Guide 01 · 5 min read
What Landscaping Costs in Scottsdale, AZ
A Scottsdale landscape budget comes down to 4 numbers: labor hours, square footage, what sits under the surface, and how far a wheelbarrow has to travel. Each line has a published range, and local ground pushes the total.
Costs
What does landscaping labor cost per hour?
Expect $50 to $100 per hour for landscape labor, according to a national cost guide. Another national cost guide puts paver installers at the low end, $50 to $80 per hour, and sprinkler repair labor at about $50 to $100 per hour. A crew of 3 for 8 hours is 24 labor hours before a single plant arrives. In Scottsdale the digging half of the day is the part that moves, because ground under a lot in 85262 can differ from ground under a 1960s ranch house near Osborn Road. Published market ranges, not a quote: the final price is set after an on-site assessment.
Costs
Why is the per square foot price so wide?
A national cost guide puts basic landscaping at $4.50 to $12 per square foot, with a $3,517 average project, and puts a full tear out or an outdoor kitchen build at up to $40 per square foot. The band is wide because a square foot is not a unit of work. At the low end it is a resurfaced bed with 1 gallon plants. At the high end it is demolition, haul off, 4 inches of compacted base, a mounded berm, a 24 inch tree and 3 new valve zones. 2 yards of the same size can sit at opposite ends of that band and both be fair. A plant list and a base depth show which end you are on. Published market ranges, not a quote: the final price is set after an on-site assessment.
Costs
Front yard or backyard: what does each cost?
A national cost guide puts a front yard project at $1,500 to $5,000 and a full backyard renovation at $15,000 to $50,000. The gap is scope, not inflation. A front yard is often a visible bed, a walkway, a few trees and a repaired valve or two, and much of the design is decided by what the street already looks like. A backyard carries the patio, the retaining wall, the pergola, the gas line, the lighting transformer and the turf, and it runs as a sequence of trades. Each trade can have its own base and its own inspection. A back gate 36 inches wide can add hours before the first paver goes down. Published market ranges, not a quote: the final price is set after an on-site assessment.
Bids and scope
What do landscape design fees look like?
A national cost guide puts design at $50 to $150 per hour, about $100 on average, and at $1,934 to $7,267 per project with a $4,588 average. What you buy is decisions made before anyone digs: grades, drainage, plant spacing at maturity, valve zones, and a plant list that matches the exposure on each side of the house. On a $4,000 front yard the fee can look large next to the install. On a $40,000 backyard it can be one of the smaller lines on the invoice, because a redesign after the paver base is compacted costs the base again. Published market ranges, not a quote: the final price is set after an on-site assessment.
Costs
What do turf, pavers and xeriscape cost?
Artificial turf runs $15 to $19 per square foot installed (This Old House, artificial grass (opens in a new tab)). A national cost guide puts a turf job at $3,244 to $8,714 with a $5,783 average. The same guide puts a paver patio at $8 to $25 per square foot, $2,400 to $7,000 per patio and $3,800 on average for 280 square feet. It puts xeriscape at $5 to $20 per square foot, $5,000 to $24,000 per project and $17,000 on average, with a desert style planting at $8,000 to $18,500. The turf number buys a surface with no irrigation. The paver number buys a surface built on a compacted base. The xeriscape number buys plants that grow. Published market ranges, not a quote: the final price is set after an on-site assessment.
Costs
What do walls and irrigation cost?
A retaining wall is priced by height, and height is the main driver. A national cost guide puts walls at $40 to $360 per linear foot depending on height, with labor at $15 to $50 per square foot, a $6,083 average and most jobs between $3,191 and $9,202; a 2 ft wall sits at $40 to $200 per linear foot and a 6 ft wall at $360. Irrigation is priced by the zone. A national cost guide puts sprinkler repair at $137 to $422 per job with a $278 average, and full replacement at $1,500 to $4,000. Drip runs $200 to $850 per system, $350 on average, $0.50 to $5 per square foot, and converting an existing zone to drip runs $300 to $1,200 per zone. Published market ranges, not a quote: the final price is set after an on-site assessment.
Costs
What local costs never appear on a national page?
5 things move a Scottsdale bid that national pages rarely show. Caliche: a cemented calcium carbonate layer that restricts roots and water, so beds get ripped or mounded (UA Extension, caliche (opens in a new tab)). Access: a 36 inch side gate means plants, base and pavers move by hand, which is slow work. Grade: a lot that falls 4 ft across the yard often needs terracing, and terracing can mean a wall. Permits: a fence over 3 ft, any retaining wall with engineered plans, and dry stack over 30 in all go to the city counter (City of Scottsdale, walls and fences (opens in a new tab)). HOA: associations have the legal authority to enact and enforce their own maintenance and design standards, so the design committee can set its own plant list (City of Scottsdale, HOA resources (opens in a new tab)). Budget for the first 4, then read the fifth.
3 questions
Questions people ask
Still have a question? Call (747) 243-2089 and describe the yard.
How much should I budget for a full front yard?
A national cost guide puts front yard landscaping between $1,500 and $5,000. The number tracks how much concrete and how many valve zones already exist. A yard with working irrigation sits at the bottom, and a tear out with new base and 3 trees sits at the top.
Is xeriscape cheaper than keeping grass?
Not on day one. Xeriscape runs $5 to $20 per square foot, and a lawn can be cheaper to install. The savings arrive on the water bill: Bermuda with overseed takes over 55 inches of irrigation a year, an average xeriscape under 18 (UA Extension (opens in a new tab)).
Do I need a permit for a landscape wall?
A wall up to 3 ft still needs courtesy site plan approval for zoning and stormwater. Anything taller needs a permit, every retaining wall needs a permit and engineered plans, and dry stack over 30 in needs a permit too (City of Scottsdale (opens in a new tab)). Retaining walls also sit at least 3 ft off the property line, and farther when the wall is tall.
Keep reading
- Landscaping cost in Scottsdale: Ranges by project type.
- Patios and pavers: What goes under a patio.
- Irrigation and sprinkler repair: Zones and drip.
- Desert landscaping vs xeriscape: 2 words, 2 meanings.
- Trees that grow in Scottsdale: Species and litter.
- Pavers vs Stamped Concrete in Scottsdale:
- Artificial Turf vs Real Grass in Scottsdale:
