How much does a video editor cost for Reels, TikTok and Shorts?
For a short vertical video, the prices we read on October 29, 2026 land mostly between $20 and $150 per video: $20 to $50 on seller listings, $80 to $94 at an agency. For 12 videos a month, the offers we found run from about $200 to about $1,500, depending on what is included. An automatic tool costs $19 to $69 a month (Submagic), which works out to $0.69 to $1.27 a video if you use the whole quota. It edits; it does not direct a project.
By Quentin, video editor and founder of Rushly AI. Every price below was read on a page on October 29, 2026. The source is in the table and in the list at the bottom.
How we got these numbers
We read the pages, we did not survey the market. Two guides that came up when we searched this question (Vidico and Tasty Edits) give ranges without saying where they come from, and both sell video production. They also mix hourly, per-video and per-month prices in the same list, which is why the table below keeps the unit next to every number.
Upwork and Fiverr, the two places most people look first, refused our automated reading (an access error on both). Their prices are not here. If you hire there, you will see live prices that we cannot check.
What a short video costs, by source
| What you buy | Price we read | Source (read Oct 29, 2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Reel or TikTok, up to 30 seconds | from $40 per video, 3-day delivery | Contra listing, seller in Argentina |
| Short vertical video with captions, music, 2 revisions | from $50 per video, 2 to 3 business days | Contra listing, seller in Nigeria |
| One TikTok a week, basic titles, 1 revision | $20 for 1 video a week; $110 for 5 a week | Contra listing, seller in Canada |
| Vertical video from an editing agency | $94 for 1 video; $88 each for 15; $80 each for 30 | Tasty Edits, page updated Sep 29, 2026 |
| Short-form clip, general range | $30 to $150 per clip | Hirevire hiring guide (undated) |
| Short-form edit, general range | $50 to $400 per video | Vidico guide, June 1, 2026 |
| Shorts, Reels, TikTok on Upwork (third party) | $20 to $100 per video; $15 to $40 an hour | GigRadar, May 28, 2026 |
The cheapest rows are asking prices from individual sellers, and the scope differs. The $20 listing offers basic titles and one revision. The $50 listing adds captions, sound effects, music and two revisions.
What 12 videos a month costs
| Offer | Monthly price | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 8 to 12 short clips, general budget | $200 to $500 | Vidico, June 1, 2026 |
| 12 videos, done-for-you service (page does not say if filming is included) | $269 | 99dollarsocial |
| 15 vertical videos | $1,320 ($88 each) | Tasty Edits |
| 12 or more short videos, 24-hour delivery, 2 revisions | from $1,500 | Contra listing, seller in Serbia |
| 20 to 40 clips on a retainer | $800 to $3,000 | Hirevire |
One job posting we read (OnlineJobs.ph, updated September 4, 2026) pays $300 to $600 a month, rising with output from 20 to about 36 short videos, and expects about an hour of editing per video. It is a part-time hire in a different labor market, not a price list. We show it only because it is a real low end.
Hourly rates and salaries
- Vidico: entry level $20 to $45 an hour, mid level $45 to $85, senior $85 to $150 or more, agency $100 to $250.
- Hirevire: $15 to $50 is typical; $25 to $50 for US-based editors; $8 to $25 offshore.
- US government data: the Bureau of Labor Statistics gives a median annual pay of $75,420 for film and video editors (May 2025; page modified August 27, 2026). That is a full-time salary, before any employer costs.
What moves the price
Vidico lists the extras that change a quote:
- Revisions. Rounds beyond those included cost $50 to $200 or more each.
- Rush delivery. 25% to 50% on top.
- Music. A licensed track costs $15 to $500.
The listings we read also differ on what is included. Captions, sound effects and music are in one listing and not mentioned in another. Ask for the number of revisions, the delivery time and who pays for music before you compare two prices.
What the guides leave out: your own time
Every price above is the price of the edit. None of the guides we read counts the time you spend briefing, sending footage and reviewing. A simple way to compare, with your own numbers:
- Editor: price per video, plus the minutes you spend on the brief and on feedback.
- Tool: monthly subscription divided by the videos you actually make, plus your review time.
Example, with assumptions rather than measurements: you post 12 videos a month. At $50 each, an editor costs $600. At $94 each (Tasty Edits' single-video price), it costs $1,128. Submagic Pro at $39 a month costs $3.25 a video for those 12, not the $0.98 you get when you use all 40 videos of the quota.
Where AI tools fit
Submagic's pricing page (read October 29, 2026) lists three plans: Starter $19 a month for 15 videos of up to 2 minutes, Pro $39 for 40 videos of up to 5 minutes, and Business $69 for 100 videos of up to 30 minutes. Vidico puts AI editing tools at $5 to $60 a month as a general range.
