Here's the answer from 2026 benchmarks: nano creators (1,000 to 10,000 followers) earn $100 to $500 per post, micro (10,000 to 100,000) earn $500 to $2,500, macro runs $2,500 to $10,000 and up. By platform, Instagram Reels carry a 20 to 30 percent premium over feed posts, Stories run about half, and YouTube holds the highest floor, with some creators pricing at $50 to $100 per 1,000 views.
But the number that actually moves your rate is engagement, not followers. Small audiences with dense engagement out-price bigger passive ones, and the proof lives in a media kit: one to three pages with your audience demographics, engagement stats, past brand results, and a rate card. Lead with your three strongest numbers.
Then negotiate the lines, not the number. The quoted fee covers creation and one organic post. Everything else is its own line: usage rights add 30 to 50 percent, whitelisting the same and up, exclusivity adds 20 to 50 percent per month. When budget is fixed, trade lines instead of discounting: shorter usage window, narrower exclusivity, fewer deliverables. And never sign category exclusivity priced like a post. Ninety days locked out of your niche can cost more than the deal pays.
Two non-negotiables: nothing films before a signed contract, and every material connection gets disclosed clearly, in the video itself, per the FTC. Both the brand and you are liable, and penalties run to the tens of thousands per violation.
The full pricing and contract guide is Volume 3 of our Creator Money System.
The audience pays properly now.