This is a classic side-hustle that a lot of people have made money pursuing. In fact, I even did this back when I was in grade-school, to earn extra money for baseball gear!
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But what about nowadays? Can you really make money mowing lawns? Can it be worth the time if you are trying to start up a side-hustle?
I have been revisiting this small-business idea lately, and have actually come up with some pretty solid information to bring to the table!
Making Money Mowing Lawns
We all know that lawn mowing services are a necessary part of modern civilization. Every home and business with any grass on the property needs to ensure that it gets taken care of.
Some homeowners take care of this themselves and some businesses just pay their employees to take care of it.
But what about the rest? Are there any businesses or homeowners out there willing to pay a small-time lawn care service to take care of their yard?
This is what I was the most interested in finding out. So let’s get to the facts.
Is It Feasible To Turn A Profit Mowing Lawns?
Yes, it is absolutely feasible to make a small lawn-mowing business profitable.
I did some digging and found this really interesting video on YouTube. Take a look at it here…
So, in this video, a man who owns a yard service demonstrates how much money he makes mowing lawns for his business. He spends an entire day on the job, and his time gets broken down like this…
Total time spent away from his house: 6 hours, 40 minutes
Time spent mowing, edging, trimming, and blowing: 4 hours, 36 minutes
Time spent chatting with customers and eating lunch: 45 minutes
Drive time: 1 hour, 19 minutes
Total money brought in for the day: $208
Obviously, this may not represent the exact kind of return that everyone can expect to make with a lawn-care service. But this guy seemed to have only basic equipment, and certainly seemed to have quite a few houses that he mowed on a regular basis.
I have also heard other accounts of people online earning money providing lawn care, so I know that it can be done.
So in the end, the answer to this question is still a yes… yes, it is feasible to turn a profit mowing lawns.
How Much Can You Make Every Month?
Obviously, this varies based on how much effort you are able/willing to put into it. If you only mow one lawn per month, you may only make $20-$50.
But… with that being said… in the example above, that guy was mowing five or six lawns in a single day! Even if you only had this many lawns to mow every weekend, you are still looking at $800 or so extra per month!
As you can see, there is a pretty wide chasm between these two figures—so if you do manage to land some lawn care jobs, how much you make will mostly depend on your geographic location, how much you charge, how far they are from your own home, what kind of equipment you are hauling, etc.
Does It Cost Any Money To Start This Side Hustle?
This is a side hustle that may cost you some money to start up—unless you already have everything you need.
The reason for this is because you actually need some gear to start this business. You may also need to invest in some promotional materials.
Here is a list of at least some of the items you will need before you can hope to start making money mowing lawns.
- A vehicle, and possibly a trailer, that you can use to haul your equipment
- Lawn care equipment, including a mower, a weed-eater, trimmers, etc.
- Business cards and other promotional materials
- Enough money for gas to get to-and-from your jobs
Insurance might be another thing to consider. What if you accidentally mowed over a $1,000 bush while push-mowing a lawn in a fancy neighborhood? What if you accidentally run your mower into their car and put a big scrape in it?
Accidents can happen when you are using equipment like this… which is why, at some point, you may need to buy insurance for your business.
You will also need to spend some time finding good work for your business… and that may prove to be a challenge, depending on exactly what kinds of neighborhoods you are promoting your business in.
I have actually put quite a bit of effort into thinking about this and researching it, and have come up with some ideas. These are ideas that I have read about online, combined with a few that I have personally dreamed up.
I have actually, seriously considered starting a mowing side hustle before, so this is the kind of thought-process that I have had about it!
How Do You Get Business Mowing Lawns?
The first and most obvious way to promote your business would be online. You could use a number of different sites, including…
- Craigslist
- Facebook (paid ads and groups)
- Instagram (paid ads)
- Your own website, combined with SEO marketing and a blog (I would absolutely recommend starting your own website if you choose to be serious about finding side-hustle work for a mowing business)
But this is only one element of self-promotion that could work to bring in some lawn-mowing business for your side hustle.
You could also go door to door and find customers that way. To do this, you would have to pump up your sales skills.
You could start by introducing yourself and handing them a card. Ask them if they have a lawn-care service already. If they say yes, ask them how much they are paying.
