How Much Does Landscaping Cost on the Gold Coast?
Dion McGirr has been in the trade for over 14 years and quotes Bella Terra projects on site, under QBCC licence 15452813. Here's what Gold Coast landscaping costs in 2026, by the square metre and by the whole yard. Each figure links to the page it came from.
Landscaping on the Gold Coast usually costs $4,900 to $14,700 for a basic backyard makeover and $14,700 to $58,800 for a full new-home landscape. By the square metre, turf runs $15 to $39, garden beds $49 to $175 and paving $59 to $155. Slope, retaining walls and soil removal move the price most.
Prices per m²
Landscaping Cost per m2 on the Gold Coast
Gold Coast landscaping runs from $15 per m² for turf to $685 per m² for a top-end composite deck, supplied and installed. Soft landscaping (turf, garden beds and mulch) is the cheaper half of a yard. Hard landscaping (paving, concrete, decks and walls) is where most of the budget goes.
The ranges are wide because the material is only part of the price. A rate per m² assumes a flat site that's ready to build on, with room for a machine to get in.
| What | Typical price | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Turf, supplied and laid | $15 to $39 per m² | What's The Damage |
| Mulch, spread about 75mm deep | $8 to $24 per m² | What's The Damage |
| Garden bed: soil, edging, plants and mulch | $49 to $175 per m² | What's The Damage |
| Paving | $59 to $155 per m² | What's The Damage |
| Plain concrete | $74 to $145 per m² | What's The Damage |
| Exposed aggregate concrete | $120 to $195 per m² | What's The Damage |
| Treated pine deck | $175 to $345 per m² | What's The Damage |
| Composite deck | $275 to $685 per m² | What's The Damage |
| Concrete sleeper retaining wall, 1m high | $295 to $590 per metre | What's The Damage |
| Landscaper's labour | $54 to $110 an hour | What's The Damage |
None of these rates include design, digging out, drainage or taking waste away. Those are priced on top, which is why two yards the same size can be quoted thousands of dollars apart.
Whole yards
How Much Does Backyard Landscaping Cost?
A basic Gold Coast backyard makeover of turf, garden beds, simple paving and planting costs $4,900 to $14,700, typically about $9,800. A full landscape around a new home runs $14,700 to $58,800. Once decks or water features come in, hipages puts bigger projects at $30,000 and up.
You'll often hear that landscaping should cost 5 to 10% of your home's value. That's a rule of thumb landscapers and cost guides repeat, not a measured figure. Use it to sense-check a budget, not to set one.
Real quotes tend to sit above the averages. Here's what four Queensland homeowners were quoted, in their own posts.
| Where and when | The project | Quoted | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pimpama, Gold Coast, May 2023 | About 10 m² of concrete, synthetic turf and planter boxes, on a budget under $5,000 | Told the minimum was $15,000 to $20,000 | r/GoldCoast |
| Queensland, February 2026 | A courtyard of about 20 m²: levelling, a curved garden bed, pavers and bench seating | $25,000 and $37,000 (the dearer one included a $17,000 deck) | r/AusRenovation |
| Brisbane, August 2025 | A sloping 750 m² new-build block: fill, about 32 metres of retaining wall, stairs, turf and paths | About $85,000, per replies in the thread | r/AusRenovation |
| South East Queensland, June 2026 | One retaining wall, 15 metres long and 1 metre high | $30,000 | r/AusRenovation |
Why quotes for the same yard differ
Two quotes for one yard rarely price the same work. The Queensland owner quoted $25,000 and $37,000 for a 20 m² courtyard found the dearer one carried a $17,000 deck. The cheaper one left it out. Judging quotes on the total alone is like judging two shopping trolleys by the receipt without looking inside.
Ask each landscaper to list what's in the price, then compare line by line.
Sloping blocks
What Does Landscaping a Sloped Backyard Cost?
A sloped backyard costs more because the ground has to be held up before anything goes on top of it. One Gold Coast guide puts hinterland blocks, where slopes are common, at $8,000 to $40,000, against $4,900 to $14,700 for a basic flat yard. Retaining walls, steps, drainage and engineering make up the gap.
