Free guide
How much to charge for UGC, without guessing.
'What do other creators charge?' is the wrong question — two UGC jobs that look identical can be worth very different money. Here is the method that produces a number you can defend, plus worked examples.
Step one
Why 'the average rate' won't price your job
A rate is not a property of the video. It is a property of the deal: who gets to use the file, for how long, on which channels, and what you are not allowed to do for the brands that come after them. Two creators can shoot the same 30-second product demo and invoice very different amounts, because one sold a file and the other sold a licence.
So price the job in layers. Production first, then permissions. That single change makes most of your pricing questions answer themselves.
Step two
The six things that move a UGC price
These are the levers RateReady uses. Treat them as the checklist for any quote you write by hand, too — if a brand asks for something on this list, it is a line in the invoice, not a favour.
Step three
Worked examples with real numbers
These use the defaults RateReady ships with, so you can check every figure in the calculator below. They are starting points for a US creator, not market averages — move them for your niche, your experience and how badly the brand wants you.
- 1
$200 — one 30s Reel, organic only
Base for a TikTok/Reel deliverable at 30 seconds, one file, no paid usage, no exclusivity. This is the floor of the deal, not the price of the job.
- 2
$370 — the same Reel with paid ads for 90 days and 30-day exclusivity
$200 base + $120 usage licence (60% of base for paid ads, one quarter of the year) + $50 exclusivity (25% of base for 30 days). Same shoot, 85% more revenue — because the brand bought more.
- 3
$880 — three Reels with paid ads for 90 days
Base $550 for the 3-file bundle (a small per-unit discount) + $330 usage. About $293 per asset. The brand reads this as a deal; you read it as committed work with the licence paid for.
- 4
$340 — a 60-second product demo, organic only
Product demos carry a higher base than a Reel, and the 60-second cut adds a duration premium. Compare it to the $200 Reel: same 'one video', different job.
- 5
Add-ons on top: raw footage, extra hooks, photos, extra revisions
Priced as separate items. If a brand wants the unedited files, that is the raw-footage line — handing them over free means you priced the shoot, not the asset.
Read this before you copy a number
These figures are estimates produced by a formula, not a guarantee of what a brand will pay. Adjust them for your experience, your niche and how much demand you already have. A creator with a waiting list does not use the same starting point as a creator shooting their first paid job.
Step four
Price the job in the open
Send the breakdown, not a single number. When a brand sees "base content — $200", "paid ads licence, 90 days — $120" and "30-day exclusivity — $50", they stop negotiating your worth and start negotiating scope. That is where you want them.
Then hold the line properly: if they say it is too much, offer less scope or a firmer commitment for the lower number. Never simply drop the price — a bare discount tells them the first quote was made up.
Try it now
Run your own job through the calculator.
Free, no account. Pick the content type, the usage the brand asked for and the period, and you get the same line-by-line breakdown you would send.
Suggested rate
$370
$370 per asset · 1 deliverable
- Base content — TikTok / Reel ×1$200
- Paid Ads usage — 90 days$120
- Exclusivity — 30 days$50
Estimate based on the information entered. Adjust to your experience, niche, demand and negotiation.
Common questions
What is a fair price for one UGC video?
A single 30-second TikTok-style video used organically only is a starting point, not a finished price. Add the usage the brand actually wants: paid ads, a website placement, whitelisting and a time window each raise the number, and a 90-day paid-ads licence on top of the same video can more than double it.
Do I charge more if a brand wants to run my video as an ad?
Yes. The video itself is the same work, but running it as an ad means the brand earns money from your asset continuously and can iterate on it. Charge a usage licence on top of the production fee, and limit it by channel and by period.
Should I discount for my first brands?
Trade value, not confidence. If a brand needs a lower number, reduce scope (fewer deliverables, organic-only usage, no exclusivity) or exchange the lower price for volume or a multi-month commitment. A bare discount teaches them that your first quote was inflated.
How do I quote without a rate card?
Start from a base fee per content type, adjust for duration and quantity, then add usage rights, exclusivity and add-ons as separate lines. A line-by-line breakdown is easier for a brand to accept than one round number, and easier for you to defend.
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