Small Farm and Garden Start-Up Cost Calculator
Thinking of starting a small farm, market garden or homestead? See what it costs to start and when it pays back.
Part of the 🌾 Farmers toolkit, with more tools made for the job.
🌾 Small farm or market garden
What you buy once to get started
What it costs to run, per year
Try a cautious number first.
Rules on selling food, keeping animals and using water differ by place, so check your local ones before you start.
Type your start-up costs and running costs and the totals appear here. Add what you expect to bring in to see if it pays back.
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Type the one-off things you need to buy to get going, what it costs to run each year, and what you expect to sell. This shows the first-year result and how many years it takes to earn the start-up money back.
Start-up costs are the things you buy once: tools, fencing, raised beds, soil, a water tank, a polytunnel. Running costs come round every year: seed, compost, feed, water, market fees. Keeping them apart is what shows whether a small plot is a hobby that pays for itself or a real source of income.
How it’s worked out
- Start-up total is the one-off costs added together.
- Yearly profit is the sales you expect minus the yearly running costs.
- First-year result is the yearly profit minus the start-up total. A negative number means you are still paying back the start-up money.
- Payback time is the start-up total divided by the yearly profit. If the yearly profit is zero or below, it never pays back.
Start-up costs of $800, running costs of $300 a year and sales of $1,500 a year: yearly profit is $1,200, the first year is $400 up, and the start-up money is back in about 8 months.
Common mistakes
- Leaving out your own time. If you want this to be income, put a fair wage for your hours in the running costs.
- Counting the best year. Sales in a good first season are not a safe guide, so try a lower number too.
- Forgetting the small things that repeat: replacement tools, seed, bags, tank repairs, market stall fees, transport.
- Treating borrowed or gifted items as free. If you would have to buy them later, they belong in the start-up costs.
Questions
What counts as a start-up cost?
Anything you buy once that you need before you can grow or sell: tools, fencing, raised beds, soil, a tank, a shed, a polytunnel, a first batch of animals. Things that come round every year go in the running costs.
What if I am not sure what I will sell?
Try a low guess and a higher guess and compare. If the low guess still pays back in a reasonable time, the idea is safer. The garden yield and market stall calculator helps with the sales figure.
Does it include tax, loans or interest?
No. It is a simple add-up. If you borrow to start, add the yearly repayments to the running costs.
Is it only for farms?
No. It works for any small start where you spend once and then earn every year, such as a market garden, a few beehives, a small flock or a plant nursery.
Where the method comes from
Estimates only
These are estimates and general information, not agronomic, financial or professional advice. Yields, laying rates, feed amounts, prices and rainfall vary a lot, so use your own numbers and local advice.
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