Rate Guide - Gravy For The Brain

Voiceover Rate Guide - New Zealand

The following tables represent a guide to the voiceover rates typically charged by voice artists in New Zealand. The guide has been compiled by Gravy For The Brain and a working group of top NZ VO professionals. Note that most quotations are done through negotiation and you should not feel restricted by any upper or lower limits!

Internal/Onboarding

Web/ Explainer/ Events

ADR

Animation

Audiobooks

Cinema

E-Learning

Gaming

IVR

Live Announcing

Online Paid Placement

Other

Radio

Television

Television Audio Description

Television Changeout (change of date, time or place)

Television TV - Exclusivity in Large Sector

Television TV - Exclusivity in Small Sector

Television TV - Promos

Television TV 15" (12 months)

Television TV 15" (3 months)

Television TV 15" (6 months)

Television TV 30" (12 months)

Television TV 30" (3 months)

Television TV 30" (6 months)

Television TV 60" (12 months)

Television TV 60" (3 months)

Television TV 60" (6 months)

Text To Speech / AI Voices

Text To Speech / AI Voices Company TTS / AI Voice (Voice Used)

Text To Speech / AI Voices Point-Of-Sale TTS / AI Voice (Voice Used)

1. Point-Of-Sale TTS is where you are being hired to deliver the TTS voice for a company who is going to resell that TTS voice to anyone who is willing to buy individual/bulk lines of dialogue either on a price-per-line or a subscription basis - you do not know it's end-use. You cannot legitimately decide whether you wish to lend your voice to the end brand or company as you do not know who they are.

2. The fee stated is usually an all-inclusive buyout price for a specific amount of words, including usage. You should also quote a day-rate for pickups and additional dialogue once the project has finished as there are often further requirements later on. The huge variance in the pricing structure reflects the huge variance that different TTS companies have with the amount of words they wish you to record. This can vary from 2000 words to 200,000 words.

3. Your fee should reflect the fact that the time taken to deliver TTS dialogue is much more than standard dialogue - you might expect to deliver 500 words per hour for example. This is due to the stringent quality requirements and the much higher rejection rate of dialogue compared to normal (as this dialogue is used to train the AI synthesis models and so must be perfect)

4. Your fee should respect the fact that you will likely not be able to voice for the company's competitors for an extended period. Point-Of-Sale TTS is often a worrying path as you do not know who the end company's are, and therefore which companies competitors you now may not be able to voice for.

5. Some larger companies will agree to a retainer for future work, and possibly even a lump sum exclusivity payment on top of the main batch of work.

6. This pricing structure is based on your dialogue actually being used to deliver the end-synthesis to the audience - and not TTS jobs where your voice will not be used but is just helping to train their algorithms which use a different voice to deliver the end-synthesis

Text To Speech / AI Voices Prospective TTS / AI Voice (Voice Used)

Text To Speech / AI Voices TTS Algorithm Training (Voice Not Used)

