Tree, Seedling and Timber Prices in Uganda — A Buyer's and Seller's Guide
There is no single price for trees in Uganda. Seedlings, standing timber, felled poles and delivered timber are four different markets, and each varies by species, region, season and volume.
What this guide gives you is the structure of the market — indicative ranges, the factors that move them, and the specific mistakes that cause Ugandan growers to be underpaid. The single most valuable thing you can do before selling is have your standing timber measured, because unmeasured volume is always priced against you.
How to read the figures on this page
- These are indicative ranges reflecting what growers, nurseries and buyers we work with have been transacting at — not a price list and not an offer.
- Ugandan timber and seedling prices move with season, region, fuel costs, road access and the buyer's own contract position. A price in Wakiso is not a price in Gulu.
- Ranges are wide on purpose. A narrow number would be more satisfying and less honest.
- Last reviewed: August 2026. For a current figure on a specific transaction, call us on +256 770 812010 — we will tell you what we are seeing this month at no charge.
Price Summary at a Glance
Indicative ranges, Uganda, as at August 2026. Read the caveats above before using any of these figures.
| What you are buying or selling | Unit | Indicative range (UGX) | Main variable |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eucalyptus seedlings, seedling-grown | per plant | 300 – 900 | Nursery quality, order size |
| Clonal eucalyptus (GU / GC) | per plant | 800 – 2,500 | Clone, verified provenance, volume |
| Pine seedlings (P. caribaea) | per plant | 300 – 900 | Nursery, season, order size |
| Indigenous seedlings (musizi, muvule, mahogany) | per plant | 1,000 – 5,000+ | Species scarcity, size at sale |
| Eucalyptus building poles | per pole | 15,000 – 50,000 | Length, diameter, straightness |
| Large / transmission-grade poles | per pole | Substantially above building poles | Length class, treatment, specification |
| Standing eucalyptus, sold as a block | per acre | Highly variable — must be measured | Stocking, age, access, buyer |
Seedling Prices — and Why the Cheapest Is Rarely the Cheapest
Seedlings are the smallest line in a plantation budget and the one with the largest leverage on outcome. A price difference of a few hundred shillings per plant is trivial against the cost of replanting a failed block.
What you are actually paying for:
- Root condition. A root-bound or spiralled seedling never recovers in the field, whatever the top looks like. This is the number one cause of first-year failure in Uganda and it is invisible unless you check.
- Genetic identity. With clonal material, you are paying a premium specifically for knowing what you are planting. Mislabelled clone stock is a real problem in the East African market and the grower does not find out for three years.
- Age and hardening. Seedlings held too long in the nursery, or never hardened off, transplant badly.
- Timing. Nursery prices firm up as the planting rains approach. Ordering early — against a planting date, not in advance of one — usually costs less.
Our guidance on stock inspection is in the eucalyptus species and clone guide. For orders above a few thousand plants, an independent nursery inspection typically costs a fraction of a percent of the order and routinely pays for itself.
Eucalyptus Pole Prices
Poles are Uganda's main eucalyptus product and the market is reasonably transparent at the retail end. Price is set by four things, in roughly this order of importance:
- Length class. The step from a short building pole to a long transmission-grade pole is where the money is. Length is the primary grading axis.
- Diameter at the top end. Buyers specify a minimum top diameter. A pole that fails it drops a grade regardless of length.
- Straightness and taper. Sweep and excessive taper downgrade poles immediately. This is decided years earlier by spacing and by whether the stand was weeded — see spacing and trees per acre.
- Treatment. Treated poles command materially more than untreated. If you are selling in volume and there is a treatment plant within economic reach, it is worth modelling.
Selling poles soon? Have them measured and graded first — it changes the price.
Standing Timber — the Number That Matters Most
Most Ugandan growers do not sell poles. They sell a block of standing trees to a buyer who fells, extracts and grades them. This is where the largest value is lost, and the reason is simple:
"A buyer looking at an unmeasured block has to price the risk that it contains less than it appears to. So they price low. When the same block comes with a measured inventory — stems per acre, diameter distribution, estimated volume by grade — that risk disappears and the offer improves. We have seen the difference exceed the cost of the inventory many times over."
— Euca Eco Consults Field Operations Team
A proper standing-timber valuation gives you three things a walk-through cannot:
- Volume by grade — how many poles in each length and diameter class, not just "about two thousand trees".
- A defensible methodology — plot layout and measurement approach stated, so the buyer can check it rather than doubt it.
- Negotiating position — you can approach several buyers with the same document and compare offers on a like-for-like basis.
See our forestry consultancy service for inventory and valuation, and how to find and vet tree buyers in Uganda.
