UGCStarsThe short version
Your starting rate is the price for one finished video that a brand can post on its own channels. Everything else, like paid ads, raw files or extra hooks, is priced on top.
Work it out from your time, not your follower count. Add up the hours one video really takes, multiply by an hourly rate you would accept, and round to a clean number.
Charge separately for usage rights, add-ons and rush delivery. Only offer a bundle discount when several videos really save you time.
Setting a starting rate when you’re new
Your starting rate is shown on your UGCStars profile. Brands use it to shortlist creators who fit their budget, so it should be a real number you are happy to work for, not a placeholder.
Price your time
UGC is paid for the content, not for your audience. A brand that hires you is buying a video it will post or run as an ad, so the fairest base is the time that video takes you.
| Step | Time |
|---|---|
| Reading the brief and writing a script | 30 min |
| Setting up and filming | 60 min |
| Editing, captions and music | 90 min |
| One round of changes | 30 min |
| Total | 3.5 hours |
At $35 an hour, 3.5 hours comes to $122.50. Round it to $125 and that is your starting rate. As you get faster, your hourly rate goes up without changing the price.
Check it against your niche
Open a few creator profiles in your niche on UGCStars and look at their starting rates. If you are far below most of them, brands may read it as inexperience. If you are far above, make sure your samples show why.
- Don’t price by followers. Brands booking UGC care about the video, not your audience size.
- Don’t go below your costs. Products you have to buy, props and editing apps all count.
- Review your rate after every few bookings, not once a year.
Pricing usage rights by length and channel
Usage rights decide where a brand can use your video and for how long. Your starting rate should cover organic use: the brand posting the video on its own social accounts and website.
Paid ads are different. When a brand pays to show your video to thousands of people, it is worth more to them, so you charge more.
| Usage | Add to your starting rate |
|---|---|
| Organic posts on the brand’s channels | Included |
| Paid ads, up to 3 months | 30 to 50% |
| Paid ads, up to 6 months | 50 to 75% |
| Paid ads, up to 12 months | 100% |
| Unlimited, no end date | 2 to 3 times your rate |
Ads that run from your account
Some brands want to run ads through your own TikTok or Instagram account, using TikTok Spark Ads or Meta partnership ads. Your name and handle appear on the ad. Price this separately, usually as a monthly fee, because the brand is using your account as well as your video.
What to agree in writing
- Channels: organic only, paid social, or other places like TV.
- Duration: a start date and an end date.
- Countries the ads will run in.
- Whether the brand can cut, edit or add text to your video.
Add-ons: raw footage, hooks, extra edits
Add-ons are extra work, or extra value for the brand. List them with a price so brands can pick what they need without a long back-and-forth.
| Add-on | What the brand gets | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Raw footage | All unedited clips from the shoot | $40 to $60 |
| Extra hooks | Alternative first 3 seconds | $20 each |
| Cutdown | A 15-second version of a 30-second video | $30 |
| Second-language captions | Subtitles in another language | $15 |
| Extra round of changes | Changes beyond the one included | $25 |
| Rush delivery | Delivered in under 48 hours | 25% on top |
Raw footage and extra hooks are worth charging for because brands use them to make more ads from one shoot. Each extra ad they make comes from your work.
When a bundle discount makes sense
A bundle is several videos for one brand at a lower price per video. It only makes sense when the videos really cost you less time, for example the same product filmed in one session.
| Package | Discount | Total | Per video |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 video | None | $125 | $125 |
| 3 videos, same product | 10% | $340 | $113 |
| 5 videos, same product | 15% | $530 | $106 |
Skip the discount when
- The videos are for different products or need separate shoots.
- The deadline is tight and the bundle means late nights.
- The brand also wants paid usage on every video.
If you offer a standard bundle, put it on your rate card, for example “10% off 3 or more videos”, and include it when you quote.
Before you send a quote
- Confirm how many videos, how long each one is, and the formats.
- Ask where the videos will run and for how long.
- Price usage rights and add-ons as separate lines.
- Say how many rounds of changes are included.
- Give a delivery date and the price for rush delivery.
- Agree payment terms in writing before you film.
A quote with separate lines is easy for a brand to approve, and it makes clear which extra requests need an extra fee.