Video Production Costs in 2025: Breakdown & Budget-Friendly Alternatives

In 2025, businesses rely on video more than ever – for social media, employee training, and marketing. 

However, traditional production methods can be costly and time-consuming. It often takes weeks to storyboard, find the right filming locations, hire the right talent, and edit the footage together. Not to mention, budget overruns are all too common. 

The good news? AI technology is transforming the industry, making professional videos more accessible and affordable to create, without sacrificing quality.

Keep reading for a full breakdown of video production costs in 2025, plus an overview of a tool that will help you save on your next video project. 

What impacts video production costs?

Before understanding exactly how much your video will cost to create, it’s important to understand the various factors that contribute to the price of a professional video. 

Whether you're producing the video yourself or hiring a video production company, here are the 7 most important factors to be aware of: 

1. Video type

First thing’s first – what type of video are you looking to produce? 

The type of video you wish to create determines how you’ll need to produce the video, ultimately impacting your video production pricing. 

For instance, a 3-minute video for social media will be much cheaper to produce than a 3-hour employee training video. You may be able to shoot a short video from a company phone and edit it using free tools, but outsourcing to freelancers or video production companies could be necessary if you're creating longer-form content. 

Or, if you’re creating a video marketing campaign for a series of TV ads, you’ll want to ensure your footage is top quality, which may lead you to hire a video production company.

You can expect to pay more for large production companies since they offer a wide range of services and options, compared to hiring a few freelancers. 

2. Filming location

Where you decide to film your video can have a large impact on your video costs. 

Although filming studios have perks like good acoustics, lighting, and sound cancellation, these are often expensive. On the other hand, shooting in your office or another space that’s free for you to use is a great way to cut costs. 

And while public spaces like a park or monument may seem like an affordable option, keep in mind that permits, travel costs, and other logistical considerations can drive up your location expenses. 

3. Equipment rentals

The goals of the video project will determine the equipment you need to rent. For a series of social media videos, a standard iPhone camera may suffice. 

However, for true professional-quality videos, a good-quality camera and lighting equipment will go a long way. You’ll also want to consider what microphones are needed to ensure quality audio too. 

Although renting this equipment – especially for a long shoot – can be costly, it makes a big difference in your final product. 

4. Talent and crew requirements

The process of finding the right on-screen talent for your videos can be lengthy and costly. You’ll want to assess whether the actors fit your audience and message, and decide whether they’re skilled at delivering lines effectively. 

And if you’re creating multilingual videos, you’ll need to either find multilingual actors, or hire a different actor to film in each necessary language, which can quickly add up. 

For large projects, you’ll also need to consider whether you need a film crew or if production can be handled in house. Keep in mind, the more people you have on your crew, the higher your overall video production costs will be. 

5. Footage needed

Need B-roll footage? Animation? High-end visual effects? These elements can significantly drive up video production costs. 

If your project requires B-roll or stock images, don't forget to factor in licensing fees. Even a short 30-second clip with complex graphics and animations can lead to higher production rates, as the added editing time and expertise required will quickly add up.

6. Video length

Time is money when working on a video project. The longer your final video, the longer you can expect filming and editing to take. 

A quick social media reel will take less filming and production time than a 2-hour video. With every day you're shooting, it's another day you have to pay your crew, location fees, and equipment rentals.

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7. Editing complexity

Videos requiring complex editing can leave you with a hefty post-production bill. If you’re in need of animations, special effects, or even unique transitions between scenes – it’ll come at a cost. 

Also read: The 10 Best Training Video Production Companies in 2025

Cost breakdown of each video production stage

Digital video production projects typically undergo three stages – pre-production, production, and post-production. 

Here’s how much you can expect each stage of the video production process to cost:

Pre-production costs

The pre-production process is usually highly focused on planning out your video concept, including brainstorming your ideas, script, and set. 

• Concept development: To outline and brainstorm the purpose of the video project, this can range between $500 to $2,000.
• Scripting: Scriptwriters usually charge between $50 and $150 per hour.
• Storyboarding: This ranges from $500 to $1,500.
• Location scouting: Expect to pay around $100 to $500 daily.

Production costs

Once your planning is complete, the production stage is where your ideas come to life. This typically includes costs like: 

• Crew: Small crews start at around $1,000 and can go up to $5,000 or more.
• Equipment rentals: Basic equipment can start at $500 to $2,000 daily, and high-end equipment can get as high as $5,000 daily.
• Talent: While this varies significantly, actors can start at $50 per day and reach $1,500 per day, depending on whether or not they are union actors.

Post-production costs

After you’ve shot your video, it’s time to move to post-production, which is when your raw footage is translated into a polished final product. 

• Editing: Video editing services can cost $75 to $150 per hour.
• Special effects: Many video production companies charge higher rates for special effects, ranging between $1,000 to $10,000+.
• Sound design: Between music and sound effects, this can cost from $300 to $1,500.
• Revisions: You may have additional costs based on the number of changes needed.

Average video production rates for different video types

Corporate video production includes a wide range of different video types. 

