I finally had to price my first freelance video edit and I'm torn between two approaches

I visited a small coffee shop in Austin last week and overheard two freelancers arguing about pricing. One said you should always charge by the hour because projects always take longer than you think. The other swore by flat rates because clients need to know the final cost upfront before they commit. I'm just starting out with video editing gigs and I can see both sides. A simple 2-minute promo might take me 4 hours one day and 8 the next if the footage is messy. How do you decide which pricing model to use when you're new and still figuring out how fast you work?

3 comments

3 Comments

paige_bell817d ago

Oh man, that line about "a simple 2-minute promo taking 4 hours one day and 8 the next" really hits home. When I started freelancing on the side, I tried hourly pricing first and clients would get all squirmy watching the clock tick. I switched to flat rates eventually because people just want to know "how much" without the guesswork. My advice is to track your time on a few projects first, figure out your average speed, then set a flat rate that covers you for those slow footage days. It protects you from the messy footage surprise and keeps clients happy with a clear number.

kellyallen7d ago

My freelance buddy once spent 6 hours editing a 45-second cat video.

wadejenkins7d agoMost Upvoted

Flat rates just mean you eat the overtime when they throw in endless tiny revisions.