Tree appraisal calculator
The trunk formula values a tree by the cross-section of its trunk, then adjusts that figure by three ratings — species, condition and location. This tool runs that arithmetic, and it shows you how far the answer moves when the condition rating moves ten points, because that is the part people are always surprised by.
Before you use this
Any calculations performed here are not any guarantee of appraised value and should not be used in official reporting. There are many factors that go into this tree appraisal calculator that you need to understand to get accurate appraised value for basic tree cost. Austin Tree Experts assumes no responsibility for improper use of this tool.
Fill in the tree's diameter, species and two ratings, then choose Calculate. Results appear here.This calculator needs JavaScript. Without it, the formula is written out below and the species ratings are in the table under it.
What the formula actually does
It starts from the largest tree you could realistically buy and plant on the site, prices that, and then charges for the difference in trunk area between that nursery tree and the one standing in the yard. That difference is what you cannot buy back — you can replace a tree, but you cannot replace forty years of it.
- Trunk area. π × (diameter ÷ 2)², measured 4½ feet above the ground.
- Basic tree cost. Subtract the replacement tree’s trunk area from your tree’s, multiply what is left by the unit tree cost per square inch, and add the installed cost of the replacement tree.
- Three ratings, multiplied. Species, condition and location, each as a percentage. They multiply rather than average, which is why two mediocre ratings pull the result down much harder than one bad one.
Why we do not fill in the cost figures for you
The unit tree cost, the installed cost of a replacement tree and its caliper are regional figures. They are set by the regional plant-appraisal committee for this area and they move with the nursery market. We have no source in front of us for the current Central Texas numbers, so the tool asks you for them rather than shipping a figure we cannot stand behind. Without them it still gives you the two halves that depend only on your own tree: its trunk area, and the combined rating.
Why the answer is a range, not a number
Condition is a judgement made standing under the tree, looking at roots, trunk, branch structure and foliage together, and two competent arborists will not always land on the same number. That is why the tool recomputes at ten points either side and prints all three. The spread it shows you is the honest width of the answer. Anyone handing you a single figure for a tree without telling you what it was sensitive to has left the interesting part out.
If you need a valuation somebody else will accept — an insurance claim, a construction-damage dispute, a property matter — that is a written appraisal by a qualified arborist, not a web form. Ask us about a consultation or call (512) 996-9100.
Species ratings
All 128 species this tool carries, from 38% to 100%. A species rating describes how the appraisal standard scores that species in this region. It is not a recommendation. Several species on this list are ones we would advise against planting and some we would advise removing; the rating says nothing about that.
| Species | Rating |
|---|---|
| afghan pine | 45% |
| aleppo pine | 50% |
| american beech | 63% |
| american elm | 73% |
| american hornbeam | 64% |
| american sycamore | 60% |
| anaqua | 86% |
| apples | 53% |
| arborvitae | 73% |
| arizona ash | 71% |
| arizona cypress | 73% |
| arizona walnut | 73% |
| austrian pine | 75% |
| bald cypress | 80% |
| basswood | 40% |
| bigtooth maple | 80% |
| black cherry | 66% |
| black locust | 73% |
| black oak | 53% |
| black tupelo | 75% |
| black walnut | 66% |
| blackjack oak | 67% |
| blue atlas cedar | 68% |
| bois d'arc - female | 53% |
| bois d'arc - male | 80% |
| box elder | 51% |
| bur oak | 86% |
| catalpa | 73% |
| cedar elm | 78% |
| chalk maple | 45% |
| cherrybark oak | 74% |
| chestnut oak | 76% |
| chestnuts | 67% |
| chinaberry | 53% |
| chinese elm | 73% |
| chinese parasol tree | 60% |
| chinese pistache | 86% |
| chinese tallow | 66% |
| chinquapin oak | 80% |
| chitalpa | 75% |
| cottonwood and poplars | 67% |
| crape myrtle | 80% |
| deodar cedar | 85% |
| desert willow | 86% |
| dogwood | 63% |
| drummond red maple | 45% |
| durand oak | 80% |
| eastern hop hornbeam | 60% |
| english elm | 70% |
| escarpment live oak | 85% |
| eve's necklace | 70% |
| evergreen elm | 80% |
| fruitless mulberry | 45% |
| ginkgo | 86% |
| golden rain tree | 60% |
| green ash | 80% |
| gum bumelia | 78% |
| hackberry - common | 65% |
| hercules club | 55% |
| hickories | 67% |
| honey locust | 55% |
| honey mesquite | 100% |
| huisache | 45% |
| japanese black pine | 60% |
| jujube | 40% |
| juniperus spp. | 87% |
| lacey oak | 85% |
| laurel oak | 80% |
| lebanon cedar | 75% |
| leland cypress | 43% |
| limber pine | 60% |
| loblolly pine | 80% |
| longleaf pine | 87% |
| madrone | 80% |
| mexican plum | 60% |
| mexican sycamore | 60% |
| monterey oak | 80% |
| montezuma cypress | 80% |
| mountain laurel | 73% |
| nutall oak | 92% |
| overcup oak | 92% |
| palo verde | 65% |
| paper mulberry | 45% |
| paperbark birch | 55% |
| pears | 60% |
| pecan - improved | 48% |
| pecan - native | 68% |
| persimmon - common | 65% |
| persimmon - texas | 93% |
| pinyon pine | 80% |
| ponderosa pine | 50% |
| post oak | 80% |
| red bay tree | 68% |
| red elm | 55% |
| red maple | 45% |
| red mulberry | 56% |
| redbud | 45% |
| river birch | 55% |
| sawtooth oak | 80% |
| scotch pine | 55% |
| shin oak | 70% |
| shortleaf pine | 78% |
| shumard red oak | 80% |
| siberian elm | 51% |
| silktree | 38% |
| silver maple | 45% |
| slash pine | 70% |
| southern live oak | 100% |
| southern magnolia | 53% |
| southern red oak | 76% |
| spanish oak or texas red oak | 65% |
| stone pine | 86% |
| sugar maple | 45% |
| sugarberry | 65% |
| sweetgum | 67% |
| texas ash | 80% |
| texas pistache | 80% |
| tree of heaven | 80% |
| tulip tree | 53% |
| water oak | 68% |
| western soapberry | 65% |
| white ash | 80% |
| white oak | 64% |
| white poplar | 38% |
| willow oak | 76% |
| willows spp. | 53% |
| winged elm | 74% |
| zelkova | 70% |