Pricing by neighborhood — Lawn Care · Fort Worth, TX
| Neighborhood | Low | High | Why the price moves |
|---|---|---|---|
| Westover Hills / Rivercrest / Westcliff | $80 | $150 | Estate weekly mowing, mature pecan and live oak canopy, formal beds, two-person crew hand-trim |
| Cultural District / TCU / Berkeley | $60 | $110 | Premium maintenance contracts, irrigation tune-ups, hand-trim around bungalow beds and brick walks |
| Fairmount / Ryan Place | $50 | $90 | 1920s cottage gardens, narrow lots, mixed St. Augustine and bermuda, mature crape myrtle work |
| Arlington Heights / Crestwood / Monticello | $45 | $80 | Mid-tier maintenance, established St. Augustine lawns, chinch bug and brown patch monitoring |
| Stockyards / North Side | $30 | $55 | Budget tier, smaller bermuda lots, basic mow-edge-blow on flat ground |
| Southside / Near Southside | $35 | $65 | Gentrifying inner-city blocks, mixed lot sizes, growing remodel-tied landscape work |
| Keller / Southlake / Trophy Club | $45 | $85 | HOA-driven bi-weekly contracts, standardized plant lists, irrigation startups on builder-grade systems |
| Burleson / Crowley | $30 | $55 | South Tarrant budget tier, flat new-build lots, bermuda sod, simple spray programs |
Lawn Care hourly rate by neighborhood in Fort Worth, TX. Ranges reflect typical contractor pricing including travel time, building-type access, and local labor density.
How much does lawn care cost in Fort Worth?
Fort Worth lawn care crews charge $27-$45 per hour for scheduled work, with an average of $36/hr. Storm and post-hail cleanup calls run $70-$140/hr plus a $200-$500 trip charge. Neighborhood matters: estate work in Westover Hills, Rivercrest, and Westcliff sits at the top of the range because of mature live oak and pecan canopies, Fort Worth Tree Preservation rules under Code Section 10.7, and two-person crews hand-trimming formal beds. The Stockyards, North Side, Burleson, and Crowley anchor the bottom of the range.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports the mean hourly wage for landscaping and groundskeeping workers in the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington metro at $17.60. The gap between that and the $36/hr you actually pay is real and explainable, and the rest of this article walks through where every dollar goes, what permits you actually need, and what to ask when comparing quotes.
Fort Worth Lawn Care Rates by Neighborhood
The Fort Worth metro is not one market. A Westover Hills estate with three mature pecans, formal boxwood hedges, and an irrigation system tied to a Tarrant Regional Water District smart controller is a different job than a Crowley tract home on flat quarter-acre ground, and the price reflects that. The full per-neighborhood breakdown sits at the top of this page; this section explains the why behind the numbers.
The premium for west-side estate work is not arbitrary. A typical Westover Hills or Rivercrest visit includes 20-30 minutes of hand-trim around mature shrub beds and stone walkways, arborist coordination when work crosses the drip line of a protected heritage pecan or live oak, and slower equipment staging on narrow estate driveways. Burleson, Crowley, and Stockyards work skips most of that and runs on flat HOA-approved or older tract lots with standardized bermuda or St. Augustine palettes.
Comparable cities for cross-reference:
- Atlanta lawn care costs — $34-$58/hr
- Jacksonville lawn care costs — $32-$55/hr
- El Paso lawn care costs — $24-$42/hr
- Las Vegas lawn care costs — $30-$52/hr
Fort Worth sits roughly in line with the Texas transition-zone metro average, with the west-side estate premium driving the high end and the south Tarrant suburbs anchoring the low end. The Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington MSA cost-of-living index sits at 0.80 (national average = 1.00), which is why the dollar floor here lands below Atlanta or Tampa.