Those are subscription prices for software that cuts and adds captions. They do not film, brief or direct. For a closer look at what the tools do, read about the AI video editor category and whether ChatGPT or Claude can edit your video.
Rushly AI is one of these tools and a competitor of the ones named here. Its plans are on the home page; we do not repeat them here. For a side-by-side with another tool, see Rushly AI as an alternative to CapCut. If captions are the main thing you pay an editor for, read about captions for TikTok and Reels.
When Rushly AI is not the right choice
- You need a brand film, an ad or a long video. Rushly AI is made for one person talking to the camera, in a vertical video.
- You want music, sound effects or B-roll. Rushly AI does not add any. A human editor does, and so do several other tools.
- You need someone to decide what the video says. A person can tell you what to cut and what to open with. See when to keep a human editor.
- You want to cut one long video into many clips. That is a clipping tool's job. Rushly AI has Smart Clips for videos of 8 minutes and more, but it is not built around that.
Sources
All pages read on October 29, 2026:
- Vidico, “Video editor cost” (June 1, 2026): vidico.com/news/video-editor-cost
- Tasty Edits, “How much do video editors cost” (updated September 29, 2026): tastyedits.com/how-much-do-video-editors-cost
- Hirevire, TikTok video editor hiring guide (undated): hirevire.com/hiring-guides/tiktok-video-editor
- GigRadar, “Freelance video editing” (May 28, 2026): gigradar.io/blog/freelance-video-editing
- Contra listings: contra.com/s/2emZQqcl-short-form-video-ads-reels-and-tik-tok; contra.com/s/ob2RE7ME-short-form-video-editing-for-reels-tik-tok-and-shorts; contra.com/s/Zsqk7vRo-tik-tok-or-reels-video-editing; contra.com/s/qsLFcr6L-monthly-short-form-video-editing-12-videos (none dated)
- 99dollarsocial, short-form video plans (© 2026): 99dollarsocial.com/short-form-video
- OnlineJobs.ph, “Short-Form Video Editor” posting (updated September 4, 2026): onlinejobs.ph/jobseekers/job/1449403
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, film and video editors (May 2025 data; page modified August 27, 2026): bls.gov/ooh/media-and-communication/film-and-video-editors-and-camera-operators.htm
- Submagic, pricing page: submagic.co/pricing
Not read: Upwork (upwork.com/hire/video-editors/cost) and Fiverr returned an access error. Marketplace prices change often. If you see a wrong number, tell us and we will fix it with the date.
Want to see what Rushly AI does with your own video before you pay an editor? Try it with your first video free, no credit card.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a video editor cost per hour?
Vidico (guide dated June 1, 2026) gives $20 to $45 an hour for entry level, $45 to $85 for mid level and $85 to $150 or more for senior editors, and $100 to $250 an hour for an agency. Hirevire (undated) gives $15 to $50 as a typical freelance rate, and $8 to $25 for offshore editors. Both sell something related to hiring, so treat them as reference points, not measurements.
How much does it cost to hire an editor for a TikTok or Reel?
Between about $20 and $150 per video in what we read on Oct 29, 2026: seller listings on Contra start at $40 and $50 per video, Tasty Edits (an agency) charges $80 to $94 per vertical video, Hirevire gives $30 to $150 per clip and Vidico $50 to $400 for short-form. Captions, music, revisions and turnaround are what move the price inside that range.
How much does it cost per month to have 12 short videos edited?
From a low of about $200 to a high of about $1,500 in the offers we read. Vidico budgets $200 to $500 a month for 8 to 12 short clips, a done-for-you service lists $269 for 12 videos, Tasty Edits works out to $1,320 for 15 vertical videos, and a Contra seller starts at $1,500 for 12 or more. What each price includes differs, so compare the scope before the number.
Why do video editor prices vary so much?
Five things: the length of the video, how much finishing it needs (animated captions, effects, sound), how many revision rounds are included, how fast you need it, and where the editor lives. Vidico adds that revision rounds beyond the included ones cost $50 to $200 or more each, and a rush delivery adds 25% to 50%.
Is an automatic video editor cheaper than hiring a person?
On price per video, yes: Submagic's plans work out to $0.69 to $1.27 per video if you use the whole monthly quota (pricing page read Oct 29, 2026), and you pay the same subscription if you edit less. A tool does not direct a project or give editing advice, and you still review the result.
What do Upwork and Fiverr charge for a video editor?
We could not read them. Both sites returned an access error to our automated reading on Oct 29, 2026, so no Upwork or Fiverr price is on this page. GigRadar, a third-party blog (May 28, 2026), reports Upwork-based figures of $15 to $40 an hour and $20 to $100 per video for Shorts, Reels and TikTok, without explaining how it measured them.
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