What does a gardener or landscaper cost per hour in 2026?
A landscaper in the Netherlands usually costs 35 to 65 euros an hour in 2026. On top of that you often pay call-out charges of 50 cents to 1 euro per kilometre. For simple maintenance such as mowing, weeding and raking leaves, garden help from the neighbourhood is a cheaper alternative: count on a guide price of 17 to 25 euros an hour.
What does a gardener or landscaper cost per hour?
The short answer: a landscaper or gardener with their own business usually charges €35 to €65 an hour in 2026. Price comparison site Homedeal gives a wider range of €35 to €75 an hour. According to Offerteadviseur the average is around €47 an hour excluding VAT. Call-out charges often come on top of the hourly rate.
Including 21% VAT you therefore pay €42.35 to €78.65 an hour, about €57 on average. If you hire the landscaper for a whole day, a working day of about 8 hours usually costs €280 to €520 according to Trustoo.
For ordinary maintenance, a neighbour, student or someone else earning extra can also do your garden. For that we use a guide price on KlusjeBij of €17 to €25 an hour. That is an indication, not a fixed rate: you and the helper agree a price together.
Hourly rates side by side
Gardener is not a protected job title. The price difference lies mainly in experience and the size of the business. These are the rates per type:
Gardener hourly rates in 2026
| Who | Per hour | VAT |
|---|---|---|
| Starting self-employed gardener | €35 to €45 | excl. VAT |
| Experienced self-employed gardener | €40 to €55 | excl. VAT |
| Small landscaping company | €45 to €60 | excl. VAT |
| Larger landscaping company | €50 to €65 | excl. VAT |
| Garden help from the neighbourhood | €17 to €25 | guide price, no VAT |
Company rates: Offerteadviseur (February 2026), excluding 21% VAT. Garden help from the neighbourhood: KlusjeBij guide price, not a measured average. A private person charges no VAT.
Price per job: mowing, hedge, clear-up
Many landscapers charge not per hour but per square metre or per metre of hedge. That makes quotes easier to compare. These are the common prices:
Gardener costs per job
| Job | Landscaper | Help from the neighbourhood |
|---|---|---|
| Mowing the lawn | about €0.25 to €0.35 per m² | hourly rate, €17 to €25 an hour |
| Hedge trimming | €3 to €10 per metre (avg. ±€6, incl. VAT) | hourly rate, €17 to €25 an hour |
| Taking clippings away | +€50 to €150 | arrange it yourself or agree it |
| One-off garden clear-up | about €150 to €500 | hourly rate, €17 to €25 an hour |
Sources: Offertevergelijker (mowing), Kostengids (hedge trimming and removal, March 2026), Homedeal (clear-up, rough indication). See the list of sources below.
An example: a 20-metre hedge at an average of €6 per metre costs about €120 including VAT. If you have the clippings taken away, you end up at €170 to €270.
Worked example: 3 hours of garden maintenance
Say your garden needs an afternoon of attention: mowing the lawn, weeding, tidying the borders. About 3 hours of work in total. The landscaper comes from 10 kilometres away, so 20 kilometres there and back.
Landscaper (average rate)
Garden help from the neighbourhood
The difference is well over €120 for the same afternoon of work. On the other hand, a landscaper brings expertise, their own machines and an invoice. For a new garden, pruning large trees or advice on planting, that is worth the money. For mowing and weeding you mostly pay for overhead.
What determines the price?
1. Experience and company size
A starting self-employed gardener is at the bottom of the market, a larger landscaping company at the top. With a larger company you also pay for staff, vans and an office.
2. Call-out charges and distance
According to Trustoo, landscapers often charge €0.50 to €1 per kilometre. For a small one-hour job that weighs heavily. A helper who lives around the corner often charges nothing.
3. Removing garden waste
Taking away clippings and green waste costs extra, €50 to €150 for a hedge. If you have a green waste bin or take it away yourself, that saves money.
4. Condition and size of the garden
A garden that has not been kept up for years takes more hours than a garden with regular maintenance. A one-off clear-up by a company costs about €150 to €500.
5. Machines and tools
A landscaper brings a hedge trimmer, leaf blower and mower. If you hire someone from the neighbourhood, agree whether you supply the tools.
VAT and the rules for local garden help
With a landscaper you pay 21% VAT on the work. The reduced rate of 9% only applies to painting, plastering, wallpapering and insulating homes older than 2 years, and to cleaning homes. Garden work is not one of them. So check whether a quote is including or excluding VAT.
