Typical artificial grass installations in Glasgow land between £65 and £120 per m² for a standard installation, fully installed. That’s the genuine all-in figure — excavation, sub-base, membrane, edging, turf and labour — not a turf-only price with the groundwork hidden in the small print. Here’s where you’ll sit in that range and why.
Artificial grass cost by lawn size
| Lawn size | Typical installed cost |
|---|---|
| 20m² | £1,300–£2,400 |
| 30m² | £1,950–£3,600 |
| 40m² | £2,600–£4,800 |
| 60m² | £3,900–£7,200 |
The spread is wide because two things move the price more than anything else: the turf grade you choose and how much preparation your ground needs. A compact, easily accessed garden with a mid-range turf sits near the bottom of the range; a premium turf on ground that needs full excavation sits near the top.
What’s included in a proper install
Cheap artificial lawns ripple, dip and lift at the edges after a year — and it’s almost never the turf. It’s the preparation underneath. A properly specified installation includes:
- Excavation of the old lawn or surface to the correct depth, usually 75–100mm
- MOT Type 1 sub-base, compacted in layers for stability and free drainage — the part that stops the lawn rippling and dipping later
- Sharp sand levelling layer, screeded flat for a true finish underfoot
- Weed membrane to stop anything pushing through
- Timber edging to lock the perimeter in place
- Turf cut precisely to fit, with joins seamed and glued so they’re invisible from above
- Final grooming, kiln-dried sand where specified, and a 5-year written workmanship guarantee
If a quote is dramatically cheaper, ask which of those steps is missing. Turf laid on poorly compacted ground or without edging fails long before the turf itself wears out.
What changes the price
Turf grade
Quality multi-tone turfs from established manufacturers — different blade lengths, several shades of green, a brown thatch layer — look genuinely realistic and carry 8–10 year manufacturer warranties, lasting 15+ years in real-world use. Cheap turfs can flatten and fade in 3–5 years, which is why we don’t fit them. Turf grade is the biggest single variable within the £65–£120 range.
Ground conditions
If your existing lawn strips out cleanly, you’re in standard territory. Buried rubble, old concrete, poor drainage or badly uneven levels mean more excavation and more sub-base. We quote exceptional preparation separately and itemise it, so you can see exactly what your ground is adding.
Access
Excavated material has to come out and aggregate has to go in. A rear garden with side access keeps things standard; a tight close or a long carry adds labour time.
Drainage
Artificial grass on a proper sub-base drains as fast as it rains. But if your garden currently waterlogs, the underlying drainage problem needs solved first — turf on top of a drainage problem is still a drainage problem.
Is artificial grass worth it against real turf?
It depends on the garden. Artificial makes sense for shaded gardens where grass struggles, for dogs and heavy traffic, and for anyone who wants zero maintenance — a brush over once in a while rather than the mow-feed-scarify cycle. A larger garden changes the maths: at £65–£120 per m², a big lawn gets expensive, and real turf is often the better-value and more wildlife-friendly choice there. We install both, so you’ll get a straight recommendation either way — see our artificial grass page for the full comparison.
One honest caveat: artificial grass gets noticeably hotter than real grass in direct summer sun. Lighter pile colours stay cooler — worth knowing for a south-facing garden with bare-foot kids.
Getting an exact price
A per-m² range gets you to a budget; a fixed price needs a site visit. We measure up in person, check levels, drainage and access, and recommend the right turf grade for how your garden actually gets used — with samples, so you can see the turf against your own space. We cover Glasgow and the surrounding towns, including Motherwell, Bishopbriggs, Stepps and Cumbernauld.
Book a free site survey and you’ll have a fixed-price written quote within 24 hours — and if real turf is the better fit for your garden, we’ll tell you.