Free tool
Tree Removal Cost Calculator
Most suburban tree removals in Brisbane land between $600 and $4,000 including GST. What moves the number is not really height — it is the canopy, what sits underneath it, and whether machinery can reach the tree at all. Set those below.
We do not sell removals. This is a consulting practice, so this estimate is not a bid for your job. It is what the work should cost — the number to hold your quotes against.
What makes tree removal expensive?
What is underneath
The largest single factor. A tree over clear ground can be felled in one piece. The same tree over a roof, a pool or a fence has to be dismantled and each piece lowered on ropes, which can take three times as long.
Canopy, not height
A tall narrow spar is a shorter day than a shorter tree with a fifteen metre spread. Volume of material is what gets cut, lowered, processed and carted.
Access
Everything comes out the way it went in. Under 1.5 metres means every limb is barrowed or carried to the street by hand, and that is slow work.
Green waste
Chipping and carting is charged on what comes off the tree, and dumping is charged by weight. Leaving the mulch and logs on site genuinely saves money if you have a use for them.
The stump
Almost always quoted separately, so check before you compare two prices. A stump cut flush and a stump ground out are different jobs, and the depth changes again if the area is being re-turfed or built on.
Whether it is safe to climb
A dead or structurally unsound tree cannot be climbed, so it needs an elevated work platform or a crane. That is the difference between a crew of two and a crew of four with plant on site.
Removal cost questions
How much does tree removal cost in Brisbane?
Most suburban removals land between $600 and $4,000 including GST. A small tree over clear ground with good access sits at the bottom of that; a large tree over a house, in a back yard, with a barrow-only access path sits at the top or beyond it. Height matters less than what is underneath: a tree that can be dropped in one piece is a fraction of the cost of the same tree that has to be dismantled and lowered over a roof.
Why are tree removal quotes so different from each other?
Because a removal is priced on time and risk, and two contractors can read the same tree very differently. One may plan to drop it whole, another to rig it down piece by piece. Quotes also differ on what is included — stump grinding, green waste disposal, traffic control and the council permit are all commonly excluded and then added afterwards. Ask each quote to state what is and is not included before comparing them.
Do I need council approval before removing a tree?
Frequently, yes. Every South East Queensland council protects some vegetation on private land, and in Brisbane a significant landscape tree loses every ordinary exemption. Removing a protected tree without a permit is an offence, and the maximum penalty under the Brisbane Natural Assets Local Law is $86,350 for an individual. Check before you book anyone, because the permit is your responsibility, not the contractor’s.
Is stump grinding included in a removal quote?
Usually not. It is normally a separate line, and it is worth confirming rather than assuming, because a ground stump and a stump cut flush at the surface are different jobs at different prices. If the area is being re-turfed or built on, say so when you ask, as the required grinding depth changes.
Does this practice quote on tree removal?
No. This is a consulting arborist practice — reports, assessments and plans, not removal work. That is exactly why this calculator exists: the estimate is not a bid for your job, so there is no reason for the number to be anything other than what the work is genuinely worth. What is offered is the assessment and the report your council may require before the work can proceed.
Not sure the tree needs to come out?
A risk assessment costs a fraction of a removal, and frequently finds that pruning resolves the problem. Independent advice from someone who does not sell the removal is worth having before you commit to one.