How much can you make in the lawnmowing business?

Wondering how much you can make mowing lawns?

Whether you are just now starting your lawn care company. Or you already have a company and are wondering if it’s worth it to continue husting on…

This article is for you!

Below you will learn all about how much money you can make mowing lawns, as well as a few ways to make more. 

As well as when it may be time to quit your main job and take on your lawn care side hustle, full-time!

Sound like a plan? Let’s jump right on in!

How much can you make mowing lawns your first year?

If you are thinking about quitting your job and jumping into lawn care full time before you have an established business. You probably want to pump your breaks. 

While it can greatly depend on the need in your service area, and your ability to hustle, your best bet is to establish your lawn care business long before quitting your full-time career.  

In your first year it’s likely you can easily pick up at least 10 clients and bring in $20K. But that isn’t going to be what you see in profit. 

And you also want to remember that the grass won’t grow in the winter.

When is it a good time to quit my full-time

Well, the truth of the matter is only you can make that decision. But in the opinion of many lawn care professionals, you can probably build your lawn mowing business into a full-time career in about 3 years. 

But this will vary on some of the factors we will get into in a moment. 

Pro Tip! Wait until at least your second or third year of side-hustling before quitting your full-time job. That way you can see the right time to transition.

How much can you make mowing lawns for a living?

Well, the answer is it depends on a few factors. But the reality is, the sky's the limit. 

Some solo lawn care companies make only $10k a year, while others make millions. 

In fact, there are many lawn care vendors who make $200k through mowing lawns on GreenPal alone. 

But to answer exactly how much you can make, we need to look at a few limiting factors. 

Here are 3 factors that impact how much you can make mowing lawns. 

 Want to add new lawns to your route? Sign up for GreenPal as a vendor! 

Limiting Factor #1: Location, Location, Location

Look, the location of your business can be a huge factor in how much you can stand to make mowing lawns. 

Not only does the location determine how many properties you could potentially serve in an area. But also, the amount of competition in each area can also impact you can make, especially in the short terms. 

Pro Tip! If you are reliable and do good work, you can find plenty of lawns to mow. Even in an area that already has a lot! of competition. 

In fact, in my experience, there appears to be a sudden shortage of workers everywhere. And this includes lawn mowing professionals. 

While it is important to consider your location, chances are you can bloom where you are planted, and make a decent living. And if you stay in the game for the long haul, you will find opportunities for growth that were previously hidden. 

But, that being said, if you are wondering exactly how much you can make mowing lawns. The density of the population can play a huge factor. If you want to make $1 Million a year, you will need to be in an area with a large enough population. 

Limiting Factor #2: Building The Crew

One of the biggest challenges to breaking the threshold is finding good help. Here’s the deal, there are sweet spots when it comes to growing your lawn care business where growth is easy. But at around $100k you are going to hit a wall that becomes difficult to surmount. And much of this has to do with building your crew. 

Here's the deal, not only is finding good employees a challenge. They are expensive. Between workers comp, insurance, employee benefits and of course their hourly pay. Your profit margins begin to shrink a lot the moment you begin to hire staff.

Once you have a few folks you can count on, you will have a much easier time growing your business. 

Limiting Factor #3: Add-On Services

Mowing lawns is good money and all, but if that's all you do, you are likely missing out on making the most of your business. 

You can easily maximize your profits by constantly upselling your clients. This will take some practice and diligence, but you can easily double your annual profits with add-on services. 

Additional services that can really help you maximize profits include:

Seriously, the possibilities are endless, and the amount you can make is only limited by your ability to manage your company's growth. And again, a major factor in that is your ability to build a crew you can rely upon. 

Pro Tip! Always charge what you are worth. If you don't charge enough, you are wasting time and money. While charging more may cost you to lose some clients, in the end they are the ones that are keeping your business from advancing forward. 

Check out our lawn care businesses guides for more great info on growing your company.

So, Exactly how much money can you make in the lawn care industry?

The answer is, as much as you want. But you’ll have to be smart and put in the work.

However, I wouldn't quit my full time job until you have a few solid seasons in the bag. You definitely want to be sure that you are ready for the long periods of downtime during the winter months. 

Fortunately, there are a lot of great winter side-hustles lawn care pros can take on to keep your business going through the winter. 

If you want to learn more about the lawn care industry, check out our blog for lawn care pros.