Should I bid land clearing by the acre or by the hour?

Bid by the acre or a fixed price when you have walked the site and the ground is even. Bid by the hour or the day when the ground is unknown or the customer keeps adding work. Many contractors work out the price from hours and then present it as a fixed number.

How do I bid forestry mulching jobs?

The same way: acres, density, slope, access and finish. Mulching leaves the material on site, so there is usually no hauling, but thick growth and large trunks slow the machine and wear teeth faster. Price for the slowest section, not the average.

What should a land clearing bid include in writing?

The area to be cleared, what will be removed and what will stay, how stumps and debris are handled, the price and payment terms, the expected dates, and what is excluded, such as rock, hidden debris or permits.

How to bid land clearing jobs

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A bid is your cost to do the job, plus profit, written down clearly. Most money is lost on bids that guessed the time or left something out. Here is a method that covers both.

By High Flow Marketing, which runs marketing and operations for Brush Masters Co. Last reviewed November 2026.

How do you bid a land clearing job?

To bid a land clearing job, measure the area, then check how thick the growth is, the slope, the access, and what must happen to the debris. Estimate the machine time, multiply it by your true hourly cost, and add mobilization, disposal and profit. Put the scope and the exclusions in writing. Brush Masters Co in western North Carolina quotes most forestry mulching at $1,500 to $3,500 per acre.

Step by step

1. Measure the area

Use the county parcel map or an aerial photo to measure the acres to be cleared. The customer's guess is often well off.

2. Look at what is growing

Light brush, thick saplings and mature timber are three different jobs. Note the largest trunk size you will have to deal with, and whether the customer wants any trees kept.

3. Check slope, ground and access

Steep ground, wet ground and rock all slow a machine down. Check that your trailer can get in and turn around, and look for fences, wells, septic fields and power lines.

4. Agree what happens to the debris

Mulched in place, piled, burned or hauled off are very different amounts of work. Stumps are the same: left, ground down, or pulled.

5. Know your true hourly cost

Add up the machine payment or replacement cost, fuel, teeth and wear parts, maintenance, insurance, the truck and trailer, and labor. Divide by the hours you actually bill in a year, not the hours you own the machine.

6. Estimate the time, then add what people forget

Multiply the hours by your hourly cost. Then add mobilization, disposal or dump fees, any permits, and a margin for profit. Mobilization hurts most on small jobs, so set a minimum charge.

7. Write it down

State the area, what will be removed, what will be left, how stumps and debris are handled, the price, the payment terms, and what is not included. A marked-up aerial photo prevents most arguments.

Per acre, per day or per hour

Method	Works well for	Watch out for
Per acre	Open, even ground where you can see everything	Thick or steep sections that take three times as long
Per day or half day	Jobs where the customer has a budget and a wish list	The customer expecting the whole list to be finished
Per hour	Unknown ground and add-on work	Customers who dislike an open-ended price
Fixed price	Clear scope that you have walked yourself	Anything you did not see before you priced it

What we do at Brush Masters

Brush Masters Co quotes most forestry mulching at $1,500 to $3,500 per acre, depending on how thick the growth is and how the land lies. That range is for western North Carolina. Your number depends on your costs and your market.

The website has a map where a customer outlines the area they want cleared on an aerial photo. It measures the acres and reads the slope, and shows a price range. Ground steeper than 25% is flagged, and that part gets looked at in person before anyone commits to a price.

Giving a range up front means the people who book an estimate already know roughly what it costs.

Common ways bids go wrong

Pricing from photos the customer sent, without seeing the back half of the lot.
Forgetting travel and loading time on a small job.
Not saying in writing whether stumps are included.
Using an hourly cost that leaves out wear parts and repairs.
Dropping the price to win, then rushing the job.

Questions

How much should I charge to clear 1 acre?: It depends on the growth, the slope, the access and your own costs. As one real reference point, Brush Masters Co in western North Carolina quotes most forestry mulching at $1,500 to $3,500 per acre. Heavy timber, stump removal and hauling cost more.
Should I bid land clearing by the acre or by the hour?: Bid by the acre or a fixed price when you have walked the site and the ground is even. Bid by the hour or the day when the ground is unknown or the customer keeps adding work. Many contractors work out the price from hours and then present it as a fixed number.
How do I bid forestry mulching jobs?: The same way: acres, density, slope, access and finish. Mulching leaves the material on site, so there is usually no hauling, but thick growth and large trunks slow the machine and wear teeth faster. Price for the slowest section, not the average.
What should a land clearing bid include in writing?: The area to be cleared, what will be removed and what will stay, how stumps and debris are handled, the price and payment terms, the expected dates, and what is excluded, such as rock, hidden debris or permits.

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