Lawn Dominator
Get the app

Fertilizer prices · prices checked 1 hour ago

The cheapest lawn fertilizer, per pound of nitrogen

Nitrogen is the first number on a fertilizer bag, and it is what makes grass grow and green up. Extension programs are written in pounds of nitrogen, so that is the price that matters: two bags at the same shelf price can differ several times over in how much nitrogen you get.[7]

Cheapest right now

$3.98per lb of nitrogen

LESCO 24-0-11 PolyPlus, 50 lb for $47.77 at Seed World. Spreader-applied. LESCO 46-0-0 (stabilized urea) is cheaper still at $3.82, but its label says spray applications only.

The ranking

Dollars per pound of nitrogen

Best store and bag size for each fertilizer, from today's verified prices.

  1. LESCO 46-0-0 (stabilized urea)$3.82per lb N

    50 lb at Siteone · spray only

  2. LESCO 24-0-11 PolyPlus$3.98per lb N

    50 lb at Seed World

  3. LESCO 25-0-6 PolyPlus$4.00per lb N

    50 lb at Jerzey Lawns

  4. The Andersons PGF Complete 16-4-8$15.61per lb N

    40 lb at Amazon

  5. The Andersons PGF Balanced 10-10-10$30.49per lb N

    18 lb at Amazon

  6. The Andersons Green Shocker 7-1-2$53.46per lb N

    16 lb at Amazon

What a year costs

A 5,000 sq ft lawn, every grass

Each grass needs a different amount of nitrogen a year. Here is what that costs using LESCO 24-0-11 PolyPlus, the cheapest spreader fertilizer today: the product you actually spread, and the whole bags you would buy to get it.

  • Bermuda grass

    $39.81 to $79.62

    2 to 4 lb of nitrogen per 1,000 sq ft a year[8]

    Buy 1 to 2 bags ($47.77 to $95.54)

  • Zoysia grass

    $39.81 to $79.62

    2 to 4 lb of nitrogen per 1,000 sq ft a year[9]

    Buy 1 to 2 bags ($47.77 to $95.54)

  • Centipede grass

    $19.90 to $39.81

    1 to 2 lb of nitrogen per 1,000 sq ft a year[10]

    Buy 1 bag ($47.77)

  • St. Augustine grass

    $39.81 to $79.62

    2 to 4 lb of nitrogen per 1,000 sq ft a year[11]

    Buy 1 to 2 bags ($47.77 to $95.54)

  • Tall fescue

    $19.90 to $59.71

    1 to 3 lb of nitrogen per 1,000 sq ft a year[12]

    Buy 1 to 2 bags ($47.77 to $95.54)

  • Kentucky bluegrass

    $19.90 to $79.62

    1 to 4 lb of nitrogen per 1,000 sq ft a year[12]

    Buy 1 to 2 bags ($47.77 to $95.54)

  • Perennial ryegrass

    $19.90 to $79.62

    1 to 4 lb of nitrogen per 1,000 sq ft a year[12]

    Buy 1 to 2 bags ($47.77 to $95.54)

If you would rather just drive to a big-box store

The Andersons PGF Balanced 10-10-10 at Walmart

It is the cheapest spreader fertilizer we track that a big-box chain sells itself, per pound of nitrogen: 18 lb for $54.88. That works out to $30.49 per pound of nitrogen, 7.7 times the cost of LESCO 24-0-11 PolyPlus. We do not yet track most of the house brands at Home Depot and Lowe's, so check those bags with the calculator on the cost per pound of nitrogen page.

