How Much Does Stump Grinding Cost in Central Florida?

Start With the One Number

Just $33 per 16-inch stump, minimum may apply. That is the number everything on this page starts from.

The price goes by the width of the stump where it meets the ground, not by how tall it was left. I measure from where the stump comes out of the ground on one side to where it goes into the ground on the other side, and average the two.

Measure yours the same way before you call and you will know whether yours is an average stump or a bigger one before I am in the driveway.

Why a Bigger Stump Costs More Than Double

A stump that is double the diameter is nearly four times the area, and therefore more wood and more work. That is why a 32-inch stump is not simply double the price of a 16-inch one.

That is why the price is per stump and quoted on site, instead of a flat rate that would have to be padded for the big ones.

What Else Moves the Price Up

The width sets the price. These are the other things I look at when I am standing in your yard.

• Depth. I grind about six inches below grade, so grass can grow properly and no piece of root comes back up to meet your lawnmower. Past six inches below grade I cannot see through the soil to know how much work is there, so anything deeper is charged by time instead of a quoted price.
• Roots and root balls. Removing the entire stump or root ball sounds good, but in most cases it is overkill for what you are trying to do. A grind about six inches below grade is all a lawn or a replant needs. If you want it, I can chase every root and grind the whole root ball, but past six inches below grade I cannot see through the soil to know how much work is there, so anything deeper is charged by time instead of a quoted price.
• Access. If the only way into the yard is a 36-inch gate, that adds labor, and the price goes up for it. An opening of 57 inches or wider is the normal access and does not incur any extra.
• The minimum. Minimum may apply to the stop, so one small stump on its own can come to more than its size alone would say.

What a narrow gate adds is in the answers on the FAQ page.

What Brings It Down

There are two standing exclusive offers, and the rest is how the job is set up before I get there. Exclusive offers are not stackable — the best one applies. A minimum may apply.

• Senior citizens, military and first responders: always 10% off.
• Multiple stumps on one property: up to 20% off.
• Several stumps in one visit. The machine is already in your yard, and that is what the multiple stump offer is for.
• Easy access. An opening of 57 inches or wider adds nothing to the price.
• The tree down and out of the way before I come, so the quote and the grind happen in one trip. Call me when the tree is down and out of the way. I don't know the condition of the job in the future, so the quote I give is the quote to grind right then and there.

The full terms are on the exclusive offers page.

Why Some Companies Charge More

A crew and a truck cost money. Every person on the job is part of the price, and so is the overhead behind the company. All of it ends up in the number you are quoted.

Haul-off is a second job. Loading the grindings, trucking them away and dumping them takes another trip and more hours, and somebody pays for that. I do not do it. The grindings stay on site where they fall; I do not haul them away. All I charge for is the use of the machine.

When you are comparing quotes, ask each company how far under the surface they go. Mine is about six inches below grade.

Why Some Are Suspiciously Cheap

A price that looks too good is worth a second look.

One reason is a rental-yard machine. It is a fraction of the power of commercial equipment, so the job takes far longer and the stump often is not fully ground below grade.

The other is a low number on the phone that grows once they are in your yard and see the stump. That is why I see every stump in person before I put a number on it. I bring the machine to the estimate, so you get a firm price and the grind in the same visit, with no obligation until you approve it.

What a rental machine can and cannot do is on the rental versus hiring page.

Where I Fall, and Why

I run the job myself. My equipment is remote-controlled commercial equipment, which gives me finesse and control in tight spaces and close to a fence or home. I must see the job before I can promise anything.

There is no haul-off charge, because there is no haul-off. The grindings stay on site where they fall; I do not haul them away.

The quote and the grind happen in the same visit, so you are not paying for two trips.

I have been grinding since 2007, and the price stays where it is because of how the day is run, not because anything is skipped. Here is what the price covers.

• Grinding about six inches below grade with commercial, remote-controlled equipment
• A firm price before anything starts, with no obligation until you approve it
• The grindings left on site where they fall, ready for topsoil and sod or to spread as mulch

What is not in the price: hauling the debris away, because all I charge for is the use of the machine; grinding deeper than about six inches below grade, which is charged by time; the minimum, which may apply to the stop; and the extra labor a 36-inch gate adds when it is the only way into the yard.

Renting a Grinder Instead

Renting looks cheaper on paper. On top of the daily rate you have the fuel, the trailer, the damage waiver or insurance the yard sells with it, and hauling the machine to and from your home.

What I do in an hour can take four days of rental time.

The full comparison, with what the rental yards charge, is on the rental versus hiring page.

How You Get Your Price

A photo won't get you an accurate price. I need to see the stump and the environment in person before I can put a number on it.

Call me when the tree is down and out of the way. I don't know the condition of the job in the future, so the quote I give is the quote to grind right then and there.

If the stump was left standing tall, that is fine. I bring a chainsaw for this reason, and I can cut trees or stumps that are 12 feet or shorter before the grinder starts.

Before I come: Cut all the green off your palmettos and shrubbery before I get there. Green leaves, sticks and vines do not grind; they wrap around the equipment and I have to stop and clean it every five or ten minutes.

The estimate is free, and I bring my equipment with me when I come to give it, so if the price works for you I can grind right then and there. You get a firm price on the spot, with no obligation until you approve it.

How soon can I get there? In most cases, within a day or two not including Sunday.

We accept cash, check, or credit card. You approve the price and sign before we start.

I grind about six inches below grade. Call 811 before the visit if you think there may be buried lines near the stump, and point out any sprinkler heads or low-voltage wires you know of when I arrive.