Outdoor Landscaping and Design

Find a landscaper near San Mateo, CA

Find a landscaper near San Mateo, CA

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Top 10 Landscapers near San Mateo, CA

Q & A

Answers to commonly asked questions from the experts on Thumbtack.

How much does landscaping cost per square foot?

The cost of landscaping can vary widely based on the type of plants you wish to have, the amount of grading required, the condition of the land before work begins, and other factors. Adding in designer or high-end landscaping, as well as hardscaping such as sidewalks, walls, or patios will add to the cost. To find out how much your landscaping will cost, contact landscapers near you.

Is hiring a landscaper worth it?

A landscaper is worth it if you don't want to invest a significant amount of time and effort into planting, trimming, raking, weeding and performing other operations on your garden or yard. Hiring a landscaper to perform regular maintenance in your yards and complete bigger projects is valuable if you’re looking to sell your house. A professional landscaper can make your house more appealing to potential buyers. 

Some landscapers may perform maintenance duties — remove leaves, mow lawns, trim trees and shrubs, etc. —  but they can also help you bring bigger projects to life. This may include adding a misting system, an outdoor fireplace, water features, artificial turf, a patio and much more.

Start contacting landscapers near you to get free estimates and start planning your project today.

How much does landscaping cost?

The price of landscaping varies widely due to the range of choices that can be made, but you can expect to pay anywhere from $320 and $20,000 for your landscaping work. The national average cost for a landscaping project is $2,600. 

Factors like the choice of plants, the amount and type of hardscaping, the square footage of your landscaped area, and the region you live in will have a significant effect on your landscaping cost.

Where can you buy landscaping rocks?

You can shop for landscaping rocks from a variety of different sources. The first option is large chain retail stores specializing in home improvement and gardening. Often, landscaping rocks like slate and other slabs arrive on pallets and are sold in bulk, giving you a great deal. Your local landscaping store also carries rocks, and you may even have a stone or quarry seller nearby who can sell you the rocks you need. When in doubt, contact landscaping companies near you to see if they have rocks you can purchase.

What is landscaping?

Landscaping is the intentional placement and maintenance of living plants on an area of land or in your yard. This can include trees, lawn, flowers, bushes and other plant life and often incorporates mulch and other organic matter. The primary purpose of landscaping is to provide beauty to the house or building it surrounds. 

Many landscaping companies also offer design, architecture and construction services. For example, they can help you design a yard that incorporates a patio, deck, pool, fire pit, lighting, walkways, retaining walls and more.

How much does landscaping improve home value?

Landscaping your property can boost the value of your home between 5% and 15%, according to Better Homes & Gardens. They specify that this is the amount of value added when you upgrade the condition of your landscaping from poor to good, though these terms are subjective. 

What is landscape design?

Landscaping design refers to the art of analyzing an existing landscape, planning how to transform it through flora and fauna design and working with a client to ensure goals are met. Landscape designers may completely transform an outdoor space or make minor modifications to enhance it. They may also call for grading and the construction of hardscaping surfaces like walkways or patios to add to the enjoyment of the space.

What does a landscape contractor do?

Landscape contractors work from outdoor architectural or design plans to build and install hardscaping or softscaping for the client, much as a general contractor uses architectural designs to build a house. Landscape contractors are experts in soil drainage, grading, hardscaping (installing concrete paths and retaining wall, building ponds, etc.), and planting. They have heavy equipment such as excavators and tractors to prepare the land as needed.

Some landscape contractors are also landscape architects or landscape designers. The titles can be compared with those in home construction: A building or landscape architect must earn a specialized architecture degree and pass an exam to have a license. A designer — whether an interior designer or a landscape designer — does not usually require a license to work. Landscape contractors are not required by law to work from plans designed by a landscape architect, so you may work directly with the landscape contractor to specify the work you’d like done. The national average cost for large-scale landscaping projects is $10,160. Pricing can vary greatly depending on the project scope, materials and design.

What should you look for when hiring a landscaper?

Landscaping can be costly — though it usually pays off in curb appeal and home resale value — so finding a landscaper who is worth the investment is important. When hiring a landscaper, look for proven success with the type of results you want. For example, if you know you want a drought-tolerant yard, research websites, reviews and portfolios that showcase beautiful drought-tolerant yards that the landscaper has installed. In addition to relevant experience, you’ll want to find a landscape contractor who has good client reviews. Good communication skills are another important quality in a landscape contractor, since everything from plant selection to hardscape installation needs to be discussed and agreed upon. A landscape contractor who is reliable, easy to understand and able to listen to what you want will help make the process seamless and enjoyable.

How do you find a good landscape architect?

Hiring a landscape architect is an investment in your home. Landscaping can reduce water bills, improve your home resale value, add to your daily living experience and significantly boost curb appeal. A landscape architect will draw the designs for your new landscape; you’ll want to hire a landscape contractor to carry out the plans. Many companies provide design-build landscaping services, with a company architect creating plans for your vision and the landscape contractor executing the vision. With the proper academic background and licensing, a person can be both landscape architect and landscape contractor. Here are a few tips for finding a great landscape architect:

  • Research online portfolios and find several landscape architects whose work interests you.
  • Read online reviews of client experiences.
  • Research whether the landscape architects you are interested in are currently licensed and in good standing with the licensing board, and check whether any complaints have been issued against them. Each state will have their own searchable database. For example, you can search for California landscape architects via the state’s Department of Consumer Affairs.
  • Request bids from your selected landscape architects.
  • Hire the one you like the most, taking care to have a clearly written contract outlining scope of work.

