How To Start a Landscaping Business: A Step-by-Step Guide

If you’re wondering how to start a landscaping business, you’ve likely already invested a lot of time and energy into the idea but haven’t yet gotten it off the ground.

Whether you’re coming from a background in landscaping or looking for a new entrepreneurial venture, there’s a few tips and tricks to follow to give yourself the best chance of success.

In this post, you’ll learn exactly what you need to know to confidently set up a new landscaping business from the ground-up!

1. Decide what services you want to offer

Landscaping as a type of business is a little broad, so before we dive into the ins and outs of setting up your new business, you need to decide what services you want to offer.

Ask yourself: What do I enjoy most about landscaping and where do I see the biggest opportunities to serve customers?

Answering these questions will help shape your business plan and marketing strategy. To give you an idea of the many different directions you can go with a landscaping business, here are a few common services:

• Tree trimming and removal: A great choice for the arborist at heart, these services could have you and your team climbing trees on the daily.
• Garden installation and design: - If you’re more inclined towards exterior design, this could be a great way to express yourself in your new business.
• Hardscaping: Hardscaping (as opposed to softscaping which deals with natural elements) is all about engineered features outside the home and in public spaces such as walkways and patios.
• Lawn maintenance: One of the most common services for landscaping businesses, lawn mowing and maintenance could be the bread-and-butter for yours.
• Irrigation system set up: A more technical service, this one’s all about finding ways to deliver water to gardens and lawns to keep them hydrated and healthy

When deciding which services to run with, think about whether you want to serve a broader customer base with a variety of services or narrow down into one or two services. With the latter strategy, you can position your business as specializing in a certain aspect of landscaping.

(Source)

Looking for a versatile solution for client bookings?

You can use online scheduler YouCanBookMe to set up unique appointment types so customers can schedule meetings or appointments based on the specific landscaping service they need.

2. Take care of the business fundamentals 

Once you’ve nailed down your core services, it’s time to do the work to figure out how to start a landscaping business and ensure it’s successful.

This is where many businesses will fail or succeed, so think every last detail through and make sure you’re clear on how you’ll go to market.

Register the business

Note: Please be aware that we’re not offering legal advice in this blog, always consult a professional lawyer or an accountant for assistance with business matters.

To get the ball rolling, you’ll need to first register the business so you can legally offer your services. These regulations are different based on your country, state (or province), and sometimes city too.

Fortunately, the process is relatively straightforward. Here’s an example of how you could approach this if you live in the United States. The process is relatively similar in different regions—check your local regulations to ensure you are abiding by all guidelines!

1. Choose a name for your business and double check it’s not already taken.
2. Register the business with your State as a sole trader if you plan on running a one-person operation, or an LLC or corporation if you plan to build a team.
3. File any necessary paperwork with the secretary of State.
4. Once approved, apply for a TIN (Tax Identification Number) through the IRS.
5. Find out what licenses are needed to start a landscaping business in your State, this is likely to include a business license, a landscaping contractor license, a pesticide applicator license (if applicable) and a vehicle registration license if you plan on operating vehicles for business use

Set up your finances

It may not be the most rewarding part of running a business, but organizing your finances is (and will continue to be) one of the most crucial elements behind your success.

Now that you have a registered business, open a business bank account to keep your personal and professional finances separate.

Trust us, you’ll be grateful that you did when it comes to tax-filing season, as you won’t have to worry about getting mixed up with personal income and business income.

If you’re curious how to start a landscaping business with no money, you’ll want to look into business loans and come up with a robust business plan to secure financing.

Invest in the right equipment

Now for the fun part: picking up everything you’ll need to start operating your business.

Circle back to the services you settled upon, and that’ll inform what you need to fulfill customer requests.

Let’s say you’ve settled on lawn maintenance, your next job is to get everything on your business shopping list.

“What equipment do I need to start a landscaping business?”

• Leaf blowers
• Mowers (walk-behind/riding/push)
• Edgers
• Trimmers
• Hedge trimmers
• Rakes
• Shovels
• Drop spreader
• Garden hose
• Core aerator
• Protective gear
• Van
• Tarp
• Spare parts
• Gasoline or batteries (depending on your equipment)

Take this checklist shopping with you 👇

Download the PDF here.

Depending on what equipment you choose, and how many employees you’ll have on your team, this shopping list could set you back somewhere in the region of $10,000-$30,000+ USD.

