Artificial Grass Installation Cost

How Much Is Artificial Grass?

So, how much will it cost to install artificial grass in your garden?

The price for a small garden (measuring approximately 12m by 3m) with basic turf is around £400. The same size with premium grass will push the cost closer to £1,500.

Average costs vary depending on the size of your garden and the type of grass chosen to install. If you live in or near the capital, bear in mind that costs in London and South East England will usually be higher due to labour costs and additional delivery charges.

What's the best time of year for artificial grass installation?

The beauty of fake grass is that it doesn't rely on ideal growing conditions like laying real turf does. Because of this, you can effectively lay artificial grass at any time.

For best results, you should choose a time when the ground isn't waterlogged, frozen, or bone dry. Artificial grass installers experience peak demand in the summer months, so for best availability and price, you should look to book in during the shoulder seasons of spring and autumn.

What's the best type of fake grass?

There's no best type of artificial lawn - but homeowners tend to prefer a turf that's:

• High-density (to look fuller)
• Mid-length pile height (to maintain a realistic height)
• A mix of greens and light browns in colour (to ensure realism)

Prices of Artificial Grass

Let's move on to look at some artificial grass prices based on your garden size to give you a grounded cost estimate for your project.

What about costs for an average-sized garden?

Basic Artificial Grass Price

Best For? If you're a fixed-budget, basic quality artificial grass is the cheapest and most cost-effective choice.

How Much? As low as £5 per m², increasing to £10 per m².

For a standard small garden measuring around 40m², with fitting, the material alone will cost around £200 to £400, and once labour costs were included would amount to around £300 to £500, and will take around 1 day to install.

Medium Quality Artificial Grass Price

Best For? Homeowners looking for a mix of realism and cost-effectiveness.

How Much? Begins at around £10 per m² and increases to £20 per m².

For a standard UK garden measuring 70m², including fitting, would cost around £700 to £1,400 for the materials, and increase to around £900 to £1,600 with labour costs.

The average time for this type of installation will usually take around 2 days to complete.

Premium Quality Artificial Grass Price

Best For? Those looking for a long-lasting fake grass with a realistic look and feel.

How Much? Premium artificial grass prices (not including installation) range from around £25 to £45 per m².

With an extremely realistic look and feel and nearly zero of the downside real grass comes with, premium quality is the recommended choice for a great-looking and long-lasting alternative to real grass.

Laying premium artificial grass in a standard medium-sized garden (70m²), the material alone will cost around £2,000 to £2,800, and once the cost of fitting is added, would usually be £2,500 to £3,200. The average time for the installation will usually take around 2 days.

Elite Quality Artificial Grass Price

Best For? Homeowners wanting the highest level of realism, appearance, and feel.

How Much? Prices often begin at around £50 per m².

Elite quality grass is often confused with real grass and can only be identified as artificial, even by the sharpest eyes.

There is a wide range of different styles within the elite bracket, with almost every species of real grass having an artificial version available.

The material costs alone for an average size (70m²) garden will cost around £3,500 to £7,000, and once fitting costs are included, will usually increase to around £3,800 to £7,300. The average time for the installation will, like most of the other styles, usually take around 2 days to complete.

With all the costs included, the two biggest factors that will affect the cost are the number of square meters and the quality of the finish. Let's take a look at the table below to compare these scenarios:

Small Garden (40m²) Artificial Grass Costs

Medium-Sized (70m²) Garden Artificial Grass Costs

Large Garden (150m²) Artificial Grass Costs

Calculate Artificial Grass Installation Cost

Looking for a bespoke fake grass installation cost?

Check out our artificial grass cost calculator to find out how much it costs to lay fake grass in your specific circumstances.

How Much Does Artificial Grass Cost? (Supply Only)

The supply cost for laying artificial grass in a garden will vary slightly depending on your choice of grass style.

Beyond the obvious grass layer, the fixture method, weed membrane, bottom layer, and any specialist care equipment can also affect the price.

Artificial Grass Cost Per M²

The layer of artificial grass itself is obviously the most important material to purchase for the project. Depending on the style chosen to lay, this can be formed from three main materials: nylon, polypropylene, and polyethylene.