With a private helper the Regeling dienstverlening aan huis applies, the Dutch scheme for services in and around the home. It applies when you as a private person hire someone for work in and around your home, such as garden maintenance, and that person works for you fewer than 4 days a week. How many hours a day does not matter. What you need to know:
- You pay at least the minimum wage for the helper's age, plus 8% holiday pay. For someone aged 21 or older the minimum wage is €14.99 an hour from 1 July 2026. With holiday pay that is about €16.19.
- The helper is entitled each year to paid leave of 4 times the number of hours they work per week.
- If the helper falls ill, you keep paying for up to 6 weeks.
- You withhold no wage tax. The helper declares the money themselves as income from other work in their own Dutch tax return.
- If someone works for you 4 days a week or more, it is an ordinary employment contract with all the employer obligations.
Take care when pruning in spring: disturbing an occupied bird's nest is prohibited by law. So look in the hedge before you start.
How to keep garden maintenance affordable
Separate skilled work from maintenance
Have a landscaper lay out the garden or prune large trees. Someone from the neighbourhood can do the recurring mowing and weeding.
Combine jobs into one visit
Hedge, lawn and borders in one go saves call-out charges and start-up time.
Arrange the waste removal yourself
Use your green waste bin or take clippings away yourself. That quickly saves €50 to €150.
Ask for a fixed price for big jobs
For a full-day clear-up you then know beforehand where you stand.
Compare like with like
One quote gives prices without VAT, another with. Convert everything to the same basis.
Looking for garden help in your own neighbourhood? On KlusjeBij you post a job for free. Replying is free too and we charge no commission. You and the helper agree the price together and pay each other directly, in cash or with a payment request. More on the page gardener in your area.
Frequently asked questions
What does a gardener cost per hour in 2026?
A landscaper (hovenier) usually charges €35 to €65 an hour in 2026. Call-out charges of €0.50 to €1 per kilometre often come on top. Garden help from the neighbourhood, such as a neighbour or student, costs a guide price of €17 to €25 an hour.
What does a self-employed landscaper cost per hour?
According to Offerteadviseur, a starting self-employed gardener charges €35 to €45 an hour excluding VAT, an experienced one €40 to €55. A small landscaping company is at €45 to €60, a larger company at €50 to €65.
What is a landscaper's hourly rate including VAT?
The hourly rates of €35 to €65 are usually excluding VAT. With 21% VAT you pay €42.35 to €78.65 an hour. The average of €47 an hour is about €57 including VAT.
What does a landscaper cost per day?
According to Trustoo, a working day of about 8 hours usually costs €280 to €520. Call-out charges and materials may come on top.
Is 15 euros an hour enough for a gardener?
Not for a landscaper with a business: they charge €35 to €65 an hour. Trustoo mentions €15 to €25 an hour for landscapers working off the books. If you hire a neighbour under the Regeling dienstverlening aan huis (the Dutch scheme for services in and around the home), you pay at least the minimum wage plus 8% holiday pay. For ages 21 and older that is about €16.19 an hour, so €15 is too little. For someone aged 20 the minimum is about €12.95.
How much VAT do you pay on garden maintenance?
You pay 21% VAT on labour in the garden. The reduced rate of 9% only applies to painting, plastering, wallpapering and insulating homes older than 2 years and to cleaning homes. Garden work is not included.
What does hedge trimming cost per metre?
Hedge trimming usually costs €3 to €10 per metre including 21% VAT, about €6 per metre on average. If you want the clippings taken away, add €50 to €150.
How do you find a cheap gardener?
Have simple maintenance such as mowing, weeding and raking leaves done by garden help from the neighbourhood instead of a landscaping company. Combine jobs into one visit so you pay call-out charges only once, and agree a fixed price for bigger jobs.
What is the minimum I must pay a neighbour who does my garden?
Under the scheme for services at home you pay at least the minimum wage for the helper's age, plus 8% holiday pay. For someone aged 21 or older that is €14.99 an hour from 1 July 2026, about €16.19 with holiday pay.
Sources
All sources are in Dutch.
- Homedeal: landscaper prices (December 2025)
- Offerteadviseur: gardener hourly wage (February 2026)
- Trustoo: landscaper costs (October 2026)
- Offertevergelijker: garden maintenance costs (2026)
- Kostengids: hedge trimming (March 2026)
- Belastingdienst (Dutch tax office): 9% VAT on work on homes
- Rijksoverheid: hiring someone for household work
- Belastingdienst: declaring income from household work
- Rijksoverheid: minimum wage amounts 2026
Garden work by city
Looking for garden help nearby?
Post your job for free. Helpers from the neighbourhood reply and you choose. No commission; you agree the price together.