Woodlot thinning and harvesting contractor

Private woodlot owners, rural landowners, hobby farms and sometimes local sawmills or firewood buyers who buy the wood.

Fixed price or hourly fee per job, plus sales of logs, pulpwood or firewood from the work.

• Chainsaw and felling skills
• Basic equipment maintenance
• Estimating jobs and pricing
• Customer service with landowners

• Many provinces have faller certification or training standards, so check with your provincial regulator or safety association
• Harvest permits, management plans or municipal tree bylaws may apply, so check before cutting
• Bird nesting windows, wildfire restrictions and wet-season ground limits can pause work
• Felling is among the most dangerous work there is, so use proper PPE and never work alone without a safety plan
• WCB/WSIB coverage rules differ by province, check whether you need it even as a sole operator

Estimates suggest startup costs are typically around $5,000 to $40,000, depending on your chainsaw, small equipment, truck and protective gear. Your own figure will depend on what you already own.

Monthly revenue is typically estimated around $2,000 to $10,000, depending on the jobs you win, how many hours you work and how you price. Bird nesting windows, wildfire restrictions and wet-season ground limits can pause work.

Check whether your province has faller certification or training standards, and whether harvest permits, management plans or municipal tree bylaws apply before cutting. Also check WCB/WSIB coverage rules, even as a sole operator, and any bird nesting or wildfire restrictions.