The hardest part of sponsorships isn't finding brands. It's knowing what to charge. Ask too much and you hear nothing back. Ask too little and you end up resenting the work. Most creators guess — and most guess too low.

Here's how to think about pricing your content in a way that's fair to you and makes sense to brands.

Forget the "per follower" formula

You've probably seen advice like "charge $10 per 1,000 followers" or "1 cent per subscriber." These formulas are everywhere, and they're almost always wrong.

Why? Because followers don't equal value. A creator with 50,000 highly engaged subscribers in a specific niche is worth more to the right brand than a creator with 500,000 followers and 2% engagement. Brands that know what they're doing understand this. The ones that only care about follower count are usually the ones that underpay.

Instead of followers, think about what you're actually selling: attention from a specific audience, delivered in a specific format, on a specific platform.

Start with your CPM

CPM — cost per mille (thousand) — is the language brands speak. It's the cost to reach 1,000 people. This gives you a starting point that's tied to actual performance, not vanity metrics.

A rough formula:

Rate = (average views per video ÷ 1,000) × CPM

Typical CPM ranges by platform (2026):

YouTube dedicated video: $25–50 CPM
YouTube integration (60s): $15–30 CPM
Instagram Reel: $15–25 CPM
Instagram Story (set of 3): $8–15 CPM
TikTok video: $10–20 CPM
Podcast (60s read): $20–40 CPM

So if your YouTube videos average 40,000 views and a brand wants a 60-second integration, you'd calculate: (40,000 ÷ 1,000) × $20 = $800 as a baseline.

These are starting points. Your actual rate depends on several factors.

What pushes your rate up

Not all sponsorships are equal. Some are worth more because of what they demand from you:

Niche expertise — finance, tech, health, and B2B niches command higher CPMs because the audience is harder to reach and more valuable to advertisers
High engagement rate — if your audience actively comments, shares, and clicks, that's worth a premium. An 8% engagement rate is not the same as 1%
Production value — if the brand wants a fully produced segment versus a quick mention, charge accordingly. Scripting, filming, editing — that's real work
Exclusivity — if they want you to avoid competitors for 30, 60, or 90 days, that's lost revenue from other deals. Price it in
Usage rights — if the brand wants to repurpose your content for their ads, that's a separate license. It typically adds 50–100% on top of the base rate
Tight deadlines — rush jobs cost more. If they need content in 48 hours instead of two weeks, your rate should reflect that

What pulls your rate down (and when that's okay)

Sometimes it makes sense to accept less than your standard rate:

First deal with a brand you love — if it's a brand you genuinely use and want a long-term relationship with, a slight discount on the first deal can be an investment
Multi-video packages — a brand booking 3 videos should get a better per-video rate than a one-off. You save on the sales and negotiation overhead
Minimal effort required — a 15-second mention is less work than a dedicated review. Price proportionally
Strategic value — a well-known brand in your portfolio can help you land bigger deals later. That has real value, even if the payment is modest

The key: discount intentionally, not because you're afraid to lose the deal. If you drop your rate out of fear, you'll keep doing it.

The rate card: yes or no?

A rate card is a document listing your prices by format and platform. Some creators swear by them. Others never use one.

Use a rate card when:

Brands ask "what are your rates?" — it's faster than typing it out every time
You want to appear professional and established
You're getting enough inbound that you need consistency

Skip the rate card when:

You're still figuring out your pricing (first 5-10 deals)
You prefer to customize every quote based on the specific ask
You're negotiating with a brand that clearly has a bigger budget — sharing a rate card too early can anchor you low

If you use one, keep it simple. One page. List your platforms, formats, base prices, and a note that custom packages are available. Don't put your lowest possible price on it — that becomes the starting point for negotiation.

How to handle "what's your budget?"

Brands often ask creators to name a price first. Creators often try to get the brand to name their budget first. It's an awkward dance.

Here's a direct approach: name your rate confidently. If you've done the CPM math, you know your number is reasonable. State it without apologizing or over-explaining.

For a 60-second integration on my channel, my rate is $800. That includes one round of script revisions and standard usage on your organic social. Happy to discuss if the scope is different.

If the brand's budget is lower, they'll tell you. Then you can negotiate scope (shorter integration, fewer deliverables) rather than just dropping your price.

When to raise your rates

If you're getting a "yes" on more than 70% of your quotes, you're probably undercharging. Raise your rates when:

Your audience has grown significantly since you last set prices
Your engagement rate has improved
You're turning down deals because you're fully booked
Brands are agreeing to your rate without negotiating
You've built a portfolio of successful campaigns with measurable results

Raise by 15–25% at a time. Apply the new rates to new brands first — existing partners can get a gradual increase with advance notice.

Track everything

The single most useful thing you can do for your pricing: keep records. After every deal, note what you charged, what the brand's initial offer was, what you actually delivered, and how the negotiation went.

After 10–15 deals, you'll have real data. You'll see which formats are most profitable, which brands pay the most, and where you consistently leave money on the table. That's worth more than any pricing formula.