Nylon Artificial Grass Cost

Nylon is often chosen for its superior strength and resilience, making it perfect for high-impact and abrasive sporting pitches.

The price of nylon grass usually begins at around £10 per m² and can increase to around £40 per m².

Due to the complicated process and expensive base materials, out of the three materials, nylon has the highest initial cost when used for artificial grass. Nylon grass is, therefore, often used solely in high-traffic, high-wear environments such as commercial applications.

Polypropylene Artificial Grass Cost

With a moderate to high level of toughness and abrasion resistance, polypropylene has become a popular material in the production of budget-friendly artificial grass.

The prices of polypropylene grass begin around £10 per m² and increase to around £30 per m², depending on the thickness of the grass, lengths of strands, and underlay used in its construction.

However, this cost-effective option can have a lack of realism due to its reflective and polished finish, which can also make it potentially slippery while in wet conditions.

Polyethylene Artificial Grass Cost

Polyethylene is more expensive than polypropylene, however, is often well-balanced in termss of softness and abrasion-resistant strength. Seen as a good "all-rounder" it has grown in popularity within the artificial grass marketplace.

Beginning at around £20 per m² for average quality grass and increasing to £50 per m² for the most realistic varieties, polyethene is quickly becoming the gold standard for artificial grass.

Underlay Material Cost

Sand

When laying artificial turf in a garden, if the ground is now level and flat, it may require the addition of a sand layer. On average, a medium-sized garden (70m²) will take around one ton of sand to cover with a few inches of layer height.

Sand is not a very expensive material, so affordable builder’s grade sand will only cost around £50 per ton.

Weed Membrane

In order to keep the artificial grass area weed-free and therefore reduce the amount of maintenance required to keep it looking clean, tidy, and new, a weed membrane is nearly always required.

These will begin at around £12 per m² for a quality, long-lasting, and resilient variety; however, more cost-effective, budget-friendly versions are available beginning at around £5 per m². These membranes are laid below the artificial grass and are usually the second action performed after the space is dug out and levelled.

Joining/Fixing Materials Cost

Joining Tape

Due to the fact that artificial grass comes in rolls, it is often required to use joining tape to fix the edges together and create a seamless area. Self-adhesive joining tape is the simplest way to bond the two edges of artificial grass strips without the need for additional glue.

The price of joining tapes usually begin at around £1.20 per metre, and can increase to around £20 for a 5m roll of high-quality tape.

Two-Part Bonding Adhesive

Grass Adhesive is sold as a two-part adhesive system designed for bonding artificial grass backing directly to any stable subfloor. This is often only used when laying artificial grass on a solid floor, such as concrete.

Costing around £50 per 10kg tub, this would provide enough glue to cover a medium-sized garden at around 70m².

Galvanised Steel U-pins

At 16cm long, steel U-pins are the most common method used for securing artificial grass to soft surfaces, such as dirt, gravel, or sand. It is standard practice to attach 1 pin to every 0.5m² of grass.

Pins are often supplied in packs of 10, and prices begin at £5 per pack. Therefore, for a medium garden measuring 70m², you will require around 20 packs, costing you £100.

Labour Costs for Laying Artificial Grass

Laying artificial grass would often be undertaken by a single landscape gardener. However, a carpet fitter could be considered for the job, as the skills are often transferable.

One of the most important factors to consider when deciding to install artificial grass is the time it takes to complete the job. The longer the installation takes, the more you’ll pay in labour.

The following provides estimated installation times by garden size:

• Small garden (40m²) — 1 to 2 days
• Medium garden (70m²) — 2 to 3 days
• Large garden (150m²) — 4 to 5 days

The following rates are based on the average tradesmen cost for a job estimated to take between 1 to 4 days to complete.

What Impacts Artificial Grass Installation Costs?

There are several factors that can impact the installation cost of laying artificial grass. As well as your location and the fees charged by your chosen company or independent labourer, you should also consider the following.

Labour and Material Costs

The cost of labour usually takes the largest chunk out of your building budget. However, the cost of artificial grass will vastly outweigh any other costs during the project.

