How Much Does Influencer Marketing Cost?

By Alexandra Kazakova
10 min READ | Jun 30 2020

49% of consumers depend on influencer recommendations, but how much does the influencer marketing cost?

Many marketers are confused about the costs of influencer marketing.

There is no standard or clear line when it comes to influencer pricing. It's the wild wild west.

In this article, you will learn what to expect when budgeting for influencer marketing campaigns on different social media channels.

The misconception about the influencer marketing is that it is expensive.

This idea is far from the truth.

There are different social media channels and various types of influencers.

So every brand can afford an influencer marketing campaign, even with a small budget.

Influencer marketing is one of the best ways to connect with your potential customers on an authentic level.

As a result, a successful campaign can bring you a significant ROI, meaning that your spend is outpaced by your return.

TL;DR - Influencer Marketing Cost

Factors Affecting Costs:

• Platform: Costs differ across social media; Instagram and YouTube typically cost more than other platforms.
• Followers Count: Previously dictated pricing, but brands now focus on engagement due to the rise of fake followers.
• Campaign Scale & Content Type: More complex campaigns cost more.
• Partnership Type: Direct influencer collaboration or through agencies; agencies often charge a premium.
• Product Nature: Different products (e.g., gambling apps vs. fitness gadgets) come with different costs.

YouTube:

• Pricing based on subscribers or video views.
• Brands with good causes or charity links can sometimes get reduced rates.

Instagram:

• Large influencers charge based on followers; an influencer with 100K followers might charge around $1000 per post.
• Micro-influencers, having high engagement rates, dominate sponsored posts and can offer better ROI.
• Costs for micro-influencers range from $0 to $2000 per post; many collaborate in exchange for perks, not just money.

TikTok:

• Prices are varied; some influencers charge a flat rate, while others base their fees on views or sales conversions.
• Cross-platform collaborations (e.g., TikTok and Instagram) can reduce costs.

Facebook:

• Influencer marketing on Facebook is less popular than on Instagram.
• Pricing varies based on followers, ranging from $250 to $25,000 per post.

Key Takeaways:

• Costs vary significantly based on platform, audience size, content type, and brand values.
• Micro-influencers provide cost-effective options with high engagement.
• Collaborations aligned with brand values can reduce costs.
• Testing and strategy evaluation are crucial for maximizing ROI.

What Factors Affect Influencer Pricing?

In most cases, an influencer is legally considered an independent contractor as they’re being hired to complete freelance work. This means they set their own prices based on what they can offer and what you require. There is no clear-cut answer to how much the influencer marketing costs, but those are the five factors that affect it:

1. Social media platform. The cost of the influencer marketing varies across social media channels. Instagram is the top choice for most marketers, so prepare to spend more on Instagram than on most platforms. YouTube follows Instagram by popularity. But creating and editing YouTube videos requires more work as they are usually longer than those on Instagram.

As a result, Influencer campaigns on YouTube cost more than on Instagram. TikTok is taking over the social media by storm, so many advertisers started to work with influencers on this channel. Brands chose Twitter and Facebook less frequently for influencer marketing.

Here is a chart from Statista that compares average influencer pricing by platform:

2. Number of followers. Until recently, the number of followers determined the pricing for influencer marketing. As it became possible to buy fake followers, brands started looking at other metrics, such as engagement.

As a recent study shows, the fewer followers an influencer has, the higher their engagement rate. This explains why micro-influencer marketing is on the rise.

Micro-influencers with 5,000 to 25,000 followersoften collaborate in exchange for product.

3. Scale of the influencer marketing campaign and type of content. The more work influencers do for you, the more they charge. So the cost of influencer marketing depends on the complexity of the content (cross-posting on other social media profiles, long-form video, caroussel, etc.)

4. Direct partnership with an influencer or through a talent agent. You can find influencers yourself or use an agency to connect you to the right ones for your campaign. The benefit of partnering up with agencies is that they usually work with more experienced influencers. Note that you will pay a premium.

5. The product you want to advertise. Both your product and the industry you are in can affect the influencer marketing costs. Collaborating with an influencer to promote a gambling app will generally cost more than to advertise a fitness gadget.

Continue reading to learn more about influencer pricing on YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook.

How Much Does YouTube Influencer Marketing Cost?

As with all other social media platforms, influencer pricing on YouTube can vary. It depends on engagement, number of subscribers, content type, and the brand.

If your brand is unknown, an influencer might charge you more for putting it in front of his or her followers. Influencers often ask to try the products from unfamiliar brands before committing to collaborations.

Standing for a good cause will help you find influencers in your niche who share the same values. Protection of the environment or charity donations can significantly reduce your influencer marketing costs.

For example, when pitching YouTube influencers, you can mention that from every product sold thanks to their promotion, you will donate $10 to support education in developing countries. Use a unique promo code to track sales from a specific influencer.

