How much does it cost to build raised garden beds?

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Raised beds are a great way to raise your soil level making garden borders easier to work.
Very often ground level borders have shallow soil which is usually difficult to maintain.

This makes working the ground to a deep and loamy texture challenging.
Such conditions result in garden beds which are difficult to cultivate and work to a good standard.

Raised beds allow you to add a greater depth of quality topsoil to your borders. Raised beds also provide improved soil drainage and increased direct sunlight. The question is how much does it cost to build raised beds in my garden?

To answer this question we will have to identify the three most typical types of raised garden bed. In this article we will work out how much it costs to build timber sleeper, concrete block and brickwork raised beds.

​To find an average price we will work to a case study of the average sized raised bed. 
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How large is the average raised garden bed? 

The two most common types of raised garden bed projects are vegetable beds and side borders. Although raised vegetable beds are a common choice their average size varies greatly. Consequently we will use more commonly requested linear border raised beds.

These are long, linear garden beds which run along each fence line to either sides of a lawn. Analysing our most common raised bed quotations we have realised the average size of proposed, raised, garden beds.

The average raised garden bed is 15 metres long x 1 metre wide and 0.5 metres high. Hence we will work out the price to build each type of bed at these dimensions. We will also separate out material costs and landscaping labour rates.

This is so you can decide whether to build the beds yourself or hire a company. For each scenario we will divide the price by 15 metres to provide an average linear metre price.

Types of raised garden bed

Timber sleepers

​Timber sleepers are an extremely popular way to build raised garden beds. Not only do these look great they are fast to build and do not require long continuous foundations. This makes them the most affordable way to build raised beds in the garden. However these will eventually degrade and could fail after 20 years. 

Concrete block & rendered

​Concrete block raised beds are extremely durable and hard wearing. These raised beds provide the greatest option for external finishes and effects. They can be rendered, painted, tiled, and clad with natural stone. However unlike timber sleepers these will require concrete foundations which can raise the costs substantially. 

Brickwork

​Raised beds built with brickwork are decorative and hard wearing. The benefit of brickwork is once built, it provides aesthetic facings instantly. This means unlike concrete is does not require extra effort and cost to render or clad it. However brickwork requires skilled labour and bricks are much more expensive than concrete. This makes raised beds built with brickwork the most expensive option. 

How much does it cost to build raised timber sleeper beds?

Table breaking down materials and labour for a raised timber sleeper bed 15m x 1m x 0.5m 

Table based on 125mm thick timber sleeper raised bed 15m long, 1m wide and 500mm high. Sleepers to be fixed to anchor posts concreted in every 3 metres.

No ​	​Item	​Specification	​Unit cost	​Total cost
​30	​Sleepers	​2.4 x 0.25 x 1.25	​£40	​£1,200.00
​3	​Gravel boards	​1.8 x 0.15 x 0.025	​£6	​£18.00
​2	​Timber lock screws	​50 pack 200mm long	​£30	​£60.00
​1	​External screws	​50 pack 75mm	​£4	​£4.00
​8	​Timber posts	​1.8 x 0.1 x 0.1	​£15	​£120.00
​25	​Postcrete	​20kg bags	​£6	​£150.00
​8	​Topsoil	​8 ton	​£65	​£520.00
​1	​Labour	​1 man 4.5 days	​£250	​£1,125.00
​	​	​	​Materials total	​£2,072.00
​	​	​	​Grand total	​£3,197.00

Therefore the average raised bed made out of sleepers will cost around £2,072 to build and fill yourself ​ The average raised bed made out of sleepers will cost around £3,197 to build and fill by a contractor.  ​

How much does it cost to build concrete block rendered beds?

Table based on 140mm thick concrete raised bed 15m long 1m wide and 500mm high. Bed will be capped with sandstone copings and rendered

​No	​Item	​Specification	​Unit cost	​Total cost
​1	​6 cubic metres muck	​8 yard skip	​£300	​£300
​4	​Ballast	​4 jumbos @ 850kg	​£50	​£200
​8	​plastering sand	​25kg bags	​£3	​£24
​37	​Cement	​25kg bags	​£6	​£222
​150	​Concrete blocks	​215 x 440 x 140mm	​£3	​£450
​100	​Sandstone copings	​300 x 300 x 20mm	​£5	​£500
​1	​building sand	​1 jumbo 850kg	​£50	​£50
​1	​Mortar plasticiser	​5 litre	​£5	​£5
​8	​Topsoil	​8 ton	​£65	​£520.00
​1	​Labour	​1 man 8 days	​£250	​£2000.00
​	​	​	​Materials total	£2,271.00
​	​	​	Grand total	£4,271.00

Therefore the average raised bed made out of concrete block and render will cost around £2,271 to build and fill yourself. The average raised bed made out of concrete block and render will cost around £4,271 by a contractor

How much does it cost to build raised beds with brickwork? 

Table based on 9inch brickwork raised bed 15m long 1m wide and 500mm high. Bed to have brick on edge soldier course to top of wall.  

No ​	​Item	​Specification	​Unit cost	​Total cost
​1	​6 cubic metres muck	​8 yard skip	​£300	​£300
​4	​Ballast	​4 jumbos @ 850kg	​£50	​£200
​2000	​Bricks	​Ashdown brick	​£2	​£4,000
​3	​Building sand	​3 jumbos @ 850kg	​£50	​£150
​40	​Cement	​25kg bags	​£6	​£240
​1	​Mortar plasticiser	​5 litre	​£5	​£5
​8	​Topsoil	​8 ton	​£65	​£520
​1	​Labour	​1 man 11 days	​£250 - £400	​£3,500
​	​	​	Materials total	£5,415.00
​	​	​	​Grande total	£8,915.00

​Therefore the average raised bed built out of clay bricks will cost around £5,415 to build and fill yourself. The average raised bed built out of clay bricks will cost around £8,915 built by a contractor

Conclusion

The cost of building a raised garden bed will depend on a series of factors. These will include local labour rates, materials used, access, profitability and risk. However from the data tables here we can conclude that:
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The average sized raised bed filled with good quality topsoil will cost around £5,493.50

Thank you for reading our article on how much does it cost to build a raised garden. We hope there is enough data in the tables so you can get an idea of what your bed will cost. Why not check out our article onhow to build raised garden beds here.   

If you are planning to build your new garden yourself check out our resources page. 

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