Additional materials such as adhesives, membranes, sand, and fixture pins will often only take up a fraction of the budget in comparison. The grass material easily surpasses the price of labour when higher quality styles are selected for the installation.

Quality of the final appearance greatly factors into the final cost of an artificial lawn. For a medium garden (70m²) with a full lawn completed, if basic quality non-realistic grass is used, costs will begin at around £800 to £900.

However, for the same property, yet with premium quality grass with a realistic finish (such as Amalfi grass at £26 per m²), it would increase the price to around £2,000.

Waste Disposal and Skip Hire

Another cost to account for is the disposal of waste after completing the installation. Waste disposal will usually consist of simply hiring a skip.

Skip hire costs around £200 to £250 for a single skip hired for a week, although this can be higher in areas such as London and the South East. Included in the price of the hire is usually the cost of collection and disposal of the waste, although there may be an additional fee of £15 to £60 if you require a permit from your local council.

Garden Clearance and Preparation

Finally, if your property has a garden in an extremely poor state or wildly overgrown, it will need to be cleared before the new lawn can be laid. This will create a demand for landscape gardeners at a considerable cost.

It is therefore common for people planning to install an artificial grass area to first clear the garden themselves. This will usually involve simply pulling and cutting back any plants, digging out any shrubs or bushes, and removing any existing grass lawns.

If a professional is required, this will often cost around £150 per day (or more if skip hire is also needed) and, depending on the level of work and size of the garden, can take up to 3 days to complete.

What Type of Artificial Grass Should I Use?

There are three main types of artificial grass materials on the market today. Each type has its own advantages and disadvantages. For example, the nylon types are more suited to commercial use, and the other two (polypropylene and polyethene) are designed with more of the residential market in mind.

Recommended Usage

Additional Artificial Grass Installation Costs

Gardener Cost

While installing artificial grass doesn't require as much regular maintenance as real turf, you may still need to look into hiring a gardener if you intend to keep the rest of your outside space looking good.

Gardeners tend to charge around £14 to £25 per hour, depending on experience, or they may quote for a one-off job if you need to have some initial gardening work carried out before laying the new artificial grass.

Landscaping Cost

After an artificial lawn has been completed, it may be a good idea to hire a landscaper to redo the rest of the external area of your property. From flowerbeds to fences and general borders, a landscaper can help assist in designing the perfect look for your garden.

The cost of garden landscaping is around £110 to £180 per day for an experienced specialist.

However, if you have already hired the landscaper to lay the fake grass, you may be able to arrange a discounted service in order to complete any further work required outside.

New Garden Fence Cost

If you want to improve your garden's security, adding a new garden fence is a great option.

The average cost of replacing a garden fence is around £1,500, depending on the size of your property.

Higher prices for premium materials, such as metal, cost more but can look very sleek and modern alongside an artificial lawn.

New Garden Wall Cost

Perhaps you'd like something more long-lasting than a garden fence that will stand the test of time against harsh winds? If so, ensure your new garden wall is in place before having the new artificial grass installed.

Building a garden brick wall costs on average around £1,000 and can be installed in around 3 days, again depending on the size of your garden.

New Patio Cost

If installing artificial grass is part of a larger garden overhaul, why not consider adding an area of patio so you can sit back and relax in the summer sun?

New patio installation costs £1,200, taking around 2 days to be complete.

You can choose from concrete for durability, stone for a natural-looking aesthetic, or even gravel for a cheap and easy option.

What's Involved in Laying Artificial Grass?

Before the Job Starts

• Removing Existing Turf and Plants - Remove all the existing turf (if there is any) from the chosen site of your new lawn. If a soft layer has been chosen, then a layer of levelling sand should be laid, and a weed membrane fitted to the area.
• Preparing the Base Layer for Installation - If a hard surface is chosen, the cement, gravel or sand should be laid and then compacted with a whacker-plate.

During the Job

• Laying the Artificial Grass - The fake grass will then be installed, using precise and clean cutting strokes to ensure a crisp edge, laying each roll in the same direction to create an even finish.
• Joining the Edges - The edges will be joined using turf joining tape or two-part adhesive bonding glue.
• Adding Sand as an Infill - After the layer of artificial turf has been laid, a layer of sand will be spread over the top to create an "infill". Brushing the finished lawn will also help in "fluffing" the blades of grass up and creating a more natural and full-looking result.

