Build a quote you can explain
This calculator produces an illustrative USD quote, not a market valuation. Every default is an editable planning assumption. The goal is to separate the work from the audience fee and the rights being requested, then show the arithmetic clearly enough that you can disagree with it. If a number does not reflect your costs or negotiating position, change the input instead of treating the result as something the market has decided.
Start with production hours and an hourly rate. Then consider the deliverable, audience assumption, usage duration, exclusivity, paid amplification, and revision rounds. Those inputs answer different questions. Increasing follower count should not erase the hours required to make a video. Likewise, an inexpensive production process does not automatically make an unlimited commercial license a sensible inclusion.
The transparent formula
Production equals hours multiplied by hourly rate multiplied by a deliverable factor. The illustrative factors are 1 for a static post, 1.25 for a carousel, and 1.75 for a video. They are local model choices, not researched industry premiums. If you already estimated video-specific hours, consider whether the additional multiplier double-counts effort. You can adjust your hours or use the static factor as a neutral starting point.
Audience equals followers divided by 1,000, multiplied by your chosen audience fee per thousand, an engagement factor, and a niche factor. Engagement factor is your entered percentage divided by 3, restricted to a range of 0.5 to 2. The model's niche choices are General at 1, Specialist at 1.15, and Technical at 1.3. These labels do not establish that one topic is objectively worth more than another.
Base quote is production plus audience. Usage adds fifteen percent of base per month. Exclusivity adds twenty percent of base per month. Paid amplification adds fifty percent of base when selected. Each revision round beyond the first adds $35. These additions use the same base and are not compounded on top of one another.
Read the line items before the total
The large number is convenient for comparison, but the table is the useful part. A quote with a large audience component and little production cost says something different from a quote dominated by labor. Both can produce the same total. Keep the line items in your discussion so a request to reduce price can become a discussion about scope rather than an unexplained discount.
The calculation excludes taxes, travel, props, subcontractors, payment processing, and any expenses you have not entered through your assumptions. It also does not price a particular territory or media-spend ceiling. A proposed license can vary with duration, scope, and use; the written agreement needs its own review. [VERIFY: U.S. Copyright Office — permission and licensing scope — https://www.copyright.gov/help/faq/faq-fairuse.html]
Three worked examples
Example 1: A simple static deliverable
Enter 10,000 followers, three-percent engagement, General niche, four production hours, and a $50 hourly rate. Keep the audience fee at $5 per thousand. Production is 4 × 50 × 1, or $200. The engagement factor is 1. Audience is 10 × 5 × 1 × 1, or $50. With no extra usage, exclusivity, or paid rights and one revision round, the illustrative total is $250. That is a demonstration of the model, not a recommended fee for every account of that size.
Example 2: A video with several rights additions
Keep those audience and labor assumptions but choose Video. Production becomes $350 and audience remains $50, so base is $400. Three months of usage adds $180. One month of exclusivity adds $80. Paid amplification adds $200. Two revision rounds add one extra $35 round. The total is $400 + $180 + $80 + $200 + $35, or $895. The meaningful question is whether those rights match the actual request, not whether $895 looks impressive.
Example 3: A specialist carousel
Enter 20,000 followers, six-percent engagement, Specialist niche, five hours, a $60 hourly rate, and the $5 audience assumption. Production is 5 × 60 × 1.25, or $375. Engagement factor reaches the model's upper limit of 2. Audience is 20 × 5 × 2 × 1.15, or $230. Base is $605. Two usage months add $181.50. With no other additions, the underlying total is $786.50, displayed as $787 because the interface rounds the headline to whole dollars.
Test assumptions instead of chasing a single answer
Run at least two versions of a quote. In one, change the production hours to reflect a simpler deliverable. In another, keep the work unchanged but remove the requested rights. The difference shows what is driving your number. Do not lower several unrelated inputs at once and then forget which concessions you made.
Use the engagement rate calculator to check the percentage you enter. Keep the formula consistent across comparisons. A rate calculated by reach is not automatically interchangeable with one calculated by followers. The calculator cannot see how you obtained the input, so that context remains your responsibility.
The most common mistake: selling the rights inside the post fee
A short production brief can hide a much broader commercial request. Before quoting, write down where the asset may appear, how long it may be used, whether it may be altered, and what competitors you would be unable to work with. These are recommended negotiation questions, not a complete contract. If the requester wants a broad license, ask a qualified adviser to review the wording rather than relying on a duration slider alone.
What this number deliberately does not claim
It is not a promise that a brand will pay, a guarantee of campaign performance, a tax calculation, or a benchmark derived from private deal data. There is no platform connection or account scan. Your values remain in the browser, and the text export is a discussion aid rather than an invoice or contract.
Read the brand-deal pricing guide for a fuller scope worksheet. Use the disclosure generator when the agreed relationship needs to be explained in the actual post. A transparent quote and a transparent disclosure solve different parts of the same commercial workflow.
Questions you might have
Are these actual market rates?
No. All defaults and multipliers are illustrative planning assumptions. Change them to reflect your costs and negotiating position.
Why are rights charged separately?
Separating the line items makes the proposed scope easier to discuss. The model does not decide what a legal license includes.
Can I change the currency?
The current model displays USD only. Convert and review a proposed quote separately rather than treating the dollar symbol as another currency.
Does the total include tax and expenses?
No. Taxes, travel, props, subcontractors, and other expenses are not separately calculated. Add the items relevant to your actual agreement.
Why does the engagement multiplier stop increasing?
The model divides engagement by three and limits that factor to 0.5–2. This is a visible model choice, not a claim about the market.
Is the text export a contract or invoice?
No. It is a discussion copy. Scope, payment, licensing, and legal terms need a separate reviewed agreement.