How much should you expect to pay for a voiceover?
Voiceover costs vary from voice talent to voice talent. One voice talent will charge a minimum of 300 USD for a fully completed job, while another will charge a minimum of 300 USD for just turning on their microphone. What factors influence how much will your voiceover cost?
Factors that Influence a Voiceover's Cost
The following elements go into a voiceover’s cost:
- Script length.
The more words or minutes there are to record, the more the voiceover will cost.
- Purpose.
Television voiceover will cost more than telephone voiceover, for example. And voiceover for digital / social media ads will cost more than voiceover for internal company presentation. (Note that different types of voiceover are charged differently, for example, elearning voiceover is charged per word, while commercials are charged by time.)
- Duration of use.
If the recording will be used for a radio or tv commercial, its use will be limited to a certain period of time: 3 months, 6 months or 1 year. The longer the time period, the higher the price.
- Timing to script.
If the voiceover needs to be timed (synchronized) to an existing video, so that you can simply add the voiceover to the video and it’s ready, it will cost more.
- File splitting.
If the audio needs to be split into multiple files, for example numerous telephone messages or separate recordings for PowerPoint slides, there is an additional charge per file.
- Recuts / recording changes.
The price may or may not include rounds of changes. So bear in mind that changing the script or your instructions to the voice talent after recording may incur extra fees.
- Additional services.
For example, language editing or script translation.
- Payment terms.
While many voice talents require payment up front or immediately upon project delivery, some voice talents accept net+ payments, in which case a later payment date may cost an additional fee.
In Conclusion
Now that you have a better idea of how the price of voiceover is calculated, send me your project details and script, and get a price quote today!
Article by Victoria Feinerman
