Guide
How much to charge for an Instagram Reel
Figures and workflows here are illustrations, not financial, tax, or accounting advice. Talk to a tax or finance specialist in your jurisdiction before you invoice, set payment terms, or treat a number as a rate you should charge.
View-band Reel floor table
Sort your last 8–15 Reels by views, take the middle value, write the pull date on the card. That median picks a floor band. Niche authority, heavy scripting, and on-camera days push you toward the top of the band; simple talking-head UGC-style Reels on your profile sit lower — still above “exposure.”
These floors are for organic Reels posted to your account. UGC-only files with no post are a different product. Cross-posting the same shoot to TikTok is an add-on or a cross-post package — not automatic free distribution.
| 30-day median Reel views | Organic floor band | Working mid |
|---|---|---|
| 2,000–4,999 | $150–$280 | $200 |
| 5,000–9,999 | $250–$450 | $350 |
| 10,000–24,999 | $400–$750 | $550 |
| 25,000–49,999 | $650–$1,200 | $900 |
| 50,000–99,999 | $1,000–$2,000 | $1,400 |
| 100,000+ | $1,800+ | Custom + usage |
Floor before paid usage. Print median + pull date on every quote.
Usage lines (stack on the floor)
Organic means the Reel lives on your grid. Paid usage means they run the asset in ads as the brand. Whitelist / Partnership Ads means ads as you. Exclusivity locks your calendar against competitors. Price each with days — never “campaign rights” as one blurry sentence.
| Line | Typical add-on | On $550 Reel mid |
|---|---|---|
| Organic Reel only | Floor | $550 |
| Paid usage 30 days (ads as them) | +25–40% | +$138–$220 |
| Paid usage 90 days | +50–75% | +$275–$413 |
| Whitelist / Partnership 30 days | +40–60% (or flat) | +$220–$330 |
| Category exclusivity 30 days | Opportunity-cost or % | Separate exclusivity line |
| Extra revision round | Flat $75–$150 | After the included one |
Do not gift paid usage because they “might boost.” Brand-account ads, Creator Boost, and Partnership Ads are not free.
Worked quote: 18k median Reel
Inputs: 30-day median 18,000 views (pull date on SOW), organic floor mid-band $550, brand wants 30-day paid usage on their channels, no whitelist, one revision round, no exclusivity. They also asked “can we put it on the feed too?” — sharing the Reel to the feed grid is included; a separate designed static is not.
| Line | Math | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Organic Reel (18k median band) | Floor mid | $550 |
| Paid usage 30 days | +30% of $550 | $165 |
| Whitelist / Partnership | Not purchased | $0 |
| Feed share of same Reel | Included | $0 |
| Separate static still | Not included | — |
| Total | — | $715 |
Refuse perpetual usage on a $715 deal. Re-quote 90-day or annual if they need longer.
Sanity-check hours: if the brief needs a location day, talent release, or three concept options before shoot, raise the floor or add a production line. View bands set a market seat — they do not obligate you to lose money on a heavy brief.
What this Reel guide is not
- Not a Reel vs static vs carousel comparison (that spine lives on the format-compare guide).
- Not Stories sequence pricing (frame ladders are a different SKU).
- Not a UGC-only rate with no post to your audience.
- Not permission to skip usage lines because “it’s just a Reel.”
Sibling format page
Once the Reel dollar exists, use Reel vs feed multipliers to price static and carousel as fractions — do not rebuild format math here.
Usage deep-dive
Percent bands and licence clocks for paid rights sit on the usage-rights pricing guide — this page only stacks the common lines on a Reel floor.
Compare formats on Instagram Reel vs feed post rate. Expand licence windows and territory on influencer usage rights pricing.
Related guides
Platform rates & formats
Instagram Reel pricing questions
+What view band should set my Instagram Reel floor?
Use 30-day median Reel views (last 8–15 Reels, middle value). Match that median to a floor band, then adjust for niche, on-camera time, and scripting — never for one viral outlier.
+How do I add paid usage to a Reel quote?
Organic Reel is line one. Paid social / ads-as-them is a % of the content fee for a stated window (e.g. +25–40% for 30 days). Whitelist / Partnership Ads is another product if they run ads as you.
+Should nano Reels use CPM tables from mega creators?
No. Mega CPM assumes media-buyer scale. Nanos price production + median views with a honest floor — see nano rates guidance, then use this view-band table as the Reel floor.
+What if my last Reel went viral above my median?
Quote the median. Offer a performance bonus only if you wrote one. Do not permanently raise the card off one hit or you will miss on the next quiet month.
+How is Reel floor pricing different from Reel vs feed multipliers?
This page sets the Reel as 1.0 in dollars from views. The vs-feed guide compares static and carousel as fractions of that Reel — use both, do not merge them into one mushy “post” price.
+Do Reel rates include one revision round?
Yes on standard packages: one round of notes. A new hook or reshoot is a new Reel or an extra-revision add-on — never unlimited revisions.
Publish a Reel floor with usage toggles
BlueRateCard packages can show median-view Reel pricing and paid-usage add-ons so quotes stop collapsing into one vague number. Free for creators.