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Seasonal Snow Removal Plans, Billed Monthly

Written with AI assistance, reviewed by the Ruunly team on

A snow plan sounds simple until you get a winter with no snow, or one with too much. The fee you choose decides who carries that risk. This post covers the four ways to charge, how a seasonal price becomes monthly payments, and what to put in writing so you and the customer agree on the deal. Real numbers come from named sources. Any figure marked "for example" is made up, so use your own.

What are the ways to charge for snow removal?

The Snow & Ice Management Association (SIMA) defines four fee structures in its Snow & Ice Management Standard Glossary of Terms:

  • Per event. A fee each time a defined event occurs.
  • Per service. A fee each time snow is cleared or salt is applied. Also called per push or per visit. Several services can fall inside one event.
  • Per season. A standardized fee, typically monthly. Also called a lump sum or a fixed fee.
  • Time and materials. Billed by the hour.

The glossary says it does not promote any one model. Neither does this post.

Which one fits a one-truck business?

The sources give no single answer, so here is the trade-off.

Per push pays you for the work you do. In a light winter you get few pushes, and the truck and the insurance still need paying. SIMA's contract article, Step by step, says that in a light winter a per-basis contract means "the contractor loses, since you don't even cover your fixed costs."

A seasonal price spreads the money across the winter, so a quiet month still pays. In return you take on the snow. If it comes thick and often, every extra push is yours at the agreed price. The next section covers one way to share that risk.

One commercial company profiled in the SIMA article Perfect blend: The Beverly Companies puts its own mix at about 52 percent seasonal and 48 percent per visit. That is one company's mix, not an industry split.

Turning a seasonal price into monthly payments

SIMA's Step by step article describes a tier method. You set five tiers (low, medium-low, medium, medium-high and high) from the winter outcomes possible in your market. Then you bill one of two ways. In the first, the customer pays five or six equal monthly payments based on the medium tier. If snowfall ends up above or below that tier, you bill the difference or credit it at the end of the season. In the second, the monthly payments are based on the lowest tier, and when snowfall passes into the next tier the customer gets an extra invoice, paid at once or spread over the rest of the season.

One Minnesota company's published guide says seasonal billing is usually four to five payments from November through March. It is written for commercial customers. SIMA's standard, SIMA-10-2025, says contracted service dates should cover the typical winter season in your market.

A homeowner plan may skip the end-of-season adjustment and keep one flat monthly price. That is your choice as the owner. None of the sources above say either way.

Trigger depth, caps and floors

A plan has to say when you show up and when the price changes. SIMA's glossary defines the terms:

  • Trigger depth. "The agreed upon measurable amount of accumulated snow or ice wherein snow and ice management services will be dispatched."
  • Cap. An upper limit. Past it, additional fees or costs apply.
  • Floor. A credit or adjustment if a lower limit is not reached.
  • Inclusion. Materials such as deicers and sand are included, generally with no caps.

One Minnesota company's guide says seasonal service is usually triggered at 2 to 3 inches. The company profiled in SIMA's Perfect blend article writes seasonal agreements that are unlimited or capped at a number of inches, and some are graduated. It also prices ice in, because "a tenth of an inch of ice is a similar amount of work to one inch of snow."

Whatever trigger you choose, put the number in the plan.

What to put in writing

This is not legal advice. Have a local lawyer or your insurer review the final wording before you use it.

SIMA-10-2025 is written for commercial buyers and sellers, so scale it down for homeowners. These points come from it, with its section numbers:

  • The contract is in writing and signed by both parties (section 2.3).
  • A minimum one-year term, with cancellation clauses for both parties (2.4). Whether a one-year term suits a homeowner plan is a question for you and your lawyer.
  • Outcome wording that goes no further than "substantially clear of hazards" (3.2.1).
  • A named service initiator, the standard's term for the person who starts a service call (3.2.2).
  • Priority areas such as sidewalks and entrances (3.2.4).
  • A documented walkthrough before the season starts (4.3).

