Installed, sod runs $1.00 to $2.50 per square foot for most homeowners in 2026. The grass itself is only about $0.30 to $0.85 per square foot — the rest is ground prep, delivery, and labor. A typical 2,000-square-foot front yard lands near $2,000 to $5,000 installed, and a quarter acre runs roughly $11,000 to $27,000.
Those ranges are wide because the sod is the cheap part. Most of the bill is the work underneath it. Below is what actually moves the price, and an honest note on when laying it yourself is the smarter call.
Bermuda and fescue sit at the low end; zoysia and St. Augustine run higher. A pallet covers about 450 square feet and runs $150 to $450 delivered. Variety is mostly a climate decision, not a budget one.
Killing or stripping the old lawn, hauling debris, tilling, leveling, and adding topsoil or compost. This is the step that decides whether the sod survives, and it's where the labor money goes.
Rolling out, cutting around beds and walkways, staggering seams, and watering in. Sloped yards, tight access, and odd shapes raise this line.
A pro install buys you flatness, knitted seams, and a warranty. You don't always need it:
Hire it out when the yard is large, sloped, needs grading or irrigation, or you can't be there to water during the critical first weeks. That's exactly when a botched DIY job costs more than the crew would have.
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Installed, about $2,000 to $5,000 depending on prep and grass type. Doing it yourself on flat, ready ground can drop it to roughly $1,000 to $2,000.
No. Seed costs a fraction up front but takes a full season to fill in and fails more often. Sod is an instant lawn you pay a premium for.
Yes. Get three, and make sure each lists prep, removal, and grass type. The cheap quote that skips prep is the one that fails.
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