Creative revision pricing is one of those areas where almost every agency starts with guesswork. You quote a day rate, include two rounds of revisions because that sounds reasonable, and hope for the best. Then the project runs to five rounds and you absorb the difference in silence. The problem is not your instincts — it is that you have never actually calculated what a revision round costs you.
The real cost of a revision round
A single revision round involves more than editing time. It includes reviewing client feedback, clarifying ambiguities, briefing the relevant team member, making the changes, exporting a new version, preparing it for delivery, and following up for sign-off. When you add those activities up honestly, a round that you quoted as a two-hour job often clocks in closer to four or five hours across your team.
Building a revision pricing model
Start by tracking your actual revision time on the next three projects. Log every touchpoint — not just the edit itself, but the brief, the export, the upload, the follow-up. Once you have real data, you can set a revision rate that reflects what those activities genuinely cost. A practical approach is to define a flat per-round rate for standard revisions, with hourly billing above the included scope.
How to present revision pricing to clients
Clients respond better to revision pricing when it is framed clearly in the proposal rather than raised mid-project. Something like: this project includes two rounds of consolidated feedback. Additional rounds are available at our standard revision rate. This sets expectations before work begins and removes the awkwardness of raising extra charges later.
Tools that help you get the numbers right
If you want to get your revision pricing right without doing the maths from scratch, the creative revision cost calculator at FileFeedback walks you through the key inputs — hourly rate, team size, average revision time — and produces a per-round cost estimate you can use directly in proposals.
“Including two revision rounds in every quote because it sounds normal is not a pricing strategy. It is a habit that costs you money every single month.”
What to include when calculating revision round cost
- Feedback review and interpretation time
- Clarification calls or email threads
- Editing and production time
- Export, render, and upload time
- Version delivery and client communication
- Follow-up for sign-off
Frequently asked questions
How much should I charge for an extra revision round?
Track the actual hours your team spends per revision round — not just editing, but briefing, exporting, and follow-up. Multiply by your blended hourly rate. Most agencies find a round costs 1.5–3× more than they assumed, so a flat extra-round fee of £150–£400 is common for mid-market creative work.
Should I price revisions per round or per hour?
Per round is simpler for clients to understand and gives you more predictability. Hourly works better for complex or open-ended changes. Many agencies use a hybrid: flat per-round fee for standard amends, hourly billing for structural or strategic changes that go beyond what a revision round normally covers.
How many revision rounds should I include in a quote?
Two rounds is the most common included allowance and tends to be right for straightforward projects. For complex or multi-stakeholder work, consider one round with clear instructions on how to purchase additional rounds — it prompts clients to consolidate feedback rather than trickle it in.
What happens if a client disputes extra revision charges?
Document every revision round clearly — date received, scope of changes requested, time logged. If the contract specifies what constitutes a revision round and what falls outside it, disputes are rare. Most clients accept reasonable extra-round charges when the process has been transparent from the start.
Related resources
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