A BS 5837 tree survey — the report most planning applications involving trees near proposed works need — typically costs £350–£1,800 in 2026 for an ordinary house project, depending on how many trees are recorded and how much of the standard's paperwork your council actually asks for. A single tree looked at on its own, for a mortgage lender, a neighbour dispute or a straightforward safety check, is a different job again and a cheaper one, at £150–£450. Larger or more complex sites move into four figures fairly quickly.
What moves the number has surprisingly little to do with the size of your house. It's how many trees end up on the schedule — each one measured, categorised and written up individually — how much of the standard's full documentation set your local planning authority's validation checklist actually asks for beyond the survey itself, and how much ground there is to walk and record.
I'm a building surveyor, not an arboriculturist — I don't carry out tree surveys myself, so I've no stake in whether you commission one or which consultant you use. What follows is 2026 pricing cross-checked against current UK arboricultural consultancy rates, what genuinely drives the cost, and a straight answer on when a tree survey is actually required versus when it's a precaution nobody's asking for.
The short answer
Figures below were checked on 11 September 2026 against several UK arboricultural consultancies' published pricing and current trade cost guides, cross-referenced against each other. Most consultants quote a fixed fee once they know the site and tree count, though day rates are common too. As with the rest of this series, London and the South East — Dom's patch included — commonly trend above the rest of the UK for a comparable job.
| Job | Typical cost (2026) | What's included |
|---|---|---|
| Single tree report (lender, dispute, condition check) | £150–£450 | One tree assessed, TPO/conservation-area status checked, short written report |
| BS 5837 survey only, small domestic plot | £350–£800 | Site walkover, tree schedule, A/B/C/U categorisation, Tree Constraints Plan |
| Full BS 5837 planning package | £600–£1,800 | Survey plus Arboricultural Impact Assessment, Tree Protection Plan and method statement, ready to submit |
| Larger, multi-tree or development site | £1,500–£5,000+ | Multiple site visits, phased reporting, detailed CAD mapping |
Where a consultant charges by time rather than a fixed fee, expect roughly £75–£120 an hour, or £450–£800 for a day on site — a small domestic plot is usually well within a single day. Quotes are usually given plus VAT, so check which basis you're comparing before setting two consultants' prices against each other. A consultant who's a registered member of the Arboricultural Association tends to sit toward the top of these ranges rather than the bottom, which is generally worth paying for on anything a planning authority will actually scrutinise.
What drives the price
Tree count, not house size. Every tree that could plausibly be affected by the works gets individually measured, categorised and entered into a schedule. A small garden with a dozen trees close to the build line takes longer to survey and write up than a larger plot with two trees well clear of anything.
How much of the standard's paperwork you actually need. The survey and schedule are the base job. An Arboricultural Impact Assessment, a Tree Protection Plan and a method statement are separate documents, each adding time, and not every application needs all of them — confirm with your architect or the council what the validation checklist actually asks for before assuming you need the full set.
Site complexity. Dense planting, steep ground, restricted access and trees that are hard to see clearly from any single vantage point all slow the walkover down.
Protected status. A tree covered by a Tree Preservation Order or sitting in a conservation area usually warrants more careful recording and justification, since any proposal affecting it is likely to get closer scrutiny from the council's tree officer.
Access and travel. A rural site, or one some distance from a consultant's base, typically costs more than an equivalent plot on their doorstep.
Do you actually need one?
The test isn't whether your garden has trees in it — it's whether any of them sit close enough to the proposed works to be affected. BS 5837 works this out through a tree's root protection area: broadly, a circle with a radius of twelve times the trunk's diameter, measured at 1.5m above ground, capped by the canopy spread if that's larger. If new foundations, drainage runs, hardstanding or even scaffolding fall inside that circle for a tree of any real significance, most local planning authority validation checklists will expect a BS 5837 survey before they'll register the application, and will come back asking for one if it's missing.
Each tree the survey covers gets graded A, B, C or U under the standard — broadly, high-value and long-lived through to a tree unsuitable for retention — with a cascade principle behind the grading: the higher the category, the harder it is to justify removing that tree, and the more weight it carries against a scheme that would take it out. This is the professional-judgement end of the job, and it's exactly why a generalist tree surgeon's opinion and a BS 5837 report from an accredited consultant aren't interchangeable, however similar the site visit looks from the pavement.
