If you are considering improving your garden, you are most likely wondering how much it is all going to cost you. According to the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), a professionally designed garden can add up to 20% to your property’s value. It can be a big investment so its important to understand the cost structure from the outset. The below is a break down of the basic costs associated with a full garden design and build project.
If you have plans for the garden already or a good idea of what you want and were, a landscape contractor will be able to provide you quotes based on these. If however you are unsure of what to do with the space and need some guidance, this is where a garden designer comes in.
Some designers will charge an initial consultation fee, which can range anywhere from £90 upwards depending on their skills and experience. Other designers will have an initial consultation free of charge and then send a fee proposal following the meeting.
Garden designers will charge fees in a variety of ways;
- A percentage of the overall build costs for the project – this is usually around 15-20% of build cost for medium and small gardens, lowering to around 10% for larger projects.
- A set fee– this will be determined by the size, complexity and amount of work involved within the plan. Designers will have an initial set fee for small, medium and large gardens, and use the consultation to gauge any additional scope of works involved.
- An hourly charge – this will be set by the designer and again can range depending on experience and skill set, starting at £40-50 per hour and can rise upwards of £200 per hour for top design firms. A full garden design for a small garden will start at around 30hours of work. Again this will vary/increase dependent on the complexity and scope of the design.
My fee structure is a set fee, which I work out following initial consultation. Based on the scope of works and the amount of hours the design will take to produce I provide clients with a set fee for the detailed design and separate costing for planting plans.
The cost of building the actual garden again will vary greatly. A good designer will discuss budgets with you at initial stages. A design should be tailored to your individual budget, often designs can be carried out in stages to stagger the cost of the build. If you have a limited or lower budget a designer will be able to guide you in what it achievable for space.
As a rough guide:
- Small garden – upwards of £20,000
- Medium garden - upwards of £50,000
- Large garden - £75,000 +
The biggest cost with any garden is the hard landscaping. Below outlines some budget costings per m2 for different hard landscaping options:
- Softwood decking - £200
- Composite decking - £300 +
- Block paving - £200
- Porcelain / sandstone paving - £200
Soft landscaping costs per m2:
- Turfing - £30-50
- Ornamental planting - £80-100
Once you have your final plans you can obtain quotes from landscape contractors. Some designers offer a tender process as part of design package. If you are getting the quotes yourself, I would recommend getting 2-3 quotes from different contractors. Avoid the cheapest quotes, as they will be lower in cost for a reason.
As a designer once I have passed plans to clients I am happy to provide costs through my partner company JC Landscapes (www.jc-landscapes.net) or I can review quotes you have obtained from other contractors.