The certification that matters in this trade only matters for some of the chemicals. Federal law requires certification to apply or supervise restricted-use pesticides, and it is issued by your state rather than by the EPA, so a company that uses only general-use products may hold none at all and be entirely lawful. Mowing runs $30 to $85 a visit and tree removal averages $850 a tree.
| Service | Typical |
|---|---|
| Lawn mowingNational range, an eighth to a quarter acre | $30 to $85 per visit |
| Tree removalNational range | $400 to $1,200 per tree |
| Pest control, recurring planNational range | $40 to $75 per monthly visit |
Ranges last checked September 2026. They come down automatically when they are due to be rechecked.
Every figure above comes from a named source we can link to, with the date we last checked it. We publish ranges rather than single prices because a range is what a provider will actually give you: the same job moves with what is being worked on, the materials, how hard it is to get at and how busy the trade is locally. Treat these as the order of magnitude to expect before you call, not as a quote.
The figures here are national. Where a source publishes figures state by state, the state pages carry that local figure instead of this one. We do not scale a national number by a multiplier of our own invention.
Every range carries a review date. When that date passes the number comes down until it is rechecked, rather than sitting here undated.
Federal law requires anyone who applies or supervises the use of restricted-use pesticides to be certified. The EPA does not do the certifying. State, territorial and tribal authorities do, under EPA oversight, against minimum standards set out in 40 CFR Part 171.
Those minimum standards are worth knowing by name, because they are things you can ask about. A certified applicator must be at least 18. Recertification comes at least every five years. A noncertified applicator working under supervision must be trained before touching a restricted-use product. Certifying authorities had until 4 November 2023 to submit revised plans, and 67 of the 68 submitted have been approved.
The part that trips consumers up is scope. Certification governs restricted-use products. A lawn or pest company applying only general-use products may hold no certification and be entirely within the law. So the useful question is not are you certified, it is which products are you using on my property, and is any of it restricted-use.
OSHA says the tree care industry must comply with the general industry standards in 29 CFR 1910: walking and working surfaces, fall protection, personal protective equipment, electrical, bloodborne pathogens, recordkeeping. There is no tree-care-specific standard.
The industry's own safety standard is ANSI Z133.1, Arboricultural Operations Safety, and OSHA states plainly that consensus standards of that kind are not OSHA regulations. So a company describing itself as Z133 compliant is making a voluntary claim about a voluntary standard. That is still meaningful, and it is not the same as being inspected against a rule.
The EPA's WaterSense guide to selecting home water treatment points consumers at independent certification, because certification is what makes a manufacturer's claim verifiable rather than assertable. The standards are numbered, and the number tells you what was actually tested.
NSF/ANSI 42 covers aesthetic effects, meaning taste and odor. 53 covers health effects, meaning contaminant reduction. 58 covers reverse osmosis, 62 distillation, 55 ultraviolet, 44 water softeners, and 401 emerging compounds and incidental contaminants. A system certified to 42 has been tested for taste. It has not been tested for what is in your water.
The guide also puts a step before the purchase: test your water, or read your utility's Consumer Confidence Report, before choosing a system. Buying treatment before knowing the contaminant is buying a solution to an unnamed problem.
The FTC's Cooling-Off Rule gives a consumer three business days to cancel a contract signed at their home, on a sale of twenty-five dollars or more there, or one hundred and thirty dollars or more at a temporary location away from the seller's permanent place of business. The seller must give the cancellation disclosures, and failing to is itself unfair and deceptive.
Lawn, tree and pest contracts are sold at the door more than almost anything else in home services. That rule is the one that applies everywhere, whatever your state adds on top.
Ask which products go on your property and whether any of them are restricted-use. That question gets you a straight answer about certification without either side having to guess what you meant.
On tree work, ask who carries workers compensation and general liability, and ask to see the certificate rather than hear about it. There is no tree care standard to inspect against, the work is genuinely dangerous, and an uninsured crew in your garden is your exposure.
Get cleanup defined in writing on a tree removal. The guides note that what basic cleanup includes varies by contractor, and that ambiguity is where the argument happens. Stump, chips and logs are three separate decisions.
On a recurring pest plan, ask what the initial visit costs on top of the monthly rate, and ask what is outside the plan. Termites, bed bugs, rodents and wildlife are usually all outside it, and each one costs multiples of the plan.
On water treatment, test first and buy second. Then ask which NSF/ANSI standard the system is certified to, and check that the number matches the problem you found.
If someone knocked on your door, you have three business days. Read the contract the next morning rather than the same evening.
About $30 to $85 a visit for an eighth to a quarter acre, or $60 to $150 an acre. Full-service lawn care on that lot size runs $100 to $400 a month, and an annual contract typically discounts 3 to 10 percent.
A national average of $850, with most jobs between $400 and $1,200. Height drives it: under 30 feet is $200 to $500, over 80 feet is $1,200 to $2,500 and up. Emergency work runs two to three times standard.
Usually not. Stump removal is $100 to $500 and up, chipping $50 to $100, log splitting $50 to $100. What basic cleanup includes varies by contractor, so get it defined in writing.
Only to apply or supervise restricted-use pesticides. That certification is required by federal law but issued by your state under 40 CFR Part 171, and a company using only general-use products may hold none and be entirely lawful.
A certified applicator must be at least 18, recertification comes at least every five years, and a noncertified applicator must be trained before using a restricted-use product under supervision.
No. OSHA applies the general industry standards in 29 CFR 1910. The industry's own standard, ANSI Z133.1, is a consensus standard, and OSHA states that such standards are not OSHA regulations.
A recurring plan runs $40 to $75 a month or $100 to $300 quarterly, with an initial visit of $150 to $300 on top. Termites, bed bugs, rodents and wildlife sit outside the plan and cost multiples of it.
Check which NSF/ANSI standard it is certified to. 42 is taste and odor, 53 is contaminant reduction, 58 reverse osmosis, 55 ultraviolet, 44 softeners, 401 emerging compounds. Test your water first so the number matches the problem.