As for the digital side of things, you’ll need a basic tech stack to stay in touch with customers, touch base with coworkers, and streamline your operations. You can either invest in premium tools, or get started with some top free startup tools, including:

• Scheduling software like YouCanBookMe
• Project management software like Trello
• Social media software like Later
• Email marketing automation like Mailchimp

Keeping a low overhead is ideal for running a streamlined business, but don’t cut corners when it’s not necessary—investing in a customizable online booking system for example can save you countless headaches and dropped meetings.

Customize your availability to your lifestyle.

You're always on the go. Let your calendar reflect that. Tailor your availability across appointment types, days, and time.

3. Set your pricing strategically

While your landscaping business owner salary won’t live or die by your pricing, it absolutely makes a difference.

Setting your pricing can be challenging, but if you have a clear idea in your mind of what your business will be and who you’ll serve, it becomes much easier.

There are several factors that’ll play a significant role in what your pricing should be.

Location

While it may not seem as important, location can be everything when it comes to pricing. Think offering hardscaping services in the heart of Manhattan versus rural Alabama. 

In some ways, you’re limited by your location, but if you can strike the right balance between the type of services you offer and the clientele you serve, that’s where the real opportunity lies.

Type of services and clientele

Offering lawn maintenance in a highly urbanized area might not be as lucrative as it would in a suburban area with large yards and vast green spaces.

Serving wealthier clientele might lead to more significant profit margins, but it could take you longer to get your foot in the door and establish a reputation worthy of higher prices.

If you want to make the most money, your best bet is to do your research on where the biggest opportunities are in your area, as well as the roadblocks and challenges you’ll have to face. 

Ask yourself:

• What’s a service that people need the most, and often?
• How do people feel about the current landscaping businesses in your area? Is there a lack of customer service or quality execution you could capitalize on?
• Where does your expertise lie, and how could that help you establish a foothold in the first few months of operating?
• Does your current network cater to a certain group of people to get your business started?

Competitive landscape

Researching your competitors is one of the best ways to find your place in the market and see how you should price your services to appeal to prospective customers.

If you want to offer tree trimming services in your local area, find as many businesses as you can that currently offer that service. Find out what their current prices are, the exact services they offer, and audit their business by scanning past customer reviews.

The goal here is to build a picture of the current landscape so you can find the best way to break into the market and give customers what they’re looking for (and perhaps not currently getting). It also means that you’re not entering the market by undervaluing yourself or offering services at a price people won’t pay.

4. Plan out your business model

With a clear picture of the gap your business will fill in the market and the customers you’ll serve, you can turn your attention to your business model.

Naturally, you’ll likely already have an idea of what your business will look like internally, and what your workplace culture might look like, as a result of some of the brainstorming you’ve already been doing. Now’s the time to get those thoughts down onto paper, and map out the structure of your business.

Consider, for example, whether you’ll operate as a small team of 5 or fewer or build towards a bigger operation. Alternatively, you could run as a one-person operation to keep overheads to a minimum, or choose to outsource jobs to a contracted team of experts. 

You should also think about the types of clients you want to serve:

• Commercial: As a commercial landscaping business, you’d primarily serve businesses and operate around commercial properties and other public spaces. Your remit could be anything from maintaining office parks and retail spaces to designing outdoor spaces for government properties.
  
  Best for: Securing high-value contracts and increasing your chances of landing consistent income from fewer projects, albeit likely at a greater expense to your business and longer sales cycles.
• Residential: As a residential landscaping business, your primary customers would be homeowners. Your responsibilities could range from lawn care and tree trimming to hardscaping work on patios and walkways.
  
  Best for: Reliable and consistent income from a regular roster of clients, if you can find your space in the market with more businesses competing for projects.

5. Make it easy for prospective clients to book time with you

The biggest obstacle to success in your landscaping business?

Inconvenience for your customers.

Given the nature of the industry and word-of-mouth referrals, there’s a good chance that if your leads have a hard time booking your services—they’ll go elsewhere. Speed-to-lead is incredibly important for landscaping businesses.

Especially in this day and age, convenience is everything. You want to make it as frictionless as possible for prospective leads to become paying customers.

One of the best ways to do that is to streamline the booking process on their end.

Imagine a scenario in which…

• Leads find out about your business
• Show interest in one of your services
• Find a time slot that works for them (and you) in your calendar
• Book an appointment.
• Receive a timely personalized email and/or SMS reminder before the meeting.

That way, you don’t have to worry about overbooking, and the client has the luxury of selecting the perfect time slot to fit their schedule without leaving your website.

Plus, you can set the booking page up to align with your brand values and aesthetics to create a uniform (and professional) user experience—helping leads feel confident that they made the right decision in choosing your business.

