Run your own numbers first
The free ROI calculator — lawn service or mowing yourself (your time, gas, maintenance, fertilizer) against a robot sized to your lawn, over the years you'd keep it. No login; every assumption printed.
Start with the honest question: is it worth it?
The full cost-vs-service math, the time you get back, the hidden costs nobody mentions — and the lawns where a robot is NOT the right answer.
What it costs to run, month to month
kWh per mow, your electric rate and the real monthly number — most lawns cost just a few dollars a month in electricity.
The battery — the one big wear item
Real cycle math by lawn size: on a small lawn the battery can outlast the mower; on a big one plan for about 5 years. Here's how to know which you are.
The alternative: what a lawn service really costs
Weekly service vs a robot that cuts daily — the payback math, plus why little-and-often mowing grows a thicker lawn while it saves you money.
The fertilizer line on the bill
Daily micro-clippings return up to ~25% of a lawn's yearly nitrogen, and building soil costs about what two fertilizer visits do — but lasts 2–3 years. The lawn-care half of the math most cost comparisons leave out.
Lawn care Why Is My Lawn Yellow? What Fertilizer Your Lawn Actually Needs Yellow all over, in patches or in stripes: three different problems. Read the color, decode the bag's numbers, feed by season, and the $15 test that beats guessing. Read the guide → 
Tips & Maintenance Synthetic Fertilizer vs. Building Soil: Rent or Own Your Lawn? Spray-on fertilizer buys a few weeks of green; soil organic matter keeps a lawn thick for years. The cost per year, runoff and results compared for a ¼-acre lawn. Read the guide → Winter runs the same math
The same honest-cost approach, applied to snow: a robotic snow blower against a plow contract or per-storm plowing, with payback measured in seasons.
Explore the system
Frequently asked
How much does a robot mower cost up front?
Most residential machines run about $1,400 to $3,300 depending on lawn size and terrain — small-yard models at the low end, flagship AWD machines at the top. Commercial-class robots for 3–6 acres run roughly $5,500–$7,000. Our free lawn check tells you which class your yard actually needs before you spend anything.
What does a robot mower cost to run?
A few dollars a month in electricity for most lawns, plus blades every 4–6 weeks as a small consumable cost. There's no gas, no oil, no tune-ups. The running-cost guide above has the kWh math for your own electric rate.
When does a robot mower pay for itself?
Against a typical weekly lawn service, usually within a few seasons — and the robot cuts daily instead of weekly, which grows a thicker lawn along the way. The worth-it guide above runs the full payback math, including the lawns where the answer is honestly no.