How Much Does Tree Removal Cost in St. Louis? (2026 Numbers)

Revised August 13, 2026

Imagine a Saturday in Webster Groves, or Florissant, or out past Wildwood. The silver maple that shades half the back yard dropped a limb the size of a canoe during the last storm, and it missed the garage by about six feet. Nobody was hurt. But now you are standing in the yard looking up at the rest of that tree differently than you did last week.

You call three tree services. One quotes $850. One quotes $2,400. One will not give a number over the phone at all and wants to come look. That spread is normal, and it is not because two of them are trying to cheat you.

Here is what tree work actually costs in the St. Louis metro, and what makes one quote three times another on the same tree.

The short answer

Tree removal in St. Louis averages around $1,300, with most jobs landing between $500 and $2,200 depending on height and access. Straightforward removals often run $550 to $1,000. Large or genuinely difficult jobs — a big oak leaning over a house, or anything requiring a crane — can reach $6,000.

Stumps are usually priced separately. Stump removal commonly runs $60 to $350, and grinding ranges roughly $75 to $1,000 depending on diameter, root spread and how much grinding depth you want.

That separation matters when you compare quotes. A cheap removal price that leaves a stump in your lawn is not the same job as a slightly higher price that takes the stump with it.

What actually sets the price

Height and trunk diameter

The single biggest driver. A 20-foot ornamental is a couple of hours with a chainsaw and a chipper. A 40-foot hardwood is a different job requiring a climber or a bucket truck, rigging, and rope-lowering the limbs in sections. A 70-foot oak with a trunk you cannot get your arms around is a different job again.

What is underneath it

This is the variable most homeowners underestimate. A tree standing alone in an open back yard can often be felled in one piece — fast and cheap. The same tree twenty feet from a house, over a fence, beside a garage, or under power lines has to come down in pieces, each one roped and lowered. That can double or triple the labor for an identical tree.

Access

Can the truck and chipper get to the tree, or does every limb get carried through a gate by hand? Many older St. Louis neighborhoods have deep, narrow lots with no rear alley access, and that alone moves a quote several hundred dollars.

Condition

Counterintuitively, a dead or storm-damaged tree often costs more than a healthy one, not less. Dead wood is unpredictable to climb and unsafe to rig from, so the crew has to work from a bucket or bring in a crane. Anything already leaning toward a structure gets priced for the risk it carries.

What happens to the debris

Chipped and hauled away, chipped and left as mulch, or cut to firewood length and stacked. Ask which one you are buying. Leaving the wood on site can reduce the price, and taking the chips as mulch is worth asking about if you have beds to fill.

The ash borer problem, which is specific to here

Emerald ash borer has been positively identified in the City of St. Louis, and it has been working through the metro’s ash population for years. If you have an ash tree, this is likely the conversation you are having whether you know it or not.

Two things are worth understanding. Treatment is only viable on trees that are still reasonably healthy — once canopy loss is significant, treating is money spent on a tree that is going to come down anyway. And a dead ash gets brittle fast, which is exactly the condition that pushes removal into the higher price bracket. The cheapest version of this decision is the one made early.

On permits: the City of St. Louis Forestry Ordinance (Ordinance 68607) requires a Permit to Maintain for work on any City tree — the ones in the right-of-way, not yours. For ash trees on private property, no permit is required to treat or remove. But if a private ash dies or becomes hazardous, it is subject to a nuisance violation under the same ordinance and the city can order it removed. Surrounding municipalities set their own rules, so if your tree is anywhere near the street, confirm whose tree it actually is before anyone starts cutting.

What a written quote should actually say

The quotes that cause arguments later are the ones that say remove tree — $1,400 and nothing else. A quote you can hold someone to names:

• Which tree, described well enough that there is no ambiguity — species, rough height, and where it stands
• Whether the stump is included, and if so ground to what depth
• What happens to the wood and the brush — hauled, chipped and left, or cut and stacked
• Whether the crew is repairing lawn damage or ruts from equipment
• Proof of general liability and workers’ compensation, with policy dates that cover your job
• Who is responsible for calling in utility locates before any stump grinding

That last one gets skipped constantly and it matters. Grinding a stump means putting a spinning wheel into ground that may contain gas, water, electric or fiber lines. Missouri 811 locates are free and legally expected before that kind of digging. A company that shrugs at the question is not a company you want operating that machine near your service lines.

When removal is not the answer

Not every alarming-looking tree needs to come down, and the cheapest outcome is sometimes no removal at all.

A tree that dropped a limb in a storm may simply have had a weak union that can be pruned out, with a cable installed to support the remaining leaders. A tree with surface roots lifting a walk is often a paving problem rather than a tree problem. Deadwood in an otherwise healthy canopy is normal for mature hardwoods and gets pruned, not felled.

