How much does land clearing cost per acre in Louisiana?
Land clearing in Louisiana runs about $1,500 to $4,000 per acre, according to the one Louisiana-specific figure in print. National cost guides say the same thing a different way: light brush around $800 to $2,300 an acre, mixed growth with small trees $1,200 to $3,500, and heavy timber $3,300 to $6,000 and up.
Those are market numbers, not our price list. Every land clearing job we quote gets priced off the actual ground, because an acre of scattered saplings and an acre of solid tallow and privet are not the same job. The ranges below are for budgeting, and they hold up across Tangipahoa, Livingston and St. Tammany parishes.
What the published ranges look like
Most cost guides sort clearing by how thick the growth is, because that is what sets the price. Here is where the 2026 numbers sit.
| Ground condition | Published cost per acre |
|---|---|
| Brush only, no real trees | $330 to $630 |
| Light brush and scrub | $800 to $2,300 |
| Lightly wooded | $580 to $2,333 |
| Mixed growth with small trees | $1,200 to $3,500 |
| Medium vegetation | $2,000 to $3,500 |
| Heavy timber | $3,300 to $6,155 |
| Dense old growth | $5,000 to $10,000 and up |
| Louisiana average, all types | $1,500 to $4,000 |
Sources: LawnStarter, Lawn Love, Landmodo, OWNR OPS and a Louisiana operator’s published guide. The full list is at the end.
Two things to notice. The spread inside each row is wide, and the rows overlap. That is because the guides average jobs from all over the country. A wooded acre in dry, flat ground clears fast. The same acre in south Louisiana in March does not.
Why is there such a big spread?
Because the contractor is really selling machine days, and the acre count per day swings by a factor of ten. Published operator benchmarks put a skid steer at two to four acres a day in light brush, one to two in medium growth, and a quarter to half an acre a day in dense timber. An excavator runs a little faster on the heavy end. Same machine, same crew, same daily cost, wildly different acres covered.
So a per-acre quote is really the day rate divided by production. Around here the production side gets hit by three things. Wet ground slows a machine and can shut a job down for days. Thick tallow and privet stands have far more stems per acre than open pine. And tight access, like a lot behind a house with a narrow gate, means a smaller machine and more hours.
The other reason quotes vary is what they include. Most clearing quotes do not include grading. Hauling debris off site is a separate line, usually $500 to $2,000 an acre. Stumps are the biggest hidden multiplier. Pulling a stump out with an excavator runs about $250 to $800 each in the guides, and a wooded acre can carry dozens of them.
What else shows up on a land clearing bill?
Beyond the per-acre line, expect a few add-ons. Most operators carry a minimum charge of $1,500 to $2,500, because loading, driving and unloading a machine eats two to four hours before the first tree comes down. That is why a quarter acre does not cost a quarter of an acre price.
| Line item | Published range |
|---|---|
| Hourly rate, machine and operator | $120 to $350 per hour |
| Minimum job charge | $1,500 to $2,500 |
| Mobilization fee | $300 to $1,500 |
| Stump pulled out, per stump | $250 to $800 |
| Debris hauled off site, per acre | $500 to $2,000 |
| Rough grading after clearing, per acre | $1,000 to $3,000 |
A cleared lot is not a buildable lot. If the goal is a house pad, the site preparation work that follows is its own job: fill brought in, packed in lifts, and graded so the water leaves. Budget for both from the start. Our fill dirt cost guide covers what that material runs.
Can you burn the debris in Louisiana?
Yes, with conditions, and those conditions are stricter than most people think. Louisiana’s air rules (LAC 33:III.1109) allow burning trees, brush and other plant matter from land clearing. The burn has to be at least 1,000 feet from any dwelling that is not on your own property. It can only happen between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. The wind has to be blowing away from any city or town. And nothing but plant growth goes in the pile: no rubber, no asphalt, no heavy oils, no treated lumber.
On top of that, Tangipahoa Parish burn bans cover all open residential and commercial burning when the parish president issues one. Land clearing debris gets no exemption. A ban can land the week your pile is ready and stay in place until it is lifted. That is a real scheduling risk on a clearing job that planned on burning.
Local rules stack on top of the state rule, so check with the parish before you light anything. LDEQ takes complaints about open burning, and the fine for burning the wrong material is not worth the savings.
Do you need a permit to clear land around Hammond?
Tangipahoa Parish issues a land clearing permit, separate from its logging permit, through the Permit Office in Hammond at (985) 542-2117 and the Amite office at (985) 748-2024. The parish also requires a flood determination on every property before it permits work. What the permit costs and how many acres trigger it are not published online, so call before you schedule a machine.
South Tangipahoa also sits partly inside Louisiana’s coastal zone, and clearing there can need a Coastal Use Permit. Wet ground raises a bigger flag. Under federal rules (33 CFR 323.2), running a machine through a jurisdictional wetland counts as a discharge, so a dozer in a wet spot can need a Section 404 permit from the Corps of Engineers even with no fill trucked in. If the low corner of your lot stays wet most of the year, get that answered first.
Why cleared ground does not always stay cleared here
Chinese tallow and Chinese privet are two of the worst invasive plants in Louisiana woods, and both come back from the stump and the roots after cutting. Mow a tallow stand flat and you get a thicker tallow stand in two seasons. LSU AgCenter has documented tallow turning wet prairie in southeast Louisiana into solid woodland.
That changes the math on the cheap options. Burning and mowing leave the root systems alive. Pulling the stumps and root balls with an excavator costs more on day one and leaves you with ground you can actually use. A cleared acre can cost about what an acre of Louisiana farmland is worth (USDA put the state average at $3,850 an acre in 2025), so it makes sense to clear it once, the right way.
What drives your number on a Hammond area job
Before you call anyone, walk your lot and note four things. How thick is the growth, and how big are the biggest trunks? How many stumps will have to come out? Can a machine get in without taking down a fence or crossing soft ground? And where does the water sit after a hard rain?
Those four answers are most of the quote. A photo or two texted over helps us size the job before we drive out. The estimate is free, and it comes with a plain explanation of what is in the number and what is not.
Call or text J-Rod’s Dirt Work at (985) 500-4145, or send the form with the address and what the ground needs.
Sources used for the ranges above: LawnStarter, Lawn Love, Landmodo, OWNR OPS, Skidsteers.com, Johnson and Sons Land Clearing (Louisiana), the Louisiana Administrative Code via Cornell LII and the EPA, LDEQ, the Tangipahoa Parish permit and burn ban pages, 33 CFR 323.2, LSU AgCenter and USDA NASS.