How much does excavation cost in Louisiana?
Excavation runs about $2.50 to $15.00 per cubic yard, going by HomeGuide’s excavation cost guide. The same guide puts the average job at $1,100 to $5,600, with a national average of $3,500. HomeAdvisor’s excavation guide runs a little higher, at $1,659 to $6,715 and an average of $3,979.
Those are published national ranges, not J-Rod’s Dirt Work prices. We do excavation out of Hammond with a Case excavator and a Kubota SVL75-3 tracked skid steer. The real number comes off your lot. Two things drive it the most: how much dirt moves, and where that dirt ends up.
What does excavation cost per cubic yard?
Most excavation contractors charge by the cubic yard or by the whole project, HomeGuide says. Some bill small projects by the hour. Per yard, the soil sets the rate. Light soil sits at the low end of the $2.50 to $15.00 range. Heavy or wet soil sits at the high end.
| Soil | Published range per cubic yard |
|---|---|
| Light soil | $2.50 to $6.00 |
| Average soil | $6.00 to $10.00 |
| Heavy or wet soil | $10.00 to $15.00 |
Source: HomeGuide. Its per yard rates include labor and equipment.
To size a dig, multiply length by width by depth in feet, then divide by 27. Say soft ground has to come out of a 30 by 40 foot spot, 1 foot deep. That is about 44 cubic yards. At $2.50 to $15.00 a yard, the digging runs about $110 to $660.
A dig that small can come in under the minimum project fee many contractors set, $500 to $800. When it does, the minimum sets the price. Hauling those 44 yards off the lot adds about $350 to $1,100, at HomeAdvisor’s $8 to $25 per cubic yard.
Moving dirt around the same lot has its own rate. Cut and fill takes dirt from the high spots and uses it to build up the low ones. HomeGuide puts residential cut and fill at $1 to $15 per cubic yard.
What does an excavator cost per hour?
HomeGuide puts an operator who brings the machine at $100 to $300 an hour. Hiring an operator alone, to run your own machine, costs $50 to $150 an hour. Most operators charge a minimum of one day, or eight hours.
| Charge | Published range |
|---|---|
| Operator with a machine | $100 to $300 per hour |
| Operator only, on your machine | $50 to $150 per hour |
| Compact skid steer with an operator | About $100 per hour |
| Combined labor and machine rate | $120 to $150 per hour |
| Typical minimum | One day, or eight hours |
| Minimum project fee | $500 to $800 |
Sources: HomeGuide and HomeAdvisor.
At $100 to $300 an hour, an eight hour minimum comes to $800 to $2,400. HomeAdvisor reports the same full day minimum. That is why a two hour dig can bill as a full day.
Machine size changes the rate. HomeAdvisor puts a compact skid steer with an operator near $100 an hour. A full size excavator runs roughly 50 percent more per hour, but its larger bucket can cut the labor time. We match the machine to the job. The Kubota SVL75-3 skid steer works the tight spots, and the Case excavator takes the deep, heavy digs.
General contractors often quote a flat price for the whole job instead, HomeAdvisor notes. Ask how each quote is built before you compare two of them.
Is it cheaper to rent an excavator than to hire one?
The day rate is lower on paper. HomeGuide puts a mini excavator rental at $200 to $700 a day, machine only. Hiring a machine with an operator runs $100 to $300 an hour, with that one day minimum.
| Option | Published range | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Rent a mini excavator | $200 to $700 per day | The machine only |
| Hire an operator alone | $50 to $150 per hour | Someone to run your machine |
| Hire an operator with a machine | $100 to $300 per hour | The machine and the person running it |
Source: HomeGuide.
The rental price is for the machine alone. You still run it, and the dirt you dig is still yours to spread or haul off. Soft ground is the other catch here. A machine worked on wet dirt can leave ruts that need regrading afterward.
Rented or hired, the utility locate comes first, and the call is free.
What does excavation cost by job?
Guides also price excavation by the whole job. These are HomeGuide’s ranges for three residential jobs.
| Job | Published range |
|---|---|
| Home site or foundation pad | $1,500 to $10,000 |
| Driveway or patio dirt pad | $1,000 to $2,500 |
| Yard excavation | $500 to $5,000 |
Source: HomeGuide.
