You’ve found your product niche, nailed your lighting, and perfected your on-camera charm, and now brands are starting to appear in your inbox. Congratulations! You are officially a UGC creator. But there’s one quite awkward thing that comes next: money. And let’s be honest: It can feel like a bit of a minefield.
Discussing UGC rates can feel a bit like shooting in the dark. You don’t want to undersell yourself, but you also don’t want to go too high and risk a brand potentially going cold on you. Wondering how much you should be selling your content for? Consider this your crash course.
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Before we dive into the financials, it’s important to be sure what UGC actually is. User-generated content is branded content created by individuals that feels authentic to social media platforms. Think testimonial-style TikToks, product demos, and voiceovers. Basically, it is content that feels human-produced, rather than branded. “User-generated content, often abbreviated as UGC, refers to any form of content – text, images, videos, reviews – created by consumers rather than brands themselves,” according to UGC support platform Stars and Stories.
Unlike traditional influencer deals, UGC often doesn’t require you to post to your own audience. You’re being paid to create the asset, and then the brand runs it on its channels or as paid ads.
The challenge is that there isn’t a standard pricing sheet, and your UGC and content creator rates depend on multiple factors.
1. Experience and portfolio
In any job, experience matters – and UGC is no different. If you understand hooks (those first few seconds that are designed to grab attention and stop the scroll), ad structure, and pacing – and you have the videos to prove it – you can charge more than a newbie who’s learning as they go. “Brands pay influencers for the size of their audience,” Renae Gregoire writes for Forbes. “But they pay UGC creators for their content.” If you’ve made a UGC video that got great feedback from a brand, be sure to include it in your portfolio.
Having a strong UGC portfolio is essential: If you have examples that prove you’re a good creator, brands are likely to offer more cash. “Creating something professional to show brands makes the whole process much simpler for the both of you,” says UGC creator Gemma Louise. “The brand can easily see what kind of content you create and what you can do for them, and you can quickly show off your content.”
2. The type of content
Not all UGC is created equal, so always check what the brand is actually asking for. A simple 30-second to-camera video won’t require the same time or editing as a 45-second video with three different hooks, multiple angles, and captions. The more complex the brief, the higher your rate should be. As a general rule, if the workload increases, your pricing should increase as well. “Additional elements – such as raw footage, multiple hooks, usage rights, and edits – are often charged as upsells,” Paul Osas writes for creator-focused outreach platform Pitchbrand.
3. Usage rights
This is where beginners often lose money. Remember to ask the brand questions about what they’re using your content for. Will it be running organically for 30 days? As a paid ad? Is it being used across multiple platforms? That will affect how much money you request. Extended usage and paid advertising should push up your rate. “Usage rights define how, where, and for how long a brand can use content created by a UGC creator,” Sofia Gimenez Gontard writes for Hustler Marketing. “It’s best to agree on these in writing before production begins.”
4. Location
Remember that markets differ. UGC audiences based in the US reportedly command premium rates compared to other geographies, so consider upping your rates if you’re based in the UK but creating content for a US brand.
5. Brand size and budget
Brands of all shapes and sizes may find UGC content useful. But if you’re working with a brand with a massive following, you should expect them to pay more. “Big brands often have larger budgets, while small businesses may be more limited,” Lydia Thomas writes for UGC agency After Hours. “Adjust your rates accordingly, but avoid undervaluing yourself.”
The industry is vast, and rates across it vary significantly. In 2025, After Hours reported that the average UGC content rates for one piece of content are:
Entry level: £100 to £150 per video
Experienced creators: £150 to £300 per video
Highly in-demand creators: £300 or more per video
“These rates will apply to working directly with brands. If you’re working with an agency, you’ll be earning significantly less (and with good reason),” according to After Hours. “A good agency will take away a lot of the leg work for you: creative briefing, potentially concepting and scripting, liaising with the clients, and managing contracts and payments.”
You could also offer video bundles, which is often a good way to get a brand’s attention. “By offering a slight discount for bulk orders, you provide the brand with more value while also increasing your overall project revenue. A brand that might hesitate to book one video at £150 could be much more inclined to commit to three videos for £400, knowing they’re getting a better deal per video.”
The types of video you produce are generally decided on a case-by-case basis depending on the client’s needs, but there are some things to note.
UGC creator Leah Doogan says that if you’re charging £150 for an organic UGC video, an ad should be £200. “You could charge more for this (and some creators do), but I think, as a beginner, it’s important you don’t price yourself out of the market,” she says.
“Sometimes brands simply want the footage handed over as is, which is really straightforward,” says Gemma Louise. “And sometimes, they want a really creatively edited and put-together piece of content that takes hours to produce. Sometimes they can ask for multiple edits of a video, and sometimes they can ask for it in various formats. I would charge less or more based on how much of my time this is going to take up.”
The key thing to remember is that for every extra thing a brand asks for, you can add some extra money to your fee. One of the easiest ways to manage that is by creating a rate card. Set a clear base fee for a standard deliverable (one raw 30-second video, for example), and then list add-ons such as additional hooks, ad-style editing, extra cut-downs, paid usage rights, or fast turnaround. That way, you’re not awkwardly making up numbers mid-negotiation.
Money is always awkward to discuss, but, as a UGC creator, you’re offering brands a professional service and you deserve to be paid properly for it. Don’t undersell yourself.
Setting a rate is often simply the starting point for negotiation. Brands may come back with a counteroffer, adjust the scope, or refine the deliverables. That’s normal. What matters is that you begin from a place of clarity and confidence about your value. You’re not lucky to be paid; you’re doing a job.