This is a bit like asking, “How long is the price of string?” The answer is it depends! The cost of cutting down a tree depends on many factors, such as the tree’s height, breadth, access to the tree, and obstacles around the tree, such as fences, houses, branches near power lines, garden beds, etc. 

It costs between $950 and $3,620 to cut down a tree, with the average price for tree cutting being $1,930 so far this year.

To be more accurate, we would need to look at the small, medium, large and extra-large trees and their cost to cut.

National Average$1,930
Low Estimate$950
High Estimate$3,720
Real average range$725 - $10,900

We actually have pages dedicated to prices for tree removal, palm removal, tree pruning and the cost of Arborists.

Select the cost guide that best suits your needs.

Tree removal cost guide
Tree pruning cost guide
Palm tree removal cost guide
Arborist cost guide
Stump grinding cost
Tree removal by location

The important thing to remember is that just because a 6m tree will cost $850 to cut down doesn’t mean a 12m tree is going to cost $1,700. It doesn’t work that way.

Let’s take a look at the examples below.

Besides the fact one of these is a palm tree, these two trees are the same height, they are very different in the volume of the tree that needs to be removed as well as the difficulty to remove. 

tree removal price by height

Cost to cut down trees by tree type

Pine trees

The cost to cut down a pine tree will depend on the type of pine. There are 3 x popular types of pine trees. Cypress/Conifer will cost $350 – $1,500, and a Norfolk Island pine will cost more to remove because of its size, so $2,200 – $4,500. And a Radiata pine will cost $1,700 – $3,120 to cut down.

Palm trees

Palm trees cost to remove also varies in size. You have the biggest of the lot a Canary Island Date palm which will cost an average of $2,900 to remove, but a standard Cocos palm will cost $450 – $500 to cut down and take away.

Gum trees

Gum trees come in all shapes and sizes, and because of their erratic growth, it can be difficult to price, but you can expect to pay $900 – $8,500 depending on its size and difficulty of access.

Large tree

So how large is large? I consider a large tree anything over 3 stories high so 15m (45ft) plus. Any type of tree that is large to extra-large will have a cost starting at $1,350 and go right up to $10,700 depending on access and difficulty to remove.

Small tree

To be considered a tree and not a bush, I think it should be at least 5m (15ft) high. So starting from that minimal point you will pay $350 – $650 to have a small tree cut down and taken away.

Dead trees

Dead trees are a different animal to work with because dead trees are a lot more difficult and dangerous to cut down than a regular live tree. The reason is the timber is a lot harder to cut through, and it is a lot less stable to work with. That being said, you can expect to pay $600 – $5,400 to remove a dead tree.

Generally, you can add 20% to the cost to cut down any live tree of the same height.

FEATURED AND TRUSTED BY:
Tree Size LowHigh
Small$350$650
Large$1,350$10,700
Dead$600$5,400
Pine trees$1,700$3,120
Connifers$350$1,500
Palm trees$450$2,900
Gum trees$900$8,500
Oak trees$900$1,800

Fallen trees

A fallen tree is a different animal. It is really easy to work on and probably halve the price from when it was standing.

Why is there such a large price difference?

When taking down a tree while it is standing, the tree must be climbed by a highly trained tree surgeon and taken down piece by piece.

When it’s already on the ground, however, it’s all hands on deck to simply cut it up and remove it.

Debris removal

In most cases, you will find that this cost is included in the quoted price for “tree removal”. So cutting the tree down and taking it away. That being said, the most work in tree removal is not just cutting it down, but the actual removal of the waste.

As a general rule of thumb, the removal of tree waste makes up about half the cost.

Is it worth removing the waste yourself?

Sometimes it can be beneficial. If the tree is in a particularly hard to get to the spot, imagine a tree in a backyard, with a steep slope, with no access for heavy equipment, it might be worth not paying a tree company to remove the waste.

If you can sell the timber online for firewood, let the buyer do the grunt work, or if you are feeling generous, give the firewood away for free to whoever removes the timber.

removal of tree waste

Free tree removal for firewood

We get a lot of requests for free tree removal, but in general, it is not worth it for the tree professional.

Firewood can be sold for about $120 per cubic meter. In a large tree (7-15m high) you might expect to get about 3-6 cubic meters of firewood.

That’s after the tree has been removed, timber dried for 2 years, and then split and delivered.

It’s just not worth it for the tree companies. They see the firewood as a bonus for themselves which pays for space they own or rent to store, dry, split, and sell the timber.

You won’t find any tree services too keen to give concessions because of the amount of firewood.

FAQ's

You should always get at least 3 quotes from local tree services before deciding on one. Prices can vary greatly (between 10% and 40%) between tree services, so it always pays to shop around before going ahead.

Yes. There are a couple of reasons for this. The deciduous trees are a little easier to work on as they do not have any leaves. They are lighter and there is less clean-up at the end. The biggest reason though is there is a lot less demand for tree services in winter. With an over-supply of companies and a low demand, tree companies will bid lower and lower prices to win the work. This put you in a pole position to get some great quotes on your tree job.

You can try, but in most cases, the tree service will need to come out and view the job first. Every tree is different and so is the difficulty or ease to remove. A tree contractor will need to take into consideration not only the tree itself but also the access, location on the property, and obstacles around the tree. This is impossible to quote from a photo or a description over the phone.

Generally, the answer is no. If the tree has fallen in a storm, your homeowner’s insurance will cover it, but if it is healthy and you just want it removed, you are going to be hard-pressed to find someone willing to work for free. Tree service companies are expensive to run as they have large overheads with insurance and labor costs. They will need to charge you to do the work to make a living.

This will depend on the council laws on tree removal in your area. Every local council has what’s called a Tree Preservation Order. This outlines the rules regarding tree removal. An example of a rule might be; “If the tree has a trunk circumference of 1.0m or more when measured at 1m above ground level will need a permit for removal.” To see the TPO for your area go here.

ben
Author: Ben McInerney is a qualified arborist with over 15 years of industry experience. He uses his in-depth knowledge of the tree service industry to give readers to most accurate information on tree service costs and helps to educate them about the benefits of using a certified arborist for tree trimming and removal work.