Updated July 2026 · By Richard Tiland, Founder, New Evolution Video, San Diego
In 2026, most professional video production projects cost between $2,500 and $30,000. Based on New Evolution Video’s pricing in San Diego: a testimonial package starts around $3,000, an “about us” brand video — the single most common project we produce — typically runs $7,000 to $12,000, a commercial runs $10,000 to $30,000 depending on concept and scale, and a half-day shoot with two cameras is roughly $2,500. Most production companies, including ours, quote project-based rather than hourly.
Those aren’t estimates pulled from a survey. That’s what we actually quote at New Evolution Video, and after 19 years and more than 2,100 productions in San Diego, I’ve decided the industry’s habit of hiding pricing behind “contact us for a quote” does everyone a disservice. So here’s the real breakdown.
Why Most Pricing Guides Don’t Help You
Search “video production cost” and you’ll find aggregator sites reporting that agencies charge $100–$149 per hour for everything — commercials, documentaries, animation, training videos, all supposedly the same rate. That number isn’t wrong, exactly. It’s just useless.
Almost no serious production company quotes hourly. We quote project-based, because that’s the only honest way to price this work. An hourly rate tells you nothing about how many hours your project needs, and it creates the wrong incentive — you shouldn’t be watching the clock while we’re solving your creative problem. You should know the number before we roll a single frame.
The real question isn’t “what’s your hourly rate.” It’s “what does my project actually require.” Here’s how that gets answered.
What Factors Affect the Cost of Video Production?
Every quote we build comes down to four things.
Shoot days and crew size. This is the biggest lever. A single-camera interview with one operator is a fundamentally different production than a multi-location commercial with a director, DP, gaffer, sound mixer, and production assistant. Each crew member is a day rate, and each shoot day multiplies it. This is why smart planning matters — if we can capture your interviews and b-roll in one well-organized half-day instead of two scattered full days, you just saved thousands without touching quality.
Concept complexity. A testimonial is straightforward: great questions, great lighting, great edit. A scripted commercial involves creative development, casting, locations, art direction, and significantly more post-production. The idea drives the budget more than the runtime does.
Post-production scope. Editing a 90-second brand video from a half-day of footage is predictable. Adding motion graphics, animation, color-intensive looks, or licensed music changes the equation. Special effects are where budgets quietly double — not because anyone’s padding the invoice, but because that work genuinely takes specialist time.
Deliverables. One hero video is one price. A hero video plus six social cutdowns in three aspect ratios is a different project. Define this upfront and your budget conversation gets dramatically easier.
Notice what’s not on the list: the type of video. A documentary isn’t inherently more expensive than a corporate video. Scope is scope.
How Much Does Each Type of Video Cost?
These are the project-based ranges New Evolution Video quotes most often in San Diego, everything included unless noted:
For context, review platforms report the average agency video project nationally at around $42,000, while most small-business projects come in under $10,000. Both can be true, the spread between a clean testimonial and a broadcast campaign is enormous. What matters is matching the production to what your brand actually needs, which is the first question we ask on every call.
A real example: the about-us video. We produce these constantly, it’s the workhorse of corporate video. For $7,000–$12,000, a typical client gets creative development and scripting support, a professionally crewed shoot day (often multi-camera: leadership interviews, team footage, b-roll of the work itself), full post-production with color and licensed music, and a final piece built to live on their homepage, in sales conversations, and across LinkedIn for the next several years. Divide that cost by the lifespan and reach of the asset, and it’s one of the highest-leverage pieces of marketing a company can own.
What’s Included in Video Production Pricing and What Costs Extra?
A legitimate production company brings its own cameras, lenses, lighting, sound gear, and editing pipeline. You should never see a line item for “camera rental” on a standard shoot; that’s built into the rate, and it’s a real advantage of hiring a company over assembling freelancers.
What can add cost, and what you should discuss before signing anything: professional on-camera talent and voiceover artists, location fees or permits when your office isn’t the right setting, travel outside the local area, and specialty rentals for specific creative demands (a jib, a specific vehicle, elaborate props). None of these are hidden fees when the conversation happens upfront. At NEV, they’re in the quote or they don’t exist and because we also operate our own studio, dk3studios, the “we need a location” problem often solves itself.
Does AI Make Video Production Cheaper?
This is the section you won’t find in the generic pricing guides, and it’s reshaping budgets right now.
We’ve integrated AI into our workflows across strategy, scripting, pre-production, and post. What that means for your budget in practical terms: concept development and script iterations that used to eat billable days now happen in hours. Storyboarding and previsualization are dramatically faster, which means fewer surprises and reshoots. Certain post-production tasks: rough assembly, transcription, versioning cutdowns for social have compressed significantly. The net effect is that a budget which bought you one deliverable three years ago often buys you a full content package today.
What AI doesn’t change: the shoot itself. Real lighting, real cinematography, real humans telling your story on camera, that’s still craft, still crew, still day rates. Anyone telling you AI makes professional production nearly free is selling you something that will look like it was nearly free. The advantage goes to companies that use AI to move faster around the shoot, not instead of it.
Is It Cheaper to Produce Video In-House or Hire a Production Company?
If your company publishes video weekly and has the budget for salaries, cameras, lighting, audio gear, and editing infrastructure, an in-house videographer can make sense. For everyone else, the math rarely works. You’re paying year-round for capability you use in bursts, and one person however talented can’t match the range of a full crew with specialized roles.
Hiring a production company means you pay for exactly the production you need, when you need it, with equipment and expertise already accounted for. The honest middle path many of our clients use: an in-house person handles quick-turn social content, and we handle the flagship pieces — the brand video, the commercial, the campaign work that has to represent the company at its best.
Frequently Asked Questions About Video Production Pricing
How much does a corporate video cost in San Diego? A professionally produced corporate “about us” video in San Diego typically costs $7,000–$12,000 in 2026. That range covers creative development, a crewed multi-camera shoot day, and full post-production including color and licensed music.
How much does a 2–3 minute video cost? Expect $7,000–$12,000 for a 2–3 minute brand or corporate video with professional crew and full post-production. Simpler interview-driven pieces can start around $3,000.
How much does a commercial cost to produce? A professionally produced commercial typically costs $10,000–$30,000, driven mostly by concept complexity, crew size, number of shoot days, and post-production scope — not runtime.
Do video production companies charge hourly or per project? Most established production companies quote per project, not hourly. Project-based pricing means the full scope — pre-production, shoot, and post — is defined and priced before filming begins. Aggregator sites report U.S. agency rates of roughly $100–$149 per hour, but that figure rarely reflects how real quotes are built.
What’s the cheapest professional video option? A half-day, two-camera shoot — roughly $2,500 at New Evolution Video — is the most cost-effective entry point for professional video. It’s enough to capture interviews and b-roll for a testimonial or short brand piece.
Does using AI reduce video production costs? Partially. AI compresses the cost of scripting, storyboarding, versioning, and parts of post-production, so the same budget yields more deliverables in 2026 than it did a few years ago. It does not replace the shoot itself — professional crew, lighting, and cinematography still drive the core cost.
Getting an Accurate Quote
Every real quote starts with scope: what the video needs to accomplish, who it’s for, where it will live, and what deliverables you need. Walk into that conversation with even rough answers and you’ll get a precise number instead of a range.
That’s how we’ve operated for 19 years — one question first: what does your brand actually need? Sometimes the answer is a $3,000 testimonial package. Sometimes it’s a $30,000 commercial. The budget should follow the strategy, never the other way around.
If you’re pricing out a project, reach out. We’ll give you a real number, and we’ll tell you if there’s a smarter way to spend it.