After the Job

• Enjoying Your New Lawn - The final step of having your new garden lawn laid is to actually enjoy it. Whether walking, running, playing a lawn-based game with the family, or just lying out in the sun, you should not forget to enjoy the new installation you have taken the time and money to have fitted.

What Are the Benefits of Artificial Grass?

Green, lush, and uniform lawns are often the first image which comes to mind when dreaming of how you wish your garden to look. The perfect garden grass is so desirable that neighbours commonly compare other lawns to see who has the best-looking garden.

From mowing, trimming and weeding, to aerating, fertilising, and cleaning, having a beautiful lawn will more often than not create the homeowner a lot of work.

To reduce this workload and increase the time available to enjoy their lawns, it has become increasingly common for homeowners to turn to artificial lawns.

So, what makes an artificial lawn so appealing? Why is it worth the initial high price?

• No Need to Water - Real grass needs watering, especially in dry months—sometimes twice a day, whereas artificial grass only needs occasional cleaning with a hose.
• No Need to Cut/Mow - Artificial grass doesn’t grow, eliminating the need to mow or the requirement of buying and maintaining a lawnmower.
• No Need to Pull Weeds - Real lawns attract common weeds like daisies and dandelions. Artificial grass prevents weed growth and requires minimal weeding.
• No Need for Chemicals - Fake grass doesn’t need fertilisers or pesticides, this saves money and promotes a safer, eco-friendly garden environment.
• Looks Great All Year Round - Stays green and attractive in all seasons, regardless of weather, with modern artificial grass looking very realistic compared to a genuine lawn.

Artificial Grass Alternatives

There are obvious alternatives to using artificial grass, the first being real grass. However, there are also options such as decking, gravel, concrete, and patio paving.

Each option will have its various costs associated with it, along with pros and cons for each choice.

Patio Laying Cost

Having a part of your garden as a patio area is extremely common in the UK. However, having a medium or larger garden entirely covered with a patio can make the space look unwelcoming and uncomfortable.

The cost of laying a patio that covers an entire medium garden (70m²) with paving will often exceed £3,000. This is due in part to the paving material being an expensive option and also often requiring a professional tradesman (such as a landscaper) to install the patio over several days.

Pros

• ✔ Hardwearing nature
• ✔ Long-lasting weather-resistant finish

Cons

• ✖ Expensive costs for installation and materials
• ✖ Lack of flexibility in the final design

Decking Cost

Decking is a plank covering often used in a garden within an elevated area. Consisting of a wooden frame with laid planks attached to form a consistent covering, decking is usually finished with paint or wood stain or made out of composite.

Decking costs between at around £200 per 10m² area.

Pros

• ✔ Cost-effective option
• ✔ Many different styles and materials available

Cons

• ✖ Complexity of construction
• ✖ Maintenance required to keep it looking clean and tidy

Gravel

Gravel is a small to medium coarse stone infill, which is extremely common for driveways. Costing around £60 to £85 per ton, it is by far the cheapest option for any outside space covering.

Pros

• ✔ Simplistic maintenance required
• ✔ Ease of installation

Cons

• ✖ Lack of aesthetic appeal with the finished product
• ✖ Over time, the stones can be misplaced

Maintaining and Repairing Artificial Grass

If you like the idea of having a beautifully lush and green lawn with little worry about how to look after it, then an artificial lawn is often the best option. You don't have to worry about changes in the weather, insects and pests infesting your garden, and even bold spots appearing due to pet usage.

Maintenance

There is no need to water an artificial lawn, cut it, or spend vast amounts of money on weed killers and pest control.

To keep your artificial lawn in perfect tip-top condition, all you need to do is simply run a small amount of water through it once per week to remove any unwanted dirt, and occasionally sweep it with a stiff bristled broom (costing around £7) in order to fluff it up, if it should require it.

Repairs

Even though fake grass lawns are extremely durable and not easily damaged, it is actually possible for the lawn to be damaged in a few ways. However, the good news is that it is often a very easy solution to repair the damage and return the lawn to its former glory.