As a rule of thumb, YouTube influencers follow two main pricing strategies. You can use them as a guideline when planning your marketing costs:

• Price per subscribers. On average, prepare to pay $20 for every 1,000 subscribers of a YouTube influencer unless you have a great product or a brand that stands for something.
• Price per video views. Not everyone will watch every single video produced by the YouTuber.  Thus, video views are an important metric to measure the engagement rate of the influencer. Look at the last 30-40 videos to calculate the video view rate. Price per view varies depending on the type of content. For example, an integrated video sponsorship will cost you from $40 to $70 per view. Dedicated videos range from $80 to $150 per view.

You can also use a platform like FameBit by YouTube to have influencers reach out to you based on the budget you set.

How Much Does Instagram Influencer Marketing Cost?

There are several factors to take into account when calculating Instagram influencer marketing costs. Some influencers charge based on their niche, the reach, and impressions. Others use the number of followers as a guideline.

For example, @christinagalbato and other large Instagram influencers can charge $100 per 10,000 followers. So on average, an Instagram post from an influencer with 100K followers costs approximately $1000. Don't forget to negotiate, we have worked with top influencers for much cheaper than that.

Big Instagram influencers with 100,000+ followers come with a big price tag.

Bigger influencers make it hard to narrow your potential customers through their vast audience. Micro-influencers are the solution to focusing your targeting.

Brands typically partner up with micro-influencers to target their specific client.

Micro-influencers specialize in a particular niche; they have personal contact with their followers, who perceive them as “people like me.”

Consumers are more likely to follow recommendations from someone they know and trust. So working with micro-influencers can boost your conversion rates by far.

It’s no surprise that last year, micro-influencers accounted for 84% of sponsored social media posts worldwide. Micro-influencers are more affordable than the large ones, and they deliver higher ROI per dollar spent.

That’s why it’s no surprise that last year, micro-influencers accounted for 84% of sponsored social media posts worldwide.
Micro-influencers are more affordable than the large ones, and they deliver higher ROI per dollar spent.

So How Much Do Micro-Influencers Charge?

On average, micro-influencers charge from $0 to $2000 per Instagram post. Yet, many of them are happy to collaborate with brands in exchange for other perks instead of hard cash:

• VIP passes to exclusive brand events and virtual summits (fashion shows, product launches, etc.).
• Mentions on your brand’s social media and website.
• Exclusive discounts and free trials for the influencer and their followers.
• Pre-launch product samples.
• Gift cards for Instagram contests.

You can even get micro-influencers working with you for free if your brand donates to charity or stands for a good cause.

Find the right Instagram micro-influencer, who believes in your cause and resonates with your brand. You will gain a powerful ambassador and spokesperson for your influencer marketing campaign.

How Much Does TikTok Influencer Marketing Cost?

TikTok is the leading social media platform for Generation Z. A cohort that avoids traditional advertising. For this reason, influencer marketing campaigns on TikTok generate fantastic results for brands selling to Gen Z.  

Similar to other social media channels, influencer pricing on TikTok varies based on what the brand and the influencer consider a fair value.  It depends on the influencer’s niche, country, engagement, and audience brand affinity.

TikTok is a relatively new platform, so influencer marketing costs on this channel are far from standardized:  

• Some influencers charge a flat of  $200 to $20,000 for a branded video on TikTok.
• Cost per sponsored video view ranges from $0,01 to $0,02.
• Other TikTok influencers agree to get paid based on sales or conversion. For example, they charge per app download or per activation of a unique promo code.

Many of the TikTok influencers have a significant presence on other social media platforms. So if you want to bring down the cost of your campaign, we recommend you work with the same influencer on Instagram and YouTube.

How Much Does Facebook Influencer Marketing Cost?

With over 1 billion active users daily, Facebook offers brands access to diverse audiences. Yet, in recent years, Influencer marketing on Facebook has been less popular than on Instagram. As a result, Facebook is introducing updates to encourage brand collaborations.

Here is how much Facebook influencers charge on average:

• $250 per post of a Facebook influencer with 10,000 to 100,00 followers.
• $2,500 per post of an influencer with 100,000 to 1,000,000 followers.
• $25,000 per post of a Facebook influencer with 1,000,000+ followers.

To streamline your influencer marketing campaigns, Facebook also offers Brand Collabs Manager. This platform helps businesses find and connect with relevant influencers. Brands and influencers can discuss pricing and agree on the details of the campaign.

Final thoughts

In this article, we gave you an idea on the influencer pricing and the factors that affect it:

• Social media platform. Influencer marketing campaigns on YouTube and Instagram costs more than on Facebook and TikTok
• Size of the influencers’ audience. Micro-influencers are much more affordable than the celebrity ones.
• The quality and the price of your product and service can impact the cost of the campaign.
• Your brand values and whether your brand stands for something: a charity foundation or protection of the environment.
• Scale of your influencer marketing campaign. The number of social media posts, cross-posting on other social channels, campaign length.
• Type of the content: Instagram post, video or story, dedicated YouTube video or integrated sponsorship, etc.
• Lenght of your collaboration with the influencer. The longer your relationships are, the less you will pay per post.

There are ways to keep influencer marketing within your budget. Depending on your influencer marketing strategy, you can even make it a ROI positive marketing channel.

Ultimately, you should test different strategies and evaluate which ones generate the best return.

Find influencers who relate to your brand. Let them create content that resonates with your target customers and get the most out of your campaign.

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