Landscaping quote example: garden build & maintenance (2026)
7 min read
A garden-build quote is built up from line items per element: groundwork, paving, planting and disposal, each with per-m² or per-unit prices. Maintenance is quoted as a fixed monthly fee based on hours per visit. Both are fully worked out below, with a download - plus the pitfalls around extra work and provisional sums.
What should a landscaping quote include?
A complete landscaping quote contains: business and client details, a description per element with quantities and prices, provisional sums for unpredictable items, plant-guarantee conditions, disposal costs, VAT, planning and an additional-work clause.
- Business details (name, registration, VAT number) and client details
- Description per element: groundwork, paving, borders, lawn, planting, lighting
- Quantities with per-m², per-metre or per-unit prices
- Provisional sums for what you can't know up front (e.g. soil disposal, foundations)
- Plant guarantee: what you replace on failure, and under which conditions (watering!)
- Disposal of soil and green waste as a separate line
- The applicable VAT rate (in the Netherlands: 21% for garden work)
- Planning: seasonality and lead time
- Additional-work agreement: hourly rate and written approval up front
Worked example: garden build quote (60 m²)
This example shows a complete build of a 60 m² back garden: groundwork, 24 m² of paving, planted borders and a lawn - structured the way a client wants to read it: per element, with clear quantities.
| Description | Quantity | Price | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Groundwork: excavation, levelling, removal of old paving | 60 m² | € 18.00 / m² | € 1,080.00 |
| Paving supplied and laid (ceramic 60×60 tiles) | 24 m² | € 95.00 / m² | € 2,280.00 |
| Edging and restraints | 22 m | € 22.50 / m | € 495.00 |
| Borders: soil improvement and planting (plants included) | 18 m² | € 55.00 / m² | € 990.00 |
| Lawn: turf supplied and laid | 18 m² | € 19.50 / m² | € 351.00 |
| Provisional sum: extra soil disposal if substrate is poor | prov. sum | € 350.00 | |
| Subtotal | € 5,546.00 | ||
| VAT 21% | € 1,164.66 | ||
| Total | € 6,710.66 |
Example amounts based on common 2026 rates, materials and labour included. The provisional sum is settled on actual costs.
Worked example: maintenance contract quote
Maintenance is quoted as a fixed monthly fee: frequency × hours per visit × hourly rate, divided by 12. That gives the client a predictable amount and you a predictable schedule.
| Description | Frequency | Hours | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maintenance visit: pruning, weeding, edging, blowing | 26× per year (bi-weekly Mar–Nov + 2 winter visits) | 2 hrs at € 52.50 | € 2,730.00 / yr |
| Spring service: fertilising, preparing borders | 1× per year | 4 hrs at € 52.50 | € 210.00 / yr |
| Autumn service: leaf clearing, winter preparation | 1× per year | 4 hrs at € 52.50 | € 210.00 / yr |
| Green waste disposal | ongoing | € 240.00 / yr | |
| Total per year (excl. VAT) | € 3,390.00 | ||
| Fixed monthly fee (excl. VAT) | € 282.50 |
Include in the contract: notice period (1-3 months is common), annual indexation, and what falls outside it (storm damage and repairs).
Provisional sums and extra work: preventing disputes
Use a provisional sum for anything you only truly know during the work (soil quality, cables, foundations) and fix extra work with an hourly rate plus written approval up front. The quote stays sharp without you carrying the risk.
The biggest source of conflict in garden projects is the gap between what the client assumed and what the quote said. So split supply and installation, name plant sizes (e.g. hornbeam 100-125 cm) and state explicitly what is nót included: permits, re-paving the driveway, relocating cables.
Quoting faster as a landscaper
For every serious request you visit, measure and calculate - rightly so for a build worth thousands. But the first filter can be faster: with a quote calculator on your website, the visitor answers the questions you'd otherwise ask by phone (area, paving or green, budget class) and instantly sees a price indication. You decide whether to show a range, a from-price or 'price on request'.
The result: you only schedule visits with people who know what a garden costs - and you're ahead of the three other landscapers who still have to call back.
Download both examples as a PDF
The build quote and the maintenance contract in one document, ready to adapt to your own rates.
Download example quote (PDF)Try it: this is how your client calculates
A working calculator for garden builds - the client picks an area and wishes and instantly sees a price indication.
Step 1 of 3
Your garden
Frequently asked questions about landscaping quotes
What VAT rate applies to garden work?
In the Netherlands: 21% on labour and materials. The reduced 9% rate for homes older than 2 years applies to painting and plastering, but not to garden construction or maintenance.
What does a landscaper charge per hour in 2026?
€ 45 to € 60 per hour excluding VAT is common for a skilled landscaper; specialised work (tree care, design) sits above that, up to around € 70.
Should site visits and quotes be free?
For builds a visit is almost always needed; most landscapers do it free within their service area. Do filter on budget and wishes first - for instance with a calculator on your site - so you only drive out for serious requests.
What is a reasonable plant guarantee?
One growing season (often 1 year) on supplied plants is common, on the condition that the client demonstrably watered them. Exclude extreme drought and frost damage, or name them explicitly.
Dennis - Founder of Quotira
Dennis builds Quotira, the quote calculator for trade businesses, and writes these guides based on the pricing logic from hundreds of calculator configurations.
Published on July 9, 2026
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Turn this quote into a calculator on your site
Start with the garden template, enter your own per-m² prices and receive requests with the price indication and all answers attached.
Start with the garden template