Long before it was dubbed “influencer marketing,” consumers looked to celebrities and public figures for inspiration. Today, the practice is widely embraced by brands of all sizes, especially as it has become more affordable for smaller companies with smaller budgets. No longer limited to celebrities, influencer pricing spans a wide range depending on the channel, audience size, engagement rate, and other factors.
So, how much does influencer marketing cost in 2023? Let’s break it down by channel.
Table of Contents
How Much Does Influencer Marketing Cost?
Instagram Influencer Pricing
YouTube Influencer Rates
TikTok Influencer Pricing
Facebook Influencer Marketing Rates
Snapchat Influencer Marketing Rates
Twitter Influencer Rates
Additional Data on Influencer Rates
Choosing the Right Influencers for Your Strategy
How Much Does Influencer Marketing Cost?
The cost of influencer marketing is an ever-changing landscape. In our State of Influencer Marketing report, we shared that sponsored feed posts have increased by 26.7% and sponsored Stories have increased by 33.5%. As new channels and competition emerge, brands are likely to see changes to their influencer marketing budgets.
The type of influencer you’re working with is a great place to start comparing rates. Celebrity influencers will undoubtedly charge more than nano-influencers or micro-influencers, but it’s the micro-influencers who are driving growth across the industry.
Another factor is the type of content your influencer is producing for your brand. It takes significantly less work to post a photo on social media than it does to write a long-form blog post or create a product review video.
The type of content produced will be largely driven by the social media platform you choose. Take advantage of unique social media features on each platform, such as IGTV, Instagram Reels, Instagram Stories, Facebook Live, and the exclusivity of original sounds on TikTok.
To gain a better grasp of the cost of influencer marketing, it’s helpful to look at channel and influencer type simultaneously.
Instagram Influencer Pricing
Considered the “OG” channel for influencer marketing, Instagram has become a hotspot for brands aiming to get their products in front of engaged audiences. Out of more than 1.1 billion Instagram users, 90% of them follow at least one brand on the platform. It’s also a platform where ads are welcomed by users: 70% of users say they like or don’t mind viewing advertisements while engaging with IG content.
Tip: Learn How to Use Instagram Ads
As for Instagram influencer rates, a single post can cost anywhere from $65 (nano-influencers) to $2,738 (celebrity influencers).
A video on Instagram ranges from $111 to $4,678 on average, depending on the influencer’s audience size.
For Instagram Stories, expect to pay anywhere between $53 to $1,205.
Here’s a visual breakdown of Instagram influencer pricing based on feature and level of influence.
This data comes from an extensive research survey conducted by Klear. The most comprehensive study of its kind, the research included responses from 4,850 Instagram influencers from January 2020 to August 2020.
According to our State of Influencer Marketing report, 53% of brands using Instagram run campaigns via the Instagram Story feature. Most campaigns also include one to four Instagram posts in the feed.
With this in mind, a low-end campaign budget using a nano-influencer averages about $313 for four in-feed posts and one Instagram Story. Using micro-influencers, expect to pay about $780 for the same amount of content.
For further pricing model details, Klear has an excellent Instagram influencer pricing calculator that calculates costs based on specific influencers.
YouTube Influencer Rates
About 10% of influencer campaigns include YouTube, according to the State of Influencer Marketing report. This is the platform where many influencers started their journey.
YouTube remains ideal for long-form content. Many brands post on more than one platform, and YouTube’s video-only approach makes it a viable choice for multimedia engagement. However, because of the time and resources it takes a YouTuber to create video content, YouTube remains one of the most expensive influencer marketing channels.
Based on YouTube influencer rates on audience size alone, brands can expect to pay an average of...
- $315 per video with a nano-influencer
- $908 with a micro-influencer
- $3,857 with a celebrity influencer
- These rates do not take into account the length of the video — long videos average $1,234, which is about twice as much as short videos.
Tip: Take a look at The 20 Biggest Australian YouTubers
TikTok Influencer Pricing
TikTok has surpassed YouTube when it comes to video influencer content. About 13% of brands use the short-form video platform as part of their influencer marketing campaign. TikTok has seemingly infinite niche audiences to tap into, allowing brands and influencers plenty of creative freedom for content creation.
The app is gaining steam. In 2022, TikTok was the most downloaded app worldwide, earning 672 million new downloads. The app has given rise to a new era of influencer marketing, particularly in terms of content that can’t be recreated on any other platform.