Fort Worth Lawn Care Pricing by Property Type
Neighborhood is one axis. Property type is the other, and it often matters more than the zip code. A 1920s Fairmount cottage on Ryan Place with mature pecans and an antique bermuda lawn costs noticeably more to maintain than a 2018 Trophy Club HOA tract home on a similar quarter-acre, because the canopy hand-trim, narrow side-yard access, and historic-district irrigation work take real time.
| Property type | Hourly rate | Why the price moves |
|---|---|---|
| West-side estate (Westover Hills, Rivercrest, Westcliff) | $70-$130 | Mature pecan and live oak canopy, protected-tree review, two-person crews, hand-trim around formal beds and stone walks |
| 1920s cottage (Fairmount, Ryan Place, Mistletoe Heights) | $50-$95 | Narrow lots, mixed St. Augustine and bermuda, mature crape myrtle work, historic-district aesthetic standards |
| Mid-century / postwar (Arlington Heights, Crestwood, Monticello) | $45-$80 | Established St. Augustine lawns, mature shade trees, chinch bug and brown patch monitoring, irrigation tune-ups |
| HOA tract home (Keller, Southlake, Trophy Club, Heritage) | $45-$80 | Standardized plant lists, bi-weekly contracts, builder-grade irrigation, bermuda or zoysia overseed cycles |
| New construction subdivision (Burleson, Crowley, Aledo) | $30-$60 | Flat lots, fresh bermuda or St. Augustine sod, irrigation startups, basic spray programs |
| Rental property (Stockyards, North Side, Como) | $30-$55 | Landlord-driven monthly contracts, simple mow-edge-blow, minimal landscape detail |
Transition-zone grass selection deserves a callout. Fort Worth sits inside the bermuda + St. Augustine + zoysia transition belt, which means most yards are one of three: bermuda (drought-tolerant, goes brown October-April, recovers in May), St. Augustine (the dominant shade-tolerant choice for established neighborhoods, vulnerable to chinch bugs and brown patch), or zoysia (premium midpoint, slower to spread but holds color longer). Crews that specialize in one grass type often quote poorly on the other. If your yard is mixed or transitioning between St. Augustine and bermuda after a drought-stress year (notably 2011 and 2023 across DFW), ask whether the crew is comfortable with both fertilization and watering calendars before signing an annual contract.
What Your Billed Hour Actually Covers
The $17.60 BLS wage is take-home pay for the worker, not what the customer pays. The customer rate of $27-$45/hr covers everything the business needs to legally operate in the Fort Worth metro.
Roughly: 50% labor, 12% commercial liability and bonding insurance ($1,200-$2,400/yr per crew in the DFW metro because chemical drift, equipment-thrown-object claims, and tree-related damage carry real risk), 12% vehicle and equipment (commercial zero-turn mower $9,000-$14,000, trailer, blowers, broadcast spreader, irrigation diagnostic tools, leaf vacuum for fall, post-hail cleanup gear), 11% Fort Worth-specific licensing and overhead (Texas Department of Agriculture commercial pesticide applicator license, fuel, dispatch, Tarrant Regional Water District smart-controller diagnostic tools, drought-rotation scheduling), and 15% contractor profit margin. Strip any of those out and the business cannot stay open.
This is why the cheapest quote is not always the right one. A crew bidding $20/hr is either operating without insurance (your homeowner’s policy will not cover damage from a thrown rock or chemical drift onto a neighbor’s pool), without a TDA pesticide applicator license for the pre-emergent they just sprayed in February, or losing money and about to disappear mid-season after the summer heat hits.
