Starting a business
How to start a landscaping business
Landscaping takes more skill and equipment than mowing, and it pays more per job. A single patio or planting job can be worth a season of weekly cuts. Here's how to set up a landscaping business the right way.
1. Choose your services
- Maintenance: mowing, pruning, bed care, mulch and cleanups. Steady, repeat work.
- Planting and installs: new beds, shrubs, trees and sod.
- Hardscape: patios, walkways, retaining walls and edging.
- Specialties: irrigation, lighting, drainage.
Many landscapers mix maintenance for steady cash with installs for bigger paydays. Start with what you know well. For mowing-only work, read how to start a lawn care business.
2. Check your licenses
Decide whether to run as a sole proprietor or form an LLC, get a free EIN (tax ID) from the IRS if you need one, and open a bank account just for the business. Rules differ by state and city, so check your state's business website or ask an accountant. Our new business checklist lists every step.
Landscaping has more rules than mowing. Depending on your state, you may need a contractor license for hardscape or bigger jobs, a pesticide applicator license to apply weed or pest treatments, and a separate license for irrigation. Call your state licensing board before you quote that kind of work.
3. Get insured
Carry general liability insurance from day one, and commercial auto coverage for your truck and trailer. If you hire a crew, your state will likely require workers' compensation. Homeowners and commercial clients will ask for proof.
4. Price your jobs
Maintenance is usually priced per visit or per month. Installs are priced per project: materials, plus labor hours, plus equipment, plus a margin. Write every quote down, list what's included and what isn't, and get a deposit before you order materials.
5. Show your work
Landscaping sells on photos. Take before, during and after pictures of every job from the same spot. They become your website gallery, your social posts and your best sales tool when you're standing in a customer's yard.
6. Build your brand
Your trucks and trailers are on the road all day. A clear logo and matching signs, shirts, cards and yard signs make you look established from the first job. Then a landscaping website with your services, gallery and a quote request form lets people act on what they saw.
7. Win your first clients
- Do a great job for someone you know and photograph it.
- Introduce yourself to builders, real estate agents and property managers.
- Set up a Google Business Profile and post your projects there.
- Ask every happy customer for a review and a referral.