UGC rate card: what to include, an example and a template

What a UGC rate card is, and what it is not

A rate card is a pricing document. It is not a media kit. An influencer media kit sells audience reach, so it leads with follower counts and demographics. A UGC creator sells footage the brand will post or run as ads, so audience matters much less. SideShift's 2026 pricing guide says follower count has little to no impact on UGC rates, while engagement on past videos can influence pricing. Your rate card should therefore lead with deliverables and terms, and point to your portfolio for proof of quality.

A rate card is also not a contract. It sets your standard prices and defaults; the brief and the agreement fix what a particular job includes. For the numbers themselves, see our UGC rates 2026 reference. For the legal terms, see the UGC contract checklist.

What to put on a UGC rate card

Every line should answer a question a brand would otherwise email you about. SideShift's advice is to define deliverables precisely, including video length, hooks, raw footage and revision rounds, and to price usage rights separately. Marketplaces show why: Billo's base video is raw footage in one aspect ratio, without captions, music or graphics, with two revisions within the brief. Insense allows up to three revisions before acceptance. Without those details, two rate cards with the same price are not comparable.

1. 01

   Base deliverables: each video type with its length (for example 15–30 or 30–60 seconds), aspect ratio and whether it is raw or edited with captions and music.

2. 02

   What the base price includes: number of concepts, number of hooks, revision rounds and the default usage (for example organic use on the brand's own channels).

3. 03

   Turnaround: standard delivery time after you receive the product, and your rush option.

4. 04

   Add-ons: extra hooks or CTAs, raw footage, extra aspect ratios, photos, scriptwriting, paid usage per period, whitelisting or Spark Ads access, exclusivity, rush delivery, extra revision rounds.

5. 05

   Packages: bundle prices for 3, 5 or more videos, and any monthly retainer.

6. 06

   Terms: deposit or upfront payment, when the balance is due, who pays for product and shipping, and the date the prices are valid until.

7. 07

   Proof: a link to your portfolio and two or three named niches you work in.

UGC rate card example (illustrative)

The example below is illustrative. It is not a real creator's rate card. Each line is set inside a published 2026 range, cited in brackets, for a beginner to early-intermediate creator. Your own prices should follow your level, niche and demand.

1. 01

   One 30–45 second video, 9:16, edited with captions, one hook, two revision rounds, organic use on the brand's channels: $175 (SideShift puts beginners at $100–$300; Collabstr's 2026 average UGC asking price is $180).

2. 02

   Extra hook or CTA on the same video: $50 each (Influee lists hook and CTA variations at $50).

3. 03

   Raw footage: +30% of the base rate (Influee lists raw footage at 30–50%).

4. 04

   Paid usage, 30 days, Meta and TikTok: +25% of the base rate per 30 days (Aspire's 2026 survey found creators commonly charge 15–35% per 30 days).

5. 05

   Whitelisting, Spark Ads or partnership ad access: +30% of the base rate per month (Influee lists 30% per month).

6. 06

   Rush delivery in 48 hours: +25% (Influee and JoinBrands both list 25–50%).

7. 07

   Extra revision round beyond two: $50 (JoinBrands lists $50–$200 per round).

8. 08

   Three-video bundle: 10% off, about $472 instead of $525 (Influee lists 10–15% off for 3–4 videos).

9. 09

   Terms: 50% upfront, balance on delivery; brand ships the product; prices valid for 90 days. These are examples of terms to state, not market data.

UGC rate card template

Copy this structure into a doc, a PDF or a page on your portfolio site. Replace each bracket with your own figure, and keep the whole thing to one page. Brands skim.

1. 01

   Header: [Name], UGC creator. Niches: [two or three]. Portfolio: [link]. Rates valid until [date].

2. 02

   Base video: [length] seconds, 9:16, [raw or edited], [number] hook, [number] revision rounds, organic use on brand channels. Price: [amount].

3. 03

   Other deliverables: [photo set, unboxing, product demo, testimonial-style] with length and price for each.

4. 04

   Add-ons: extra hook [amount]; raw footage [percent]; extra aspect ratio [amount]; scriptwriting [amount]; rush [percent].

5. 05

   Usage: paid usage [percent or amount] per [30, 60 or 90] days per platform; whitelisting or Spark Ads [percent] per month; exclusivity [percent] for [months] in [category].

6. 06

   Packages: [3] videos [price]; [5] videos [price]; monthly retainer [number] videos for [price].

7. 07

   Terms: [deposit] upfront, balance [when]; product and shipping paid by [brand]; turnaround [days] after product arrives.

How brands should read a rate card

Start with what the base price includes, not the price. Is the video edited or raw? How many hooks? Is any paid usage included, and for how long? Aspire's survey found 77% of brands repurpose creator content in paid ads and 67% include paid usage in the initial rate, so most brands need a usage line even when the card does not show one. Our usage rights guide explains organic and paid terms, duration and exclusivity.

Then price the job you actually want. A hook test of one body with several openings is a base video plus hook add-ons plus paid usage for the test window. Write the openings first with the UGC hooks library, add them to the UGC brief template so the creator quotes against a fixed scope, and judge the results later with the hook rate calculator. Category matters too: a skincare brand that needs before-and-after footage should expect a different line than a simple talking-head review.

Watch for three gaps: no usage terms at all, perpetual rights included without mention of exclusivity, and no limit on revisions. Each leaves room for a dispute later. Marketplaces handle some of this in their own terms: Billo includes full usage rights after approval, and Insense grants perpetual digital rights once content is approved and paid. A direct rate card should say the same things explicitly.

Rate card tips for beginners

Start inside the published beginner range and raise prices as your portfolio grows. SideShift recommends tracking your costs and time first, starting competitively, and reviewing rates every few months. Influee says creators typically raise rates 10–20% every 6–12 months. Put a valid-until date on the card so a raise does not feel like a surprise.

Show range in your samples. A portfolio with a talking-head review, a product demo and an unboxing tells a brand more than ten versions of one format; see our UGC portfolio examples. Pitch with a short script outline, built from our UGC script templates, so the brand sees the concept as well as the price.

Brands that want to test many angles before hiring a creator can generate drafts first. FireplaceUGC produces 9:16 creator-style takes with 500+ AI actors in modes such as Talking Video and Product in Hand. AI actors are not real customers, so they do not replace a creator's genuine review.