What genuinely does argue for removal: significant trunk decay or a cavity through the main stem, a lean that has changed recently with soil heaving on the opposite side, root damage from nearby excavation, more than about half the canopy dead, or an ash that is already past treatable. Those are structural problems that pruning does not solve.

This is the reason it is worth having a certified arborist look before you accept a removal quote from a company that only does removals. The two are not the same conversation, and the second one is more expensive by default.

Insurance, licensing and the question people forget to ask

Tree work is genuinely dangerous, and this is the one trade where hiring the cheapest quote can create real exposure for you. Ask for two certificates: general liability and workers’ compensation, sent directly from the agent rather than handed over as a photocopy.

The reason is blunt. If an uninsured cutter is hurt in your yard, the question of who pays does not stay theoretical. Missouri requires workers’ compensation coverage for construction employers with three or more employees, and a legitimate tree company carries both policies as a cost of doing business. A crew that cannot produce them is quoting low because they are carrying less.

Ask also whether a certified arborist is involved, particularly if the question is whether the tree needs to come down at all. A company that only removes trees will tend to find that trees need removing.

Timing, and the cheapest time of year

Late winter is generally the cheapest window in St. Louis. Demand is lowest, crews have gaps in the schedule, and with the leaves down a climber can see the structure of the tree clearly. Dormant-season work is also better for the tree if you are pruning rather than removing.

The most expensive time is the week after a major storm, when every crew in the region is booked and out-of-town outfits appear with door hangers. If your tree is not an active hazard, waiting out that surge will save you real money.

On pruning specifically: avoid heavy cuts on oaks between roughly April and July, when oak wilt transmission risk is highest in Missouri. That is a genuine horticultural constraint, not a scheduling preference.

Getting a fair price without being difficult about it

Three written quotes, and make sure all three cover the same scope: removal, stump, debris, and cleanup. Most of the apparent price differences you will see are scope differences.

There is normally some room to negotiate, and the honest levers are these: schedule flexibility, letting the crew leave the wood, combining several trees into one visit, or booking in the off-season. What does not work — and tends to end badly — is pushing a company below its insurance costs.

If cost is the barrier, it is worth asking whether your municipality has a program. Some St. Louis-area cities run cost-share or assistance programs for hazardous trees or ash removal, and some offer help for older residents on fixed incomes. It is not universal and it is rarely advertised, so call the city forester or public works department and ask directly rather than assuming the answer is no.

If the same storm that took the limb also took shingles, our breakdown of what a roof replacement costs in St. Louis covers the other half of that morning. And if you are trying to prevent the next one rather than clean up the last one, storm-proofing your trees is the maintenance side of the same subject.

Frequently asked questions

What is the typical cost of removing a tree in St. Louis, MO?

Around $1,300 on average, with most removals falling between $500 and $2,200 depending on height and access. Straightforward jobs often run $550 to $1,000, while large or complex removals — big hardwoods over structures, or anything needing a crane — can reach $6,000. Stump work is usually quoted separately.

How big of a tree to charge $1000 for removal?

Roughly a medium hardwood in the 30 to 50 foot range with reasonable access and nothing valuable underneath it. The same tree standing over a house, a fence or power lines can easily double that, because it has to come down in roped sections rather than being felled in one piece.

What is the cheapest time of year for tree removal?

Late winter. Demand is at its lowest, crews have schedule gaps, and with the leaves down a climber can read the structure of the tree properly. The most expensive time is the week after a major storm, when every crew in the region is booked solid.

Can seniors get free tree cutting service?

Sometimes, but it is local and rarely advertised. Some St. Louis-area municipalities run cost-share or assistance programs for hazardous trees, ash removal, or older residents on fixed incomes. There is no blanket statewide program, so call your city forester or public works department and ask directly rather than assuming.

Is it cheaper to have a tree cut down or trimmed?

Trimming is almost always cheaper in the moment, and it is the right answer when the tree is structurally sound and the issue is clearance or deadwood. It is the wrong answer when the trunk is compromised or the tree is dying, because you pay for the trimming now and the removal later anyway.

What months should you not trim trees?

In Missouri, avoid heavy pruning on oaks from roughly April through July, when oak wilt transmission risk is highest. Dormant-season pruning in late winter is generally best for the tree. Storm damage and genuine hazards are the exception — those get handled when they happen.

About the Author: The St Louis Near Me Directory Team
Written by a dedicated team of St. Louis locals who live, work, and play right here in the St. Louis metro. Founder Lane Forman and team are committed to building the region’s most trusted directory by verifying listings and connecting local businesses with loyal customers across Missouri and Illinois.

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