Hire a Landscaper Brisbane QLD - Get Local Quotes

Hiring for a Brisbane Garden Build

Landscapers across Brisbane charge roughly $55 to $95 per person per hour, though jobs bigger than a weekend tidy-up are priced as a fixed sum after a site visit. That sum combines labour with turf, soil, plants, sleepers, pavers and machine hire, so the totals on two quotes for the same yard can differ. For the range of garden work offered around the state, see the Queensland landscaping services hub, while turf varieties, drainage, planting and staging are covered in the Brisbane landscaper finder. This page deals with the hiring side of the job and the local rules that decide what can be built where. All prices here are estimates for 2026 and should be checked against written quotes for your own block.

Rules for garden work in Brisbane come from several bodies at once, which is why the price on a quote that ignores them can rise once the job starts. The Queensland Building and Construction Commission (QBCC) licenses the people who build walls, paving and decks, while Brisbane City Council controls protected trees, flood areas and footpath gardens. Urban Utilities owns the sewer mains that cross some back yards, and Energex owns the poles and wires that limit what can be planted near them. Knowing which of these touches your yard lets you check that each landscaper has allowed for it in the price. Missing one of them can mean a redesign partway through the job or a repair bill after it is finished.

Brisbane Garden Build Prices for 2026

The bands below are estimates drawn from typical Brisbane quotes in 2026, and they overlap the ranges on The Quote Yard's other Queensland landscaping pages. Turf supplied and laid usually falls between $18 and $35 per square metre, with the variety and soil preparation moving the price. Lawn Solutions Australia sells Sir Walter DNA Certified, a soft leaf buffalo variety, so a quote that names it can be compared directly. Pavers supplied and laid run from about $120 to $250 per square metre, while exposed aggregate concrete sits at roughly $150 to $280. Retaining walls are priced per square metre of wall face, from about $300 for treated pine sleepers to $900 for concrete sleepers set in steel posts. An irrigation system with a controller and two to four zones often costs $1,500 to $4,000 installed.

Some quotes leave site preparation vague, even though stripping an old lawn, removing builder's rubble and bringing in garden soil can cost as much as the finished surface on a neglected yard. Brisbane's clay subsoils can need ripping (breaking up the clay by machine) and gypsum (a mineral that helps clay drain) before turf or beds will drain properly after a storm. On sloping blocks, retaining and drainage can take a large share of the budget before any planting is priced. Synthetic grass from the Queensland artificial turf installation page also needs its own compacted base, which belongs in this part of the quote. Listing site preparation as its own line shows quickly whether a low quote has simply left it out.

Day Labour, Lump Sums and Provisional Allowances

Small jobs such as hedge work, mulching or replacing a few sprinkler heads are usually charged by the hour, with a minimum of two or three hours. Bigger jobs are quoted as a lump sum, which is easier to budget for, although it only covers the work written into its scope. Some quotes include provisional sums, which are allowances for work that cannot be priced until the job starts, such as rock under a footing or extra fill. Prime cost items are similar allowances for materials you have not chosen yet, such as pavers or a feature pot. When either allowance runs over, you usually pay the extra, so small allowances can make a quote look cheaper than it really is.

Machine hire can be the biggest cost after labour on jobs with tight side access. Using a mini loader or small excavator saves days of barrow work, but only if it fits through the gate and the ground can carry its weight. Tipper hire and tip fees for spoil (the soil and rubble dug out) should appear as their own line, priced either per load or per cubic metre of soil. Hourly rates for bobcats, excavators and trucks with operators are listed in the Moreton Bay landscaper hiring guide, and you can compare any machine line on a Brisbane quote with them.

Design is the other cost that changes what a quote includes. Concept plans from designers listed under Queensland garden design cost about $800 to $2,500 and give every landscaper the same drawing to price. Without one, each business designs its own version of your yard, and the totals then reflect three different gardens. Larger earthworks may also be subcontracted to a business from the Queensland excavation and earthmoving page, which should be named on the quote. Knowing who is doing each part makes it easier to check licences and insurance before the job starts.

The Two QBCC Licence Classes for Garden Construction

Planting, turf and mulch on their own fall outside the two structural landscaping licence classes, but walls, paving and decks need a licensed contractor once the work is worth more than $3,300. The two classes the QBCC offers for this work do not cover the same jobs. The structural landscaping trade licence covers decks, pergolas, fences, gazebos, garden drainage and paving or concrete that will not carry vehicles. It only covers retaining walls low enough that a local law does not call for engineering certification. The builder restricted to structural landscaping class goes further, adding retaining walls and structures, ponds and water features, irrigation and excavation linked to the landscaping. Both classes allow prefabricated sheds and their slabs only up to a floor area of 10 square metres.

