Freelance Copywriter Rates: What Writers Actually Charge

Freelance writing rates are quoted in three different units — per word, per hour, per project — which makes comparison almost impossible until you know which unit the work is actually being priced in. Here is what the market looks like across all three, broken down by content type.

Per word, per hour, or per project: what each actually means

The pricing unit a writer uses reveals something about how they work — and which model benefits whom.

• Per word: common for editorial content — blog posts, articles, journalism. Easy to scope and compare across writers. Disadvantage: it incentivizes length over concision, which is the wrong incentive for most marketing copy.
• Per hour: common for ongoing or undefined work — research-heavy pieces, technical writing, editing, consulting. Transparent about time spent but creates cost uncertainty for clients with a fixed budget.
• Per project: common for defined deliverables — website copy, email sequences, ad campaigns, white papers. Most experienced marketing writers price this way. It aligns the writer's incentive with quality rather than volume, and gives the client cost certainty.

For marketing and brand copy, per-project pricing tends to serve both sides better than the alternatives. Per-word pricing can work against the client: brevity often takes more skill than length, but a per-word rate penalizes the writer who delivers a tight 400-word landing page over a padded 800-word one.

Rates by content type

Rates vary more by what you are writing than by how long you have been writing it. Deliverables that require strategic thinking, research, or direct-response expertise command a significant premium over high-volume content.

• Blog posts and articles (general): $0.05–$0.20 per word at the entry level; $0.25–$1.00 per word for experienced writers. Project pricing: $150–$800 per post depending on length and research depth.
• Website copy (5–10 pages): $1,500–$8,000 from an experienced copywriter. Homepage copy alone: $750–$3,000.
• Email sequences (3–7 emails): $500–$3,000 depending on complexity and whether messaging strategy is included.
• White papers and long-form reports: $2,500–$8,000+ for a 3,000–5,000 word piece including research.
• Ad copy (Google, Meta, display): $300–$1,500 for a campaign set, almost always project-priced.
• Social media content packages: $500–$2,500 per month for ongoing management.
• Technical writing and documentation: $75–$175 per hour, or $0.10–$0.40 per word. High demand relative to supply.

Experience and what it actually changes

Unlike development, where experience roughly maps to price bands, writing is harder to price by years. A writer with two years of experience and a strong direct-response background can charge more than a generalist with ten. Specialty and demonstrated results matter more than tenure.

• Entry-level (thin portfolio, early work): $0.03–$0.08 per word, $25–$50/hr. Most experienced buyers avoid this tier for anything client-facing.
• Generalist with a solid portfolio (2–5 years): $0.10–$0.30 per word, $50–$100/hr, or $300–$1,500 per project.
• Experienced copywriter with a specialty (conversion, SEO, UX writing, finance, healthcare): $100–$200/hr, or project pricing that reflects outcomes rather than time.
• Top-of-market direct-response writers: $200–$400+/hr, often with performance-based fees layered on top. Not a typical hire for most businesses.

For writers: which pricing model to use

1. Writing for publications: per word or per post is the norm. Learn the standard rates and negotiate from there.
2. Writing for businesses: move toward per-project pricing as soon as you can estimate accurately. Hourly billing exposes you to scope creep and rewards inefficiency.
3. Writing in a defined specialty: price it explicitly. The same deliverable from a generalist and a domain specialist costs differently for a real reason — name that difference in your proposals.
4. Raise your project rates annually. Copywriting compounds: your third SaaS homepage takes less research and fewer revisions than your first. That efficiency should not translate to earning less per project.

For clients evaluating a quote

The hourly rate is the wrong number to focus on. What matters is what the writing produces. An experienced conversion copywriter who charges $4,000 for a landing page and measurably lifts your conversion rate is cheaper than a $900 writer who delivers something you cannot use. Ask what the writer has measured, not just what they charge.

The cheapest writing on the market is written by people who have not yet developed the skill to charge more. Copy is often the first impression your business makes — the rate you pay for that impression tends to show.