Fort Worth Lawn Care Permits and Licensing
Texas does not issue a general lawn care or landscaping license, which surprises most homeowners. What does exist is a state-mandated pesticide-applicator license through the Texas Department of Agriculture plus a Fort Worth Tree Preservation ordinance that sits on top of any meaningful tree work.
| Work | Permit or license | Typical cost | Lead time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pesticide / pre-emergent / herbicide / fertilizer with restricted-use product | TDA Commercial Pesticide Applicator license | License held by contractor; no homeowner fee | n/a |
| Protected tree removal (≥6 inch caliper, most zoning districts) | Fort Worth Tree Preservation permit (Code Sec. 10.7) | $50-$300 review fee | 2-4 weeks |
| Heritage tree work (oak, pecan, elm ≥19 inches) | Forestry Section review + replacement mitigation plan | $100-$500 + mitigation cost | 3-6 weeks |
| Outdoor watering during TRWD drought stages | Tarrant Regional Water District Stage 1-3 schedule compliance | No fee; fines for non-compliance | n/a |
| Irrigation system install or rework | Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) licensed irrigator required | License held by contractor | n/a |
| HOA-restricted neighborhoods (Keller, Southlake, Trophy Club, Heritage) | HOA architectural review for visible landscape changes | $0-$200 | 1-4 weeks |
Your contractor handles permit filing where applicable, and the fee gets added to the invoice. The Tree Preservation surprise hits west-side and Cultural District homeowners hardest: a Rivercrest homeowner thinking they’re paying for routine pecan limb work discovers the 22-inch trunk triggers a Forestry Section review under Code Section 10.7 plus a replacement-mitigation plan before the saw touches the tree. For larger renovations involving multiple trades, expect to coordinate the landscape scope with a Fort Worth landscaper or Fort Worth general contractor who handles the city review and HOA submissions as a single application.
The Tarrant Regional Water District drought-stage watering rules deserve a separate callout. TRWD declares Stage 1 (twice-weekly watering), Stage 2 (once-weekly), or Stage 3 (no in-ground irrigation) based on Cedar Creek and Eagle Mountain reservoir levels. Most summers since 2011 have run at Stage 1 from June through September across Fort Worth proper. Crews adjust mowing height upward (3.5-4 inches for St. Augustine, 2.5-3 inches for bermuda) and shift fertilization out of peak heat to compensate. A crew that ignores the schedule is exposing you to City of Fort Worth water-restriction fines, not them.
Common Lawn Care Job Pricing in Fort Worth
These are typical all-in prices, including labor, materials, Fort Worth-specific permit fees where applicable, and 30-90 day workmanship warranty on installs. Westover Hills, Rivercrest, and the Cultural District sit at the high end of each range; Burleson, Crowley, and the Stockyards at the low end.
| Job | Total cost | Labor hours | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weekly mow, edge, blow (under 0.25 acre) | $35-$70/visit | 0.5-1 | $140-$280/month contract rates; west-side estates $120-$250/visit |
| Bi-weekly mowing contract (HOA tract, Keller or Southlake) | $45-$90/visit | 0.75-1.25 | Common in Trophy Club, Heritage, and Saginaw subdivisions |
| Pre-emergent crabgrass application | $55-$95/application | 1-1.5 | February + September; TDA license required |
| Spring fertilization + weed control | $55-$95/application | 1-1.5 | Typically 4-6 applications/year for St. Augustine and bermuda |
| Bermuda / St. Augustine sod install (10,000 sq ft) | $3,400-$9,800 | 30-65 | Includes prep, sod, first watering; clay-soil amendment adds cost |
| Core aeration + bermuda overseed | $350-$800 | 4-7 | Bermuda spring or fall; broadcast seed plus topdress |
| Fire ant mound treatment program | $75-$140/application | 1-1.5 | Quarterly; bifenthrin or fipronil broadcast; TDA license required |
| Annual full-service contract (typical 0.25 acre) | $1,500-$3,800/yr | 50-100/yr | Mow, fertilize, weed, aeration, fall cleanup, mulch refresh |
| Storm or hail cleanup (limb removal, brush haul) | $500-$3,000 | 4-14 | Emergency rates apply; arborist coordination if protected tree |
Pre-emergent timing deserves a callout. Fort Worth has two windows that matter most: late February (soil temp 55-60°F, prevents summer crabgrass) and mid-September (prevents winter annual weeds like Poa annua and henbit). Missing either window costs you a summer of post-emergent spot treatments at $55-$95 per visit. Crews schedule pre-emergents as standalone applications rather than bundling with mowing, so verify the timing on your contract calendar.
