Landscaping Business Salary Guide

The landscaping industry remains a competitive field, providing salaries for Americans with an average salary of $46,016, ranging from $39,000 to $66,000. Landscaper salaries match other field service jobs, including general maintenance and construction work, requiring a similar level of skill and physical involvement.

Landscaper salaries depend on geographic location, level of experience, and the specific services provided. The type of employment part-time, full-time, seasonal, or contractual affects earnings.

Landscaper Salary Estimator

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How Much Do Landscapers Make?

Landscapers make $46,016 annually on average, according to Glassdoor. Salaries typically range from $39,000 to $66,000 per year. Use these figures only as a general guide as each landscaper will earn a different salary based on their experience, the type of landscaping business (e.g., residential vs. commercial), geographic location, and the specific roles and responsibilities assigned to the landscaper.

What Does A Landscaper Make Per Year?

A landscaper makes $46,016 per year. Landscapers are in the field service industry, which means they provide services people either don't have time, don't have the skill to do, or don't want to do. This justifies their income of $46,016. 

Landscaper salaries differ based on their experience. Entry-level landscapers generally earn close to the lower end of the salary range at about $31,000, while mid-career landscapers make around the national average of $45,000 to $55,000. Experienced landscapers earn the highest salary and, depending on their geographic location, make upwards of $50,000 annually.

What Does A Landscaping Employee Make Per Hour?

A landscaping employee earns between $13.04 and $21.77 per hour on average. Their hourly rate is directly dependent on their skill level, the particular type of landscaper job, experience, and geographic location. 

The type of landscaper employee - part-time, seasonal, and full-time - influences your hourly wage. Part-time and seasonal workers often receive pay towards the lower end of this spectrum, while full-time employees earn higher hourly rates. 

How Does Different Types Of Landscaper Affect Pay?

Different types of landscapers affect pay because each role carries a different skill level, specialization, and earning potential. Laborers and general maintenance staff usually earn the lowest pay because of their skill level. Meanwhile, specialized roles like designers or project managers have higher salaries. The types of landscaping specializing you choose, such as hardscaping or softscaping, and the focus on either residential or commercial landscaper jobs influence earnings, with commercial and specialized roles generally offering higher pay.

How Much Money Do Landscaping Contractors Make?

Landscaping contractors earn $42,368 annually on average. Most landscape contractors income ranges between $30,732 and $57,532. Contractors usually earn more than landscape employees because the former have the luxury to choose which projects they want to work on and they can negotiate their rate. Landscapers who are the only ones in town capable of installing specialized irrigation systems can charge what they want, provided it’s fair.

Unfortunately, employees who earn wages don't have that luxury, and they are bound to their agreed-upon rate in their contracts.

How Much Does A Self-Employed Landscaper Make?

A self-employed landscaper earns 12%-35% of their total revenue. You will take home $120,000, assuming you take 12% of $1,000,000 in revenue. The amount you, as a self-employed landscaper, will make is largely dictated by your client base (low, medium, or high-earning individuals), services you offer, geographic location, and scale of operations.

How Much Money Do Commercial Landscapers Make?

Commercial landscapers generally earn more than the national average of $46,016. This is because their projects involve a larger scale and complexity than those of landscapers who focus solely on residential jobs. That's why so many landscapers want to tap into the commercial sector: because of its greater earning potential. 

How Much Money Do Hardscaping Employees Make?

Hardscaping employees earn around $30,000 to $50,000 (usually more toward the upper end of the pay scale). These employees are specialists in their field, which justifies the premium they earn. 

Hardscaping professionals require distinct knowledge of certain specialties. For instance, creating a custom outdoor BBQ pit requires expertise in concrete that can withstand high heat and safety concerns, and if it's a gas BBQ, it requires valid certification that the person may, in fact, install a gas line. 

How Much Do Landscapers Make In Different Parts Of USA?

Landscaper salary varies from state to state. Below is the average landscaping employee salary in different parts of USA.

Which Country Pays Landscapers The Most?

Switzerland pays landscapers the most. This country has a very high cost of living, so even though the landscapers get paid generously, their cost of living justifies their high salaries. Following closely are Luxembourg and the United States, which offer competitive salaries for landscapers. Other countries with higher pay for landscaping employees include the Nordic Countries of Iceland, Norway, and Denmark.

How Does Seasonality Affect Landscaper Pay?

Seasonality directly affects landscaper pay. During the peak spring and summer months, earnings are usually high due to the increased demand for landscaping services. Conversely, earnings typically decrease during the off-peak seasons of fall and winter. 

How Much Do Landscapers Make In The Winter?

Landscapers earn 25% to 50% of what they would earn in the summer months during winter. Unless landscapers make money in winter through services like snow removal and winterizing outdoor spaces, then their winter income is 60%-80% of what they would earn during the summer months.

Landscapers can offer various types of services in the winter to maintain their income, including winterizing irrigation systems, lawns, and plants. They can offer snow and ice removal services, which can earn a lot of money in heavy snowfall regions. 

How Much Do Landscapers Make In The Fall?

Landscapers make 50% to 70% of their summer income during the fall. Grass still grows in the fall, and plants still require irrigation on the occasional warm day.  Landscapers make money in fall by broadening their services to include fall-specific services such as leaf clean-up, preparation of gardens for the winter, and installation of seasonal decorations. 

What Factors Affect Average Landscaper Salary?

Factors that affect the average landscaper salary include employer, experience, skills, regulations, and economic conditions. The first, and arguably the most direct, is your employer (landscaping company). Each company offers varying pay scales and benefits. The difficult part is finding the company that offers the highest pay and best benefits. 

You as a person influence your salary. I'm specifically referring to your employee skills, performance, and experience. More skilled and experienced landscapers typically earn higher wages - the job market just works that way.

Government regulatory bodies, specifically minimum wage and overtime rights, affect earnings. You can't earn more if you've already overclocked your monthly overtime. 

Industry standards, such as salary benchmarks set within the landscaping industry, guide pay scales and will guide what the company will be paying you. 

Economic conditions influence job availability and salary levels. Remember the big crash in 2008/2009? Very few people had money to spare, and many workers had to be laid off or were paid just above the minimum wage. 

Landscaping business owners need to manage their compensation strategies effectively, as this will increase employee satisfaction and reduce the risk of legal complications.

How To Manage Landscaping Employee Payments?

Landscaping companies can manage their employee payments through QuickBooks. This software is arguably the best accounting and bookkeeping software for managing the payments of landscaping employees. The software has comprehensive features that can do payroll processing and financial tracking. Quickbooks is the go-to financial management software in the field-service industry; it's for this reason that so many landscape business software integrate with Quickbooks. Zentive landscaping software integrates with QuickBooks to make managing your employee finances seamless.

Does Landscape Business Software Integrate With QuickBooks?

Yes, landscape business management software integrates with QuickBooks. Zentive is an an advanced landscaping business software that seamlessly integrates with QuickBooks. This integration helps landscaping businesses have a holistic approach to managing their employees, from scheduling, routing, and tracking to managing employee details, calculating pay based on tracked hours, and handling taxes. What would normally be a soar headache for you and your administrative team is made easy by integrations like Zentive and Quickbooks.