The Melbourne Tree Service
Cost Guide (2026)

Every Melbourne yard is different, so no honest arborist can quote a fixed price without seeing the tree. What we can do is publish the 2026 ranges Melbourne homeowners actually spend on the five most-asked-about services — tree removal, pruning, stump grinding, arborist reports, and lopping. Each service now has its own dedicated cost page with the price bands, add-ons and FAQs; this hub gives you the map of what each one covers and the numbers to expect before you click through.

Everything on this hub — and on the linked spoke pages — sticks to indicative residential ranges. Every real quote is confirmed by a free site visit. Prices apply across Melbourne, Greater Melbourne and surrounds. All work is done to Australian Standards (AS 4373-2007 for pruning, AS 4970:2025 for tree protection on development sites) by AQF Level 5 arborists, $20M public-liability insured.

1. Tree removal cost

The most-searched cost question in Melbourne, and the one with the widest range. A small ornamental in an accessible front yard sits at the low end; a mature eucalypt over a house needing a crane can be an order of magnitude higher. Size sets the band; access, species, and what's beneath the tree move you within it.

2026 bands: under 5m tall $260–$840 · 5–10m $840–$2,625 · 10–15m $2,625–$6,300 · 15m+ $6,000–$15,000+. Council permit fees (approx. $227 in most metro councils) and crane hire (from about $1,500/day) are quoted separately when they apply. Stump grinding is a separate service — see below.

Full tree removal cost breakdown →

2. Tree pruning cost

Pruning is priced by tree size and the volume of canopy work — a light thin on a 6m ornamental is a different job to a 25% crown reduction on a 15m plane tree. Every TLC pruning quote includes climbing or elevated work platform (EWP) time, controlled lowering, on-site chipping and clean-up. All cuts are made to AS 4373-2007, the Australian Standard for pruning of amenity trees.

2026 bands: under 5m $250–$500 · 5–10m $500–$1,000 · 10–15m $1,000–$1,800 · 15m+ or EWP-required $1,800–$2,500+. Overwhelming majority of Melbourne backyard pruning jobs sit in the medium or large band.

Full tree pruning cost breakdown →

3. Stump grinding cost

Priced by stump diameter, with a small adjustment for hardwood vs softwood species. Standard removal quotes leave the stump in place; grinding it out is a separate service. The biggest single price variable isn't in the bands — it's whether we're already on site for a removal. If we are, you save $50–$100 versus a stump-only visit.

2026 bands: under 30cm diameter $150–$280 · 30–60cm $250–$500 · large / hardwood / multiple stumps $400–$900. Minimum call-out for stump-only visits is $180–$220.

Full stump grinding cost breakdown →

4. Arborist report cost

Arborist reports fall into three categories: a basic council-permit report for a single-tree removal application, an AQF Level 5 consulting or tree risk report written to AS 4970:2025, and a full Arboricultural Impact Assessment (AIA) for multi-tree development sites. All TLC reports are written in-house by AQF Level 5 arborists — no third-party consultant, no extra wait.

2026 bands: basic single-tree permit report $300–$700 · AQF Level 5 / AS 4970:2025 tree risk report $600–$1,500 · multi-tree development AIA quote-only. A $200 call-out fee applies for report-only enquiries. For sites in a Bushfire Management Overlay (BMO) — common in Yarra Ranges, Nillumbik, Cardinia and Mornington Peninsula — the BMO assessment can be bundled with the arborist report, avoiding two separate consultants.

Full arborist report cost breakdown →

5. Tree lopping cost

"Lopping" is the plain-English word most Melbourne homeowners use — but what a qualified arborist actually performs under that request is AS 4373 crown reduction: cuts placed at lateral branches so the tree keeps its natural shape and doesn't throw the weak stress regrowth that made old-school lopping such a bad practice. Same visible outcome (smaller tree), correct method, comparable cost.

2026 bands: under 5m $250–$600 · 5–10m $500–$1,200 · 10–15m $1,000–$2,500 · 15m+ or EWP-required $2,000–$3,500+. If someone quotes materially below these bands, they're either offering uninsured work, cutting corners on permit compliance, or performing the kind of stub-cut lopping that costs you again in 3–5 years.

Full tree lopping cost breakdown →

All five services at a glance

The same five ranges, side-by-side, for when you want to compare rather than click through service-by-service.

