In short
- In our 2026 price research, most garden landscaping projects typically cost from a few thousand to tens of thousands of pounds, depending on size and scope. Quotes will vary.
- Much of the cost is hidden below ground: digging out, levelling, sub-bases, drainage and taking the spoil away.
- Access matters. A garden that can only be reached through the house takes more labour days than one with a side gate or rear lane.
- Day rates vary widely, so compare quotes on what is included rather than on the rate alone.
- Agree a written quote, a clear specification and stage payments linked to finished work before anything starts.
Typical landscaping price ranges for 2026
The first table shows what a garden project typically costs in Kent, from our 2026 price research. These are typical spends, not fixed prices: what you pay depends on what you want. Most projects start around these figures and go up with the size of the patio, the materials you choose, levelling, structures and lighting. Your quotes will vary.
| Project size | Typical 2026 spend | What it often covers |
|---|---|---|
| Small garden or refresh, up to about 50 square metres | £3,000 to £7,000 | A refresh such as new turf, planting, a path or a small patio. Simple jobs can start lower |
| Medium garden or redesign, about 50 to 100 square metres | £7,000 to £15,000 | A makeover or full redesign with patio, planting and fencing |
| Large garden or full transformation, about 100 to 200 square metres | £15,000 or more | A multi-element project with structures, levels, lighting or premium materials |
Within Kent, prices still vary with access, ground conditions and demand, so the honest answer is to get local quotes and compare them like for like.
Prices for individual garden elements
Most gardens are a mix of jobs. In our 2026 price research some of them are priced per square metre and some as a typical total job, so the figures aren't always directly comparable, but they give a sense of scale.
| Element | Typical 2026 range |
|---|---|
| Turf, supplied and laid | £13 to £30 per square metre, or about £300 to £750 for a typical job |
| Artificial grass, installed | £45 to £85 per square metre including ground preparation and membrane, or about £1,100 to £1,950 for a typical job |
| Patio, installed | £80 to £120 per square metre, or about £1,500 to £3,000 for a typical patio |
| Decking, installed | £100 to £125 per square metre, or about £3,000 to £6,500 for a typical deck |
| Garden levelling | £800 to £3,500 for most plots, rising to £5,500 to £8,000 for a steep slope |
| Planting scheme | £300 to £3,000 |
Materials make a big difference within these ranges. Natural stone paving typically cost two to three times as much as concrete slabs, and hardwood decking about double softwood. The patio materials guide on this site compares the options in more detail.
Garden design fees and drawings
A drawn plan costs money up front but can save it later, because every landscaper prices the same layout and fewer decisions are made on the hoof. Typical design fees were:
- Overall: typically £500 to £4,500, depending on the size of the garden and how detailed the plans are.
- A basic consultation or a concept and planting plan for a small garden: typically £500 to £1,500.
- A full design package from survey to detailed plans: typically £1,500 to £4,500, rising for larger or complex gardens.
Many landscapers design as well as build and fold the design cost into the job. Others work from a garden designer's drawings. Either way, ask what you will actually receive: a scaled layout, levels, a materials schedule and a planting plan are the things that make quotes comparable. On a sloping or wet site, a plan that shows existing and proposed levels is worth having before any digging starts.
Groundworks, levels and digging out
Groundworks are where garden budgets most often go wrong, because nobody can see them once the job is finished. They include clearing the site, digging out for patios and paths, building sub-bases, levelling lawns and moving soil from one part of the garden to another.
- Clearance: Garden clearance typically cost £300 to £1,500, often around £600, and tree removal £300 to £1,500 per tree depending on size and access.
- Moving soil: typically £30 to £60 per square metre for groundwork where soil has to be moved.
- Slopes: typically £11,000 to £13,000 for splitting a garden across two tiers with a retaining wall, including levelling.
- Sub-bases: every patio, path and artificial lawn needs a compacted base. Its depth depends on the ground and the load, and heavy clay or soft made-up ground can mean digging deeper.
- Hidden obstructions: old concrete, buried rubble, tree roots and forgotten drains are common in older Kent gardens, and new-build plots often have compacted subsoil and builders' waste under a thin layer of topsoil.
Ask each landscaper how deep they plan to dig, what sub-base they will use and how they will price anything unexpected they find. A quote with a clear rate for extra excavation is easier to manage than one that is silent on it.
Muck-away, skips and licensed waste carriers
Digging out a patio or levelling a lawn produces a surprising volume of soil and rubble, and it all has to go somewhere. Waste is often priced separately from labour, so check how each quote deals with it.
- Skips: An 8-yard skip typically cost £250 to £400, a mini skip about £220, and typical garden waste removal about £200.