Radio
		Typical Current Actual Market Rates** (see note below about what typical means & the variables involved)			Licensing/Usage	Notes
		Typical Lower	Typical Average	Typical Upper
0-1 minute	N/A	$300	$360	$500	N/A	N/A
0-3 minutes	N/A	$300	$350	$500	N/A	N/A
1-2 minute	N/A	$340	$420	$540	N/A	N/A
12-15 minutes	N/A	$700	$950	$1250	N/A	N/A
2-3 minute	N/A	$380	$480	$600	N/A	N/A
3-4 minute	N/A	$420	$540	$650	N/A	N/A
3-6 minutes	N/A	$400	$500	$650	N/A	N/A
4-5 minute	N/A	$460	$600	$700	N/A	N/A
5-6 minute	N/A	$480	$660	$740	N/A	N/A
6-7 minute	N/A	$500	$720	$800	N/A	N/A
6-9 minutes	N/A	$500	$650	$800	N/A	N/A
7-8 minute	N/A	$520	$780	$860	N/A	N/A
9-12 minutes	N/A	$600	$800	$1000	N/A	N/A
ADR	N/A	$200	$350	$500	N/A	Per Hour
Audio Description	N/A	$0.16	$0.25	$0.63	Usage included in the session fee	Audio Description means voicing the on-screen action / dialogue for a visually impaired audience. 2. Rates listed are per-minute, taking into consideration that the minimum session fee is usually calculated for 40 lines. 3. There are reported occurrences of this work being priced per film or episode. 4. Rates displayed are per-line. 5. A line is usually 5 to 8 words.
Audio Editing	N/A	$25	$50	$75	New Zealand Rate Guide 2020 New Zealand Rate Guide 2020 .XLSX 100% 11 per hour of work performed, average rate of 3x raw audio length Screen reader support enabled. per hour of	N/A
Audiobooks	N/A	$250	$350	$550	1. Usage included within the price 2. Royalty share jobs pay a portion of book sales, but that often leads to little or no pay	1. All Per Finished Hour. Per Finished Hour means per hour of playback of the edited recording 2. The PFH rate includes your editing and delivery costs 3. How long it takes you to complete one PFH depends on how well you perform as a voice artist - know your rates!
Cancellation Fee	N/A	$100	$200	$300	N/A	If within two hours of booked session. Generally more for in-studio bookings.
Changeout (change of date, time or place)	N/A			$100
Changeout (change of date, time or place)	N/A	N/A	N/A	$50	N/A
Cinema 15" (12 months)	N/A	$350	$480	$550	12 months	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium
Cinema 15" (3 months)	N/A	$300	$420	$500	3 months	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium
Cinema 15" (6 months)	N/A	$300	$450	$500	6 months	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium
Cinema 30" (12 months)	N/A	$370	$540	$620	12 months	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium
Cinema 30" (6 months)	N/A	$350	$510	$550	6 months	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium
Cinema 60" (12 months)	N/A	$450	$660	$750	12 months	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium
Cinema 60" (3 months)	N/A	$420	$450	$500	6 months	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium
Cinema 60" (6 months)	N/A	$420	$570	$700	6 months	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium
Company TTS / AI Voice (Voice Used)	N/A	$15000	$30000	100k+ by Negotation	(Almost always) Included in fee, although some larger corporations will additionally pay for a fixed exclusivity period	1. Company TTS is where you are being hired to deliver the TTS voice for a specific company - you know it's end-use. You can then decide whether you wish to lend your voice to this brand or company. 2. The fee stated is usually an all-inclusive buyout price for a specific amount of words, including usage. You should also quote a day-rate for pickups and additional dialogue once the project has finished as there are often further requirements later on. The huge variance in the pricing structure reflects the huge variance that different TTS companies have with the amount of words they wish you to record. This can vary from 2000 words to 200,000 words. 3. Your fee should reflect the fact that the time taken to deliver TTS dialogue is much more than standard dialogue - you might expect to deliver 500 words per hour for example. This is due to the stringent quality requirements and the much higher rejection rate of dialogue compared to normal (as this dialogue is used to train the AI synthesis models and so must be perfect) 4. Your fee should respect the fact that you will likely not be able to voice for the company's competitors for an extended period 5. Some larger companies will agree to a retainer for future work, and possibly even a lump sum exclusivity payment on top of the main batch of work. 6. This pricing structure is based on your dialogue actually being used to deliver the end-synthesis to the audience - and not TTS jobs where your voice will not be used but is just helping to train their algorithms which use a different voice to deliver the end-synthesis
Demo Fee	N/A	$200	$250	$300	N/A	For example if you record but then it doesn't end up being used.
E-Learning	N/A	$0.15	$0.50	$1.00	E-Learning does not typically pay usage/royalties, though this can be negotiated in some cases, especially where the end product is for retail	Per word
Extra character	N/A	$100	$120	$150	N/A	N/A
File Separation Fee	N/A	$1	$1	$1	per file to be named	N/A
Gaming	N/A	$250	$350	$500	N/A	1. Per Hour * AAA titles would negotiate directly with a voice agent and the fee structure would be customised per project * be aware of your voice health and be careful about booking sessions that are too long and will strain your voice
Live Announcing - In-Person/On-Site	N/A	$750	$1250	$1500	per day	"Name" and celebrity voices can command significantly more
Live Announcing - Pre Record	N/A	$450	$600	$750	N/A	N/A
Major Character (over 20 lines)	N/A	$250	$650	$1250	N/A	Per session (up to 4 hours)