Who clears the sidewalk, and by when

Who clears a sidewalk, and how fast, is set by the city. Two examples show how far the rules can differ. Read your own city code, because yours will not match either one. This is not legal advice.

Minneapolis (sidewalk snow clearing page, last updated October 22, 2026). Owners must clear their sidewalks. Single-family homes and duplexes have 24 hours after the snow stops. Other properties have 4 daytime hours, which the city counts from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. If a sidewalk is not cleared, city crews remove the snow and bill for it, and an unpaid fee goes onto the property taxes.

Boston (rules on clearing snow, last updated 5/18/26). Clear within three hours after the snow stops, or within three hours after sunrise if it snowed overnight. Fines depend on the property: $50 for residential property with 16 units or fewer and $100 for more than 16 units. Commercial property pays $200. No shoveling into the street.

Whatever your city says, write into the plan whether walks are included, and whether steps and curb ramps are too. Leaving it vague is how a customer ends up expecting a cleared walk you never agreed to.

A worked example, and one company's published prices

An example with made-up numbers

Example with made-up numbers. These are not market prices. Use your own.

Take SIMA's tier method with five tiers. The season totals below are for example only.

Winter outcome Season total, for example
Low $400
Medium-low $550
Medium $700
Medium-high $850
High $1,000

The customer pays five equal monthly payments based on the medium tier: $700 divided by 5 is $140 a month. If the winter lands in the high tier, the season total is $1,000, so the end-of-season bill is $300. If it lands in the low tier, the total is $400, and the customer gets a $300 credit. That is the one adjustment, and it happens once, at the end.

If you mow too, how to price lawn care by the yard covers the summer side of the same pricing question.

One company's published prices

Ware Landscaping & Snow Removal, a northern Illinois company, lists these prices on its Crystal Lake snow removal page (undated, copyright 2026). They are for a one-year residential customer and are billed per push:

Snow depth Price per visit
Under half an inch $49, pre-salt
Half an inch to 4 inches $109, plow and salt
4 to 7 inches $149

The page calls these "initial estimates" that change with property size.

The same company's Hinsdale lawn maintenance page lists a combined lawn and snow plan from $565 a month for 12 months, which includes unlimited snow removal at half an inch and up. That price covers lawn work too, so it is not a snow-only price.

These are one company's prices in one part of the country, not a market rate. Build yours from your own costs.

Where a monthly snow plan goes wrong

  • No trigger in writing. Without one, every storm becomes an argument about whether it counted. SIMA's glossary defines trigger depth as the agreed depth at which service is dispatched.
  • "Unlimited" with no line about ice or salt. The company in SIMA's Perfect blend article prices ice in, and SIMA's glossary treats materials as an inclusion. Say in writing whether deicer and salt are in the plan.
  • Sidewalks left vague. Cities set their own deadlines, as Minneapolis and Boston show. Say whether walks are in or out.
  • A light winter with no floor or adjustment. SIMA's tier method handles it with an end-of-season bill or credit.
  • No cancellation terms. SIMA-10-2025 calls for cancellation clauses for both parties (2.4).

Questions people ask

What is the difference between per push and seasonal snow removal? Per push (per service) is a fee each time snow is cleared or salt is applied. Seasonal is a standardized fee, typically monthly, for a defined set of services over the contract period.

Can a snow plan be paid monthly? Yes. SIMA's glossary calls the seasonal fee "typically monthly," and its contract article describes five or six equal monthly payments with an end-of-season adjustment. One Minnesota company's guide says four to five payments from November through March.

What is a trigger depth? SIMA's glossary defines it as: "The agreed upon measurable amount of accumulated snow or ice wherein snow and ice management services will be dispatched." One Minnesota company's guide says 2 to 3 inches is usual for seasonal service.

Do I have to clear a customer's sidewalk? It depends on the city and the contract. Minneapolis and Boston, for example, have different deadlines and fines. Check your own city code and your contract wording. This is not legal advice.

The Ruunly team

Sources

All pages read Oct 23, 2026. Rules and rates change; check each page for the current version.

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