Rates, 2026
What should a video editor charge in New York or LA?
About $675 a day for a video editor who is working and booked in New York or Los Angeles. $525 in the first years, $825 when senior. Editing a piece runs about $2,050.
Other markets: a major city · remote · a smaller market
First years
$525
a day · $65 an hour
Working, booked
$675
a day · $85 an hour
Senior, sought after
$825
a day · $100 an hour
The rate card, working level
- Day rate$675 per day
- Hourlyfor anything that does not fit a day$85 per hour
- Editing a piececut, two rounds of notes, delivery$2,050 per project
Sold a project fee, by the day, by the hour. The outcome is the unit; the day rate is for when a client wants your time instead.
What to charge for each thing
Ranges for New York or Los Angeles: the low end is the first years, the high end is senior. Working and booked sits in the middle.
- Short social cut (under 60 seconds)$200 to $600 per video
- Long-form YouTube edit (10 to 20 minutes)$600 to $2,000 per video
- Podcast episode, video and audio$200 to $500 per episode
- Brand film or commercial edit$1,500 to $5,000 per project
- Event or wedding highlight$800 to $2,500 per project
- Revision round past the two included$100 to $250 per round
- Color grade$300 to $1,200 per project
- Captions and delivery in three crops$50 to $150 per video
- Rush, under 72 hours30 to 50% of the fee
How the number is made
Video editors at this level day at about $675 ($450 to $900 in New York and LA). Put in the year you actually want on the perfect price page and the number moves with it.
Editing a piece runs $600 to $3,500 and takes about 16 hours of your time; at your hourly that is $1,350. The number is the higher of the two, because the client is buying the outcome, not the hours.
Questions
- What is a fair day rate for a video editor in New York or LA?
- About $675 a day for someone working and booked, $525 in the first years, $825 when senior and sought after. Half days usually run 60% of the day.
- How much is editing a piece?
- $2,050 at a working level in this market. The client is buying the outcome, so the price is the higher of what the market pays for it and what your hours in it are worth.
- Are these rates a rule?
- No. They are US 2026 ranges for the role, placed by level and moved for the market. What a client actually paid you beats all of it. The tool has a box for that, and it wins.
Your number, in five seconds.
Pick your level and market, get a card you can send the next client who asks. Then RostrLab quotes, papers, invoices and chases every job with it: free for 14 days, $29 a month, never a cut.
More in video and animation
motion designer3D artistcoloristVFX artistvideographerdrone operatorcaptioner or transcriptionist