For more, check out our tips for smart hiring on Thumbtack.

Reviews for San Mateo landscapers
Bill F.
Excellent landscape design with reasonable prices and quality work,
CalinitelitesCalinitelites
Sumit M.
We got our backyard lawn and surrounding area redone with green touch landscaping. Carlos and his team did the job in a very professional way and on time. His pricing was also very affordable. We plan to work with him for all our future landscaping needs.
Magañas GardeningMagañas Gardening
Kent M.
Martinez Landscape did an excellent job. Super responsive, very quick, and overall excellent work. Looking forward to continuing working with them!
Martínez landscapeMartínez landscape
Whitney K.
We were very impressed by the work JR’s landscaping did, building us an amazing stamped concrete patio and a gold sand walkway. They were very responsive throughout the process, very professional and punctual, and their pricing was competitive. We are also hiring them to grade and landscape our yard after a recent home addition. Strongly recommend them for your project! We’ll definitely go back to them for future work!
Jr’s landscaping Palo Alto.Jr’s landscaping Palo Alto.
John K.
The team from Sean’s landscaping responded quickly with helping us remove some large bushes from our property. Worked quick and were very responsive over text.
Sean's Tree service & LandscapingSean's Tree service & Landscaping
Janet E.
Nate did a fantastic job on my drought tolerant landscaping. He assisted in plant selection, and installed the new plants and mulch. This completely changed the look of our property. I appreciate Nates’ patience and professionalism when we were discussing plant selection back and forth and the care taken during planting and clean up of our entire property. I have been receiving many positive complements on the look of our landscaping from passers by.
Nate SilinNate Silin
Garrett R.
Omar and crew are awesome. Omar really understands his business. He shows up on time. He's organized. He's detailed oriented. My project went super easy because I hired OR Landscape. Highly recommend.
O_R s Landscape and maintenanceO_R s Landscape and maintenance
Dennis C.
Gustavo and his team do superb work. I engaged them to landscape my front and backyards and the results were just what I needed. Their professionalism makes me look forward with confidence to hiring them again and to recommend them with enthusiasm.
Garden & ConstructionGarden & Construction
Jessica S.
We hired Ramirez Landscaping to clean up our front and backyard which had gotten completely out of control with weeds and overgrown plants and trees. They did an AMAZING job! We plan to have them come out twice a month for up keep. We highly recommend these guys!
All About Landscaping, CoAll About Landscaping, Co
Brijesh K.
Gustavo and team were great! They did landscaping of my front patio, which included cleaning out some very persistent weed. They were very professional, quick. Did a great job of laying out plants, decorating with stones, watering and cleaning up after their work. For a very reasonable rate. I would highly recommend them and reuse their services.
Garden & ConstructionGarden & Construction
Noel R.
My front yard had been totally overtaken by weeds despite our efforts with weed killers when they first started to come in. Martinez Landscape carefully weeded the area over the course of several hours and it looks SO much better! Attaching before (we’d trimmed them down but the weeds were everywhere) and after photos. Will definitely use them again in the future.
Martínez landscapeMartínez landscape
Ariel L.
Miguel did a fabulous job installing new sod and sprinkler system for us as well as planting tree and hedge plants. He is very easy to work with, with great attitude and easy to communicate with. Our yard looks so much nicer now. He is very punctual and finish the work within the time frame he promised. We are very happy with having him do the landscaping work for us.
Martinez's Gardening & LandscapeMartinez's Gardening & Landscape
Anisha C.
We got pavers installed in our backyard and Eric, Sergio and team were great to work with. They were prompt, provided a competitive quote and did high quality work. Infact they also finished their work before schedule. Eric carefully catered to our needs and requests, gave good suggestions and delivered beyond our expectations. They were also extremely neat with their work and made sure to clean up after. I would 100% recommend Eric for your landscaping tasks and work with him in the future.
Milan Pavers&TurfMilan Pavers&Turf
Thumbtack Customer
From the minute I met Mr. Reyes I felt comfortable and confident that I was going to get the best customer service at a very reasonable rate, there was no sales pitch, I told him what I wanted and asked for his professional opinion, I got exactly what I wanted and his team went above and beyond to provide even more plants, bark and sprinkler system for much less than the others. I don't often leave feedback but felt it important for others to know of the customer service this company provides, I highly recommend Reyes Landscaping!! Tony from Foster City
Reyes LandscapingReyes Landscaping
Sue-Zen L.
This is a long overdue review. Rich did our front yard a few months ago and we absolutely love it. We weren’t sure what we wanted to do and eventually decided to put in artificial grass, some stepping stones and mulch to keep it simple. Rich is a customer centric person and came over a few times to discuss and come up with ideas for my front and backyard even though we were still in the process of getting quotes and we haven’t engaged him yet. Which goes to show his commitment and passion for the job. His prices were also very reasonable, I’ve had quotes from 4-5 different landscapers and his was by far the most comparable. We previously had a gardener come in to do some dig out and put in a weed block. Rich was very honest and tried to work with what we have to keep the cost minimal. And that was the main reason why we hired him because he was knowledgeable, trustworthy and he puts his customers first. Plus he got the job done quick, he had 3-5 guys come in and completed my front yard in few days. Here are some before and after photos.
True TurfTrue Turf
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