Cost to start a landscaping business in the UK

In short

A maintenance round can start for under £1,000 if you have a vehicle, while landscaping with a used van is more like £10,000 to £25,000.
Buy the tools you use every week and hire the big machinery you need a few times a year.
Hours spent on admin you can't bill for are a real cost, so count them from the first job.

Start-up costs at a glance

Rough figures from UK price guides, insurers, training providers and GOV.UK, checked in October 2026. Your own total depends on what kit you already own and whether you buy new or second-hand. The full kit list is in our gardening business equipment guide, and registration and insurance are covered in how to start a gardening business in the UK.

Van: Maintenance roundUsed small van, £5,000 to £12,000; LandscapingUsed 3.5 tonne van, £8,000 to £18,000
Machinery and tools: Maintenance roundMower, strimmer, hedge trimmer, blower and hand tools, £1,500 to £4,000; LandscapingThe same, plus cutting and paving tools. Hire diggers when needed, at about £200 to £300 a day
Public liability insurance: Maintenance roundAbout £75 to £120 a year for £1 to £2 million of cover; LandscapingMore for £5 million of cover, which commercial and contract work often asks for
Waste carrier registration: Maintenance round£191 for upper tier in England, renewed every three years for £130; LandscapingThe same
Pesticide certificates (PA1 and PA6): Maintenance round£450 to £750, if you will spray weedkiller; LandscapingThe same
Total to get going: Maintenance roundAbout £7,000 to £17,000 with a van, or under £1,000 if you already have a vehicle and basic tools; LandscapingAbout £10,000 to £25,000

	Maintenance round	Landscaping
Van	Used small van, £5,000 to £12,000	Used 3.5 tonne van, £8,000 to £18,000
Machinery and tools	Mower, strimmer, hedge trimmer, blower and hand tools, £1,500 to £4,000	The same, plus cutting and paving tools. Hire diggers when needed, at about £200 to £300 a day
Public liability insurance	About £75 to £120 a year for £1 to £2 million of cover	More for £5 million of cover, which commercial and contract work often asks for
Waste carrier registration	£191 for upper tier in England, renewed every three years for £130	The same
Pesticide certificates (PA1 and PA6)	£450 to £750, if you will spray weedkiller	The same
Total to get going	About £7,000 to £17,000 with a van, or under £1,000 if you already have a vehicle and basic tools	About £10,000 to £25,000

Running costs, including your own time

The table covers what you buy once. Running costs keep coming, and the biggest one is your own time. Eight hours a week on admin you can't bill for is a full working day your prices have to cover.

A lot of those hours go on copying things from one place to another: the quote into the diary, the diary into an invoice. With Fieldfare the accepted quote becomes the job, a fortnightly visit is set up once and keeps appearing on the calendar, and invoices are simple PDFs you mark paid. At £49 a month for the whole business, it's one fixed line in your monthly costs.

Monthly: fuel, insurance, phone, software, servicing, loan or lease payments.
Per job: materials, waste disposal, hired equipment, subcontractors.
Hidden: unpaid time on quotes, travel, admin and chasing payment.

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Buy what you use weekly, hire the rest

If a mini digger or turf cutter is only needed a few times a year, hire it for those jobs and pass the cost on. Owning it means paying for storage and servicing while it sits idle.

Apply the same test to every big purchase: buy when it will clearly pay for itself, by earning more or by saving time you are already losing. Buy a second van once there's booked work for a second team.

Software deserves the same test. Look for a monthly price that doesn't jump when you take on your first employee. Our guide to landscaping business software compares the options.

Cash flow on landscaping jobs

Maintenance is paid after each visit. Landscaping means buying stone, timber and turf weeks before the client pays. Take a deposit on larger jobs and bill in stages on longer ones, so you are not funding someone's patio from your own account.

Invoice as soon as the work is finished, with clear payment terms, and chase late payers promptly. You can mark invoices paid in Fieldfare, or connect Xero, QuickBooks or Sage and it reads invoices and payments from there. It doesn't take card payments, so clients pay straight into your bank with no per-payment fees.

Start-up costs: common questions

How much does it cost to start a landscaping business in the UK?

Roughly £10,000 to £25,000 with a used van and the kit for hard landscaping. A maintenance round can start for far less, from under £1,000 if you already have a vehicle and basic tools.

What is the biggest cost when starting a landscaping business?

Usually the vehicle and machinery, then insurance. Over the first year, unpaid time on quotes, travel and admin can cost as much as the kit if you let it.

Should I lease or buy equipment?

Buy the tools you use every week. Lease or hire expensive machinery you only need now and then, at least until you know how often you use it.

How much should I keep aside for cash flow?

Enough to cover a couple of months of running costs plus the materials for your biggest likely job. Deposits and stage payments cut how much you need to hold.