Two audiences search for freelance copywriter rates. Clients want to know what they should budget before hiring. Copywriters want to know whether they are pricing right.
Both deserve honest numbers. This article covers rates from the copywriter's perspective: what to charge, which pricing structure to use, and when to raise your rates.
The Three Pricing Structures
Most freelance copywriters use one of three structures: per word, per hour, or per project. They are not equal, and the one you use signals something to clients about how you work.
Per word is the most common starting point for new copywriters. It is easy to calculate and easy for clients to understand. The problem: per word does not account for research time, client calls, revision rounds, or thinking time between drafts. A 1,000-word blog post that requires two hours of research and two rounds of revisions is not the same job as a 1,000-word post written from a detailed brief with one pass. Per word treats them identically.
A secondary problem: per-word pricing signals volume work. It is the pricing model of content mills, not specialists. According to data from the Freelance Writers Den 2025 survey, 8 out of 10 copywriters who price per word have less than one year of experience. That is not coincidence.
Per hour protects against scope creep but creates a different problem: clients do not know how long a project will take, and they resist committing to open-ended time. It also creates a perverse incentive: the faster you work, the less you earn. Hourly billing works best for audit-style work or ongoing consulting where scope genuinely cannot be defined in advance. For most copywriting deliverables, it is the wrong structure.
Per project (flat fee) is the standard for experienced copywriters. You quote a number for the entire engagement: writing, research, one client call, and a defined number of revision rounds. The client knows their cost upfront. You price based on the value of the output, not the hours you spend producing it.
The AWAI State of the Copywriting Industry 2025 survey found that most working copywriters with three or more years of experience use project pricing. The switch from per word or hourly to project pricing is one of the clearest markers of career progression in this work.
Retainer is project pricing at scale. The client commits to a recurring volume of deliverables each month. You commit to delivering it. The exchange: you discount slightly from your per-project rate in exchange for revenue predictability. A reasonable retainer discount is 10 to 15 percent. More than that, and you are giving away the value of the commitment.
Per-word pricing signals volume work. Per-project pricing signals specialist work. The structure you quote is the first signal a client gets about how you see your own work.
Hourly Rates by Experience Level
Hourly rates are a useful benchmark even if you charge per project, because they let you reverse-engineer whether a project quote will pay you appropriately for the time involved.
| Experience | Hourly rate | Typical work |
|---|---|---|
| Junior (0–2 years) | $50–$85/hr | Blog posts, social copy, basic web copy |
| Mid-level (3–5 years) | $85–$160/hr | Website copy, email campaigns, B2B content |
| Senior (6–10 years) | $160–$250/hr | Conversion copy, sales pages, brand voice |
| Specialist | $250–$500+/hr | Direct response, high-revenue campaigns, executive ghostwriting |
Source: AWAI State of the Copywriting Industry 2025; Freelance Writers Den Rate Survey 2025.
Use these as a floor check on your project quotes. If a project will realistically take eight hours and you are mid-level, your quote should not be below $680. If the client's budget requires a lower number, the scope or the client is the wrong fit.
Project Rates by Format
The table below covers rates for a US-based copywriter with three to five years of experience. Senior copywriters add 40 to 80 percent to these ranges.
| Format | Rate range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Single email | $300–$800 | Promotional or marketing email, not transactional |
| Email welcome sequence (5–7 emails) | $1,500–$5,000 | Post-signup or post-purchase onboarding |
| Blog post (1,000–1,500 words) | $300–$800 | Research-backed, SEO-informed |
| Long-form article (2,500+ words) | $700–$2,500 | Pillar content, data-driven guides |
| Case study | $800–$2,500 | Includes client interview, before/after structure |
| White paper (3,000–5,000 words) | $2,500–$7,500 | B2B, research synthesis, expert quotes |
| Social ad copy (set of 3–5) | $500–$1,500 | Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn variants |
| Monthly retainer | $2,000–$8,000/mo | 4–12 pieces per month depending on type |
For the highest-conversion formats (sales pages, long-form direct response), rates diverge more sharply from these numbers. Direct response copywriting operates on a different pricing logic because the copy is directly attributable to revenue, and that attribution justifies both higher rates and performance bonuses.
Website Copywriting Rates
Website copy is one of the most common project types, and one of the most underpriced by newer copywriters because the page counts feel small.
The issue: a homepage is not just words. It is a strategic argument that has to work across different reader awareness levels, handle objections before they are voiced, and get the reader to take a specific action. Writing it well requires understanding the audience, which takes research time that per-page quotes often do not capture.
| Website deliverable | Rate range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Homepage | $800–$3,500 | Hero, value prop, social proof, CTA sections |
| About page | $400–$1,500 | Typically shorter, narrative-driven |
| Service / product page | $500–$2,000 per page | Depends on length and research depth |
| Full website (5–7 pages) | $3,000–$12,000 | Includes discovery, strategy, wireframe-ready copy |
| Landing page (ads or launch) | $1,200–$5,000 | Conversion-focused, often includes A/B variant |
When quoting website projects, price the discovery work separately or build it into the flat fee. A client who hands you a brief is a different engagement from a client who expects you to extract the brief through a series of interviews. Price accordingly.
Research the audience before you pitch rates to a new client
Knowing what your target client's customers actually say is what justifies the research step in your pricing. PhraseMine finds that language before you write a word.
Try PhraseMine freeWhy Niche Raises Your Rate
The largest single factor in copywriter rates is not years of experience. It is whether you have a specific niche.
A generalist content writer and a B2B SaaS specialist with the same years of experience do not earn the same amount. The B2B SaaS specialist charges more because their work is closer to revenue: a case study that helps close a $50,000 software contract is worth more to the client than a blog post that drives traffic. The closer your copy is to an identifiable business outcome, the more you can charge.
B2B SaaS mid-level copywriters charge $120 to $180 per hour. B2C e-commerce mid-level copywriters charge $75 to $120 per hour. Same experience level, different niche, roughly 50 percent rate difference.
The same applies to ghostwriting. Because ghostwriting requires NDA terms and voice capture in addition to the writing itself, it commands a premium over standard content rates. Ghostwriting rates covers that specific rate structure separately.
When to Raise Your Rates
Most copywriters undercharge for the first two to three years and then raise rates inconsistently. A cleaner approach: raise rates by 20 to 30 percent after every four to six projects with a new client type.
Three signals that tell you your rates are too low:
You are fully booked. If your calendar is full and you are turning down work, you are undercharging. Demand is not the limiting factor. Rate is.
Clients accept without negotiating. If every client accepts your first quote without any discussion, your quote is probably below their mental ceiling. A small percentage of clients pushing back on price is healthy. No pushback at all means you have room to move.
You are resentful by the end of a project. The clearest signal. If a project that seemed reasonable when you quoted it feels underpaid by the time you are on the third revision, your rate did not reflect the actual scope of the work.
Raising rates is easiest with new clients. For existing clients, give 60 days' notice before a rate increase and frame it as a reflection of your updated market rate, not a change in the relationship.
For the practical side of finding clients who will pay these rates, how to get copywriting clients covers client acquisition in full.
PhraseMine helps copywriters research any audience before writing. Start a research session to understand your client's market before the brief lands.