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Last reviewed 2026-10-17

Utah Tree Removal Cost and Rules

Utah bids swing more with terrain than with species. HomeGuide's February 2026 figures, gathered nationwide, start most removals at $400 to $1,200; what moves a Beehive State quote is whether the trunk sits on a lava bench in Ivins, behind a fence in Bountiful, or in a juniper thicket above Erda, and whether the brush can go to a cheap local landfill.

Utah's forests are mostly short woodland. The Forest Service's 2022 FIA evaluation counts about 17.9 million forested acres statewide: pinyon/juniper 58.2%, woodland hardwoods such as Gambel oak 13.4%, aspen 9.0% and fir/spruce 8.0%. In towns, though, most removals are planted shade trees: cottonwood, elm, ash, maple and pine.

Below are the rules every Utahn shares; the Davis, Tooele and Washington pages go deeper into city codes, dump fees, dirt and disasters.

Cost at a glance

Utah tree removal cost at a glance
Item	Typical cost	Source
Typical single tree	$400-$1,200	HomeGuide, Feb 2026 (national)
Cedar/juniper-type tree	$600-$2,000	HomeGuide, Feb 2026 (national)
Land clearing, per acre	$1,200-$8,000	HomeGuide, Feb 2026 (national)
Burn windows, northern counties	Mar 30-May 30, Sept 15-Oct 30	Utah DAQ R307-202
Burn windows, southern counties	Mar 1-May 30, Sept 15-Nov 15	Utah DAQ R307-202
Wasatch Integrated green waste load (in district)	$10 flat	Wasatch Integrated

Permits

No state permit is needed to cut a tree on your own land. Burning the debris is tightly limited by the Utah Division of Air Quality's rule R307-202: residential cleanup burning needs a permit and is allowed only on days when the clearing index is 500 or higher. The rule splits Utah in two: Washington, Iron, Kane, San Juan and the other southern counties get March 1 to May 30 plus September 15 to November 15, while everyone farther north is limited to March 30 to May 30 plus September 15 to October 30.

Fire districts and cities layer on their own rules. North Davis Fire District issues permits through the state's online system and bans open burning in Sunset; Tooele City Code makes burning yard trimmings unlawful inside the city; St. George Fire requires a free permit for each burn day and does not allow land-clearing burns. Check with your local Fire department before lighting anything.

Getting rid of wood rarely breaks the budget in Utah. The Wasatch Integrated Waste Management District charges Davis County haulers a flat $10 for most in-district green loads, the Bauer Road landfill near Tooele prices clean limbs by the cubic yard, and St. George-area residents can drop under a ton each month without charge, per each operator's fee page. Ask your city Planning office about street-tree and development rules before removing a tree near a sidewalk or on a lot being built.

Step 1: open your county page below for local rules. Step 2: decide on haul-off, chipping or a permitted seasonal burn. Step 3: call the electric utility if limbs touch lines. Step 4: compare itemized written bids. Step 5: call Utah 811 before stump grinding.

Local conditions

Floods and wind: FEMA's declarations data list 15 weather-related major disasters for Utah, 11 of them floods, plus the 1999 Salt Lake City tornado and the straight-line winds that began September 7, 2020; the most recent, DR-4948 on October 7, 2026, covers the Cottonwood Fire, flooding and mudslides.

Rock and slope: NRCS soil survey data find bedrock within about 39 inches on 31.8% of mapped acres in the Washington County Area and slopes of 15% or more on 17.6% of the Tooele Area, while the Davis-Weber Area is mostly flat and often wet; expect shallow rock in the south and steep slopes west of Tooele.

Growth: Dixie is where Utah's new houses go. Census building permit data show 2,497 single-family homes authorized in Washington County during 2025, roughly three times the Davis total, and lots carved from pinyon slopes start with clearing.

Brittle shade trees: decades-old cottonwoods and Siberian elms along the Wasatch Front grow huge and break in canyon winds and heavy snow.

What drives local prices

Size: a short juniper under 30 ft is a $200-$500 job in HomeGuide's height table, a mid-size shade tree between 30 and 60 ft lands at $500-$1,500, and a Wasatch Front cottonwood topping 80 ft can pass $2,500.
Species: HomeGuide shows cedar at $600-$2,000, ash at $650-$2,000, maple at $600-$1,200 and pine at $250-$1,600.
Acreage: thinning a whole pinyon-juniper lot gets priced by the acre, and HomeGuide's acre rate for clearing runs $1,200-$8,000.
Rock: shallow bedrock can stop a stump grinder; HomeGuide's survey puts stump removal at $100-$500+.
Method: tree, size, acreage and stump prices are HomeGuide national figures (Feb 4, 2026); burn rules come from Utah DAQ, North Davis Fire District, Tooele City and St. George Fire; disposal fees from Wasatch Integrated, Tooele County and Washington County Solid Waste. These are not quotes from Utah crews. Reviewed October 16, 2026.

Common jobs

Cottonwood, elm and ash removal in town
Juniper and pinyon clearing on bench and desert lots
Windstorm and snow damage cleanup
Green waste haul-off

Service area

County pages on the site: Davis (Layton, Bountiful, Kaysville, Farmington), Tooele (Tooele, Grantsville, Stansbury Park, Erda) and Washington (St. George, Washington, Hurricane, Ivins). Davis and Tooele counties meet in the Great Salt Lake; Washington sits in the far southwest corner along I-15.

If your county isn't listed, the state burn windows still apply; ask your local Fire department or city Planning office about burning and street trees.

Want a price for a Utah tree? Drop a note in the form below: what grows there, how tall, and what it might hit. Replies come by email, usually with a short list of insured Utah crews.

Communities: Layton, Bountiful, Kaysville, Farmington, Tooele, Grantsville, Stansbury Park, Erda, St. George, Washington, Hurricane, Ivins

When something can’t wait

Downed lines after an east wind are Rocky Mountain Power's job first; dial 911 if anyone is hurt and wait before touching the tree. Storm-night callouts commonly double or triple the bill (HomeGuide), so get pictures before cleanup starts.

Questions about Utah

How much does tree removal cost in Utah?

Plan on $400 to $1,200 for an ordinary tree going by HomeGuide's 2026 numbers; a towering cottonwood or a stump in sandstone costs more.

When can I burn yard waste in Utah?

Spring and fall only, and only on good-air days. Northern counties such as Davis and Tooele open March 30 and close May 30, then reopen mid-September through Halloween eve; Dixie's season starts a month earlier and runs to mid-November, per R307-202.

Do cities allow burning?

Some don't. Tooele City bans burning yard trimmings, Sunset bans open burning, and St. George allows only small permitted piles in season.

Do I need a permit to cut a tree?

Not from the state. Cities may regulate street trees and development, and HOAs often have their own rules.

What's the main storm risk?

Floods account for 11 of the state's 15 weather-related FEMA declarations, and canyon windstorms like September 2020's also bring trees down along the Wasatch Front.

Sources

County pages in Utah

Tree problems

Local fees and rules change. Confirm with the county or state office named above before you clear. Estimate your clearing cost.