The hardest part of selling UGC isn't making the video — it's answering "what's your rate?" without either scaring the brand off or leaving money on the table. This is how to set a number you can say with a straight face, every time.
Start with a base rate per video
Your base rate is what one straightforward video costs: filmed to a brief, lightly edited, delivered for the brand to post organically. Pick a number you'd be happy to make twenty of. Most creators land their base between $50 and $150 per video, and three things move it:
- Length and complexity. A 15-second hook is not a 60-second tutorial with three outfit changes.
- How many variations. Brands love options — three hooks for the same clip is more work and should cost more.
- Your niche. Tightly-niched creators (skincare, a specific game, a fitness style) command more because the audience is harder to reach.
Don't anchor to your follower count. UGC is content the brand runs on their channels — they're buying the video, not your audience. A reliable creator with 4,000 engaged followers can out-earn a flaky one with 90,000.
The add-ons that should always cost extra
This is where most creators undercharge. Your base rate covers a simple, organic-use video. Everything below is a separate line item:
- Editing. Captions, transitions, sound design, color — if you're handing over a finished edit, charge for it.
- Rush turnaround. Need it in 48 hours? That's a premium, not a favor.
- Raw footage. Some brands want the unedited clips to cut themselves. That's an asset — price it.
- Usage / ad rights. Organic posting and paid ads are different rights. If they're going to spend money boosting your video, charge a usage add-on.
- Exclusivity. If you can't work with a competitor for 90 days, that costs you future deals — bill for it.
A clean way to think about it: base rate buys the video, add-ons buy what they do with it.
Your take-home is your rate
Here's the number that actually matters — what hits your bank. On Plug Pro there's no platform cut on your deals, so your take-home is your rate. Quote $100, deliver, and $100 is what you're paid.
You keep 100%. Plug Pro is a flat monthly subscription with zero per-deal fees. You set your price, send it, and the brand pays you directly — no escrow, no payout hold, no percentage skimmed off the top.
The mistakes that keep you cheap
- Quoting a "package" before you understand the ask. Get the brief first, then price it. A vague "how much for UGC?" deserves "what are we making?" before a number.
- Giving away usage. The single most common underpricing mistake is letting a brand run your video as an ad for the organic price.
- Not charging for revisions beyond the agreed round. One revision is normal; a fourth round is a new deal.
- Racing to the bottom. There's always someone cheaper. Compete on reliability and quality, not on being the lowest bid.
How pricing works on Plug Pro
You set your own rate — Plug never sets it for you, and never takes a piece of it. From there:
- You send the price as a package or an invoice-style link, and the brand pays you directly — no chasing, no middleman holding the money.
- Every delivery comes with a usage certificate that spells out exactly what the brand can do with it — so "can they run this as an ad?" is never a fight later.
- You keep 100% — Plug Pro is a flat monthly subscription, not a cut of your deals.
Set your rates once on your storefront and they carry into every package and offer. See the full flow on the UGC deals page.
Pricing for the other side of the table? Send brands the companion guide: how much UGC costs.