What publishing services cost at market
What editing, design and production actually cost when you hire professionals directly — per-word and per-project ranges, with what separates the low end from the high. Quoted case-by-case in the trade; collected here so you can tell a fair quote from an inflated one.
Last updated 10 September 2026 · every figure carries its source
These are market rates for hiring professionals directly — not what a packaged “publishing service” marks them up to. Editorial figures are the Editorial Freelancers Association’s 2026 medians, from a survey of more than 1,100 editors reporting on work done in 2025. They are guidance, not fixed prices: experience, genre, turnaround and manuscript condition all move a quote.
Editing
| Service | Per word | Per hour | Typical pace | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Developmental / structural edit | 5.0–7.3¢ | $60–$82.50 | 4–7 pp/hr | EFA 2026 |
| Line / substantive edit | 4.0–6.0¢ | $50–$70 | 4–8.5 pp/hr | EFA 2026 |
| Copyediting | 3.0–5.0¢ | $45–$65 | 5–10 pp/hr | EFA 2026 |
| Proofreading | 2.0–4.5¢ | $35–$65 | 6–15 pp/hr | EFA 2026 |
What a 80,000-word novel implies. A copyedit at 3–5¢/word is roughly $2,400–$4,000; a developmental edit at 5–7.3¢ is roughly $4,000–$5,840. A quote far above these ranges should come with a reason — a heavier edit, a specialist genre, a fast turnaround — stated in writing.
Design, production and identifiers
| Service | Typical range | What moves it | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cover design (fiction) | $625–$1,250 | Genre (SFF/romance higher), illustration vs typographic, revisions | Reedsy 2026 (avg ≈ $880) |
| Interior layout / print formatting | $200–$800 | Length, images, tables, reflowable vs fixed | Reedsy marketplace data |
| ISBN — 1 (US) | $125 | Single identifiers are poor value; buy in blocks | Bowker |
| ISBN — 10 (US) | $295 | ≈ $29.50 each — the sensible entry block | Bowker |
| Audiobook production | $200–$400 / finished hr | Narrator experience, studio vs home, royalty-share vs flat | ACX / industry (≈ $300–$400 PFH) |
| Publicity (freelance campaign) | reported ranges vary widely | Scope, length, media targets — insist on an itemised deliverable list | no single reliable public figure |
Where a number would be a guess — freelance publicity being the clearest case — this table says so rather than inventing one. If you have a firm quote that contradicts these ranges in either direction, that is useful data: tell us.
Spot a figure that's out of date or wrong? Tell us — corrections are logged publicly. Where reliable public data doesn't exist, this table says so rather than guessing.
This is information, not legal advice. Contracts turn on their exact wording and your circumstances — before you sign, have a publishing lawyer or a body like the Society of Authors or the Authors Guild review the actual document.