Startup cost
Build your budget line by line. Where a reliable national figure exists we've filled it in and linked the source. Everything else is set to zero for you to fill in with local quotes, because those costs vary too much to guess.
Your budget
Try $0, $10,000, $50,000, $150,000 or $500,000.
| Item | Qty | Unit | $ per unit | Total | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Land: pasture (U.S. average) | acres | 0 | State averages range from $630 (NM) to $16,900 (RI).1 | ||
| Land: cropland (U.S. average) | acres | 0 | State averages range from $1,320 (MT) to $32,900 (RI).1 | ||
| Solar array, installed | watts | 0 | 2024 median residential price before incentives, grid-tied.2 | ||
| Battery bank | kWh | 0 | Get quotes. Price varies widely by chemistry. | ||
| Well | job | 0 | Get a written quote from a certified driller. | ||
| Septic system, conventional | system | 0 | EPA puts conventional repair or replacement at $5,000 to $15,000.3 | ||
| Shelter | job | 0 | Depends on size, method and how much you build yourself. | ||
| Portable sawmill setup (one owner’s example) | setup | 0 | Mill, blades and log-handling gear, 2025.4 | ||
| Fruit trees | trees | 0 | Enter your nursery price. | ||
| Seeds, tools and garden setup | lot | 0 | Enter your own estimate. | ||
| Pressure canner, jars and lids | lot | 0 | Enter your own estimate. | ||
| Emergency fund | lot | 0 | Keep cash for the first year’s surprises. |
–Total startup cost
–Left over from your budget
What different budgets mean
These are planning approaches from The Ready Team, not price quotes. Use the table above to cost them for your area.
- $0 to $10,000: Land is usually out of reach at this level, so start by building skills and equipment: garden where you live, learn canning, and save. Caretaking or leasing land are ways to start growing before you buy.
- $10,000 to $50,000: Lower-cost land is possible in some states (New Mexico pasture averaged $630 an acre in 20251), but water, septic and shelter can each take a large share. Get those quotes before you buy land.
- $50,000 to $150,000: May cover land plus basic water, septic and a small solar setup in lower-cost areas, especially if you build your own shelter. Run the numbers above with local quotes.
- $150,000 to $500,000: Room for better land, a well-built efficient home, a full solar and battery system, and production equipment such as a sawmill and canning setup.
Timeline
- Year 1: Water, shelter and a first garden. Plant fruit trees now. Dwarf apples bear in 2 to 3 years, semi-dwarf in 4 to 5, and standard trees can take 7 to 10.5
- Years 2 to 3: Expand the garden, add food preservation and storage, and get first fruit from dwarf trees.
- Years 4 to 10: Semi-dwarf and standard trees come into bearing, and production systems pay for themselves.
Sources
- USDA NASS, Land Values 2025 Summary
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, U.S. Distributed Solar and Storage 2025 Data Update
- U.S. EPA, Why Maintain Your Septic System
- Virginia Cooperative Extension (K. Peer), What I Have Learned as a New Portable Sawmill Owner, 2025
- University of Maine Cooperative Extension, Rootstocks and Dwarf Fruit Trees