The licence class on the quote should cover the work being priced, because holding any licence is not enough. Any trade licensee quoting a concrete pad for a car or an engineered wall is working outside the class, even if the rest of the job sits inside it. Driveways are better priced by a business from the Queensland paving and driveway installation page that holds a licence covering vehicle loads. Plumbing, drainage connected to the sewer or stormwater system and gasfitting need their own occupational licences under either class. The QBCC online licence search shows the class and whether the licence is current, and it takes a minute to run.

Owners can carry out building work on their own property valued at up to $11,000 without a licence. That suits a confident owner laying a small paved area or building a low garden wall, but it does not include plumbing or electrical work. No licensed contractor is responsible for work done this way, so the owner has to deal with any later defect. When an owner hires a landscaper for part of the job, the licensing rules apply again to that part.

Contract Levels, Deposit Caps and the Cooling-Off Window

Queensland sets contract rules by price band, and garden construction falls under them like any other domestic building job. Below $3,300 no written contract is required, although QBCC publishes a short template for small projects. From $3,301 to $19,999 the job is a level 1 contract, and the contractor must give you a signed copy within five business days. From $20,000 upward it becomes a level 2 contract, which must also include the QBCC Consumer Building Guide, a start date and either a fixed price or a method for working out the price. Statutory warranties, the protections the law gives you, must be set out in a level 2 contract as well.

Deposits are capped by law, and the cap depends on the contract price. The limit is 20 per cent for work of $3,300 or less, 10 per cent from $3,301 to $19,999 and 5 per cent from $20,000. After the deposit, a contractor cannot take more than half the contract price before half the work on site is done. Anyone asking for 30 or 40 per cent up front on a $45,000 back yard is asking for more than the law allows. Progress payments that follow finished stages, such as completed walls and tested irrigation, match your payments to the work completed. For contracts over $3,300 you generally have five business days to withdraw after receiving the signed contract, at a cost of $100 plus the contractor's reasonable out-of-pocket expenses.

The cooling-off period starts the day after you receive a signed copy of the whole contract, including any plans and specifications. On contracts of $20,000 or more, the period does not start until you also have the Consumer Building Guide. To withdraw, give the contractor a signed written notice saying you are withdrawing under the cooling-off provisions. The right does not apply if you had formal legal advice before signing, so keep that in mind when a lawyer has already reviewed the contract.

Which Garden Jobs the Home Warranty Scheme Reaches

The Queensland Home Warranty Scheme covers residential building work over $3,300, and the premium has to be built into the contract price. It includes residential outbuildings that have a roof, such as a carport, but QBCC lists some work as not insurable. Whether an open pergola, a stand-alone retaining wall or a paved area counts as insurable is set out in the QBCC A to Z guide of insurable work. Any landscaper pricing a large job should be able to tell you whether a premium applies and show it on the quote. If the business cannot answer, ask QBCC before you sign.

Where cover does apply, the time limits are tight for small defects. Non-structural problems, such as a sticking gate or cracked paving joints, must show within six months of completion and be claimed within seven months. Structural defects have a much longer window of six years and six months in most cases, and must be lodged within three months of noticing them. Because the non-structural window is short, inspect the finished job carefully in the first few months and write down anything that moves, cracks or holds water.

Protected Trees Under the Natural Assets Local Law

Brisbane City Council protects trees and other plants on private land under the Natural Assets Local Law 2003. The law covers plants and trees in bushland, wetlands and waterway corridors, as well as listed vegetation in urban and rural areas. Removing or heavily pruning protected vegetation without permission can lead to an infringement notice or, in serious cases, prosecution. Permit applications are free, and council says it will contact you within 20 business days for anything other than minor street tree pruning. Long-term permits for ongoing maintenance can last up to 10 years, which suits large blocks with many protected trees.

Some exemptions exist, and each one comes with conditions attached. Declared pest plants can be cleared without permission, as long as the work does not damage protected vegetation or the soil and does not cause erosion. Pest plant trees that are themselves protected still need permission. Exemptions also do not cover building within the root zone of a significant landscape tree or construction under the canopy of protected vegetation. That matters for paving, sleeper walls and sheds placed under a large tree, so an arborist from the Brisbane arborist finder may be needed before the design is fixed.