What Actually Moves the Price
| Factor | Effect | Can you control it? |
|---|---|---|
| Road access | Large. A block a lorry cannot reach in the wet season is worth materially less. | Partly — plan extraction routes at planting |
| Distance to market | Large. Transport is a major cost component and it comes out of your price. | No — but factor it in before buying land |
| Season | Moderate. Wet-season extraction is harder and buyers discount accordingly. | Yes — time the sale |
| Volume offered | Moderate. Bigger blocks attract better buyers and better rates. | Partly — consider pooling with neighbours |
| Stem quality | Large. Straightness and diameter decide grade. | Yes — decided by spacing, weeding and thinning |
| Whether volume is known | Large. Unmeasured timber is priced defensively. | Yes — get an inventory |
| Number of buyers approached | Large. A single buyer sets the price; three buyers discover it. | Yes — entirely within your control |
Look at the right-hand column. Most of what determines your price is inside your control, and almost none of it is controlled at the moment of sale. It is controlled years earlier, at spacing and weeding, and in the weeks before sale, at measurement and buyer selection.
Six Reasons Ugandan Growers Get Underpaid
- Selling to the first buyer who appears at the gate. Buyers who approach growers directly are not, as a rule, offering the best price available.
- Selling unmeasured. Covered above. This is the big one.
- Selling under pressure. School fees, medical bills and land disputes force distressed sales, and buyers know it. Where possible, plan the harvest year and build a buffer so the sale is not forced.
- No written contract. Scope, price basis, payment schedule, timeline and what happens to residue should all be in writing before a single tree falls.
- Accepting a lump sum for "the whole block". A lump sum transfers all volume uncertainty to you at an unfavourable rate. Price per unit against measured volume wherever you can.
- Ignoring the second rotation. Eucalyptus coppices. How the stumps are cut — height, cleanliness, season — directly affects your next crop. A careless harvest costs you a rotation.
How to Find Out What Your Trees Are Actually Worth
Four steps, in order:
- 1. Verify the area. Not the title figure — a GPS boundary walk. Discrepancies are common. See acreage verification.
- 2. Measure the stand. Systematic plots, diameter and height, volume by grade. This is the step that changes the price.
- 3. Approach at least three buyers with the same inventory document, and give them a deadline.
- 4. Contract properly — price basis, payment terms, extraction responsibilities, stump height, site condition on completion.
If you would rather not run that process yourself, we do it for growers as a single engagement: measure, value, approach the market and support the negotiation. Call +256 770 812010 and tell us what you have.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the price of eucalyptus trees in Uganda?
It depends entirely on what you are selling. Seedlings are priced per plant, poles per pole by length and diameter grade, and standing timber as a block based on measured volume.
Building poles commonly transact in the region of UGX 15,000–50,000 each depending on length, diameter and straightness, with transmission-grade poles well above that. Standing timber sold by the acre varies too widely to quote meaningfully without measurement — which is precisely why unmeasured blocks get underpaid.
How much do eucalyptus seedlings cost in Uganda?
Seedling-grown eucalyptus commonly falls in the region of UGX 300–900 per plant depending on nursery quality and order size. Verified clonal material such as GU and GC clones carries a substantial premium, typically UGX 800–2,500 per plant.
The cheapest seedling is rarely the cheapest outcome. Root-bound stock fails in the field, and mislabelled clonal material means paying a premium for something you did not get.
How do I know if a buyer is offering a fair price for my trees?
You cannot know without two things: a measured inventory of what you actually have, and competing offers. One buyer sets a price; three buyers discover one.
Growers routinely find that the cost of a proper inventory is recovered several times over in the improved offer, because buyers price unmeasured timber defensively.
Are tree prices higher in Kampala than upcountry?
Delivered prices are generally higher near the main demand centres, but that does not automatically mean a grower near Kampala earns more. Transport cost is deducted from what a buyer will pay at the gate, so distance to market shows up in your price whether you move the timber or not.
Road access matters as much as distance. A block a lorry cannot reach in the wet season is discounted regardless of how close it is on a map.
What is the price of pine trees in Uganda?
Pine is sold primarily as sawlogs and sawn timber rather than poles, so it is priced by volume and grade rather than per tree. Thinnings from the second thinning onward have some value; the main return comes at final harvest.
Because pine runs a fifteen-to-twenty year rotation, growers should model the whole cycle including thinning costs and replanting — pine does not coppice. See our pine spacing and thinning guide.
Should I sell my trees standing or harvest them myself?
Selling standing transfers the cost, risk and logistics of felling and extraction to the buyer, at the price of a lower per-unit return. Harvesting yourself captures more value but requires capital, equipment, permits and the ability to find buyers for graded product.
For most smallholders, selling standing is the right answer — but only after measurement and only to a buyer selected from several. For larger holdings the calculation shifts. We model both for clients before they commit.
How often are the prices on this page updated?
We review the indicative ranges periodically and state the review date next to them. Ugandan timber and seedling prices move with season, region and fuel costs, so any published figure ages quickly.
For a current figure on a specific transaction, call us on +256 770 812010. We will tell you what we are seeing this month at no charge.
Want This Month's Actual Numbers?
Prices move constantly and vary by district. Tell us what you are buying or selling and we will tell you what we are seeing right now — free.
Over a decade establishing, measuring and managing eucalyptus, pine and indigenous plantations across Uganda. Based in Wakiso, Kampala. Reviewed and updated August 12, 2026.
