Why Consumers Are Buying More Lawn & Garden Equipment amid the COVID-19 Pandemic

In 2020, residential sales of lawn and garden equipment spiked as DIY activity surged among consumers, who found themselves spending more time at home than ever before and relying on DIFM services less, leading them to invest in new equipment:

• With the shift to remote work and learning, many consumers had more time to perform lawn and garden maintenance themselves.
• Increased economic insecurity among many households led some homeowners to cancel lawn and landscaping services.
• Consumer concerns about the perceived safety of inviting maintenance workers to their homes also affected demand for professional services somewhat.

Additionally, many households diverted funds from vacation and travel budgets to fund home projects, like outdoor living area installations and expansions, which provide more room for families cooped up inside as well as a safer place to socialize with family and friends. In addition to landscaping products to construct these spaces, many homeowners purchased new lawn and garden equipment to tend them.

As a result of these trends, sales of residential power lawn and garden equipment, driven by lawn mowers, grew more than 5% in 2020, finds a new Freedonia Group analysis.

Residential Power Lawn & Garden Demand to Grow 3.3% Annually 2024 to $8.7 billion in 2024

While residential demand for power lawn and garden equipment in 2021 is not expected to see as robust growth as between 2019 to 2020, the market is expected to remain strong and post healthy gains through 2024:

• Sales of power equipment to homeowners, which benefitted from DIY gains in 2020, will slow as people gradually have less time to devote to their yards and as those who purchased new equipment in 2020 will likely not need to replace or upgrade in the near future.
• As such, further gains will be limited by a moderation in the market as well as a return to greater strength in DIFM (do-it-for-me) landscaping.

Want to Learn More?

Residential Power Lawn & Garden Equipment is now available from the Freedonia Group. This study examines the US residential market for power lawn and garden equipment. The residential market comprises equipment sales to homeowners and other individuals for private use (i.e., not for commercial purposes, including professional lawn and landscaping services for residential properties). Historical data for 2009, 2014, and 2019 and forecasts for 2024 and 2029 for demand are provided in current dollar terms (which are not adjusted for inflation). Products include:

• lawn mowers (e.g., riding, walk behind)
• trimmers and edgers
• garden tractors and rotary tillers
• snow blowers (e.g., single-stage, multi-stage)
• chainsaws
• blowers, vacuums, and sweepers
• other equipment and parts and attachments (e.g., hedge trimmers, pole saws, multi-tools, utility tractors