Are these landscaping calculators free?

Yes. Every tool runs in your browser, shows its arithmetic and asks for no email. Nothing you type is stored.

Why do the cost tools start at $0?

HyreYard holds no dataset of landscaping prices, so a default would be a number with nothing behind it. Type the rates from your bids and the tools do the arithmetic.

How much mulch should I put down?

Penn State Extension gives 2 to 4 inches of organic mulch, and 1 to 2 inches for fine or double-shredded mulch. The mulch calculator turns that into cubic yards.

How deep should a patio base be?

ICPI Tech Spec 2 gives 4 inches of compacted base under a patio and 6 inches under a residential driveway, on well-drained soil. More on wet or weak soil in cold climates.

Do I need a permit for a fence, wall or patio?

Sometimes. The model code exempts fences up to 7 ft and walls up to 4 ft from the bottom of the footing, where adopted. Zoning, HOA rules and easements still apply. Ask your building department.

What should I check before buying hardscape?

Your soil. Web Soil Survey shows the mapped soil, drainage class and runoff group for your lot, free. And call 811 before any digging.

How much lawn water is wasted?

EPA WaterSense: “as much as 50 percent of this water is wasted due to overwatering caused by inefficiencies in irrigation methods and systems.” The sprinkler run time and lawn water cost calculators help you measure your own.

HyreYard tools

Landscaping calculators

Twelve tools for planning a yard project, working out materials, scheduling water and checking a bid. Each shows its arithmetic and sources; none asks for an email.

12 free tools, no prices shipped The cost tools multiply the rates on your own bids. The quantity tools use published figures from ICPI, Penn State Extension, EPA WaterSense and CSU Extension.

Pick the tool by where you are in the project. Planning: the drainage diagnostic, patio size planner and budget estimator. Buying materials: the mulch, gravel and paver calculators. Watering: run time, water cost and turf rebate. Holding a bid: the fence, retaining wall and tree removal calculators take its rates.

Before you spend anything

Three tools that change what you ask for before anyone quotes.

WaterYard drainage diagnosticWhere the water shows, when, and which way the grade runs. Returns the first thing to check and who to call.Open the tool HardscapePatio size plannerSize a patio from the furniture you measure, plus walkway and grill space, with ICPI’s minimum fall.Open the tool BudgetLandscaping budget estimatorHardscape, plants, soil and irrigation from your bids, plus a contingency you hold.Open the tool

How much to buy

Dimensions in, cubic yards and square feet out, with the arithmetic printed.

BedsMulch calculatorCubic yards and bags, with Penn State’s 2 to 4 inch depth limit beside the answer.Open the tool StoneGravel calculatorCubic yards for a base or path, with ICPI’s 4 inch patio minimum and your supplier’s compaction figure.Open the tool PatiosPaver calculatorSquare feet of pavers and cubic yards of base, and the four figures a paving quote should state.Open the tool

Water and the lawn

Run times, water cost and turf rebates, from your own sprinklers and your own bill.

IrrigationSprinkler run time calculatorMinutes per zone from your measured rate, with CSU’s six-can test and a cycle-and-soak split.Open the tool IrrigationLawn water cost calculatorGallons from area and depth, priced at the rate on your bill, with the tier and sewer checks.Open the tool RebatesTurf rebate calculatorYour program’s rate times the lawn you replace, up to its cap. Apply before you remove anything.Open the tool

Check a bid you already have

Type the rates from your bid. HyreYard ships no prices, so every rate starts at 0.

FencingFence cost calculatorLength times the per-foot rates on your bids, plus gates and removal.Open the tool WallsRetaining wall calculatorFace area times your bid’s rate, plus drainage, and where permit height is measured.Open the tool TreesTree removal cost calculatorTrunk diameter times your bid’s per-inch rate. Not for trees near power lines: call the utility.Open the tool

Which tool answers which question

Your question	Tool	What it will not do
Why is my yard wet?	Drainage diagnostic	Design a drain.
How big should the patio be?	Patio size planner	Specify the slab.
What will the whole project cost?	Budget estimator	Supply prices.
How much mulch?	Mulch calculator	Know your material or old layer.
How much gravel?	Gravel calculator	Convert yards to tons.
How many pavers and how much base?	Paver calculator	Choose your base depth.
How long should sprinklers run?	Run time calculator	Know your local weather.
What does watering cost?	Lawn water cost	Know your rate.
What will my turf rebate be?	Turf rebate	Approve an application.
Is this fence bid complete?	Fence cost	Set height or the boundary.
Is this wall bid complete?	Retaining wall	Engineer the wall.
What should tree removal cost?	Tree removal	Assess the tree or price line work.

