How much should I charge to grind a stump? Free bid calculator

What does this stump job really cost you, and what should you bid?

List the stump diameters on the site. The calculator estimates the wood to grind, cutting time at your grinder's real speed, setup and drive, then prices the job for your overhead and target margin, with a price for each stump, your minimum charge, and a check on your per-inch quote.

Planning arithmetic on your own numbers and stated assumptions.

1. The stumps

Stump diameters in inches, separated by commas. Write 30x3 for three 30-inch stumps.

Wood and conditions

Stump height above ground (in)

Grind depth below grade (in)

Surface roots to grind, extra volume (%)

2. Your machine and time on site

Wood your grinder removes (cubic inches per minute, real-world)

Minutes to position and set up at each stump

Minutes to rake, backfill and clean each stump

Minutes to unload, walk the site and load up (per job)

Round-trip drive time (minutes)

Machine cost per cutting hour: fuel, teeth, repairs, depreciation ($)

3. Crew, truck and pricing

People on the crew

Loaded cost per person-hour ($)

Round-trip miles

Truck and trailer cost per mile ($)

Overhead: insurance, admin, ads (% of price)

Profit margin you want (% of price)

Minimum charge per visit ($)

Your usual quote per inch of diameter ($)

Questions people ask

How do I price a stump grinding job?

Estimate the wood to remove: stump face area times depth below grade plus the height above it, with an allowance for surface roots. Divide by how fast your grinder cuts, scale for hardness, add setup, drive time and per-stump repositioning and cleanup, then cost the crew, machine and truck and divide by one minus overhead and margin. The calculator does that and applies your minimum charge.

Should I charge per inch of diameter?

Per-inch pricing is a fair shortcut, but wood removed grows with the square of the diameter and setup is a fixed cost, so a flat rate underprices big stumps and tiny jobs. The quote check compares your per-inch rate to the price the cost build-up needs.

Why does grinding several stumps on one visit cost less each?

Setup, loading and the drive are paid once per trip. The bundling table shows the price per stump falling as more stumps share a visit.

Is this business, tax or insurance advice?

No. It is arithmetic on the numbers you type in. Utility locates, liability insurance, licensing and tax are out of scope; call 811 before you dig or grind.

Not decided

Whether the customer will pay the price, utility locates (call 811 before grinding), liability and equipment insurance, licensing, disposal of chips, how deep or wide roots really run on site, equipment replacement beyond the machine cost per hour you enter, and tax treatment of your income. Grinder speed varies enormously by machine, teeth condition and wood; the defaults are placeholders, not forecasts.

Other outdoor jobs: the tree service bid calculator, the lawn care bid calculator and the sod install bid calculator.