How To Determine Professional Video Editing Costs

Due to deadline pressure, it is not uncommon to work through a video production without accurately tracking video editing costs.

It is a good idea to track the real hours during video editing so that you can re-analyze the actual video editing time it took to complete the project. That way when it is time to estimate a future project, you will have a better handle on how much time the project might take and what it might cost.

So, how much does it cost to edit a video?  First, it is good to understand what type of hourly rate you will be incurring.

Professional Video Editing Rates

Depending upon the region you are located in and the level of experience of the video editor, professional video editing rates range between $50 to $150/hr.

Hourly rates can vary significantly based on the editor’s experience and the complexity of your project. Generally speaking, beginner editors may charge less than $50 per hour, while those with intermediate skills often range from $50 to $100 per hour. Seasoned professionals and producers tend to fall in the $75 to $125+ per hour bracket, with high-end specialists commanding rates at the upper end of the $100 to $150/hr range. These rate tiers give you a useful framework for budgeting and help set expectations when hiring freelance editors for your project.

Understanding Fixed (Project-Based) Video Editing Rates

Another pricing approach for video editing is the fixed, or project-based, rate. Unlike hourly or daily rates, a fixed rate means you agree on a single fee for the entire project up front—no running clock or guessing at the final bill. This is especially common for larger, more involved edits or when clients want ultimate predictability in their budgeting.

The cost of a fixed-rate video editing project can vary dramatically based on several factors:

• Project Complexity: Is it a straightforward edit with minimal effects, or are you incorporating multi-camera setups, heavy graphics, and lots of revisions?
• Length and Scope: The longer and more detailed the video, the higher the price tag.
• Editor’s Experience: A seasoned editor in New York or London may quote a substantial premium over someone just starting out.

 

Typical Cost Ranges:

• Simple edits with basic cuts, limited graphics, and minimal revisions might run anywhere from $400–$2,000.
• Mid-range and more detailed videos—think commercial spots, brand promos, or intricate YouTube content—often land in the $2,000–$10,000 bracket.
• Complex projects like music videos, multi-part campaigns, or pieces requiring animation, advanced sound design, or extensive feedback cycles can easily exceed $10,000.

 

With a fixed project fee, you’ll have a clear sense of the financial commitment from day one, minimizing surprises at the end. Most video editing companies and many freelancers will map out what’s included: timelines, deliverables, and sometimes even weekly or milestone check-ins to track progress.

If you’re considering a fixed rate for editing services, it’s smart to discuss your vision, deliverable expectations, and post-production needs in detail before the editor drafts a quote. That way, both parties are clear—and you know exactly what you’re paying for.

 

Which Rate Structure Is Best?

• Hourly or daily rates are ideal for smaller projects, ongoing edits, or when the scope may shift during production.
• Fixed rates offer predictability for both parties, making them a popular choice for well-defined projects with clear deliverables.

No matter which payment structure you choose, it’s essential to discuss the specifics of your project—including number of cuts, complexity, revisions, and any required motion graphics or color correction—with your editor. This ensures you’ll receive an accurate estimate and helps prevent budget surprises down the line.

 

Tips for Reducing Your Video Editing Costs

When it comes to making the most of your video editing budget, a little planning on your end goes a long way toward keeping the final invoice in check—without shortchanging your vision.

Here are a few time-tested strategies you can use:

• Organize and Pre-Select Footage: Before you send material off to your editor, go through your source video and weed out unnecessary, unusable, or duplicate footage. The less your editor has to sift through, the faster (and less costly) the initial import phase will be.
• Be Clear with Instructions: Provide a detailed brief and shot list outlining your goals, must-have segments, desired style, preferred music, and examples you like (think: Apple commercials or TED Talks). Fewer rounds of revision = lower costs.
• Plan Ahead for Revisions: Minimize costly back-and-forth by consolidating feedback from all stakeholders into a single, detailed batch whenever possible.
• Standardize Where You Can: Using templates for lower thirds, title cards, or transitions can accelerate edits. If you have existing brand elements, supplying them up front saves your editor time.
• Communicate Early and Often: Stay accessible and responsive to your editor’s questions—quick clarifications keep the edit moving forward.
• Shop Smart: If you’re seeking outside help, compare not just hourly rates, but also samples of relevant past work from each freelance editor or post house (e.g., companies like Framestore or The Mill). The lowest rate isn’t always the best value if it leads to expensive do-overs.

 

A little upfront effort can help you keep editing costs lean, ensure smooth collaboration, and set your project up for a successful, on-budget finish.

 

Editing Estimate Formulas

One way many professional video editors work is by estimating how many days a project may take to edit—for example, three to four editing days for every day of shooting. This ballpark estimate is good, but doesn’t take into consideration if the source video recorded on the shoot day was one hour or four hours. Tracking the amount of source video obtained may be a more important factor in estimating your cost than the finished video time. For example, based on a source to editing ratio of 10:1, two hours of source footage would require twenty hours of editing. Factors that may affect the shooting to editing ratio are: how many cameras you use when shooting, how many takes you have, and if B-roll cut-aways will be part of the finished piece.

Video editing ratios for a 2 to 5 minute marketing video production range from 5:1 to 25:1. A video with long takes will edit quicker than one with many insert edits or cut-aways. Likewise, dramatized videos with many different angles and takes will require more editing time. A music video production with lots of rapid edits and intricate montage sequences might be more in the range of a 25:1 to 35:1 source to edit ratio.

A typical workflow may include the following video editing services:

• Importing video and other source material, logging and identifying selects
• Rough cut
• Input and revisions
• Color enhancement and sound mix
• Final review and delivery of compressed video.

 

Another way to determine professional editing costs is to factor how many cuts per minute your finished video will have and multiply that figure by the finished video length. For example: a 5 minute video with 10 cuts per finished minute would yield 50 cuts. If your average implementation time is 6 minutes per cut, that would come to 300 minutes (5 hours). Consider that an average of 10 cuts per fished minute will take less time to edit than 20 cuts per minute. Factors to consider which may affect the cuts per minute calculation are: audio complexity, quantity and type of transitions, will there be motion graphics services required, how much color correction and finessing will be needed, are there complex montage sequences, how many rounds of revions are planned?-etc…

You can even use both systems together to refine your estimate. Consider the source footage calculation as more exploration & planning time and the cuts per finished more as implementation time. The following is an estimate of what a reasonable editing budget would come to using the combination of the source to editing time ratio calculation, and the cuts per finished minute factor. Depending upon the region you are located in and the level of experience of the video editor, professional video editing rates range between $75 to $150/hr.

This example is based on 2 hours of source recording edited down to a 3 minute marketing video with an average of 10 cuts per finished minute. Using a source video to editing time ratio of 15:1, that comes to 30 hours for the first element of the equation. Next, add in the cuts per minute factor. Let’s say your video has already been imported and had some preliminary editing done and that it takes an additional 8 minutes to implement each of the 30 final cuts you are planning for the video. This would yield 240 minutes (4 hours) for the second part of the equation. The total time for both parts of the equation comes to 34 hours. At an average rate of say $100 to $125 /hr, you could anticipate the editing cost to be between $3,400 to $4,250.