Equally, plenty of straightforward projects don't need one at all. A single-storey rear extension on a plot with no significant trees anywhere near the build line, or where the nearest tree is well outside any plausible root protection area, is unlikely to need a survey purely because there happens to be a tree somewhere in the garden. I've written separately about topographical survey cost, and a tree survey to BS 5837 standard is sometimes offered as an add-on to that same site visit — worth asking about if you need both, rather than paying two separate call-out fees. Either way, a five-minute phone call to a local consultant describing the site, before committing to the full planning package, is a sensible way to find out which tier you actually need.
Protected trees and the legal side
This is the part that's easy to skip and expensive to get wrong. Most councils publish a free Tree Preservation Order map online — search the tree or the address before doing anything to it at all, including pruning, not just before felling. A tree inside a conservation area is protected even without an individual TPO; works to it need six weeks' written notice to the council, given free of charge, before you can proceed.
Destroying a protected tree without consent is a criminal offence under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, carrying a fine of up to £20,000 in a Magistrates' Court, or an unlimited fine if the case goes to the Crown Court — and courts can order the tree replanted, with the TPO applying to the replacement immediately. Unauthorised work that doesn't destroy the tree, such as heavy pruning, carries a lower maximum fine, up to £2,500, but it's still an offence. A genuinely dead tree can be removed without consent under a specific exemption, but except in a genuine emergency you still have to give the council five working days' written notice first, so it can satisfy itself the tree really is dead before the chainsaw goes in.
What I'd watch for in a quote
- Accreditation stated. Membership of the Arboricultural Association, or equivalent professional registration, matters more on a report a planning authority will scrutinise than a lower headline price.
- Scope confirmed against what your council actually needs. Survey only, or the full Impact Assessment, Protection Plan and method statement — check it matches the validation checklist rather than assuming more paperwork is automatically safer.
- TPO and conservation-area status checked and stated, not assumed either way.
- Category grading and root protection areas shown on a plan, not just listed in a table, so your architect can design around them properly.
- CAD file as well as PDF, if your architect needs to work directly from the Tree Constraints Plan.
Questions I get asked
How much does a tree survey cost? A single tree looked at on its own typically costs £150–£450. A BS 5837 survey on an ordinary house plot runs £350–£800 for the survey alone, or £600–£1,800 for the full planning package. Larger or more complex sites can run £1,500–£5,000 or more. Many consultants charge £75–£120 an hour or £450–£800 a day instead of a fixed fee.
Do I need a tree survey for a loft conversion or extension? Usually only if a tree sits close enough that the works fall within, or near, its root protection area. Most validation checklists ask for a BS 5837 survey wherever that's plausible. A rear extension well clear of any significant tree often doesn't need one — check with your architect first rather than assuming either way.
How do I find out if a tree has a Tree Preservation Order? Most councils publish a free, searchable TPO map on their planning website. A tree in a conservation area is separately protected even without a specific TPO, and needs six weeks' written notice for works instead. Check before doing anything at all, including pruning.
What happens if I remove a protected tree without permission? It's a criminal offence carrying a fine of up to £20,000 in a Magistrates' Court, or unlimited in the Crown Court, and courts can order replanting. Lesser unauthorised works, like heavy pruning, carry fines up to £2,500. A genuinely dead tree can be removed without consent, but the council still needs five working days' written notice first, except in a genuine emergency.
A tree survey tells your architect and the council which trees the site has to be designed around; it doesn't tell you whether the building itself is sound enough to extend from in the first place. If you're planning a loft conversion or extension and want an independent read on the property alongside whatever the trees dictate, that's my building survey work. Call 07946 618203 or get in touch. I've covered the land side of things separately in topographical survey cost, and for the project itself, see loft conversion cost and single storey extension cost.
Small print. This guide is general information, not advice on a specific tree or site, and it doesn’t replace a written quote and, where relevant, a qualified arboriculturist's assessment for your own property. Prices were researched and correct to the best of my knowledge on 11 September 2026; costs move and vary by region, consultant and site. Always get at least three written quotes, and check a tree's protected status before any work is carried out on it.