In Queensland, a retaining wall needs building approval once the wall and the soil it holds pass 1 metre (Building Regulation 2021). It also needs approval if something loads the ground behind it, or if it's within 1.5 metres of a building or another wall. The City of Gold Coast adds its own conditions, such as no walls over sewer or stormwater pipes.
Approval brings its own costs: $490 to $1,950 for engineering, $490 to $2,450 for a soil report and $440 to $1,775 for the approval itself. Steep hinterland lots can also sit on the City's landslide hazard map, which is worth checking before you plan a big cut.
If your block falls away, a site visit tells you more than any table. Dion can measure the fall and price the walls on a free on-site quote.
Design fees
How Much Does Landscape Design Cost?
Landscape design on the Gold Coast costs $785 to $4,900 for a plan, typically about $1,950. Airtasker puts a basic concept plan at $500 to $1,500 and a full design at $3,500 to $7,000. Where the designer also runs the build, the fee on a small garden may be free, hipages notes.
| What you get | Typical fee | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Basic concept plan | $500 to $1,500 | Airtasker |
| Gold Coast design plan, typical | About $1,950 | What's The Damage |
| Full design with several zones | $3,500 to $7,000 | Airtasker |
| Landscape architect on a $100,000 project | $4,550 for the design, $10,950 to see it through | hipages |
A plan earns its fee by settling levels, drainage and materials before anyone digs. At Bella Terra, design and construction sit with one team, so the plan is drawn by the people who'll build it. As Alicia Fava put it in her Google review, "It was great to have one person to help with our structural and soft landscaping."
Walls
How Much Does a Retaining Wall Cost?
A 1 metre retaining wall on the Gold Coast costs $195 to $440 a metre in timber sleepers and $295 to $590 in concrete sleepers. Block walls run $345 to $735 a metre and sandstone $345 to $685. Height matters most: a concrete sleeper wall at 1.5 metres jumps to $390 to $930 a metre.
Drainage behind the wall adds $29 to $78 a metre. Check that every quote you get includes it.
Driveways
How Much Does a Concrete Driveway Cost?
A plain concrete driveway on the Gold Coast costs $74 to $145 per m², and coloured concrete $93 to $195. For a typical driveway of about 40 m², that's $2,550 to $5,900 in plain concrete. Breaking up and removing an old driveway first is priced on top.
| Finish | Typical price |
|---|---|
| Plain concrete | $74 to $145 |
| Coloured concrete | $93 to $195 |
| Exposed aggregate | $120 to $195 |
| Stamped or stencilled | $120 to $195 |
| Plain driveway, about 40 m² | $2,550 to $5,900 in total |
| Removing an old slab, disposal included | $29 to $98 |
Exposed aggregate
What Does Exposed Aggregate Concrete Cost?
Exposed aggregate concrete costs $120 to $195 per m² on the Gold Coast, typically about $155. The top layer of cement is washed off before it sets so the stones show through, which takes more labour than a plain finish. A 40 m² exposed aggregate driveway comes to $4,700 to $8,800.
Composite decks
How Much Does Composite Decking Cost?
Composite decking costs $275 to $685 per m² installed on the Gold Coast, typically about $540. The boards are made from wood fibre and plastic, so they don't need oiling the way timber does. You pay for that up front: composite costs more per m² than treated pine.
| Board | Per m² | Typical |
|---|---|---|
| Treated pine | $175 to $345 | $255 |
| Merbau | $295 to $540 | $410 |
| Spotted gum | $345 to $590 | $470 |
| Composite | $275 to $685 | $540 |
Timber decks
How Much Does Timber Decking Cost?
Timber decking on the Gold Coast costs $175 to $345 per m² in treated pine, installed. Merbau runs $295 to $540 and spotted gum $345 to $590. Treated pine is the cheapest board. In Queensland, timber kept off the ground but out in the weather needs an H3 treatment rating, and timber touching the ground needs H4.
