Garden landscaping is designing and building an outdoor space as a whole, combining hard landscaping such as patios, paths, walls and steps with soft landscaping such as lawns, planting and beds, plus drainage and lighting, so the garden works for how you live.
Getting garden landscaping right in Aberdeen starts with understanding the house you already have: its age, how it was built and what has been altered over the years. We survey first, then commit on paper to a price that holds as long as the scope stays the same. Across Scotland, guide prices run at £5,800–£14,500 including VAT, and homes in Nigg, Inverurie and Peterhead are covered too.
- Guide price
- £5,800–£14,500 inc VAT
- Time on site
- 1–4 weeks on site, depending on scope
- Postcodes
- AB10, AB11, AB15, AB16 and AB24
- Planning rules
- Scotland
- Local area
- Aberdeen City
- Survey
- Free, with a written quote
What should you budget for garden landscaping in Aberdeen?
Below is a breakdown of typical costs for garden landscaping in Aberdeen. Because rates in Scotland are about 4% below the national guide, the overall guide comes to £5,800–£14,500, including VAT. Size, materials and access move the figure, and a free-of-charge survey settles it.
| Type of job | What it usually involves | Guide in Aberdeen |
|---|---|---|
| Garden refresh | Clearance, new turf, edging, bark or gravel and some planting. | £1,450–£4,800 |
| Typical garden makeover | A new patio, lawn, borders, paths and planting in a typical rear garden. | £5,800–£14,500 |
| Full redesign | Levels, retaining walls, large patios, lighting and drainage for larger or sloping gardens. | £14,500–£33,500 |
What moves the price up or down:
- Garden size, access and the amount of clearance needed
- Ratio of hard landscaping to lawn and planting
- Levels, slopes, retaining walls and steps
- Materials chosen for paving, walls and features
What do you get?
- Survey of size, levels, soil, drainage and access
- Layout plan agreed with you before work starts
- Groundworks, levelling and drainage
- Raised beds, low walls or sleepers built to the agreed design
- Turf or artificial grass laid on a prepared base
- Planting, bark or gravel finishing and outdoor lighting where included
Homes in Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire
Aberdeen is built largely of grey granite, from tenements and terraces to granite villas in the West End, with post-war council housing and newer estates on the outskirts. Across Aberdeenshire, harled stone cottages, fishing-town terraces in Peterhead and Fraserburgh, and modern developments in commuter towns such as Westhill and Ellon are common.
Granite walls need repointing with a mortar matched to the stone, and slate roofs often want attention after hard winters. Harled cottages need breathable finishes, while newer estates commonly add extensions, garage conversions and driveways.
None of this holds for every street in Aberdeen, which is why we look at your actual house before pricing garden landscaping rather than assuming from its age alone.
Do you need permission in Aberdeen?
Homes in Aberdeen come under the regulations for Scotland, summarised below. We don't rely on general rules alone: we confirm the position for your address with the council before a quote goes out.
Most garden landscaping in Scotland needs no planning permission; protected trees and trees in conservation areas need the council’s consent or notice.
A building warrant is rarely needed for landscaping.
Rules change and every property is different, so we check the planning history and constraints for your address before we quote.
What happens after you get in touch?
Survey and measure
It starts with a survey at the property, free of charge. We check condition, access and services, ask how you want the finished result to look, and answer any questions you have about garden landscaping.
Your fixed price
After the survey we send a quote for garden landscaping that fixes the price for the scope we've agreed. If you want to change materials or scope, we revise it in writing before anything is booked.
Booking the work
Before anyone starts, we confirm the programme in writing, check whether consents are required and arrange deliveries. If a skip or scaffolding on the road needs a permit, we apply for it.
On site to finish
Work goes ahead as scheduled and you deal with one contact throughout. When the last trade leaves, we clear and clean the site, talk you through what has been done and pass on any certificates and care instructions.
What you can expect from us
Garden landscaping in Aberdeen: questions
What can be done about a waterlogged garden?
A waterlogged garden is usually caused by heavy clay soil, compacted ground or water running off from hard surfaces. Solutions include French drains, soakaways, improving soil with organic matter, and making new paving permeable or directing its run-off to drains. Raised beds help plants in wet areas. We look at the cause during the survey and include drainage in the design.
How much does garden landscaping cost?
Landscaping a typical 50–60m² rear garden with a patio, lawn, borders and planting costs £5,800–£14,500. As a guide, allow roughly £90–£220 per square metre of garden plus fixed costs for clearance and set-up, with gardens that are mostly lawn and planting at the lower end and those with large patios, walls and lighting at the top. Slopes and poor access add cost. We confirm a fixed price after the survey.
How long does a garden makeover take?
A typical garden makeover takes around one to four weeks on site, depending on size and scope. Clearance and groundworks come first, then drainage, patios, paths and walls, followed by turf and planting. Larger or sloping gardens with retaining walls take longer. Weather can affect timings, especially for groundworks and laying turf. We give you a programme with your quote.
Do you cover Nigg, Inverurie and Peterhead?
Yes. As well as Aberdeen, we cover Nigg, Inverurie and Peterhead and the rest of Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire. Our coverage is UK-wide, so the process is the same wherever you are: a free site survey, a quote in writing that fixes the price for the agreed scope, and one point of contact while the work is planned and carried out.
How long will garden landscaping take?
On a typical home, allow 1–4 weeks on site, depending on scope. Larger projects, older buildings and extra work found once things are opened up can extend that, while simpler jobs may be shorter. Your quote includes an estimate of time on site, and your point of contact keeps you updated on the programme as the work progresses.
Near Aberdeen
We cover every part of Aberdeen, including AB10, AB11, AB15 and AB16, and nearby Nigg, Inverurie and Peterhead. Wherever you are within that patch, the survey is free and the quote comes to you in writing.