- Grab lorries and wait-and-load services are common for larger digs, and can be easier where there is no room for a skip on the drive.
- A skip on the road needs a permit from the highway authority: Kent County Council across most of the county, or Medway Council in Medway.
- Spoil that can be reused on site, for example to build up a raised bed or a gentle bank, reduces the amount to remove, but only if the levels and drainage still work.
As a householder you have a legal duty to take reasonable steps to make sure your waste goes to someone authorised to take it. If the landscaper is removing soil and rubble, ask for their waste carrier registration and check it on the Environment Agency's public register. Be wary of anyone who offers to take waste away cheaply in an unmarked van with no paperwork, because fly-tipped waste can be traced back to the household it came from.
Access, labour days and the size of the team
Landscaping is labour-heavy, so the number of days on site drives a large part of the price. Day rates vary widely, which is a good reason to compare whole quotes rather than rates. Typical 2026 day rates from were:
- Landscaper or garden builder: £200 to £400 per day, or £320 to £600 a day for a two-person team.
- Groundworker: £180 to £250 per day.
- Labourer: £110 to £180 per day.
Access changes how many days a job takes. A garden with a side gate wide enough for a mini digger and a dumper can be dug out in a fraction of the time it takes to barrow everything through a terraced house in Chatham, Gravesend or Margate. Steep plots, steps up from the road and gardens with no parking nearby all add time. If materials have to come through the house, ask how floors and doorways will be protected, and whether the price allows for it.
Drainage, lighting and outdoor electrics
Drainage and lighting are easy to leave out of an early budget, but they are much cheaper to include while the garden is dug up than to add afterwards.
- Drainage: we don't give a typical price for garden drainage, because it depends so much on the site. A new patio needs falls and somewhere for water to go, and a waterlogged lawn on clay may need a drainage run or a different layout. The drainage guide on this site explains the options.
- Lighting: typically about £200 for a basic set-up, rising to about £1,100 for a full set of landscape lights.
- Electrician: typically £200 to £350 per day for an electrician fitting outdoor lighting.
- Ducting: even if lighting or a garden room comes later, ask for ducts to be laid under new paving now.
Fixed garden lighting and outdoor sockets fall under Part P of the Building Regulations, and installing a new circuit is notifiable. Using an electrician registered with a competent person scheme means they can self-certify the work and you receive a certificate, rather than making a separate Building Control application.
Staged payments, deposits and written terms
There is no fixed rule for landscaping payments, but stage payments linked to finished work protect both sides. A typical pattern is a modest deposit, often to cover materials ordered specifically for your job, followed by payments at clear milestones and a final payment once you are happy.
- DepositKeep it modest and ask what it covers. Be wary of large upfront payments, especially in cash.
- Groundworks completeSite cleared, dug out, sub-bases laid and compacted, and drainage in. This is a good point to see the levels and falls before paving goes down.
- Hard landscaping completePatio, paths, walls, steps, decking and fencing finished.
- Soft landscaping and handoverTopsoil, turf and planting done, waste removed, and any snags agreed and put right before the final payment.
Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, a business providing a service must carry it out with reasonable care and skill. A written quote with a clear specification, start date and payment schedule makes it much easier to rely on those rights if something goes wrong. Agree in writing how variations, such as extra digging or a change of material, will be priced before they happen.
Comparing landscaping quotes like for like
The total at the bottom of a landscaping quote tells you very little on its own. These checks help you compare fairly:
- Ask every landscaper to price the same plan and the same materials. If each proposes something different, compare the areas, materials and levels you would actually get.
- Check the base: depth of excavation, type and depth of sub-base, and how the paving will be bedded and jointed.
- Check waste: is muck-away included, how much, and is the firm a registered waste carrier?
- Check drainage: where will water from the new patio go, and is any lawn drainage included?
- Look for provisional sums, which are allowances for things not yet fixed, such as plants or lighting. Low allowances make a quote look lower than it will end up.
- Check who supplies plants and turf, and whether watering and aftercare are included.
- Check the programme, the payment stages and how weather delays will be handled.
- Ask for evidence of public liability insurance, and photos or addresses of similar gardens they have built.
Get quotes from local landscapers
When you're ready, describe your project once and we'll pass it to vetted landscapers who cover your part of Kent. They quote you directly, and nothing is booked until you accept.
Sources
- GOV.UK: Electrical safety, Approved Document P: www.gov.uk/government/publications/electrical-safety-approved-document-p
- GOV.UK: Access the Environment Agency's public registers, including waste carriers: www.gov.uk/find-registered-waste-carrier
- legislation.gov.uk: Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 49: www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2015/15/section/49