Side by side
What a 60 m² lawn costs each way
A 10 m × 6 m backyard, with example prices; use the calculators with your own quotes. Both options need the same ground preparation: 100 mm of turf underlay plus 15 % for settling, which is 6.9 m³.
Seed saves $600–$900 here, and the saving scales with area: on 200 m² it is several thousand dollars. What it costs instead is time and risk. A seeded lawn sown in the wrong month, dried out for one hot afternoon, or scratched up by a dog can mean starting again. If your ground is already good loam and needs little underlay, seed's advantage grows; if you are paying someone to lay the lawn, labour narrows it.
Work out your own numbers with the turf calculator, the grass seed calculator and the topsoil calculator.
Which grasses can you sow?
In New Zealand, most home lawns are ryegrass and fescue blends sown from seed, and ready-lawn turf is the premium option. In most of Australia the most popular lawn, soft-leaf buffalo, is turf-only, which settles the question for many households.
Timing: the season decides
- Warm-season seed (couch, kikuyu, zoysia) needs soil that stays above about 18 °C: late spring through summer in southern Australia, longer in the north. Sown in autumn, it germinates poorly and meets winter before it has established.
- Cool-season seed (ryegrass, fescue) wants soil of about 10–20 °C: autumn first, spring second. In New Zealand, that is March–May or September–October.
- Turf can go down for most of the year. Spring to autumn is best because the grass roots in quickly; in midsummer it needs more water, and in winter it takes longer to knit down.
Timing is where most seeded lawns fail. If you need the lawn in March and you want couch, lay turf. If you want tall fescue and it is already midsummer, wait for autumn or lay turf.
When each one wins
Turf wins when…
- you want soft-leaf buffalo, or a grass in a season when it will not germinate;
- the area slopes, or heavy rain could wash seed away;
- kids, dogs or an event need the lawn within weeks;
- weeds are a known problem on the block.
Seed wins when…
- the area is large and the budget is tight;
- you can sow in the right window and keep the surface moist for several weeks;
- the lawn can be fenced off or left alone for two months;
- you are overseeding or repairing an existing lawn, where turf would be overkill.
Questions
Is it cheaper to seed or turf a lawn?
Seed, by a long way for the grass itself: under $1 per m² against $7–$20 for turf. Because the soil preparation costs the same, a finished seeded lawn usually comes to around half the price of a turfed one, not a tiny fraction.
How long does a seeded lawn take compared with turf?
Turf can take light use once it has rooted, typically two to three weeks. Seeded couch emerges in 10–14 days and takes 6–8 weeks to establish; allow longer before heavy use.
Can I seed a buffalo lawn?
No. The soft-leaf buffalo varieties sold in Australia are grown from runners, not seed. Lay it as turf, or plant runners or plugs and let them spread.
Do I need topsoil under seed as well as under turf?
If the existing soil is poor, yes: a new lawn needs about 100 mm of decent soil whichever way it is grown. Seed needs it raked finer, so the tiny seeds make good contact.
Sources
- Turf prices (2026, supply only): Yellow Pages – turf price guide; Atlas Turf – turf prices.
- Seed rates, soil temperatures and establishment times: Great Aussie Lawns – warm-season grass seed guide; seed prices from Australian seed retailers' 2026 listings (roughly $15–$65 per kg by species and coating).
- Buffalo propagation: Daleys Turf – growing Sir Walter grass seed.
- New turf watering: Anco Turf – watering newly laid turf. New Zealand sowing seasons: New Zealand seed suppliers' guidance.
Last reviewed 23 September 2026 · Report an error