Big-box, per lb N
$30.49
Cheapest, per lb N
$3.98

Every fertilizer, worked out

Price, bag, and what the label says

How much product makes 1 lb of nitrogen per 1,000 sq ft comes straight from the analysis: divide 1 by the nitrogen percent.[7]

Cheapest nitrogen · 46-0-0

LESCO 46-0-0 (stabilized urea)

  • 46% nitrogen by weight[3]. To put down 1 lb of nitrogen per 1,000 sq ft, spread 2.2 lb of product.
  • The label says this bag is for spray applications only: you dissolve it in water and spray it, so it is not a spreader product.
  • All of the nitrogen is quick-release (stabilized, not slow-release), so stay at or under 1 lb of nitrogen per 1,000 sq ft per feeding.
  • No phosphorus.
Per lb of nitrogen
$3.82
Best value bag
50 lb for $87.95 at Siteone, holds 23 lb of nitrogen
$87.95 at SiteoneWalmart: $104.99

24-0-11

LESCO 24-0-11 PolyPlus

  • 24% nitrogen by weight[1]. To put down 1 lb of nitrogen per 1,000 sq ft, spread 4.2 lb of product.
  • Label rate 4.2 lb per 1,000 sq ft; a 50 lb bag covers 12,000 sq ft.
  • Part of the nitrogen is slow-release: half of it on the 50% version, and SiteOne also sells 56% and 75% versions under the same name.
  • No phosphorus.
Per lb of nitrogen
$3.98
Best value bag
50 lb for $47.77 at Seed World, holds 12 lb of nitrogen
$47.77 at Seed World

25-0-6

LESCO 25-0-6 PolyPlus

  • 25% nitrogen by weight[2]. To put down 1 lb of nitrogen per 1,000 sq ft, spread 4.0 lb of product.
  • Label rate 4 lb per 1,000 sq ft; a 50 lb bag covers about 12,500 sq ft.
  • Half the nitrogen is slow-release. Contains iron, which can stain concrete.
  • No phosphorus.
Per lb of nitrogen
$4.00
Best value bag
50 lb for $50.00 at Jerzey Lawns, holds 12.5 lb of nitrogen
$50.00 at Jerzey Lawns

16-4-8

The Andersons PGF Complete 16-4-8

  • 16% nitrogen by weight[4]. To put down 1 lb of nitrogen per 1,000 sq ft, spread 6.3 lb of product.
  • Label rate up to 3.6 lb per 1,000 sq ft; the 40 lb bag covers 11,100 sq ft.
  • A quarter of the nitrogen is slow-release. Contains phosphorus and iron.
Per lb of nitrogen
$15.61
Best value bag
40 lb for $99.88 at Amazon, holds 6.4 lb of nitrogen
$99.88 at Amazon

10-10-10

The Andersons PGF Balanced 10-10-10

  • 10% nitrogen by weight[5]. To put down 1 lb of nitrogen per 1,000 sq ft, spread 10.0 lb of product.
  • An 18 lb bag covers 5,000 sq ft, which puts down only about a third of a pound of nitrogen per 1,000 sq ft.
  • Equal phosphorus and potash, all quick-release nitrogen.
Per lb of nitrogen
$30.49
Best value bag
18 lb for $54.88 at Amazon, holds 1.8 lb of nitrogen
$54.88 at AmazonWalmart: $54.88

7-1-2

The Andersons Green Shocker 7-1-2

  • 7% nitrogen by weight[6]. To put down 1 lb of nitrogen per 1,000 sq ft, spread 14.3 lb of product.
  • Label rate 3 lb per 1,000 sq ft; the 16 lb bag treats up to 5,333 sq ft.
  • About 0.2 lb of nitrogen per 1,000 sq ft per pass at the label rate, all of it quick-release.
Per lb of nitrogen
$53.46
Best value bag
16 lb for $59.88 at Amazon, holds 1.1 lb of nitrogen
$59.88 at AmazonWalmart: $69.88

Before you buy

Where cheap fertilizer goes wrong

  • Too much at once. Penn State says not to exceed 1 lb of nitrogen per 1,000 sq ft per application.[12] Purdue adds that quick-release nitrogen has a higher chance of leaf burn[13], and on St. Augustine UF/IFAS caps quick-release nitrogen at 0.7 lb at one time.[14]
  • Feeding at the wrong time. Warm-season grasses (bermuda, zoysia, centipede, St. Augustine) are fed after full green-up through mid-August[8]; cool-season grasses (tall fescue, Kentucky bluegrass, perennial ryegrass) get most of their nitrogen from late summer through fall.[13] Your grass's page has the dates.
  • Phosphorus you do not need. Clemson says established centipede should get no phosphorus unless a soil test shows it is short, which rules out 10-10-10, 16-4-8, and 7-1-2 there.[10]

By grass type

The cheapest fertilizer for your grass

Want the math on any bag? Cost per pound of nitrogen, with a calculator or the fertilizer rate calculator.

