There are three common ways to pay a video editor, and each one is fair for a different buyer. The trouble starts when a buyer picks the model that fits someone else. A weekly YouTube channel paying by the hour spends too much time on invoices. A nonprofit with one gala video a year signs a subscription and pays for eleven empty months.
Here's how each model works, who it suits and what to watch for. I charge by the hour, day and week, so I'll also say plainly where that isn't the best fit.
Subscriptions
You pay a flat monthly fee and get a set amount of editing back. Some plans count videos, some count credits, some give you an editor for a set number of hours a day.
A few examples, from the companies' own pricing pages (checked October 28, 2026):
- VidChops: $495 a month for 4 long-form videos, $995 for 8.
- Video Husky: $849, $1,590 or $2,749 a month.
- Vidpros: $1,000 a month part-time (2 hours a workday) or $4,000 full-time.
Good for: steady volume and repeatable edits. A weekly YouTube show, a podcast with the same format every episode, a brand that posts five short clips a week. You budget once and forget about it.
Watch for:
- Credit rules. What counts as one video? What if your episode is long? Do unused credits roll over or vanish at the end of the month?
- Time zones. Some subscription teams work overseas hours. Vidpros states 8am to 5pm Philippine time on its own page. That's fine for a queue. It's harder for a same-day fix before a launch.
- Who edits. "A dedicated editor" can mean one person or whoever is free. Ask.
- Getting out. Minimum terms, notice periods, and whether you keep the project files when you leave.
Per video
You pay a set price for each finished video. Tasty Edits, for example, lists long-form videos at $278 to $327 each and shorts at $80 to $94 on its own site. On marketplaces like Fiverr, podcast episodes run about $50 to $200 each.
Good for: budgeting a single project. You know the number before you start, which helps when someone else signs off on the spend.
Watch for: the definition of "a video." Per-video prices assume a typical amount of footage and a typical amount of mess. A 12-minute video cut from 40 minutes of clean studio footage is a different job from a 12-minute video cut from six hours of handheld event footage. Per-video sellers handle that with length caps, footage caps or an upgrade. Read the caps.
Hourly and day rate
You pay for the time the edit takes. Day and week rates are the same idea in bigger blocks.
Mine are $50 an hour, $400 for an eight-hour day and $1,800 for a five-day week. The week works out to $45 an hour.
Good for: projects that vary. A recap one month, a documentary pass the next, a batch of podcast clips after that. It's also the fairest model when the footage is messy, because you pay for the real work, not for an average.
Watch for: open-ended time. An hourly editor should give you an estimate before starting and tell you before going over it. If an editor won't estimate, that's a reason to keep looking. Also ask how changes are billed. I bill changes at the same rate as the edit, so you pay for what you ask for and there's no revision count to argue about.
Which one fits you
| You are | Model that usually fits | Why |
|---|---|---|
| A YouTube channel or podcast publishing every week, same format | Subscription | Steady volume, repeatable edits, one bill |
| A company making one or two videos for a launch | Per video or day rate | Known budget for a known project |
| A nonprofit with a gala, a year-end appeal and some social cuts | Day rate | A few big pieces a year, each different |
| A videographer with overflow from a busy season | Day or week rate | Bookable blocks, same as hiring a second shooter |
| A production team cutting a mini-doc or series | Week rate | Long story work that doesn't fit a per-video cap |
| A creator who needs a lot of short clips cheaply | Marketplace or subscription | Price per clip matters more than story |
The first and last rows are where I'd tell you to go elsewhere. If you publish every week with the same format and simple edits, a subscription will usually cost less than my hours and save you the paperwork. If you need lots of short clips at the lowest possible price, a marketplace or a clip subscription is built for that.
Where hourly and day rates win is the middle of the table. Projects that are different each time, footage that needs someone to find the story, and buyers who want to talk to the person doing the cut.
Questions to ask whichever model you pick
- What exactly is included in the price? Color, audio, captions, music, exports in different sizes?
- How are changes billed, and how many rounds are normal?
- Who owns the project files, and can I have them?
- What hours do you work, and in what time zone?
- What happens if my project is bigger than expected?
A good editor answers all five in one email without getting cagey.
The short version
Subscription for steady, repeatable volume. Per video when you need a fixed number for one project. Hourly or day rate when projects vary and the story matters. All three are honest models. Pick the one that matches how you actually make videos. The lowest number on the page is only cheap if it fits.
My three rates and what's included are on the pricing page. If you run a channel and want to know whether a subscription or a weekly block of my time fits better, the YouTube video editing page has the details.
Sources · checked October 28, 2026
- VidChops pricing page (vendor's own)
- Video Husky pricing page (vendor's own)
- Vidpros pricing page (vendor's own)
- Tasty Edits site (vendor's own)
- Fiverr podcast editing gig listings (marketplace, prices vary by seller)
Competitor prices come from their own pages where marked; the rest are third-party or anecdotal and labeled that way in the text. Prices change, so check again before you buy.