What bids compete on, and what they leave out

Bids compete on what you can see. Several of these tools point at what sits underneath.

Base under paving. ICPI Tech Spec 2, Construction of Interlocking Concrete Pavements sets a 4 in minimum under a patio and 6 in under a driveway on well-drained soil, and a 1.5% minimum slope.

Drainage behind walls. Stone, fabric, pipe and an outlet, none of which shows once the wall is built.

Posts and frost. Post depth should follow your local frost line, which your building department publishes.

Soil. Web Soil Survey, from USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, shows your mapped soil and drainage class for free.

Questions that separate two outdoor bids

What is the base or footing depth, in inches?
A number, not “prepare base”.
How will it be compacted, and in what layers?
ICPI: 4 to 6 in lifts.
Where does the water go, before and after?
A named outlet, never the foundation or a neighbor’s lot.
What is itemized, and what is folded into a rate?
Gates, removal, drainage, haul-away and permits as separate lines.
Who calls 811 before digging?
The locate is free, and someone has to request it.
Who handles the permit?
The model exemptions are narrow, and “Exemptions from permit requirements of this code shall not be deemed to grant authorization for any work to be done in any manner in violation of the provisions of this code or any other laws or ordinances of this jurisdiction.”

What none of these tools can do

See your yard. Soil, slope, access, trees and utilities are for a site visit.

Quote a price. HyreYard publishes no landscaping prices. The cost tools multiply rates you type from bids.

Design structure. Walls, raised patios and drains that need engineering need an engineer. HyreYard does not do landscaping work. Figures checked 5 September 2026.

Questions about these tools

Are these landscaping calculators free?: Yes. Every tool runs in your browser, shows its arithmetic and asks for no email. Nothing you type is stored.
Why do the cost tools start at $0?: HyreYard holds no dataset of landscaping prices, so a default would be a number with nothing behind it. Type the rates from your bids and the tools do the arithmetic.
How much mulch should I put down?: Penn State Extension gives 2 to 4 inches of organic mulch, and 1 to 2 inches for fine or double-shredded mulch. The mulch calculator turns that into cubic yards.
How deep should a patio base be?: ICPI Tech Spec 2 gives 4 inches of compacted base under a patio and 6 inches under a residential driveway, on well-drained soil. More on wet or weak soil in cold climates.
Do I need a permit for a fence, wall or patio?: Sometimes. The model code exempts fences up to 7 ft and walls up to 4 ft from the bottom of the footing, where adopted. Zoning, HOA rules and easements still apply. Ask your building department.
What should I check before buying hardscape?: Your soil. Web Soil Survey shows the mapped soil, drainage class and runoff group for your lot, free. And call 811 before any digging.
How much lawn water is wasted?: EPA WaterSense: “as much as 50 percent of this water is wasted due to overwatering caused by inefficiencies in irrigation methods and systems.” The sprinkler run time and lawn water cost calculators help you measure your own.

Sources and methodology

Figures dated September 5, 2026. Last reviewed September 18, 2026.

ICPI Tech Spec 2, Construction of Interlocking Concrete Pavements (Interlocking Concrete Pavement Institute (© 1995 ICPI, revised February 2020), retrieved September 5, 2026). Base thickness, compaction, bedding, edge restraint and slope.
Mulching Landscape Trees (Penn State Extension, retrieved September 5, 2026). Mulch depth limits and trunk clearances.
WaterSense labeled controllers (US Environmental Protection Agency, WaterSense, retrieved September 5, 2026). Outdoor water use and the share wasted.
CMG GardenNotes #265 (Colorado State University Extension, retrieved September 5, 2026). Sprinkler rates and the six-can test.
Web Soil Survey (USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, retrieved September 5, 2026). Mapped soil and drainage class for your lot.
Work exempt from permit (Model administrative provisions, read in Texas Windstorm Insurance Association Building Code, 2024, section 105.2, retrieved September 5, 2026). Fence, retaining wall and flatwork exemptions. Adoption is local.

Landscaping services What each kind of job involves and how to read its quote.
What landscaping costs What moves a landscaping price.
Research Our sourced studies on permits, rebates, soils and watering rules.
Choosing a landscaping company What to check before you hire.
Editorial policy How we source and date every figure.

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