Fall and post-drought St. Augustine recovery deserves another callout. The 2011 and 2023 DFW droughts thinned thousands of established St. Augustine lawns across Arlington Heights, Monticello, and Crestwood. Recovery typically requires partial sod patching ($800-$2,400 for a 1,000 sq ft repair), plug installation, or a transition to bermuda. A crew that pushes immediate full re-sod after one drought summer is often overselling; ask for a soil moisture and root-zone evaluation first.
How to Get and Compare Fort Worth Lawn Care Quotes
Three things separate a useful quote from a useless one in Tarrant County, and they all come down to specificity.
-
Tell the crew the property and grass context. “Fairmount 1925 cottage on 0.18 acres, two mature pecans (one ~24-inch trunk), St. Augustine front lawn with brown patch history, narrow side gate” gets a different number than “Trophy Club 2017 build on flat 0.22 acres, bermuda sod, builder-grade Hunter irrigation, no mature trees.” Crews price the job partly off canopy hand-trim time, grass type, gate access for zero-turn equipment, and TRWD drought-stage scheduling, so generic “I need lawn service” estimates are worth less than a detailed brief with a few photos.
-
Ask for an itemized written estimate that breaks out mowing visits per month, fertilization and weed-control applications per year with product names, pre-emergent timing (February and September), aeration and overseed schedule, fire ant program, fall cleanup visits, and any tree work separately. Verbal monthly flat rates often hide 15-25% markups on bundled scope. Reputable Tarrant County crews email itemized PDFs within 24-72 hours of the site visit.
-
Verify the TDA license for any chemical work. Texas does not license general lawn care, but anyone applying fertilizer, pre-emergent, post-emergent herbicide, fire ant control, or grub treatments needs a Texas Department of Agriculture commercial pesticide applicator license. Pull the license number and verify on the TDA pesticide applicator search. Request a current Certificate of Insurance showing $1M general liability minimum. Door-to-door solicitation after hail events is a common scam pattern across DFW — never pay cash upfront to an unscheduled crew, particularly during the March-June severe-weather season.
How We Calculated These Prices
The Fort Worth lawn care hourly rate of $27-$45 starts with the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics mean hourly wage for landscaping and groundskeeping workers in the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington metropolitan statistical area: $17.60 as of May 2024. We apply a 1.5x-2.5x consumer multiplier covering business overhead, commercial liability insurance, Texas Department of Agriculture pesticide-applicator licensing where applicable, vehicle and equipment costs, employer-paid taxes, and contractor profit margin, calibrated against current market quotes from Tarrant County lawn care crews.
Neighborhood-level adjustments reflect access logistics (mature pecan and live oak canopy on the west side, narrow Fairmount cottage lots, HOA-standardized Keller and Southlake tract subdivisions), grass-palette differences (transition-zone bermuda vs. St. Augustine vs. zoysia), Fort Worth Tree Preservation ordinance overhead inside city limits, and Tarrant Regional Water District drought-stage watering schedules. The full formula and source list lives on our methodology page.
Other Fort Worth Service Costs You Might Need
Lawn care rarely happens in isolation. A spring yard refresh or post-drought sod patch often pulls in 2-3 trades, and getting quotes from all of them at the same time is faster than serial calls.
- Fort Worth landscaper costs — for full design-build scope, hardscape, and Tree Preservation coordination
- Fort Worth tree service costs — for protected pecan and live oak pruning, removal, and Code Sec. 10.7 review
- Fort Worth pressure washing costs — for driveway, patio, and brick walkway refresh during spring cleanup
- Fort Worth handyman costs — for fence repair, gate hardware, and basic deck work
- Fort Worth general contractor costs — for outdoor kitchens and hardscape projects requiring city permits