7 Best Cheap Raised Garden Beds: High quality, low cost
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Not all of us have the gardens of our dreams, the little patches of fertile land overlooking a beautiful valley or some other stunning vista. If you’re like me and have access to only a small backyard, you probably also rely on raised garden beds. Or perhaps you should be. In this article, I’m here to help you find great options for your backyard garden that won’t break the bank. The best cheap raised garden beds can help you vastly increase the growing area that you have access to, no matter where you live.
And, best of all if you ask me, the inexpensive raised garden beds on this list allow you to precisely control soil conditions like pH levels and nutrient levels to get the best results for whatever you’re growing.
That idea has been motivating me to do a ton of research to find the best cheap raised garden beds, and I really like the list I came up with.
Read on to find the perfect cheap garden bed for your backyard.
Key Takeaways
My quest to find the best cheap raised garden beds on the internet led me through hundreds of photos, customer reviews, and even past articles on this very website.
At the end of the day, I settled on the 7 finalists on this list. As a last step, I ultimately decided that the best cheap raised garden beds that you can buy online are the BIRASIL Outdoor Raised Garden Beds. Their natural wood construction looks great, and the price is great, too.
That being said, I did find myself quite interested in a number of the metal garden beds I reviewed, like the MOFEEZ Galvanized Raised Garden Bed Kit and the SnugNiture Round Galvanized Raised Garden Bed Kit. That’s because I love how much bang for your buck you can get with these huge metal garden beds.
Best Overall: BIRASIL Outdoor Raised Garden Bed
Why This is a Quality Choice: BIRASIL makes excellent and affordable raised garden beds, as shown by their Outdoor Raised Garden Bed. Made from fir wood, these attractive garden beds stand on legs that make it easy to get your gardening done without stressing your back. The inclusion of a water-permeable lining fabric allows for great drainage while preventing soil loss.
Who is This For? The BIRASIL Outdoor Raised Garden Bed is a great choice for any gardener who wants to add a little growing space to their yard while also improving the way it looks.
Flaws but not Deal-breakers: This isn’t the biggest raised garden bed on the list, but it’s on top because of its quality.
Size (in.): 48.5 x 24.4 x 30 | Drainage: Slits in the bottom plate, plus holes on the sides | Material: Fir Wood | Assembly time: 20 mins
Best Budget: FOYUEE Galvanized Raised Garden Beds
Why This is a Quality Choice: These FOYUEE Galvanized Raised Garden Beds can help you add a lot of growing space to your garden at a low price. These simple steel raised beds don’t have a bottom, allowing your plants to grow into the ground underneath and providing plenty of drainage. The strong construction, which includes metal cross-beams, and rust-proofing means that they can last a long time!
Who is This For? I’d recommend these cheap raised garden beds to someone who wants a lot of extra space to grow vegetables.
Flaws but not Deal-breakers: Some customers have reported that the metal is thin enough to bend, so it’s advisable to be careful while assembling them.
Size (in.): 96 x 48 x 12 | Drainage: Through the open bottom | Material: Galvanized steel | Assembly time: 5 mins
Best Value: MOFEEZ Galvanized Raised Garden Bed Kit, 2Pcs
Why This is a Quality Choice: This two-pack of MOFEEZ Galvanized Raised Garden Beds offers excellent value for a single order. Not only do you get a lot of surface area with a single order, but it can also be convenient to have it split up into two different beds. This makes assembly easier, and it also allows you to create two different growing environments for different types of plants.
Who is This For? Just like the budget option, the MOFEEZ Galvanized Raised Garden Bed Kit can help you quickly and easily increase the amount of space you have for growing.
Flaws but not Deal-Breakers: These cheap raised garden beds can be a little bit difficult to assemble as a result of the many joints needing to line up precisely. However, customers have solved this problem by lining everything up before fully tightening any of the bolts.
Size (in.): 72 x 36 x 12 | Drainage: Through the open bottom | Material: Galvanized steel | Assembly time: 5 mins
Best Small Bed: SnugNiture Round Galvanized Raised Garden Bed Kit, 3Pcs
Why This is a Quality Choice: Although my last two recommendations were all about size, I am aware that not everyone has tons of space. That’s why I’m recommending the SnugNiture Round Galvanized Raised Garden Bed Kit as a smaller option.
This set of three galvanized steel planters is also notable for the three different color finishes that the manufacturer has applied to the outside. That means you don’t need to go through the trouble of painting the raw steel yourself!
Who is This For? These are some of the best cheap raised garden beds for people who don’t have much space in their yard but still want to garden.
Flaws but not Deal-breakers: Assembling these can take quite a while, since they have 34 screws each. However, this does make them sturdy.