If it were me, I would then offer to mow their lawn once for free, just to show them how good of a job I could do. Then, I would undercut their current provider by $15-$20, or give them a fair bid if they currently have no provider.
People love it when you offer them a ‘free sample’ of your services. Of course, some people might see this as a potential waste of their time, and it actually might be in some cases. But this is how I would do it.
I would also drive around and specifically pitch my services to houses in nice neighborhoods that look like they haven’t been mowed in a while. These might be prime examples of houses where the owners might just pay you to do it because they don’t want to do it themselves.
Non-Monetary Costs Associated With The Lawn Mowing Side Hustle
The biggest cost to this business would obviously be your time. You would need to be present and available to mow—so you would need to be actively working for every dollar you made (unless you hired someone else to do it for you).
You would also need to be brave enough (and willing) to go out and risk your time to sell your service to potential clients.
Some people don’t really like the idea of selling their products or services door to door… and yet, I think that this would be pretty unavoidable if you really wanted to make any money mowing lawns as a side hustle. So that is obviously something else to take into consideration.
My Personal Feelings About Mowing Lawns As A Side Hustle
Personally, I love the opportunity that this side-hustle presents. I know that this is a rather competitive market. I also know that not everyone is going to be able to pursue this one.
The biggest hurdle is probably the vehicle. Not everyone can afford a truck, van, or something else capable of hauling the equipment around—so that is something that may keep some people from getting into this business.
But at the end of the day, I feel like this is one of the purest and most ambitious side hustle ideas that I have ever looked it. This is the stuff of true entrepreneurs—a service that everyone needs, and an equal playing field that almost anyone with a little extra money can get into.
Do I think that this side hustle is for everyone? Not necessarily.
Do I think that it is an awesome idea that a lot of people could make use of to make a bit of extra money on the side? Absolutely.
The most expensive part of this business, in all honestly, is probably the vehicle. If you already have a truck, or some kind of vehicle that can pull a small trailer, you are actually golden.
You can buy an awesome push mower for less than $200. Or, better yet, you could just use your own mower until you save up enough to upgrade.
There is so much potential in this side-hustle. I truly believe that this is one of the best opportunities that I have ever written about. I love it!
There are also related side hustles that you could consider alongside lawn mowing, such as window washing, yard cleaning and picking up trash.
Our Final Opinion About Making Money Mowing Lawns
Should you take some time and try to sell your services to some lawn-care clients?
There are a lot of ways to make money online. Some are good, some not, but ALL of them are still just trading hours for dollars.
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Nathaniell
What's up ladies and dudes! Great to finally meet you, and I hope you enjoyed this post. My name is Nathaniell and I'm the owner of One More Cup of Coffee. I started my first online business in 2010 promoting computer software and now I help newbies start their own businesses. Sign up for my #1 recommended training course and learn how to start your business for FREE!
kyle
crappy advice, mowing and the margins in mowing are extremely poor. the rates have been nearly the same for 10=15 years. you cant figure your time as $0 per hour when youre solo and certainly dont make much with a crew out there. been doing this a long time and have all the best and biggest stand on equipment for efficiency, the real money is in the side work that mowing can and should lead to. if anyone disagrees i have 100k worth of yearly lawns for sale lol
Jonathan
I started mowing lawns in junior high back in the 90s. I have had all 6 of my siblings as well as my parents and other relatives and friends work for me over the years. At first I was just making money for college, but after college I continued and usually have one or two guys part time in the summer. Working in Chicago is a great place to make money. I mostly rely on word of mouth these days although I used to hand out around 500 flyers or door hangers a year. Cutting 2-3 lawns an hour by myself for an 8 hour day can bring in over $700 on a good day or $50/80 per hour before expenses (which are relatively low for a lawn care business). I only mow 2 days a week and leave the other days for side work. If you can get multiple lawns on a block you can make over $100 per hour on your peak hours. Don’t get me started on snow removal which pays better per customer and with motivation you can do more customers per hour also.
Jay Phillips
Thanks for the insight!! This is something I’m considering picking up this spring and summer as I also reside in Chicago. I figured most of the lots are small and should be done quickly. 2-3 an hour sounds really fast! I guess with practice you’ll speed up the process too