How Much to Charge for a TikTok Post

TL;DR

• There is a ceiling on what any brand can pay you, and it equals their contribution margin multiplied by the GMV a video produces.
• At $100 of GMV a video and a 30% margin that ceiling is $30, which is the number a brand is working to even when they avoid saying so.
• Structured campaigns pay $12 to $25 a video, which is an agency figure rather than a guess.
• A standalone brief pays $150 to $300, because you are being booked rather than recruited.
• Usage rights add roughly half again, since the brand is buying media as well as a post.
• Commission-only deals have zero ceiling, which is why they suit creators who convert well.
• We build Cruva, the AI-powered operating system for TikTok Shop affiliate growth, which is where brands look up what a creator has already sold before they answer a rate.

What you can charge for a TikTok post depends far less on your follower count than on which of four arrangements you are in.

Those four run from commission only through to a commissioned brief with usage rights attached, and they differ by a factor of more than twenty.

Before any of them, it helps to know the ceiling the person on the other side is working to, because it explains almost every rate you will be offered.

What is the most a brand can pay?

Their contribution margin multiplied by the GMV one video produces.

Contribution margin is what remains of a sale after the cost of goods, platform fees and commission, before any marketing, and it is the pot every creator fee comes out of.

Work it through at a planning rate of $100 of GMV a video and the ceiling is easy to read.

A brand paying above that line is buying something beyond first-order sales, and the thing they are usually buying is the right to run your video as an advert.

That is why a rate conversation improves the moment you ask what the product sells for and what it costs them, since the answer sets the band before anybody names a number.

The same arithmetic from the brand's side is set out in what to pay creators per video.

What do the four arrangements pay?

Between zero up front and about $450, for the same minute of footage.

• Commission only pays zero up front and whatever the video sells, which has zero ceiling attached.
• A structured campaign pays $12 to $25 a video, usually for a bucket of videos agreed in advance.
• A standalone brief pays $150 to $300, since you are being booked for a specific job.
• A brief plus usage rights pays $225 to $450, because the brand can then run the video as paid media.

The $12 to $25 band is the one most creators find surprising, and it comes from an agency operator describing how he structures campaigns, including a real example of $1,200 for 100 pieces of content.

That rate makes sense once you see it as the brand buying volume rather than buying you, which is a different transaction from a standalone booking even though the deliverable looks identical.

The jump to the fourth row is the most important thing on this page, since usage rights are a separate product and should be priced as one, as explained in creator usage rights.

How should you price usage rights?

As a second line on the quote, with a term attached.

Handing over a post is one thing, and letting a brand put spend behind it is another, because the video then works as an advert for as long as the licence runs.

Three variables set the price.

• Duration, where 30 days costs far less than perpetual.
• Placement, since TikTok only is cheaper than TikTok plus Meta plus everywhere else.
• Whether the brand can edit, as a cut-down version travels further than the original.

Adding roughly half again to the content fee is a reasonable opening position for a short term on one platform, and anything perpetual and cross-platform deserves a multiple rather than an uplift.

Brands that intend to run your footage as paid media know this already, and the mechanics of that are covered in whitelisting.

When should you take commission instead of a fee?

When your videos convert, which you can only know by trying.

Commission-only arrangements have zero ceiling, so a creator who reliably sells will out-earn the fee band quickly, while a creator who entertains yet fails to sell will earn very little.

The practical answer for most people is both, taking a modest fee plus commission so the downside is covered while the upside stays open.

Rates by category vary a good deal, and affiliate commission rates sets out where they typically land.

How do you justify a higher rate?

With a sales record rather than a follower count.

The shift in this category over the past two years is that brands can now look up what a creator sold for somebody else, so the conversation has moved from audience size to commercial output.

Three things move a rate reliably.

• GMV you have driven before, which is the single strongest argument available.
• Repeat posting, since most creators who receive a sample post once and stop.
• A category match, because relevance beats reach at every size, as covered in nano influencers.

Creators early in that journey are better served taking product and commission while the record builds, which is the route described in how to become a TikTok influencer.

Naming Your Number

Work out the brand's ceiling first, which is their margin times the GMV a video produces, or $30 at a 30% margin and $100 a video.

Expect $12 to $25 inside a structured campaign and $150 to $300 for a standalone brief.

Price usage rights separately, adding about half again for a short term on one platform.

Then let a sales record rather than a follower count carry the negotiation.

FAQs

How much should I charge for a TikTok post?

It depends on the arrangement. A structured campaign pays about $12 to $25 a video, a standalone brief $150 to $300, and a brief with usage rights $225 to $450.

Is there a formula for creator rates?

There is a ceiling. A brand can pay up to their contribution margin multiplied by the GMV one video produces, which is $30 at a 30% margin and $100 of GMV a video.

Why do some brands offer so little per video?

Because they are buying volume rather than booking you. Agency campaigns that commit to dozens of videos work at $12 to $25 each, with one operator describing $1,200 for 100 pieces of content.

How much should I charge for usage rights?

Roughly half again on top of the content fee for a short term on one platform. Perpetual rights across several platforms deserve a multiple rather than an uplift.

Should I charge per post or take commission?

Take both where you can. A modest fee covers the downside while commission keeps the upside open, since commission-only deals have zero ceiling.

Does follower count set my rate?

Far less than it used to. Brands can now look up what a creator has sold for somebody else, so GMV driven and repeat posting move a rate more than audience size.

What is a fair rate for a nano creator?

Many work for product alone. Where a cash fee applies it usually sits between $25 and $60 a post, rising once usage rights are included.

How do I raise my rate?

Build a record. Show GMV you have driven, show that you post repeatedly rather than once, and stay in one category so a brand can describe your audience in a sentence.