Flattened Grass

Over time and with constant high-traffic use, most (if not all) types of grass, both artificial and real, can become flattened and sorry-looking.

Thankfully, when dealing with artificial turf, the solution is quite simple: to brush the fibres with a broom. This will, in turn, fluff the grass blades back into their original positions and return the grass to looking fluffy, lush, and beautiful again.

Loose Sections

Sections becoming loose or moving under usage are often caused by incorrectly fitted grass. To solve this problem, simply lift the movable pieces, rejoin the seams, and re-pin or bond the patches to the surface.

Patching and Replacing Ripped or Damaged Sections

Sharp objects, excessive heat, and harsh chemicals can all damage your newly installed artificial lawn. If a section (or patch) is damaged, these areas can be fixed by replacing the damaged turf with new turf using glue or tape to join the pieces together.

The important consideration with this style of repair is to find the correctly matching replacement piece of turf to your existing style of turf on your property. This is why it is often good practice to keep off-cuts when installing an artificial lawn and even order a little extra for future repairs.

Cost of Artificial Grass Removal

There can be various reasons to want to remove your artificial lawn - maybe it needs replacing with a brand-new, different style of grass, maybe you wish to go back to real grass, or maybe you have decided to patio the area.

Regardless of the reason for removal, taking up your "AstroTurf" lawn can be a difficult process if not done properly.

When removing your turf, you should try to find the seams. This can be difficult as, when laid properly, these joins can blend perfectly together. If you are unable to find the seams, do not worry, just locate one of the corners and begin there.

The first thing to do is take a sharp Stanley knife and cut a hand-sized hole by the edge of a seam or corner to provide you with a place to grip. Once the initial cut has been made, slice the turf along its full length, being careful to cut through the entire depth of the sheet.

Next, you will need to cut along the widths of the slices, creating manageable-sized squares, which can then be easily pulled up with a little force. If the lawn was bonded with a two-part glue to a hard surface, this may prove harder to remove than if pinned to soft ground.

If you do not wish to undertake this job yourself, however, then you may want to hire a landscaper, or even the original installer, to remove it for you. Removal of artificial lawns should take around the same length of time as it took to install.

Therefore, the cost for labour will be around the same as you originally paid (if you use the same contractor). A good rule of thumb is that it will take, on average, 1 day per 50m² of lawn removed. As a result, for an average 70m² garden, it will take approximately 2 days to complete and cost £200 to £300 in labour.

Whether you hire a tradesman or decide on the DIY route, you will more than likely need to worry about waste disposal. The disposal of any waste created during the removal process can usually be discarded into a skip. Skip hire will usually cost around £200 to £250 for a single skip, hired for a week, with pick-up and disposal.

Depending on the size of the lawn being removed, this may not be large enough for a larger garden lawn measuring over 150m², and you may need to either hire a second skip, a larger skip, or even just have the original emptied when filled, then returned (average £50 each time).

Checklist: Hiring an Artificial Grass Installer

Time to find a local landscaper? Here's what you should bear in mind:

• Do they have relevant qualifications? – Depending on if you are choosing to hire a landscaper, there are a few forms of qualifications to look for in the form of CSCS certification, City and Guild levels, or even college gained qualifications such as HNCs.
• Do they provide their own equipment? - If they need to hire tools, such as a whacker-plate, power brush, etc, this will increase the price and have to come off of your budget.
• Do they have relevant insurance? – The most important consideration when hiring any tradesman is the insurance. Make sure they possess, at least, third-party liability, which covers work undertaken. At best, you want to find a tradesman, which has personal injury, property damage, and work guarantee cover.
• What's their past experience like with laying artificial grass? – If they have references from previous clients, photos, or a portfolio of their work, it will prove they are proud of the level of skill they can provide.
• Are there guarantees or warranties offered? – Most will offer in some form or another to make sure you are happy with the job before they finish. However, it can be worth looking for a tradesman who offers a 5-year guarantee or greater. Then, if any problems arise in the future due to any faults in the installation process, you are covered, and they will fix their mistakes at no expense to you.

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