- Nano influencers on TikTok charge between $5-$25
- The price for micro influencers on TikTok is between $25-$125, while influencers with larger followings (but not quite Mega) are between $125-$1.2K
- TikTok Macro influencers have a price of $1.2K-$2.5K
- Mega influencers on TikTok charge 2.5K or more
Source: Business of Apps
In terms of TikTok influencer pricing, similar rules apply based on audience size. Data shared by Business of Apps estimate that nano-influencers earn between $5 and $25 per post, while micro-influencers charge $25 to $125 per post. Mega-influencers are charging upwards of $2,500 per post.
Facebook Influencer Marketing Rates
- The average cost of a Facebook post from a nano-influencer: $31
- The average cost of a Facebook post from a micro-influencer: $218
- The average cost of a Facebook post from a celebrity-influencer: $25,000
Despite being the original social network, Facebook isn’t always first choice when it comes to launching an influencer marketing campaign. However, this can also mean getting favorable pricing from nano-influencers and micro-influencers.
Klear data shows that the average cost of a Facebook post from a nano-influencer is $31. With micro-influencers, that rate jumps to $218. Celebrity-level posts can get quite pricey. WebFX data estimates that a single Facebook post from a celebrity with 1 million followers could cost $25,000 or more.
Category also affects the cost of influencer marketing on Facebook. Lifestyle and food posts tend to be the most expensive.
Tip: Take a look at the best global food influencers to inspire you.
Snapchat Influencer Marketing Rates
Snapchat continues to play a role in influencer marketing despite its slowdown in growth. It wasn’t until recently that follower count on Snapchat was made public. Before that, marketers used reach and views as a means of influencer marketing measurement.
Using views is still a preferred way to pay for Snapchat influencer marketing. Here’s a breakdown of view-based pricing from Business of Apps:
View-Based Snapchat Influencer Pricing
Now that follower count is available, marketing professionals can use the following breakdown from Buffer to estimate marketing costs:
Snapchat Macro Influencer Pricing
Snapchat Micro Influencer Pricing
Source: Business of Apps
Broken down by followers, brands are paying an average of $2 to get in front of 1,000 followers when working with micro-influencers.
Twitter Influencer Rates
Twitter doesn’t claim the same amount of excitement when it comes to marketing with influencers. However, it is still an option for the right brand working with the right influencer.
The audience here is highly engaged, even if it isn’t the most popular social media platform. With more than 330 million monthly active users, niche audiences abound on Twitter.
According to WebFX data (link above), brands typically pay $2 per Tweet from an influencer with ~1,000 followers or as much as $2,000 per Tweet from influencers with a million followers.
Additional Data on Influencer Rates
Klear data points to a few other interesting factoids regarding influencer pricing.
Male vs. Female Influencer Rates
Despite making up just 23% of influencer marketing, male influencers earn an average of $459 per post compared to female influencers earning $351 per post.
Geographical Influencer Rates
Currently, the US market captures 46% of influencer activity, but pricing in Canada and the UK doesn’t vary significantly. Social media influencers in South Korea, Estonia, and Sweden are up and coming and may provide more cost-effective options for brands.
Payment Options for Influencers
Payment terms may impact influencer rates. Some influencers work for a fee, while others are happy to post content in exchange for free products. There are multiple payment options based on your campaign type, such as:
- Pay-per-click
- Pay-per-post
- Pay-per-acquisition
- Performance-based payment (such as affiliate marketing coupon codes, clicks, or redemptions)
- Pay per new subscriber
The industry also influences cost. Posts related to travel tend to command the highest price, as production costs tend to be higher. Of course, all brands should approach the true cost of influencer marketing on a case-by-case basis and take into account their unique needs and variables.
Choosing the Right Influencers for Your Strategy
Clearly, there is no single influencer marketing cost that brands can rely on without doing a bit of research. Influencer pricing is subject to change based on follower count, subscriber growth, type of deliverable, target demographic, and myriad other factors. There are also additional costs involved should you choose to use an influencer marketing agency to find influencer partnerships.
Using an Influencer rates calculator is a great way to go into influencer negotiations with an informed mindset. However, consider these estimates as starting points as you explore the value an influencer can bring to your brand.
Meltwater’s all-in-one Social Influencers suite helps you manage the influencer marketing process from end to end. From setting up contracts to making payouts, you can gain a bird’s-eye view of your entire strategy. You can also manage non-monetary processes, such as sharing your company's privacy policy, non-compete agreements, target audience information, advertising guidelines, and more.
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