We all know what it is like, not to have enough hours in the day. You might have 1001 things that you need to get done, and whooops look at the time… it’s getting late. So, you ask yourself, “What time can I mow my lawn in Australia?” And “if I can’t mow my lawn tonight; how early can I mow the lawn tomorrow?”

You can mow your lawn in Australia in all States and Territories between 10am and 7pm on any given day. If you want to mow outside these hours, refer to the residential noise restrictions below that account for whether it is a weekday, weekend, or public holiday as well as differences across States.

While you would think that it would be much more simple to have generic rules across the country, that is just not how it works. But to make it easy, we detailed below what time you can mow your lawn across Australia.

What time can I legally mow my lawn in Australia

You can legally mow your lawn with a normal petrol mower between 10am and 7pm every day in all all States and Territories in Australia. But often you can mow your lawn outside these times, but you first need to check your residential noise restrictions.

In Australia, like other countries, residential areas have some noise restriction rules that will outline the ideal times you can mow your lawn and when you should not. You need to know the right time, during weekdays, weekends, and holidays that are good for mowing the lawn and adhere to it.

We have outlined some residential noise restrictions for some states, especially for your powered tools 

QLD – 7 am to 7 pm on weekdays, 7 am to 7 pm on Saturdays and 8 am to 7 pm on Sundays and public holidays

NSW – 7 am to 8 pm on weekdays, 7 am to 8 pm on Saturdays and 8 am to 8 pm on Sundays and public holidays.

VIC– 7 am to 8 pm on weekdays, 9 am to 8 pm on Saturdays and 9 am to 8 pm on Sundays and public holidays.

WA – 7 am to 7 pm weekdays, 7 am to 7 pm Saturdays and 9 am to 7 pm on Sundays and public holidays.

SA – 8am to 8pm weekdays, 8 am to 8 pm on Saturdays and 9am to 8pm on Sundays and holidays.

TAS – 7am to 8pm weekdays, 9am to 8pm on Saturdays, 10am to 8pm Sundays and public holidays.

ACT – 7 am to 8 pm weekdays, 7 am to 8 pm Saturdays, 8 am to 8 pm Sundays and public holidays.

NT – 7 am to 8 pm weekdays, 7 am to 8 pm Saturdays and 8 am to 8 pm on Sundays and public holidays.

What is the earliest acceptable time to mow the lawn?

While it’s legal to mow as early as 7 am in many areas, that doesn’t always mean it’s considerate. Some believe if it’s legal, it’s fine—but others may not appreciate the noise that early, especially on weekends.

Contractors often start as early as possible to beat the heat. However, early starts can lead to complaints, which take time and may cost business. A quieter battery mower like the LC347IVX from Husqvarna, operating at just 79 dB(A), is a great solution—much quieter than petrol mowers, which average 90 dB(A). Since many noise regulations limit emissions to 60 dB(A) at the boundary, using a low-noise mower away from the property line can help you mow legally at almost any time.

For homeowners, robot mowers like the Husqvarna 305 are ideal. At just 59 dB(A), they can run day or night, even up to the boundary, without disturbing the peace.

To avoid fines or neighbour disputes, always check your state’s local noise rules—most mowers are loud and hard to ignore.

Is 8 am too early to mow the lawn?

Across all Australian States you are allowed to use any lawnmower from 8am on weekdays, but there are some noise variations that vary on weekends. In Victoria and Tasmania, noise restrictions mean you can only mow from 9am on Saturday. On Sunday, Victoria and Western Australia don’t let you mow before 9am and in Tasmania you can’t mow before 10am.

While all these rules sound a bit arbitrary, it is important that you do abide by the rules. It shows your neighbours that you respect them, and helps keep a positive vibe in your community and life. And if you don’t follow the rules by mowing your lawn too early in the morning, you are actually breaking the law and can be slapped with a hefty fine from your local council!

Is it rude to mow the lawn at 7 pm?

You can mow your lawn at 7pm in all Australian States and Territories except for Tasmania where the cut off is 6pm. If you know your neighbour has a young child, it could be that you have a chat with them to make sure it won’t negatively affect them.

Children aged 4 and under are more likely to have an early bed time and be in bed at 7pm. In saying that, a lot of kids have white noise machines in their rooms to create noise to encourage them to sleep. As a parent myself, it would not have bothered my kids if my neighbours mowed their lawn during or after their bed time, but every family is different. So the best thing is to get to know your neighbors and get around knowing the community so you can know the right time that works for them…. it’s nice and neighbourly after all!.

Another thing to consider is when do your neighbours work? If your neighbor works at night, and comes home during the morning to rest, they would prefer you to mow at night when they are not at home. A 7pm mow would be much more preferable to them than a 7am mow! When there is open communication between you and your neighbors, you can live respectfully and harmoniously with one another.

Does it matter what time I mow my lawn if have a quiet battery mower?

If you have a quiet battery mower you can mow your lawn outside noise restrictions if the sound does not exceed 60 dB(A) at the property boundary. So, you need to check the specifications of your lawn mower to see how loud it is. Then use a sound attenuation calculator to work out how loud the noise is at your property boundaries.

Battery-powered lawnmowers tend to run quieter than their counterparts and anyone can easily benefit from this battery mower because of its low noise level and it makes it possible to hear people around and your surroundings.

As I mentioned above, LC347IVX from Husqvarna operates at only 79 dB(A) at the operators ear. In comparison, a petrol mower averages around 90 dB(A). So if you go by this information, legally you can mow you lawn with the LC347IVX at any time of the day or night as long as you don’t go within 9 meters of your property boundary.

Is there any mower that can mow at night?

The best mowers for night time mowing are the Husqvarna Automower range. They all have a operating noise hovering around the 60 dB(A) level. This means they are stealthy operators and will not disturb your neighbours sleep.

Husqvarna robot mowers are a state-of-the-art mower, with incredible features such as Bluetooth, GPS, security, and cellular technology. These mowers are the perfect choice for use because since they rely on rechargeable battery packs for power, they are very quiet, and are the right choice for use at night or any hour without disturbing your neighbours. The best thing that I like about them is that my mower does all the work, and my lawn looks perfect everyday without me ever having to mow!

Here is a video of how the Husqvarna robot mowers work!

Before you think of starting to care for your lawn, you should always consider your neighbours, how your activity might affect them, and respect your state law, because unless you use a quiet power tool, every time you trim the grass, it will be an issue for your neighbours.

If you’re wondering how long your mowing will take, view our lawn mowing calculator! There are many more articles answering your gardening and construction questions in our Canberra Diamond Blade Suppliers resources! For a large range of gardening and construction tools, come check out our Canberra Diamond Blade Suppliers store!