Branches hanging over the fence from a neighbour's tree come under a separate Queensland law. Where they overhang your land by more than 50 centimetres and sit less than 2.5 metres above the ground, you can give the tree-keeper a notice asking them to deal with them within 30 days. If they do not act, you can have the branches cut back without entering their land and seek up to $300 of the cost. Larger tree disputes go to the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal (QCAT) once you have tried to settle them directly.

Low Walls That Need No Building Approval in Brisbane

Brisbane City Council lists four conditions a retaining wall must meet to go ahead without building approval. There must be no surcharge loading over the wall's zone of influence, which in plain terms means no driveway, building or other heavy load close behind it. The total height of the wall and the soil it holds back must be no more than one metre above natural ground. The wall must sit at least 1.5 metres from a building or another retaining wall, and it must not form part of a pool fence. Council uses a separate test for development applications, and walls under one metre that are set back from boundaries and stepped for planting avoid one. Missing any one condition brings in a building certifier and possibly an engineer, and the Gold Coast council's own tests are listed in our guide to hiring a landscaper on the Gold Coast.

Height limits also apply when walls and fences are stacked on a boundary. Council needs building approval for fences, screens and retaining walls that together rise more than two metres above natural ground. A one metre sleeper wall topped by a 1.8 metre timber fence would go over that limit, even though each part looks modest on its own. Terracing the slope into two lower walls can avoid approval and engineering, as long as each wall stays at least 1.5 metres from the next. Fence heights and materials can be checked with a business from the Queensland fence and gate installation page before the wall is built.

Adbri Masonry, National Masonry and Austral Masonry make segmental retaining wall blocks, which stack without mortar and suit low terraced garden walls. Concrete sleeper walls use steel posts set in concrete footings, and the posts carry most of the load. Wall types and engineering thresholds for walls above one metre are compared on the Queensland retaining wall builders page. Whatever the material, drainage behind the wall needs to be in the price from the start.

Sewer Lines and Maintenance Holes in the Back Yard

Some Brisbane lots have an Urban Utilities sewer main crossing the back or side yard, with a concrete maintenance hole cover sitting in the lawn. Urban Utilities' asset protection standards call for a clear zone of one metre around the edge of a sewer maintenance cover, open to the sky. That rules out burying the cover under soil, building a deck or shed over it, or planting a hedge across it. Strip footings, the long concrete footings under a wall or fence, should sit at least 0.6 metres horizontally from a standard sewer main under 300 millimetres in diameter. Building over or near this infrastructure is assessed under part MP1.4 of the Queensland Development Code, so larger structures may need approval.

Before You Dig Australia passes enquiries to Urban Utilities and other network owners, and the reply shows roughly where their pipes run. Your landscaper should mark the line on site before trenching for drainage, irrigation or wall footings. Tree roots are drawn toward older sewer pipes, so large trees are better planted well away from the line. Keeping trenches clear of the main also avoids a repair bill if the pipe is old or shallow. If a pipe is damaged or blocked during the work, the repair belongs to a licensed plumber from the Brisbane plumber hiring guide.

Modwood and Trex make composite decking boards, and Urban Utilities' standards allow removable sections in a timber deck over a sewer property connection junction, the point where the house drain joins the sewer. That gives the plumber a way in without lifting the whole deck. Any deck from the Queensland decking page planned near a sewer line should show the pipe and its clearances on the drawing. The same applies to concrete paths, which should leave the cover and its one metre zone clear. Sorting this out at the design stage costs far less than cutting a hole in a finished deck later.

Overland Flow, Flood Planning Areas and Garden Levels

Brisbane City Council maps flooding from rivers, creeks and overland flow, and each can affect a garden plan. Overland flow is water running across the ground after heavy rain, and council notes that it can rise quickly, move with speed and recede quickly. The Flood Awareness Maps show both kinds, and a FloodWise Property Report gives flood information for a single address. Under Brisbane City Plan 2014, other development in overland flow areas must be designed so that it does not increase flooding impacts on neighbouring properties. Raised beds, solid fences and retaining walls built across a flow path can push water toward a neighbour or back toward the house. Landscapers working on a flagged lot should design walls, fences and levels so that water still has a way through.

Council's flood planning areas run from FPA1, where flooding is very likely and water may be deep or fast, to FPA5, where there is no recent history of flooding but flooding is still possible. Council's fact sheet says these flood planning rules do not apply to existing buildings. They still tell you how much water the yard could carry and roughly how high it might rise. Hunter Industries, Rain Bird and Holman make irrigation controllers, and fitting one on a wall above the expected flood level keeps it out of the water. Pool pumps and garden lighting transformers can be placed the same way.