Size: 23.6 x 23.6 x 11.8 | Drainage: Through the open bottom | Material: Galvanized steel | Assembly time: 5 mins
Best Mobile Garden Bed: Best Choice Products Raised Garden Bed
Why This is a Quality Choice: This is a high-quality raised garden bed that comes on wheels, which is great for mobility and convenience. It also has a storage platform below the garden bed for easy storage. This allows you to keep all your gardening tools and materials in one place.
Who is This For? If you have issues with how much sunlight different areas of your yard get, I’d recommend this product. You can easily move it around to catch the sun!
Flaws but not Deal-breakers: The 100 lb. capacity isn’t very large and limits what you can grow, but it makes sense because of the mobility-focus of this raised garden bed.
Size: 48 x 23.25 x 32 | Drainage: Holes on the sides | Material: Cedar wood | Assembly time: 30–40 mins
Best Garden Bed with Cage: DoCred Raised Garden Bed Planter Box
Why This is a Quality Choice: This DoCred Raised Garden Bed Planter Box is ideal for planting tomatoes, beans, and other plants that need a cage to support their growth. This raised garden bed has everything you need to get started growing a few plants like these, including the cage, ties, and rope.
It also has a built-in water reservoir that can keep the soil moist for a very long time, even when it’s hot out (especially if you have a great soaker hose).
Who is This For? If you’re looking for an easy way to get started with growing tomatoes or a climbing vine, this is a great single purchase that includes everything you need.
Flaws but not Deal-breakers: It comes in a lot of options, so you have to do some work to figure out which is best for your needs.
Size: 16 x 12 x 16 (+ 45 cage) | Drainage: Holes on the sides | Material: Plastic, Alloy, and Steel | Assembly time: 30 mins
Best Garden Bed with a Cover: Quictent Galvanized Raised Garden Bed with Cover
Why This is a Quality Choice: My final recommendation, the Quictent Galvanized Raised Garden Bed with Cover, is ideally suited for protecting your garden from pests, birds, and animals. The greenhouse style cover also allows for precise temperature control, allowing you to start growing earlier in the season and finish later. And, the manufacturer offers a five-year warranty, so you know that you can trust the quality of this garden bed.
Who is This For? This mini-greenhouse raised planter bed is great for advanced gardeners who need the precise control and protection that it offers.
Flaws but not Deal-Breakers: It isn’t the cheapest raised garden bed on this list, but it does come with a lot so the price is justified.
Size: 71 x 35.4 x 12 | Drainage: Holes on the sides | Material: Metal, with a Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) cover | Assembly time: 50 mins
Buying Considerations for The Best Cheap Raised Garden Beds
Material
Some gardeners have strong preferences about the material of their raised garden beds, as well as how they look. Others don’t care about appearance at all and just want garden beds that will hold a good amount of dirt and provide lots of surface area for growing.
In terms of function, you won’t find much of a difference between garden beds that are made of wood and those made of metal. That means you’re free to choose whichever type appeals to you more.
Drainage
What does make a difference to how well a raised garden bed performs is the amount of drainage that it has. If a raised garden bed doesn’t have adequate drainage, it can become waterlogged as a result of over-watering or heavy rain. Too much water in soil can damage the root systems of your plants, potentially killing them outright.
What you need it for
The type of plants you’re planning to grow can also be an important buying consideration when it comes to the best cheap raised garden beds. Make sure you research how much space the plants you’re going to grow need and buy a large enough bed.
You can also get raised garden beds that are perfect for specific types of plants. Examples are those that have a cage for growing plants that need support (like tomatoes) or climbing plants (like vines and beans).
How I Choose These Products
When selecting the products on this list of the best cheap raised garden beds, I tried really hard to balance affordability with quality using my own experience and customer reviews. There were some raised garden beds that were cheap, but people who’d used them left bad reviews online. Others just looked like they’d fall apart, so I left them off the list.
After all, a cheap raised garden bed that falls apart after just one growing season doesn’t offer good value. The options on this list will continue to hold up for many years!
Final Verdict
Overall, I believe that BIRASIL offers the best cheap raised garden beds online. Their Outdoor Raised Garden Beds have high-quality wood and look great, while providing excellent functionality. If you’re working on getting set up for the upcoming growing season, then choose one of the great options on this list and start filling it up with great soil.
FAQs
How can I save money on a raised garden bed?
There are a number of ways to save money on raised garden beds. First of all, if you have the materials on hand and the necessary know-how, you can construct them yourself. But, if you find yourself needing to buy tools and material in order to do that, you might want to consider one of the budget options on the list above. Ordering one can often turn out to be cheaper than building one on your own, especially if you factor in the time it would take you to do it yourself.
What is the cheapest way to make raised beds?
The absolute cheapest way to make raised gardening beds is making them yourself from free or reused materials. However, this might be difficult for many people because it relies on a lot of technical skill and having access to the proper materials. If that’s the case for you, then the cheapest way to make raised garden beds is to buy them online.