Which cost page do you actually need?

Five quick decision rules to point you at the right spoke without reading all five.

• The tree needs to come out completely. Start with tree removal cost. If you want the stump ground too, factor in stump grinding cost — remember the $50–$100 discount when booked with the removal.
• The tree is too tall / branches over the roof / too much shade. That's pruning or lopping. If you want the tree to keep its natural shape, read tree pruning cost. If you're specifically searching "lop the tree", read tree lopping cost — same operation, same price, priced as AS 4373 crown reduction so the tree survives long-term.
• Council has asked for paperwork before you can start. Read arborist report cost. Most permit applications need a basic single-tree report; complex or contested cases need an AS 4970:2025 assessment; development sites need a full AIA.
• Just the stump left over from an earlier removal. Straight to stump grinding cost. Note the $180–$220 minimum call-out for stump-only visits — worth grouping multiple stumps into one visit if you have them.
• You're buying a property with big trees on it. Read arborist report cost — the AQF Level 5 tree risk report is the pre-purchase assessment that flags whether those trees are an asset, a liability, or a permit-restricted problem before you commit.

What actually moves prices — across every service

Five variables show up in every quote we write, regardless of which service is being priced. Understanding these before you request a quote helps you interpret the range you're given.

• Access. A front-yard tree with driveway or truck access is always the cheapest scenario. Rear-yard trees behind narrow side gates require branches, logs and chip to be walked out — that time compounds on every service, from a small prune through to an extra-large removal.
• Species and timber density. A 10m silver birch and a 10m eucalypt look similar from the street; the eucalypt can weigh two to three times more. That drives crane capacity, chip volume, and disposal cost on every removal-style job.
• What's below the tree. Cuts over a lawn are quick. Cuts over a house, pool, shed, glasshouse, retaining wall or neighbour's property need controlled rigging — adds crew time and gear across removals, pruning and lopping alike.
• Council permits and reports. If your tree is protected by council rules (see our Melbourne council permit guide), you'll need a permit before we start on removal or major pruning. That's a separate cost, and sometimes requires an arborist report — factor both in for anything at the medium-band size and above.
• Disposal volume. Chipping branches on-site and leaving mulch is free. Hauling logs and chip off-site is a disposal line that scales with volume — usually optional unless the driveway or lawn can't take the material.

Why we quote by site visit, not fixed rates

Two "big backyard trees" of visibly similar size can produce quotes that differ by thousands of dollars — different species, different access, different structures beneath, different council rules. Publishing a single fixed rate would either overcharge easy jobs or lock us into losing money on hard ones. Neither is fair, so we publish the bands and confirm every quote after a free site visit.

The site visit is same-business-day where possible. You get a written quote on the spot or by end of day, itemised so you can see exactly what's included — labour, disposal, permit fees, crane hire, stump grinding — with no line items appearing later on the invoice.

Beware of quotes below the bands

If a quote comes in materially below the ranges above, one of three things is usually true: the contractor doesn't carry the $20M public-liability insurance you need for tree work, they're uncertified (arboriculture in Australia sits at AQF Level 3 minimum for climbing work, Level 5 for consulting), or they're skipping council permit compliance. All three are cheaper on paper. All three cost you more than the saved fee if a branch damages a roof, a worker is injured on your property, or council issues an unauthorised-works fine (which starts at $1,000+ in most metropolitan councils and rises quickly with tree size).

How to get the fastest, most accurate quote

Two-minute drill for a same-business-day quote:

1. Take a photo of the tree(s) from far enough back to show the full height and any structures underneath.
2. Take a second photo of your access route — driveway width, side gate opening, any hanging obstructions.
3. Note the tree species if you know it, or describe the leaves (evergreen? deciduous? needle or broadleaf?). Species is the single biggest cost variable after size.
4. Tell us what you're trying to solve. "The tree is too tall" points at reduction; "there are dead branches" points at deadwooding; "we're extending the house next year" points at a report + removal.
5. Submit through the form on any of the cost pages, or call the TLC Team on 1300 263 771.

A ballpark based on the photo and address usually comes back within two hours during business hours. Firm quotes require a site visit — usually booked for the same or next business day.

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— TLC Team · AQF Level 5 · $20M Insured & AQF Qualified