Minor Character (under 20 lines)	N/A	$150	$300	$300	N/A	Per session (up to 2 hours)
Online Paid Placement 15" (12 months)	N/A	$350	$480	$550	12 months	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium
Online Paid Placement 15" (3 months)	N/A	$300	$420	$500	3 months	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium
Online Paid Placement 15" (6 months)	N/A	$300	$450	$500	6 months	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium
Online Paid Placement 30" (12 months)	N/A	$370	$540	$620	12 months	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium
Online Paid Placement 30" (3 months)	N/A	$350	$480	$550	3 months	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium
Online Paid Placement 30" (6 months)	N/A	$350	$510	$550	6 months	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium
Online Paid Placement 60" (12 months)	N/A	$450	$660	$750	12 months	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium
Online Paid Placement 60" (3 months)	N/A	$420	$600	$700	3 months	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium
Online Paid Placement 60" (6 months)	N/A	$420	$570	$700	6 months	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium
Per Finished Minute (pfm)	N/A	$15	$25	$50	N/A	the higher rate is for more technical and medical reads
Per Word	N/A	$0.10	$1	$1.50	One year if possible, though buyouts are common in this sector	Add 50% if the client requires dial-in or use of proprietary software that may be time-consuming
Point-Of-Sale TTS / AI Voice (Voice Used)	N/A	$4000	$15000	100k+ by Negotation	(Almost always) Included in fee.	1. Point-Of-Sale TTS is where you are being hired to deliver the TTS voice for a company who is going to resell that TTS voice to anyone who is willing to buy individual/bulk lines of dialogue either on a price-per-line or a subscription basis - you do not know it's end-use. You cannot legitimately decide whether you wish to lend your voice to the end brand or company as you do not know who they are. 2. The fee stated is usually an all-inclusive buyout price for a specific amount of words, including usage. You should also quote a day-rate for pickups and additional dialogue once the project has finished as there are often further requirements later on. The huge variance in the pricing structure reflects the huge variance that different TTS companies have with the amount of words they wish you to record. This can vary from 2000 words to 200,000 words. 3. Your fee should reflect the fact that the time taken to deliver TTS dialogue is much more than standard dialogue - you might expect to deliver 500 words per hour for example. This is due to the stringent quality requirements and the much higher rejection rate of dialogue compared to normal (as this dialogue is used to train the AI synthesis models and so must be perfect) 4. Your fee should respect the fact that you will likely not be able to voice for the company's competitors for an extended period. Point-Of-Sale TTS is often a worrying path as you do not know who the end company's are, and therefore which companies competitors you now may not be able to voice for. 5. Some larger companies will agree to a retainer for future work, and possibly even a lump sum exclusivity payment on top of the main batch of work. 6. This pricing structure is based on your dialogue actually being used to deliver the end-synthesis to the audience - and not TTS jobs where your voice will not be used but is just helping to train their algorithms which use a different voice to deliver the end-synthesis
Prospective TTS / AI Voice (Voice Used)	N/A	$4000	$15000	100k+ by Negotation	(Almost always) Included in fee	1. Prospective TTS is where you are being hired to deliver the TTS voice for a company who is going to resell that TTS voice to a different, often multiple companies - you do not know it's end-use. You cannot legitimately decide whether you wish to lend your voice to the end brand or company as you do not know who they are. 2. The fee stated is usually an all-inclusive buyout price for a specific amount of words, including usage. You should also quote a day-rate for pickups and additional dialogue once the project has finished as there are often further requirements later on. The huge variance in the pricing structure reflects the huge variance that different TTS companies have with the amount of words they wish you to record. This can vary from 2000 words to 200,000 words. 3. Your fee should reflect the fact that the time taken to deliver TTS dialogue is much more than standard dialogue - you might expect to deliver 500 words per hour for example. This is due to the stringent quality requirements and the much higher rejection rate of dialogue compared to normal (as this dialogue is used to train the AI synthesis models and so must be perfect) 4. Your fee should respect the fact that you will likely not be able to voice for the company's competitors for an extended period. Prospective TTS is often a worrying path as you do not know who the end company's are, and therefore which companies competitors you now may not be able to voice for. 5. Some larger companies will agree to a retainer for future work, and possibly even a lump sum exclusivity payment on top of the main batch of work. 6. This pricing structure is based on your dialogue actually being used to deliver the end-synthesis to the audience - and not TTS jobs where your voice will not be used but is just helping to train their algorithms which use a different voice to deliver the end-synthesis
