Many people might think that the estimate is the most important part of speaking to any landscaping company, but this isn’t the case. And in fact, that’s rarely the case when you’re speaking to any contractor, as the cheapest price doesn’t always necessarily reflect the best service. But in the case of the landscaping contractor, it gets even a little more complicated than that.

If it’s just for regular maintenance or the project is going to be a one-time deal, such as a spring or fall clean-up, a landscaping company may be able to provide you with a free estimate over the phone. However, if it’s the first time the company has worked for you (which in this case, it most likely is,) or the project is much more extensive than that, the landscaping company will most likely need to physically come out and see the space.

This is because it will give them a better idea of what you want, and things such as lot size and the scope of the project will affect the final cost. Even when a company is coming out to see the physical space and provide you with an estimate, it should still always be free. Companies should be competing with other companies for your business, not making it more difficult for you to deal with them.

Also try and keep in mind that landscaping, while it can be very affordable, it can also be very expensive; and even attempting to guess how much one project is going to cost is futile. Depending on the scope of the project, landscaping can cost a homeowner anywhere from $3,500 – $35,000. And while those larger numbers may seem frightening, also keep in mind that if you attempt to do extremely large jobs yourself and something goes wrong, it could end up costing you hundreds of thousands of dollars!