(Source)

6. Get the word out through marketing

Increasing visibility is critical to ensuring a smooth launch for your business, and getting paying customers through the door months and years beyond. The way you market your business will play a huge role in your ability to attract new leads and retain existing customers.

So how do you market your landscaping business to keep a steady stream of customers booking your services?

Set up your website 

Your website is the main digital hub for your business, and as such, is responsible for doing a lot of the heavy lifting for converting leads into customers.

A great landscaping business website should:

• Showcase your USP (unique selling proposition), and how you can help them reach their goals eg the status of an immaculate lawn
• Educate visitors on your core services and prices to help them reach a decision
• Provide a way to book your services directly (integrating a calendar booking system is an excellent solution for this)

Use reviews to instil confidence

Reviews and testimonials from customers are valuable forms of social proof—which is to say they help instil confidence in new leads that you deliver on your promises and have helped real people get the results they were looking for. A survey showed that in 2024, around 50% of consumers trust reviews as much as personal recommendations from friends and family

While it might take a few months to get up and running with a host of glowing customer reviews, you can start thinking about review collection strategies from day one.

The best time to ask for a review is shortly after the job has been completed, since the positive sentiment will be flowing, and your brand will be fresh in the customer’s mind. Based on your business model, you could send an automated email or SMS follow-up prompting customers to leave a review along with a link to where they should leave it.

Another approach would be to leave a request for reviews on your business invoices or receipts.

Promote your services on social media 

We’re living in an age where social media holds a significant amount of attention, which means whether you’re selling software or clean lawns, it’s worth setting up a social media strategy to get as many eyeballs as possible on your brand.

In the beginning, this might look like simply showing up on a single social media platform like Instagram or TikTok to talk about your services and educate customers on the problems of not dealing with their landscaping issues.

You can even showcase your work through videos and take a page from popular creators like:

• SB Mowing
• Green Gardenia Landscaping
• The Lawn Dad

When you start to feel more confident, you can introduce other platforms into the mix and start getting creative with your posts to nurture leads along the customer journey and reliably drum up business.

You can also use social media to send out your calendar booking link on occasion so interested people can click through and schedule an appointment directly.

Your path to a successful landscaping business

If this is your first foray into business ownership or the latest venture of many, running a landscaping business can be extremely rewarding - especially if you’re not one for crammed office blocks or the WFH life!

Here’s a brief rundown on the key points of how to start a landscaping business:

•  Choose your services: Decide what you’ll offer in the business based on prior expertise and opportunities you’ve identified
•  Work out your pricing: Use location, your ideal customer profile, and likely competition to determine how to price your services
•  Find your place in the market: Figure out your business model and marketing strategy for your launch and ongoing success
•  Simplify the booking process: Set up online calendar booking integration to remove friction for customers and make it easy for them to schedule you in

One of the worst things you could do from here is continue to consume information ad nauseum (we know how tempting it is to search “How to start a landscaping business Reddit”). Instead, start to put the puzzle pieces into place and get your new landscaping business off the ground!

FAQ

What is the most profitable niche for landscaping businesses?

If you want to find where the money is in landscaping and build your business around that, you should consider offering some of the following services:

• High-end installations and custom landscape design - Taking care of big installation jobs and custom landscape design will put your business in pole position for the rich and famous, so you can earn more from each job.

• Irrigation systems set-up - If you understand the ins and outs of irrigation systems and know how to deliver water to green spaces, offering to install and maintain them can be a lucrative niche to reside in

• Ongoing lawn maintenance - While it may be the bread-and-butter for most landscaping businesses, if you can work with a large number of clients on an ongoing basis you can create reliable and consistent income 

It’s also a good idea to consider commercial contracts in addition to your regular work as these can run much longer and pay higher rates.

What licenses are needed to start a landscaping business?

As is normally the case with business-related licenses, you’ll need to check in with local regulations to see which apply to your business. Consult a legal professional in your area to get the most accurate advice and protect your business.

Generally speaking though, you’ll likely need to apply for:

• A business license
• A landscaping contractor license
• A pesticide applicator license (if applicable)
• A vehicle registration license (if you’re planning on investing in vehicles for business use)

What is the meaning of “landscaping business”?

A landscaping business is any business that offers services related to the implementation, design, and ongoing maintenance of outdoor spaces.

What are the two types of landscaping?

In landscaping, you’ll often hear about hardscapes and softscapes.

Hardscapes refer to any non-living or engineered elements such as pavements, walls, and patios. Softscapes refer to living or natural elements including trees, plants, and lawns.