Questions people ask

Straight answers

What is the cheapest lawn fertilizer right now?

Measured by what you pay for each pound of nitrogen, the cheapest spreader fertilizer we track is LESCO 24-0-11 PolyPlus at $3.98 per pound of nitrogen (50 lb for $47.77 at Seed World, checked 10/18/2026). A bermuda lawn of 5,000 sq ft at the top of Clemson's 2 to 4 lb range needs 2 bags a year.

How do I work out the cost per pound of nitrogen?

Multiply the bag weight by the first number on the bag (as a percent) to get the pounds of nitrogen inside, then divide the price by that. Clemson's example: a 100 lb bag of 16-4-8 holds 16 lb of nitrogen. A 50 lb bag of 24-0-11 holds 12 lb, so at $48 it costs $4 per pound of nitrogen.

Is a bigger bag always cheaper?

Not necessarily: the analysis matters more than the bag size. An 18 lb bag of 10-10-10 holds 1.8 lb of nitrogen; a 50 lb bag of 24-0-11 holds 12 lb. Compare the cost per pound of nitrogen, not the shelf price.

Should I buy quick-release or slow-release nitrogen?

Purdue Extension says quick-release nitrogen greens the lawn fast but has a higher chance of leaf burn, slow-release greens more slowly and lasts longer, and that 25 to 50 percent slow-release nitrogen is appropriate for established lawns. The LESCO PolyPlus bags and PGF Complete carry part of their nitrogen as slow-release.

How much fertilizer can I put down at once?

Penn State and Purdue both cap a single application at 1 lb of nitrogen per 1,000 sq ft (Purdue allows up to 2 lb only when more than half of it is slow-release). For quick-release nitrogen on St. Augustine, UF/IFAS sets a lower cap of 0.7 lb.

Sources

Where every rate and timing comes from

  1. [1]LESCO 24-0-11 PolyPlus bag label (PDF), SiteOne Landscape Supply
  2. [2]LESCO 25-0-6 PolyPlus bag label (PDF), SiteOne Landscape Supply
  3. [3]LESCO 46-0-0 100% NOS AM bag label (PDF), SiteOne Landscape Supply
  4. [4]PGF Complete 16-4-8 40 lb bag label (PDF), The Andersons
  5. [5]PGF Balanced 10-10-10 bag label (PDF), The Andersons
  6. [6]Green Shocker 7-1-2 bag label (PDF), The Andersons
  7. [7]HGIC 1201, Fertilizing Lawns, Clemson Cooperative Extension
  8. [8]HGIC 1216, Bermudagrass Yearly Maintenance Program, Clemson Cooperative Extension
  9. [9]HGIC 1217, Zoysiagrass Yearly Maintenance Program, Clemson Cooperative Extension
  10. [10]HGIC 1215, Centipedegrass Yearly Maintenance Program, Clemson Cooperative Extension
  11. [11]HGIC 1218, St. Augustinegrass Yearly Maintenance Program, Clemson Cooperative Extension
  12. [12]Home Lawn to Maintain (crop code 2001) soil test recommendations, Penn State Agricultural Analytical Services Laboratory
  13. [13]AY-22-W, Fertilizing Established Cool-season Lawns, Purdue Extension
  14. [14]ENH5, St. Augustinegrass for Florida Lawns, UF/IFAS Extension

Prices come from the Lawn Dominator price feed, which checks retailer listings automatically and publishes only prices that pass its verification audit. Labels are the law: if anything here disagrees with the label on the product you buy, follow the label.

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Store buttons are paid links. Prices are collected automatically and can lag retailer changes; always confirm the price, size, and shipping at checkout. Product prices and availability are accurate as of October 17, 2026 at 9:27 PM CDT and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon.com at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of the product.

Log every feeding in one place

Download for iPhone
Get it on Android

The app records each application, so next season starts from real history instead of memory. Free to download.