How much does private kill cost? Prices for 2026

Updated 2 November 2026

Going by the price lists that abattoirs and butchers publish, it costs about £16 to £30 to have a lamb killed in England and Wales, £39 to £45 for a pig and £120 to £180 for cattle. Cutting and packing adds roughly £25 to £35 a lamb, £35 to £65 a pig and £1.10 to £1.50 per kilo of beef carcase, before extras.

Where these prices come from

Most abattoirs don’t publish their prices and ask you to phone instead. When we checked in November 2026 we found nine businesses that do: seven in England and Wales and two in Scotland. That’s a small sample, so use the ranges here as a guide and get a quote from your own abattoir.

Only Brace of Butchers says whether VAT is included (its prices exclude it), so ask about VAT when you get a quote.

Kill charges per head

This is what the lists charge to slaughter one animal and give you back the carcase. The “Lists” column shows how many of the English and Welsh price lists each range comes from.

A few things to know about these figures:

• The lowest lamb and cattle prices come from Cig Eryri’s list, which dates from February 2024.
• Martins Meats’ figures are the charges at the two abattoirs it uses, and include delivering the carcase to its cutting room.
• Langford charges £45 for pigs up to 90 kg, then £1 for every extra kilo. It charges £180 rather than £160 for cattle over 400 kg.
• Munro’s prices include a small levy for Quality Meat Scotland.

Few lists price cattle over 30 months separately. Cig Eryri’s 2024 list adds £40 to remove the backbone, but since Great Britain’s BSE status was upgraded in 2025, the backbone of older cattle born and reared here is no longer specified risk material. Check whether an older charge like this still applies. Martins Meats charges £1.50 a kilo to butcher over-30-month beef, against £1.35 for younger cattle.

Cutting and packing

Butchery is usually priced per animal for lambs and pigs, and per kilo of carcase for beef. The cheapest option is meat cut and put in plain bags. Vacuum packing and labels cost extra.

Home Farm Butchers prices sausages and burgers by the pound (£1.30 to £1.75), converted here to kilos. It charges a flat £280 to £380 to cut beef carcases over 200 kg. Western Meats lists cattle cutting from £200 and packing from £150, and lamb cutting from £15 and packing from £10.

In Scotland, Munro’s charges £35 to cut a lamb of up to 20 kg for the home freezer, £95 for a pig up to 55 kg and £555 for cattle up to 320 kg, with more per kilo above those weights. The Buffalo Farm charges £1.40 a kilo for cattle and pigs and £35 a sheep.

Hanging, delivery and other extras

• Hanging. Langford charges £5 a day to hang cattle, from the day after slaughter. Cig Eryri’s 2024 list charges £2 a day. Brace of Butchers charges £5 a week to age a beef carcase, space permitting. Martins Meats includes 14 days of dry ageing and charges £60 for 30 days. Our guide on how long to hang meat explains the options.
• Delivery. Langford charges £4 per sheep or goat carcase, £8 per pig and £35 per beef carcase, with a £35 minimum for up to 10 miles and £2.50 a mile beyond that. Brace of Butchers charges £20 to £70 to collect carcases from the abattoir it uses. Munro’s charges £9.35 a sheep, £14 a pig and £15.50 a side of beef.
• Older sheep and goats. Expect to pay £4 to £5 more for the kill. Their spinal cord is specified risk material, so the carcase is usually split to remove it. Cig Eryri adds £5 to butcher them, and Munro’s charges £6.25 to split a sheep.
• Skins and hides. Abattoirs once received up to £45 for a hide and £6.50 for a lamb skin, enough to cover the slaughter cost, but now pay to have them taken away. If you want a skin back, Munro’s charges £6.25 to salt a sheepskin and £20 for a cattle hide, and only people with the right by-products licence can collect them.
• Small charges. Langford charges £3 to wash your trailer. Cig Eryri charges £2 to trim dirty livestock.

Worked totals

These use the published prices and leave out delivery and VAT.

Langford’s cutting charge for the bullock is £400 for the first 300 kg plus £1.35 a kilo after that. Its list doesn’t say whether the 400 kg cattle threshold is live or carcase weight. If the £180 rate applies, the total is £790.50.

The gap between these totals is why it pays to ask two or three abattoirs for a quote. To see what you’ll get back for the money, read how much meat you get from a pig, lamb or cow.

What makes it cost more

• Size. Many lists charge by weight band, so a heavy pig or a big bullock costs more to kill and cut.
• Age. Sheep and goats over 12 months cost more on the lists that price them separately, and their carcases need splitting to take out the spinal cord.
• Packing. Bulk bags are cheapest. Vacuum packs, labels and retail packs each add to the bill.
• Extras. Sausages, burgers, curing and smoking are charged by the kilo.
• Hanging. Chiller space costs money, so longer hanging usually means a bigger bill.
• Distance. Delivery is charged per carcase and per mile.
• Rising running costs. In the Sustainable Food Trust’s 2025 survey, 60% of abattoir users said the cost of slaughter had risen in the previous 12 months. Those who described the rise reported increases of 3% to 41%, roughly 16% on average. Hourly rates for official vets rose 17.7% in 2025 and for meat hygiene inspectors 11.3%.

Getting a quote

Use the finder to see which abattoirs near you take your species, and send an enquiry from the listing. Ask:

• the kill charge per head, and any weight limits or bands
• whether hanging is included, for how long, and the charge after that
• the butchery price, any minimum charge, and what the standard cut includes
• the cost of vacuum packing, labels, sausages and curing
• delivery charges, whether VAT is added and when payment is due

Book early, especially before Christmas: our guide to booking private kill explains how, and a clear cutting list avoids paying for work you didn’t want. If you’re new to all this, start with the private kill guide.

This guide is general information, not legal advice. Rules differ between England and Wales and change over time, so check with your abattoir, vet or local council if you're unsure.