Drainage is the main way to manage overland flow on a lot. Subsoil drains laid by a business from the Queensland French drain and subsoil drainage page collect water held in the soil and carry it away. Surface water from paving and roofs is a different matter, and any connection to the kerb or a council drain is plumbing work covered on the Queensland stormwater drainage plumbing page. An irrigation design from the Queensland irrigation and garden watering page should also leave room for these drains when trenches are planned.

Planting Near Energex Poles and Lines

Energex, the electricity network in South East Queensland, asks residents to plant trees at least five metres from powerlines and keep all plants at least three metres from power poles. For trees near a pole, it suggests a distance equal to the tree's mature height, so a tree expected to reach ten metres belongs ten metres away. The service wire that runs from the street to the house is treated differently, with a suggested two metre gap between the wire and the full height of a mature tree. Tall palms, bamboo, climbing vines, camphor laurel and tall eucalypts are among the plants it lists as regular causes of outages and safety hazards. Its Plant smart search lists powerline-friendly plants for each council area.

Trimming near live wires is not a job for a landscaper or a homeowner. Energex says never to trim trees or other vegetation near powerlines yourself and to call a professional tree trimmer instead. Stihl and Husqvarna make pole saws and hedge trimmers, but those tools do not make the work safe near a live wire. Tree work beside a service line belongs to a crew from the Queensland tree lopping and arborist services page with the right training.

Underground cables in the yard should be located through Before You Dig Australia before any digging, including post holes and irrigation trenches. New circuits for garden lighting, pond pumps or outdoor power points need a licensed electrician, and prices for that work are set out in the Brisbane electrician hiring guide. Low voltage lighting from the Queensland garden lighting installation page runs from a transformer plugged into an outdoor power point. Cables for any of these should be laid in conduit, a protective plastic pipe, before paving goes down, which saves lifting pavers later.

Footpath Gardens Under the Verge Garden Guidelines

Brisbane City Council lets residents in residential zones plant gardens on the footpath outside their property, as long as the plans meet its Verge Garden Guidelines. Council recommends low growing plants and groundcovers up to 700 millimetres tall, and trees and tall shrubs must not be planted. A clear strip 1.8 metres wide has to be kept for people walking past, whether or not there is a concrete path. Plants also must not block a driver's view when backing out of a driveway. The verge remains public land, so the owner is responsible for the garden and its upkeep.

Utility companies may dig up the verge to reach pipes and cables, and they are not required to put the garden back afterwards. Council does not restore verge landscaping damaged by animals, people or weather either, which is a good reason to keep the planting cheap and easy to replace. Checking with Before You Dig Australia before planning the bed shows where water, power and telecommunications services run under the footpath. If council finds the walking strip too narrow, it will ask you to change the garden, so measure it before any plants go in. Simple mulch and groundcovers are quicker to replace than a bed full of feature plants.

Green Waste Tipping, Vouchers and Free Native Plants

Soil, mulch, turf, potted plants and quarry products are regulated materials under Queensland's fire ant movement controls. Inside the fire ant biosecurity zones, these materials can only be moved when set conditions are met, or under a biosecurity instrument permit, which is a special permit to move them. Landscapers bringing in soil or turf should be able to say how their suppliers meet those conditions. How the controls can affect delivery timing is covered in the Moreton Bay landscaping cost guide.

Green waste is one of the hidden costs of a garden rebuild, and Brisbane's resource recovery centres, the council tips, charge for it. At the time of writing, a car load of green waste up to 500 kilograms costs $14.00, while a vehicle and trailer pays $14.00 up to 100 kilograms and $23.40 from 100 to 500 kilograms. Heavier loads are charged at $115.60 per tonne, and vehicles over 4.5 tonnes can only use the Nudgee and Willawong centres. Each household also receives ten 100 kilogram waste vouchers a year, which can cover uncontaminated green waste in a vehicle under 4.5 tonnes. Soil, pots, pavers and sleepers do not count as green waste, so a mixed load cannot use the vouchers. Council also runs free green waste weekends ahead of the summer storm season, and a clean-up from the Queensland garden clean-up page can be timed to match.

Council's Free Native Plants program gives each residential owner or tenant two free native plants every financial year. Homes built in targeted suburbs within the past 12 months can claim four, using the final inspection certificate as proof. Owners collect a stamped voucher from a library, customer centre or ward office and swap it at a participating nursery. Searles makes garden soil mixes, Osmocote makes slow release fertiliser and Seasol makes a seaweed tonic, any of which may be used when these plants go in. Bulk soil and mulch for larger beds can be ordered through the Queensland mulching and soil delivery page.

