How long does it take to mow an acre?
About 42 min for a typical acre with a 48-inch zero-turn, trimming included, and 3 hr 29 min with a push mower. Here are the times for every common mower, and why the rating on the deck is optimistic.
- 42 min48" zero-turn, with trimming
- 1 hr 11 min36" walk-behind, with trimming
- 3 hr 29 min21" push, with trimming
Times by mower
| Mower | Open acre, mowing | Typical acre, with trimming |
|---|---|---|
| 21" push at 1.7 mph | 3 hr 16 min | 3 hr 29 min |
| 36" walk-behind at 3.4 mph | 58 min | 1 hr 11 min |
| 48" zero-turn at 5 mph | 30 min | 42 min |
| 60" zero-turn at 5.8 mph | 22 min | 33 min |
| 72" zero-turn at 6.3 mph | 17 min | 30 min |
One acre of lawn. An open acre has nothing in the way; a typical one has a house, a driveway, a bed and a couple of trees. Times from mowing routes the Mow Mapper planner laid out and timed, for one person.
A 48-inch zero-turn cuts an open acre in about 30 min, and a typical acre takes about 42 min once the house, the beds and the trimming are counted. With a 21-inch push mower, the same typical acre is about 3 hr 29 min.
Why it takes longer than the rating says
A mower's acres-per-hour rating assumes it never turns. A 48-inch deck at 5 mph is rated at 2.42 acres an hour, which would be 25 min an acre. In practice every pass ends in a turn, passes overlap a little, there is a lap round the edge, and the passes stop at everything in the way. On a typical acre the planned route kept 75% of the rated pace. The efficiency guide goes into where the rest goes.
A quarter acre, half an acre, two acres
| Typical yard | 21" push | 36" walk-behind | 48" zero-turn | 60" zero-turn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ¼ acre | 1 hr | 25 min | 17 min | 13 min |
| ½ acre | 1 hr 50 min | 40 min | 25 min | 21 min |
| 1 acre | 3 hr 29 min | 1 hr 11 min | 42 min | 33 min |
| 2 acres | 6 hr 46 min | 2 hr 11 min | 1 hr 14 min | 59 min |
Minutes on site for one person, mowing then trimming.
What slows an acre down
- Beds and edges. Every one is trimming. Trees on their own cost less than you would think; the slopes and obstacles guide has the numbers.
- Slopes. A bank is mown as its own piece, with its own lap and its own turns.
- Long grass and wet grass. Both mean slowing down or going over it twice.
- Bagging. Every stop to empty the bags is time off the clock.
How to mow an acre faster
- Run the passes along the long side of the lawn, so there are fewer turns.
- Do a lap or two round the edge first, so you turn on grass that is already cut.
- Group the obstacles: mow round a cluster of trees once, not each tree.
- Match the mower to the yard; a bigger deck only pays on open ground.
