20 mows a year because of winter) $800 per year
    GST and Superannuation have to be paid out 10% each
    $40 - 20% = $32
    Operational expenses can be higher for jims due to franchise fees, then we have insurance fuel, mower repairs, vehicle repairs etc roughly around 30% per year
    $32 - 30% = $22.4
    The business needs to be making a profit (to pay for new equiptment etc) and also needs to put aside money for a winter fund as mowing lawns is a seasonal business,
    5% for profit 5% to winter fund
    $22.4 - 10% = $20.16
    And of course the owners pay for doing all of the work is what is left over
    $20.16 for the 15 minutes to mow the yard works out to $80.64 per hour.
    $20.16 x 20 mows =$403.20
    $800 yearly cost for you and it costs him $396.80 to service your property each year.

    So its a fair price, but on the low side. For the convenience it saves you.
    He should be charging minimum from $50.
    Any extras like fertilisers should be an extra too.

    • apsilon on 03/04/2022 - 11:35

      You forgot income tax so probably knock another ~30% off.

  • itsme56 on 03/04/2022 - 12:42

    $40 sounds cheap to me

  • pformag on 03/04/2022 - 14:57

    You mow your lawn only once per fortnight? Even with PGR, I'm down to once per week, and even then it could do with 2 mows.

  • maverickjohn on 03/04/2022 - 15:24

    It's a fair and great price.
    Remember the $40 gets broken in toppling for transport, paying for petrol, paying the Franchisor and paying tax in income.
    He ends up with fairly little from that $40.
    Alternatively extend it to monthly and see if it will cost less than $80

  • Pauly701 on 03/04/2022 - 17:21
    +1

    Well $40 is cheap, my starting price is $50 for courtyard lawn, front and back min $60.
    For $40 my take home pay is about $10 after taxes and business expenses.
    I try to do three of these per hour making my take home pay $30ph, on the job.
    So my aim is to be making $180ph, that is not what I live on. That’s the price of doing business.

  • gezza90 on 03/04/2022 - 20:53
    +1

    New Farm area - I pay $50/month for 9.3m x 33.5m (310sqm) fairly level lawn.

  • Walleee-y on 03/04/2022 - 23:21
    +3

    You're thinking about this the wrong way round: You're paying for the time YOU'RE saving not cutting the lawn, not the time it takes them to cut it.
    I'd put $40 on the fact that you haven't timed yourself cutting the lawn. I have less lawn and it takes me 30-60 minutes, dependant on the issues I have on the day which takes a minimum of 2 extra minutes per item: Sometimes the 25m extension cable used for cutting was used a few days ago and is in a different location. My "grass cutting shoes" can be anywhere out of the way, so in 23 possible locations. If it's sunny I need to find my shades and hat and consider sunscreen. Long pants or short pants for the trimming? Do I shower post cutting due to commitments? Emptying the cuttings. Lawn mower hasn't been cleaned in 3 months and the gunk is building up, better scrape it away this time. Whipper snipper line needs replacing. The list could go on… Time yourself over 3 sessions - from time you've decided to cut the lawn to the time you're sitting, admiring your handiwork with all your tools packed away and you ready for the rest of the day. Once you've got your new time, which won't just be 15 minutes, you'll happily pay the $40/fortnight.

    • cupcake on 12/04/2022 - 15:16
      +1

      Well said, Wally!!

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