Old Fibro, Buried Sheeting and Asbestos Rules

Some older Brisbane yards contain fibro sheds, broken cement sheeting under paths or fragments in old fill. Fibro from older homes may contain asbestos, and breaking it with a mini excavator or a brush cutter can release fibres. Under Queensland rules, up to ten square metres of non-friable (bonded) asbestos can be removed without a licence, as long as the work follows the asbestos part of the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011. More than ten square metres of non-friable material needs a class B licensed removalist, and any friable (crumbly) asbestos needs a class A licence. Homeowners removing more than ten square metres themselves must hold a certificate under arrangements approved by the Department of Health.

A landscaper who strikes suspect sheeting during a dig should stop, cover it and keep the area damp until it has been tested. Testing a sample is far cheaper than cleaning up a yard after fragments have been spread through new soil and turf. Quotes for older blocks should say who pays if asbestos turns up and whether testing is included. Licensed businesses are listed on the Queensland asbestos removal page, and asbestos testing and inspection can be booked before the dig starts.

Work Health and Safety Queensland publishes the licence classes and the list of licensed removalists on the WorkSafe Queensland site. Checking a removalist's licence takes a few minutes and should happen before you pay anything. The removalist should also explain how the waste will be wrapped, labelled and taken to a site that accepts it. Keep the clearance paperwork with the rest of your landscaping records once the area is safe. Any extra cost for testing or removal should be agreed in writing as a variation, which is a signed change to the contract, before work continues.

When Garden Work in Brisbane Goes Wrong

Problems with garden construction tend to show after the first heavy storm, when a wall leans, paving sinks or water pools against the house. Write to the landscaper first, with dated photos, and give them a fair chance to come back and fix it. For licensed work, QBCC offers early dispute resolution while the contract is still running, and it asks both sides to try to settle the complaint even after the contract has ended. If phone discussions fail, the contractor must be given access to inspect the work, on at least 48 hours notice. Where QBCC finds defective work, it may issue a direction to rectify, which usually allows 35 days for the repair. Walls that fail later can be assessed by a business from the Queensland retaining wall repairs page if you need an independent view.

Once the QBCC process ends, either party can apply to QCAT for help with the building dispute. Small jobs under $3,300 and planting or turf work outside the licence classes still carry consumer guarantees under the Australian Consumer Law. Those guarantees require services to be provided with due care and skill and to be fit for any purpose you made known. For a new lawn that dies because it was laid on unprepared clay, that guarantee is a fair starting point for asking for a repair or a refund. Keeping the quote, the invoice and photos of the site before and after the work makes any claim much easier.

Warning Signs to Look Out For in Brisbane Garden Quotes

The licence number on the quote should belong to the business named on it, and its class should cover the walls, paving or decks being priced. A deposit above the legal cap, or a demand for most of the money before work starts, is a reason not to sign. Watch for quotes that say nothing about council or utility rules on a lot with a sewer cover, a large tree or a flood flag. A retaining wall over one metre priced without engineering or a certifier is either underpriced or planned without approval. Vague lines such as plants as required or pavers similar to sample leave room for cheaper substitutes. Spoil removal and tip fees left off a quote for a yard rebuild are likely to be added later as a variation.

Insurance is another item that a quote can leave out. Request a certificate of currency, the insurer's proof that the policy is active, for public liability cover, and check that the policy runs through the dates of your job. On larger jobs, check whether the price includes a home warranty premium and, if not, whether the work is insurable at all. Subcontractors such as concreters or irrigation installers should hold their own licences and cover where their work needs it.

Lining Up Brisbane Landscaping Quotes Side by Side

Comparable quotes start with one written brief that every landscaper prices. Include a sketch of the yard with rough measurements, the side access width, photos, and a list of what stays and what goes. Name the products you want where you already know them, such as a particular block range or a Davey pressure pump for a rainwater tank. Where you have no preference, ask each landscaper to name the product they are pricing so you can compare like with like. Three quotes give a useful comparison for a garden build, as long as each one prices the same scope.

Set each quote out in the same order before comparing totals, starting with preparation and moving through structures, drainage, irrigation, surfaces, planting and waste. Gaps show up quickly, such as one quote including the plumber's stormwater connection and another leaving it out. Check that every allowance has a dollar figure and that the payment stages follow finished work. Look at the start date and the time on site as well, because a crew booked out for months may not suit a job tied to a house sale. FormBoss makes steel garden edging, and a named edging product on every quote helps make sure every total is for the same finish. A cheap quote that leaves out wall approvals or spoil removal can cost more once those items are added back.