Video Pricing Explained

Stock footage might be used to add shots to a video to compliment existing footage or we may build a whole film from stock footage. It’s extremely useful and versatile. It has the reputation of being cheesy or clichéd but there are some great stock footage clips out there too. This is why the costs can vary.  When we’re quoting we often give an indicative price for an average clip to give you an understanding of the costs involved. Sometimes we’ll quote for one clip and make you aware that we don’t know how many clips we’ll need but if we have an idea of how many clips it will take to build your edit we will give an indicative cost for the total. Either way we always agree costs upfront with the client before purchasing any clips for use in an edit.

Cost per clip can vary wildly from just a few pounds to hundreds of pounds depending upon the individual license.  If the clip is specialist or extremely high quality it’s not uncommon to be paying upwards of £300 per clip.  Each clip also comes with its own license and costs can vary depending upon your usage.  For example, using a clip in a TV commercial will cost more than an online promo. That’s why it’s essential that we know upfront if your video will be broadcast.

Sometimes clips come with the caveat that you can use them online but if you put any adspend behind them the costs increase. We try to avoid these license types because they’re confusing but if we need a specific shot, sometimes we don’t have the choice. We always make our clients aware of any restrictions to their usage before agreeing to use a clip.

Here are some examples of films using stock footage: