Video budget planning
Estimate video production cost from the work involved
Build the budget from planning, people, production, post, versions, rights, and risk. Change the assumptions yourself instead of trusting one average that hides the scope.
What video production cost includes
Planning labor plus production labor plus equipment plus location plus talent and rights plus post-production plus channel versions plus contingency.
Two 20-second videos can have completely different budgets. A quiet product detail on a tabletop, a performance with clean sound, and a location shoot with talent may share a duration while carrying different work and risk.
Build your estimate
Enter your own rates and scope. The estimate updates from those assumptions.
From your assumptions
$6,908
Every number is editable. The total is calculated only from the scope you enter.
Compare three briefs with the same product
Tabletop detail
Product prep, controlled light, camera support, macro coverage, edit, and simple sound.
Player-led performance
Talent, room, multiple takes, clean audio, wider rights, continuity, and longer review.
Hybrid launch asset
Approved source, generated hero shots, limited filmed contact or sound, compositing, and identity review.
See what makes a quote move
- More locations add travel, setup, permits, and schedule risk.
- More people add coordination, usage rights, styling, and continuity.
- Exact physical action adds testing, takes, safety, and product access.
- Original sound adds recording, cleanup, mix, and rights.
- More ratios and markets add editing, captions, copy, and approvals.
- Faster delivery adds overlap, overtime, or reduced review time.
Reduce cost without hiding the tradeoff
| Lever | Saving | Tradeoff |
|---|---|---|
| Answer one question | Fewer shots and shorter review | The asset has a narrower job |
| Use an approved source image | Avoid another simple setup | Hidden views may still need capture |
| Reuse one setup | Fewer resets and light changes | Less visual variety |
| Approve facts early | Fewer corrections and reshoots | Needs product-owner time earlier |
Compare quotes on the same deliverables
- Duration, concepts, shoot days, crew, location, talent, and equipment.
- Post rounds, sound, captions, ratios, languages, and rights.
- Source files, project files, delivery date, storage, and tax.
Frequently asked questions
Video budget planning FAQ
Practical answers for comparable quotes, cost drivers, AI savings and overlooked line items.
How much does product video production cost?
Give every supplier the same brief: shot count and complexity, products and variants, locations, people, voice or sound, final durations and ratios, languages, review rounds, delivery date, source-file needs, and usage rights. A quote is only comparable when the deliverables and exclusions are written at the same level of detail.
What makes a product video expensive?
The largest drivers are setup days, locations, talent, specialized motion or macro work, reflective-product control, custom props, complex sound, regulated claims, many variants, and repeated approval rounds. A short final edit can still be expensive when every second depends on a difficult capture or many stakeholders.
Should I compare project pricing or cost per final video?
Use project price to manage cash and scope, then calculate cost per approved master and per usable placement version to compare efficiency. Do not divide by every resize equally: a new language, new opening, or new claim may require real editorial and review work, while a simple format conversion may not.
Which production costs can AI actually reduce?
AI can replace some location, set, camera-motion, and recapture work when an approved image contains enough truth for the shot. It does not remove briefing, operator time, product review, rights, claim review, versioning, or the need to shoot exact mechanics and unproven results.
What product-video costs are most often overlooked?
Teams often miss product prep and shipping, stakeholder review time, music or talent rights, captions, localization, extra ratios, thumbnail design, storage, project-file delivery, reshoots, and revisions after the first campaign. Add these line items before comparing the apparent production fee.
Compare the real options
Compare the cost of one missing shot before reopening production
Use the estimator to compare the same deliverable. When an approved product image can support the shot, create that one product moment and check current plans and credits on Pricing before you proceed.
Create one product clip from a clear image