Social Media Management Pricing

Calculate a profitable monthly retainer for social media management based on per‑client deliverables, time assumptions, overhead, and target margins. Get a recommended price, price range, hours, and capacity guidance.

Key Benefits:

  • Transparent monthly price with hours and cost breakdown
  • Protect profit with overhead and revision buffers
  • Capacity guidance: sustainable clients and utilization
  • Clear definitions: posts are per platform; reels/stories are totals
  • Shareable link with prefilled inputs for client discussions
  • Adjustable time assumptions to match your workflow

Social Media Management Pricing

Estimate a fair monthly retainer with a few clear inputs. Advanced settings are available for fine‑tuning.

Share Your Scenario

Copy link with your current inputs

Quick Setup

All rates and volumes are per client unless noted. Posts are per platform; stories/reels are totals across platforms.

Number of platforms you manage for this client (e.g., Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn).

Average feed posts per platform each week for this client (e.g., 3 posts per week per platform).

Total short‑form videos (Reels/Shorts/TikTok) per week across all platforms for this client.

DMs, comments, moderation time each week.

$

Your blended internal rate (before profit).

Total weekly hours you can dedicate to client delivery.

Advanced Settings

Optional. Adjust time assumptions, overhead, and margin to match your workflow.

Total stories per week across all platforms for this client (optional).

Typical: 45–90 minutes depending on quality and process.

Typical: 5–15 minutes for simple story sets.

Typical: 90–150 minutes (scripting, filming, editing).

Monthly strategic planning and content pillars.

Time to prepare performance reports.

Client calls and internal syncs.

%

Safety margin to cover revisions and small scope creep.

%

Business overhead (taxes, admin, sales, equipment). Typical: 10–20%.

%

Target net margin on top of costs. Typical: 20–40%.

$

Schedulers, design tools, and asset libraries.

If you outsource editing or design, estimate monthly hours.

$

Blended subcontractor rate if applicable.

$

Do not recommend below this monthly floor.

Results

Recommended Monthly Price
$7,801.89
Low: $7,021.70Recommended: $7,801.89High: $8,582.07
Effective hourly: $130.00 / hr

Hours Summary (per client)

Content37.5 h
Community8.7 h
Strategy2.0 h
Reporting2.0 h
Meetings2.0 h
Effective total (incl. revisions)60.0 h

Clients & Capacity

Monthly available hours108.3 h
Sustainable clients1
First‑month max new clients1

Cost Breakdown

Internal labor$4,501.10
Software$60.00
Overhead$900.22
Total cost basis$5,461.32
Tips: Aim for 70.0% utilization for sustainability. Typical net margin targets are 20.0%40.0%.

Frequently Asked Questions

What’s a healthy utilization target?

Aim for 70–80% utilization to preserve quality and avoid burnout. The calculator estimates sustainable clients based on your hours and scope.

How do I handle scope creep in retainers?

Use a revision buffer (e.g., 10–20%) and consider adding a scope change clause. Our Scope Creep calculator can estimate impact on profitability.

What if my effective hourly is too low?

Consider raising price, reducing deliverables, or increasing efficiency (templates, batching, delegation). The insights highlight when you are close to your internal rate.

Do these numbers work for agencies with subcontractors?

Yes. Add subcontractor hours and rate in Advanced. The calculator includes subcontractor cost and overhead before applying your target margin.

Is software cost per client or total?

Enter the software cost allocated per client for this scope. Many teams spread global software costs across active clients proportionally.
Results are estimates for informational purposes only. Consult professionals for important decisions.

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