Radio 15" (12 months)	N/A	$250	$360	$420	12 months
Radio 15" (3 months)	N/A	$200	$300	$360	3 months
Radio 15" (6 months)		$200	$330	$360	6 months
Radio 30" (12 months)	N/A	$300	$420	$480	12 months
Radio 30" (3 months)	N/A	$250	$360	$420	3 months
Radio 30" (6 months)	N/A	$250	$390	$420	6 months
Radio 45" (12 months)	N/A	$350	$480	$540	12 months
Radio 45" (3 months)	N/A	$300	$420	$480	3 months
Radio 45" (6 months)	N/A	$300	$410	$480	6 months
Radio 60" (3 months)	N/A	$350	$480	$540	3 months
Radio 60" (6 months)	N/A	$350	$480	$540	6 months
Radio Imaging per session	N/A	$150	$350	$600	12 month licence
Revision Fee	N/A	$100	$200	$300	N/A	No revision fee charged if due to voice error, mispronunciation or tone of read
Session Fee	N/A	$150	$300	$500	N/A	per hour session
Session Fee	N/A	$150	$300	$500	N/A	per hour session
Session Fee	N/A	$200	$250	$300	N/A	N/A
TTS Algorithm Training (Voice Not Used)	N/A	$400	$500	$600	N/A - Your voice is not used in the end product	NB, unlike the other TTS categories, Training Algorithm work is done usually by the hour, and is stated here as such 1. TTS Algorithm Training is where you are being hired to record dialogue samples which are used to assist in training the AI Synthesis Model, with the aim of being to improve or help manipulate the end dialogue that is delivered to the audience. Crucially, your voice is not the voice that delivers the end dialogue which is voiced by another artist. 2. The fee stated is usually an all-inclusive buyout price by the hour (but sometimes for a specific amount of words, including usage. You should also quote a day-rate for pickups and additional dialogue once the project has finished as there are often further requirements later on.) 3. If the requirement is not paid by the hour and is per word, your fee should reflect the fact that the time taken to deliver TTS dialogue is much more than standard dialogue - you might expect to deliver 500 words per hour for example. This is due to the stringent quality requirements and the much higher rejection rate of dialogue compared to normal (as this dialogue is used to train the AI synthesis models and so must be perfect). That said, with TTS Algorithm Training, quality standards may not be as high as with the main voice recording if, for example, they are only using your prosody patterns (the frequency curve) to help train their models, and in such cases you may achieve a higher hourly word-rate. 4. Training Algorithm work is rarely a worrying option for your future for you personally as your voice is not used as the end product. 5. Very few companies will agree to a retainer for future work with Algorithm Training.
TV - Exclusivity in Large Sector	N/A	$5000		$15000	Per Year	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium 1. This includes brands like financial, telco service providers, healthcare etc
TV - Exclusivity in Small Sector	N/A			$5,000	Per Year	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium
TV - Promos	N/A	$360		$650	N/A	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium 1. Always try to negotiate a monthly retainer.
TV 15" (12 months)	N/A	$350	$480	$550	12 months	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium
TV 15" (3 months)	N/A	$300	$420	$500	3 months	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium
TV 15" (6 months)	N/A	$300	$450	$500	6 months	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium
TV 30" (12 months)	N/A	$370	$540	$620	12 months	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium
TV 30" (3 months)	N/A	$350	$480	$550	3 months	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium
TV 30" (6 months)	N/A	$350	$510	$550	6 months	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium
TV 60" (12 months)	N/A	$450	$660	$750	12 months	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium
TV 60" (3 months)	N/A	$420	$600	$700	3 months	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium
TV 60" (6 months)	N/A	$420	$570	$700	6 months	Additional mediums charged at 75% per medium

**Typical Current Actual Market Rates: The rates specified in these tables are those generally commanded in the New Zealand by working voiceover artists. Of course any voiceover artist can charge anything they want – and should do so - but we have surveyed and found that this range is what voiceover artists typically charge. Accordingly, these rates may not be indicative of those charged by very established or well-known artists through their agents who can generally charge more. In those instances, fees are always agreed by negotiation and are subject to many variables. Also, lesser known artists may charge less in order to establish themselves or to build a reputation. We have tried to cover a typical spread of what the industry normally charges, even though any specific instance may vary from our Typical Low/Typical Average/Typical Upper classifications.

A Note from GFTB on Rates: Please note that this rate guide is intended to be a guide for current industry rates charged in general by New Zealand Voice Artists, and is not intended to imply that these rates are fixed, or set - they are not. As a voice artist you must make your choice as to what you charge but please do be aware that what you charge as a voice artist also affects other voice artists in the industry. If you as a voice artist want to charge much more, or much less than these rates you are freely within your rights to do so.

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Voiceover Rate Guide - New Zealand