HomeGuide ties the home site range to the foundation size, the depth and the terrain. Its driveway and patio range usually includes grading and compacting the dirt. Yard jobs move with the project size and how much grading or leveling the yard needs.
HomeAdvisor lands in the same place. It lists $1,500 to $10,000 for new construction foundations and $1,000 to $2,500 for patios and driveways.
On a low lot, the home site often gets built up instead of dug down. That is pad work. Our house pads page covers how a pad gets built, and the house pad cost guide covers the price. The whole lot, from raw ground to build ready, is site preparation.
What pushes excavation cost up around Hammond?
Rain is the first thing. Hammond averages 64.2 inches of precipitation a year, and it falls on about 116 days. Wet dirt falls in the heavy or wet soil row, at $10 to $15 per cubic yard. A soaked lot can also stop the machines for days.
HomeGuide puts small excavation projects at 1 to 3 days. Around here, rain days get added to that.
The rest of the bill comes from here:
- Soil. HomeAdvisor says stubborn, clay-heavy soil can add $200 to $1,200 or more. Expect slower digging in heavy clay, and a price to match.
- Volume. Excavation rates do not usually drop on bigger digs, HomeGuide notes, because more soil has to move.
- Where the dirt goes. Costs rise when dirt travels to or from the site instead of moving on it. Hauling it off runs $8 to $25 per cubic yard. A short move costs far less than trucking dirt five miles away.
- Reuse. Both guides point to reusing clean dirt on the lot, as backfill or grading. Keeping it on site costs less than hauling it away.
- Short on dirt. A dig that leaves the lot low means fill comes in. Our fill dirt cost guide covers per yard and per load pricing.
- Access. Tight spaces call for smaller equipment, and HomeGuide says that raises the cost. Easy truck access keeps hauling near the low end of HomeAdvisor’s range. Tight spots push it toward $25 a yard.
- Buried concrete. HomeGuide counts obstructions among the things that set the price. Old slabs and footings have to come out before the dig goes on. We pull up old concrete as its own job, covered on our concrete removal page.
- Buried lines. Digging near pipes or utility lines takes extra care, HomeGuide says, and that adds labor time.
One HomeAdvisor tip is to bundle the work. Book the grading and clearing with the dig, so the equipment only comes out once. When a lot needs both, ask for one quote that covers the dig and the land grading.
Do you need a permit to dig in Tangipahoa Parish?
HomeGuide puts an excavation permit at $50 to $400 nationally, depending on project size and location. Around Hammond, the question runs through the flood rules.
Federal floodplain rules count filling, grading and excavation as development. In unincorporated Tangipahoa Parish, the flood ordinance calls for a floodplain development permit. The parish Permit Office has to do a flood determination on the property. The office in Hammond is at (985) 542-2117.
The parish ordinance covers the unincorporated parts of the parish. Inside Hammond, Ponchatoula, Amite City and the other towns, ask the town’s own office instead. Call before any dirt moves, since the answer depends on where your lot sits.
Utility lines get marked before any machine digs. Louisiana law requires notice to the regional notification center at least 48 hours ahead, and no more than 120 hours. Locate requests through Louisiana 811 are free. Call 811 or 1-800-272-3020.
What should an excavation quote cover?
HomeGuide says an excavation contractor has to see the site in person to price it accurately. Most contractors include grading or leveling in an excavation job, the guide adds, while some charge extra. So two quotes for the same dig can cover different work.
Check each quote for these:
- Is it priced by the hour, by the cubic yard or for the whole job?
- Does it include equipment and delivery fees?
- Does it include fill dirt and delivery if the dig leaves the lot short?
- Does it cover hauling the spoil off, or spreading it on the lot?
- Does it include cleanup and debris removal?
Shaping the ground after the dig is grading. Our land grading cost guide covers that part of the bill.
How do you get a real number for your lot?
Send us the address and a few photos of the spot. We will look at the ground and give you a free estimate on the excavation work. We sell and haul fill dirt too, so the dig and any dirt it needs land on one bill. Call or text (985) 500-4145, or send the form on our contact page.
Sources used for the ranges above: HomeGuide, HomeAdvisor, 44 CFR 59.1, the Tangipahoa Parish flood ordinance and Permit Office, NOAA normals via Current Results, Louisiana’s one-call law and Louisiana 811.