Santa Fe, N.M.
Santa Fe Landscaping Guide

Independent guide. Not a landscaping contractor. We do not perform landscaping work.

Revised 2026-07-31

New Mexico contractor classifications · Revised 2026-07-31

Does your yard work
need a license?

New Mexico does not license “landscaping” as one trade. It licenses the specific work inside a project: sprinkler systems, concrete, serious grading and built walls. Map each line of your scope before you compare bids.

Map the workSee the four codes
An irrigation trench crossing a gravel yard toward an adobe garden wall
One yard, several scopes: the license follows the work being done, not the word “landscaping” on the bid.
0 codes

Planting, mulch, gravel and routine maintenance carry no New Mexico contractor license requirement. Judge that work on written scope and references.

Use the hiring worksheet →
4 codes

MS-6 sprinklers, GS-4 concrete, GS-8 earthmoving and GS-16 masonry are the classifications most likely to appear inside a yard project.

Read 14.6.6 NMAC →
$7,200

The annual ceiling for the narrow casual-work exception: one undertaking at a time, declared yearly, no advertising, and never electrical wiring, plumbing or gas fitting.

Read the statute →

What this site is

An independent guide to landscaping in Santa Fe. We are not a landscaping contractor or landscaping company, we do not perform or subcontract yard work, and we never charge you. Quote requests get passed to local crews and contractors who do this work.

Which part of your project needs a license?

Start with the actual line items, not the crew's job title. The same yard can contain work with no contractor classification and work that must be covered by one.

No contractor code Planting, mulch, gravel and maintenance

No contractor license attaches to horticultural work itself. Drip work limited to existing lines belongs on the written scope.

Hire on the worksheet → MS-6 Sprinkler system — new, moved or repaired

Potable-water sprinkler systems have their own classification, including trenching and backflow prevention devices.

See MS-6 in the full register → GS-4 Concrete walkways, driveways and slabs

Concrete flatwork includes mixing, placing and finishing, with the preparation and formwork that go with it.

See GS-4 in the full register → GS-16 · GS-8 Built walls and major grading

Masonry and qualifying retaining walls fall under GS-16. Serious cut-and-fill and grading fall under GS-8 earthmoving.

See GS-16 and GS-8 →

The four classifications that show up in yards

All four are defined in 14.6.6 NMAC, New Mexico's classification and scope rule.

MS-6

Lawn sprinklers

Installing, altering, repairing or maintaining potable-water sprinkler systems, including trenching and backflow prevention devices. If a bid says “new zones” or “tie into your line,” ask whose MS-6 license covers it. Open MS-6 →

GS-4

Concrete and flatwork

Mixing, placing and finishing concrete for walkways, driveways and pads, with the excavation and formwork that go with that work. Open GS-4 →

GS-8

Earthmoving

Cutting, filling, grading and trenching. The practical concern is consequence: work that changes drainage and where water travels is not the same as spreading a little soil. Open GS-8 →

GS-16

Masonry

Built walls in block, stone, brick or adobe, including freestanding walls six feet and higher and retaining walls from thirty-six inches. Open GS-16 →

These links open the searchable register of all 65 classifications on our sister site, the New Mexico license classification guide.

The exception people half-remember

There is a real statutory exception, and it is narrower than word-of-mouth versions suggest. Under NMSA 1978 §60-13-3(D)(14), unlicensed casual work is lawful only when all of the conditions apply: one undertaking at a time, total compensation not exceeding $7,200 a year, work that is genuinely casual or minor, no sign or advertisement suggesting you contract, and a declaration filed annually with the state. The exception never extends to electrical wiring, plumbing or gas fitting. A crew doing yards full-time does not fit that narrow exception.

Check the number yourself

A license number on a truck or proposal is only the start. Use the New Mexico public contractor license register to confirm the record.

Three things to match

  1. Search the company or individual's name and open the matching record.
  2. Confirm the license is active.
  3. Confirm the classification covers the work on your written scope.

Now aim it at the project

Get the bids in order

The hiring worksheet gives every crew the same scope and a row for licensed work.

Hire with the worksheet → Still designing the yard

Phasing determines when the licensed parts enter the project.

See the design process → Search all 65 classifications

Use the complete New Mexico classification guide when the scope goes beyond these four codes.

Open the full register guide →

Before the contract

Common questions

Plain answers about horticultural work, sprinkler systems, the casual-work exception and the state register.

Scope & classifications

Does a landscaper need a contractor license in New Mexico?

Not for horticultural work such as planting, mulch, gravel and maintenance. Licenses attach to specific scopes inside a project: MS-6 sprinklers, GS-4 concrete, GS-8 earthmoving and GS-16 masonry walls.

Who can legally install a sprinkler system in New Mexico?

A contractor licensed under MS-6, which covers potable-water sprinkler systems including trenching and backflow prevention devices, under 14.6.6 NMAC.

Exception & verification

Is there a dollar limit for working without a license in New Mexico?

NMSA 1978 §60-13-3(D)(14) allows casual, minor work up to $7,200 in compensation a year, one undertaking at a time, with a declaration filed annually — and you cannot advertise or display a sign suggesting you are a contractor. It never covers electrical wiring, plumbing or gas fitting. It is a narrow casual-work exception, not a business model.

How do I check a New Mexico contractor license?

Use the state's free public contractor license register. Search by company or individual name, then confirm the classification and that the license is active.

Scope first, then quotes

Get matched for the whole yard.

Describe the project once. We'll pass it to Santa Fe crews — and licensed New Mexico contractors where the scope requires one.

  • ✓Free, and nothing obliges you to hire.
  • ✓Licensed contractors for the parts that legally need one.
  • ✓Your request goes to matched crews, not to a list broker.
Tell us about the yard

We're an independent guide, not a landscaping contractor or landscaping company. We do not perform or subcontract the work — we route you to Santa Fe crews and licensed contractors who do.