Below, we’ve broken down the average cost for each type of video production project: 

• Tutorial videos and live demos: For a live-action product demo, you can expect to pay around $1,000 to $3,000 per minute.
• Digital demos: This pricing starts around $18 for 10 minutes of video for a basic screen recording video.
• Explainer videos: Companies spend an average of $11,000 to produce an explainer video.
• Training videos: This depends on the trainer fees, visual quality, and interactivity, but this ranges between $1,000 to $10,000 per minute.
• Whiteboard animation videos: Although these videos are less expensive than other animation types, whiteboard animations can cost around $1,500 to $15,000 per minute depending on editing complexity.
• Motion graphics: Ranging between $500 to $10,000+ per minute, animation costs depend on whether you want basic graphics or more complex animations.
• Slideshows: Video presentations are one of the most affordable video types, with an average price of $100-$500 for a short presentation design. 

How to cut down on video production costs with AI video

Let’s face it – creating traditional video content can be extremely expensive. But what if there was a way to create professional videos of the same quality, but at a fraction of the cost? 

Now, with an AI video platform, you can do just that. Colossyan is an AI video tool that allows you to create your very own professional videos using AI avatars and text-to-speech voiceovers to bring text to life. 

Organizations like the State of New Mexico have turned to AI video as a way to save more than 50% of their time and 70% of their video production costs – all while enhancing learner engagement in the process. 

Here are some of Colossyan’s key features that make video production simple: 

• 200+ AI avatars: Colossyan offers a diverse library of hundreds of diverse AI avatars, including AI presenters in industry-specific contexts like offices and hospitals. 
• Custom avatars: Create an AI avatar of yourself in minutes, and clone your voice so that your avatar both looks and sounds just like you. 
• Branching scenarios and multiple-choice quizzes: Make your videos interactive and immerse learners in scenario-based training with branching and knowledge checks. 
• Document to video: Simply drop a document into Colossyan, and our AI will turn it into an editable video draft in less than 60 seconds. 
• Prompt to video: Add a text prompt describing your video idea, and Colossyan will create a video draft from scratch. 
• Prebuilt video templates: Looking to get your video off the ground quickly? Start with a template and customize it according to your organization’s branding. 

Here’s more on how Colossyan works: 

5 benefits of creating videos using AI

Say goodbye to expensive production teams and complex workflows – here’s how you can start creating high-quality videos without any cameras or other equipment. 

Here are five key benefits of using AI for video production:

1. Easily scale your video production

Traditional video production requires a significant investment in time, personnel, and resources. Each new video project demands additional scriptwriting, shooting, editing, and post-production work. 

With AI video, you can produce multiple videos simultaneously using templates, AI-generated avatars, and automated editing tools. 

This allows businesses to scale their content efforts without hiring extra production teams or booking additional shoot days. Whether you need training videos, marketing content, or internal communications, AI video enables you to produce more content faster and at a fraction of the cost.

And with an easy-to-use tool like Colossyan, you can do a lot of the video production work yourself, without any video production experience. All of the video creation happens in your browser, and the drag-and-drop interface is seamless to use. 

2. No need to rent any equipment 

Filming high-quality videos traditionally requires cameras, lighting, microphones, backdrops, and possibly even a studio space – all of which add up quickly. 

AI video eliminates these expenses entirely. Instead of setting up and renting professional gear, users can create videos using AI avatars, text-to-speech voiceovers, and prebuilt video templates. 

And you can still create the same types of interactive and engaging scenes with AI video too. For example, with Colossyan, you can add up to four avatars in a single scene to produce scenario-based training videos, or even easily add interactive elements like branching scenarios without the need for any complex software tools. 

This makes video production more accessible for companies with limited budgets while ensuring professional-looking results without the logistical hassle of renting and transporting equipment.

3. Edit videos yourself in just a few minutes

Editing is one of the most time-consuming (and expensive) aspects of video production. Traditional editing requires specialized software, skilled professionals, and hours of labor. 

AI video tools simplify this process by offering intuitive, no-code editing features right from your browser. Users can adjust scripts, change avatars, modify backgrounds, and add animations or subtitles – all in just a few clicks. 

This means teams can create, tweak, and finalize videos within minutes rather than days, eliminating the need to hire a professional video editor. 

The same goes for updating your video content when material changes – a process that is usually time and cost intensive. With an AI video tool like Colossyan, all you need to do is update your video script and regenerate your video to receive an updated result. 

4. High quality videos at less cost

With AI-powered video tools, businesses can maintain high production quality without stretching their budgets. AI avatars, natural-sounding AI voices, and easy-to-use editing features ensure that videos look polished and engaging. 

And unlike traditional production, where your video production budget expenses rise with every added element (actors, reshoots, voiceovers, etc.), AI video platforms offer fixed, predictable pricing models, allowing businesses to produce highly professional videos at a fraction of traditional video costs.

Plus, Colossyan’s Business and Enterprise plans don’t limit the number of video minutes you can generate with the tool, allowing you to create unlimited content for a fixed price. 

Curious just how much your team can save? Check out Colossyan’s ROI calculator to learn more.

5. Say goodbye to manual video translation

For global companies, video localization is a major expense. Hiring translators, voiceover artists, and video editors to adapt content for multiple markets can be both costly and time-consuming. 

AI video platforms simplify multilingual content creation by offering instant voice translation and multilingual subtitles. AI avatars can even mimic natural lip movements to match translated speech, creating a seamless viewing experience for international audiences.

This not only saves money but also enables faster, more efficient content distribution across different regions, and allows all audiences to experience the exact same video – just translated to their preferred language. 

Start saving on video production costs today

Using an AI video generator is like accessing a full-scale professional video production company without the full-scale cost. 

Create more videos in less time, easily update your content when material changes, and translate your videos in just a few clicks. 

Why wait? Try Colossyan for free today to see how it works, or book a demo with our team to learn more.