The short answer
Site clearance and muck-away are usually the first groundworks costs and are priced by volume and disposal, not by a flat rate. Inert soil disposal typically runs around £28–£45 per tonne in 2026, higher in London and the South East, and groundworker day labour is roughly £180–£300 per day. Excavation is generally priced per cubic metre for dig-and-cart-away, and the volume to remove is more than the hole looks, because soil 'swells' once dug — clay by about 25%, sand by about 12% and rock by about 50%. The figure depends on the volume of material, its type, the distance to the tip and how easily plant can reach the work.
Site clearance removes vegetation, structures and obstructions; muck-away is the cost of excavating and disposing of the spoil. Both are priced on what comes out of the ground and where it goes, so the variables below matter more than any flat rate.
Typical UK figures
- Inert disposal~£28–£45 / tonne
- Groundworker~£180–£300 / day
- Excavationpriced per m³ (dig & cart)
- Clay swell~25% more volume
- Rock swell~50% more volume
What clearance and muck-away cover
- Site clearance: stripping vegetation, removing old structures, slabs and obstructions, and reducing the site to a workable level.
- Excavation: digging out for foundations, the reduced-level dig, or removing made ground — usually priced per cubic metre.
- Muck-away: loading, carting and tipping the spoil, charged on volume or weight plus disposal at the tip.
- Disposal: inert soil is cheaper to tip than contaminated material, which needs special handling and costs more.
| Factor | Effect on cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Volume of spoil | main driver | priced per m³ or tonne |
| Soil type | swell adds volume | clay ~25%, sand ~12%, rock ~50% |
| Distance to tip | raises haulage | more loads, more fuel |
| Access | limits machine size | tight sites need more time |
General factors for guidance. Sources: Mainline Groundworks and construction rate data.
Why the dug volume is more than the hole
Soil bulks up once it is broken out of the ground, so the volume you have to cart away is larger than the size of the excavation. As a rule of thumb, clay swells by around 25%, sand by around 12% and rock by around 50%. That swell, combined with the distance to the nearest licensed tip and the disposal charge per tonne, is why two sites with the same-size hole can have very different muck-away bills — and why the volume calculation belongs in the quote.
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Frequently asked questions
How much does muck-away cost in the UK?
Inert soil disposal typically runs around £28–£45 per tonne in 2026, higher in London and the South East, with excavation usually priced per cubic metre for dig-and-cart-away. The total depends on volume, soil type, tip distance and access.
Why is there more spoil than the size of the hole?
Because soil swells when it is excavated — clay by about 25%, sand by about 12% and rock by about 50%. The carted-away volume is therefore larger than the excavation, which is why the swell calculation belongs in the quote.
What moves the cost of site clearance?
The volume of material, its type, whether it is inert or contaminated, the distance to a licensed tip and how easily machinery can reach the work. These site factors matter more than any flat per-square-metre rate.
Sources & further reading
Figures on this page are typical UK ranges drawn from published sources and depend on your specific site. They are guidance, not a quotation.