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The tiers, roughly
$2,000 to $7,500: solo / duo production. One shooter-editor, a half or full shoot day, interview-plus-broll format, one or two revision rounds. This is the workhorse tier for small-business brand videos and it can look far better than the price implies when the shooter is good.
$7,500 to $25,000: small crew production. A director/DP plus sound, gaffer, maybe a producer; one or two shoot days; real lighting; licensed music; color and mix passes. Most mid-market "about us" films, recruiting videos, and product launch pieces live here.
$25,000 to $100,000: full production. Multi-day shoots, casting, art department, location fees, agency-grade post. Campaign anchor films and broadcast-bound work. Above $100k you're into commercial production with talent, usage buys, and a production company's full machinery; the ceiling is wherever the media plan is.
What actually moves the price
Shoot days are the biggest lever: every day multiplies crew, gear, and location costs. Crew size is second: each specialist raises quality and cost together. Usage rights are the invisible one: a video for your website costs less than the same file in paid social, which costs less than broadcast, because you're buying a license, not just a file. Revisions quietly inflate budgets when they're unlimited, which is why good producers cap rounds in the contract.
Why the cheap quote is expensive
The $1,500 quote and the $8,000 quote are not the same product at different prices. The difference shows up in the edit: coverage you don't have, audio you can't fix, and a video you don't post. The most expensive video is the one you don't use.
For producers: quote in tiers
If you're the one writing these quotes, present the tier below and above what the client asked for. Budgets are more flexible than briefs; buyers routinely find another $5k when they can see what it buys.
What drives the number
A quote for a brand video is mostly days and people. These sample builds are for a 2-minute film in a mid-size US market. Your market will differ, and we do not claim these are averages.
| Build | Shoot | Crew | Edit | Sample range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| One-person | Half a day | Shooter who also edits | 2 days | $2,500 to $5,000 |
| Small crew | 1 day | Director, DP, sound | 4 days | $7,000 to $15,000 |
| Full crew | 2 days | Add gaffer, grip, producer, makeup | 6 to 8 days | $20,000 to $45,000 |
| Agency-grade | 3 days and up | Full department heads, art, talent, locations | 2 weeks and up | $50,000 and up |
The jump between rows comes from more people, each adding rates, a day of prep and more to manage. Talent, locations, permits and insurance are on top.
Why two quotes can differ by five times
Two companies quoting the same film may be quoting different films. Ask each to say:
| Ask | Why |
|---|---|
| How many shoot days, and who is on set? | Crew size is the biggest line |
| What finals do I get? | A film, cut-downs, captions, formats |
| How many rounds of notes? | Round three is where cheap quotes get expensive |
| Who writes the script? | It is often not included |
| Where can I use it, and for how long? | Usage can change the price |
| What happens if it rains? | Weather days and cancellation |
How to quote one
Quote three packages. A client rarely knows what a film costs, and a single number sends them away to compare. Three packages move the question from whether to which. Build them with how to price video production, put them in the free proposal template, and spell out the rounds in the contract template. For the cost side of each package, see how to build a video production budget.