The rules
Contracts, Deposits and Licences in Queensland
In Queensland, landscaping work over $3,300 needs a QBCC-licensed contractor and a written contract, with the $3,300 including labour, materials and GST. The deposit is capped at 10% for projects of $3,301 to $19,999 and 5% from $20,000, and you get a five business day cooling-off period.
Queensland's building law counts landscaping, paving and retaining walls around a home as domestic building work. Here's what that gives you on a landscaping contract.
| Contract price | Maximum deposit |
|---|---|
| $3,300 or less | 20% |
| $3,301 to $19,999 | 10% |
| $20,000 or more | 5% |
- A written contract over $3,300. From $20,000, you also get QBCC's consumer building guide before you sign.
- A capped deposit. 20%, 10% or 5%, depending on the contract price, as the table shows.
- Five business days to change your mind. The cooling-off period starts the day after you receive a signed copy of the contract.
- No home warranty cover for landscaping on its own. QBCC lists landscaping, paths, driveways and fences as work that doesn't need it, so the contract and the licence are your main protection.
Bella Terra holds QBCC licence 15452813, Builder - Low Rise, and you can check any landscaper's licence on the QBCC register before you sign. If you'd like to see how a contract and deposit would look for your yard, ask for a free quote.
From the field
How We Price a Landscaping Project
Bella Terra doesn't publish prices, because the same plan costs different money on different blocks. We price a project after seeing the site: the fall, the soil, the access and what has to leave before anything goes in. The quote is free, prepared on site and carries no obligation.
- We meet you on site. Dion walks the yard with you and talks through what you want from it.
- We measure what drives the price. Levels, soil, drainage, access for machines and anything that has to come out.
- One plan covers the whole yard. Levels, materials, planting and lighting are settled together.
- The quote follows the plan. One team designs and builds, under one QBCC licence.
- We build to the agreed timeline. In sequence, then the site is cleaned and handed over.
Customers notice when the number holds. Pete Large wrote in his Google review that Bella Terra "stuck to quoted price and estimated timeline of work". Diane wrote that the team did the work "at a very competitive price" and that her new retaining wall "is very high quality". You can see the finished projects in the gallery.
Questions
Landscaping Cost Questions
How much does landscaping cost on the Gold Coast?
A basic Gold Coast backyard makeover costs $4,900 to $14,700, in one local cost guide. A full landscape for a new home runs $14,700 to $58,800. Sloping blocks, retaining walls, decks and soil removal push a project higher, and bigger builds often pass $30,000.
How much do landscapers charge per hour on the Gold Coast?
Gold Coast landscapers charge $54 to $110 an hour, typically about $78. Bigger projects are usually priced as a whole, so the hourly rate matters most on small jobs and changes made partway through.
What percentage of my home's value should I spend on landscaping?
The common rule of thumb is 5 to 10% of the home's value. It's a convention repeated by landscapers and cost guides, not a measured figure, so use it to sense-check a budget rather than to set one.
Do I need approval for a retaining wall on the Gold Coast?
You need building approval if the wall and the soil it holds total more than 1 metre. You also need it if a driveway or pool loads the ground behind the wall, or if it's within 1.5 metres of a building or another wall. The City adds conditions for walls over pipes, in easements and in waterfront setbacks.
How much deposit can a landscaper ask for in Queensland?
For projects of $3,301 to $19,999, the most a contractor can ask as a deposit is 10% of the contract price. From $20,000 it's 5%, and projects of $3,300 or less can ask up to 20%.
Planning a Landscape on the Gold Coast?
The ranges above tell you roughly where a project lands. A site visit tells you where yours does, from the fall of the block to what has to leave before anything goes in.
Our Gold Coast landscaping covers the whole yard, from walls and paving to planting and lighting, designed and built by one team. Quotes are free, prepared on site and carry no obligation.
Written by Dion McGirr, who runs Bella Terra Group and has been in the trade for over 14 years. You can talk to Dion directly about your project.
