Video editing costs: why a short can take two days

In this comparison, the lower panel shows the original footage. The upper panel adds animated text, graphics and changes around the speaker. Those additions are motion graphics.

Watch the same moment in both panels. It’s an easier way to judge the amount of animation you want than asking an editor to make a video look more polished.

Our FutureFlows ad combines filmed scenes with animation and AI work. Even though the finished ad is only 32 seconds long, this kind of edit can involve roughly two working days of work.

Around US$1,140 is what I’d allow for a short with substantial animation and AI work. It’s an estimate for that kind of brief, not the recorded fee for this ad. Agree the delivery date separately.

If your footage already makes the point, you may only need cuts, captions and sound work. When you send a reference, point out the specific animation you want. You can ask an editor to price that part separately before committing to it.

The amount of footage matters too. Selecting a few useful moments from hours of recordings is more work than starting with the takes you’ve already chosen.

Even a YouTube video with few effects can take days to edit. A video with lots of custom animation can take weeks. I’d need to see your footage and the style you want before estimating it. If an editor gives you a day rate, also ask how many days they expect the job to take.

Send your footage, deadline and a video that shows the style you want. Ask for the total price, then check: