How much to charge as a freelance makeup artist

Makeup artistry is a skilled, creative, and often complex job, especially when you specialise in a particular niche like bridal or special effects.
But as a freelance makeup artist, how do you make sure you’re pricing your services to match your talent?

In this guide, we'll look at methods for pricing your services by the hour, day, and project. We’ll also show you how you can make the most of your freelance earnings with Wise Business - the ideal business account for globally-connected freelancers.

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Table of contents

Freelance makeup artist rate card Time-based pricing Project-based pricing What's the average going rate for freelance makeup artists? How to calculate your freelance makeup artist rate Step 1: Decide on a pricing model Step 2: Assess the competition and your niche Step 3: Factor in your skills and experience Step 4: Cross-check your rate against the market Step 5: Account for your expenses Take control of your freelance finances with Wise Business FAQs Are freelance makeup artist rates negotiable? How often should I increase my prices as a freelance makeup artist? Can I charge more as a freelance makeup artist in London?

Freelance makeup artist rate card

Here’s an idea of what a final freelance makeup artist rate card may look like, based on average industry rates for various niches^{1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8}.

Note: You won’t have all of the rows from the table below - just the ones that apply to your niche (unless you specialise in multiple niches).

| Job type | Service | Hourly rate | Day rate | Per-Job rate | |
| :--------------------- | :-------------------------------------- | :------------------------------------- | :--------------------------------------- | :------------------------------- | - |
| Bridal 👰 | Bride (on the day) | - | - | £80 to £450+ | |
| | Bridesmaids | - | - | £65 to £90 | |
| | Mother of the bride | - | - | £55 to £80 | |
| | Bridal Trial | - | - | £60 to £120 | |
| | On-site Artist / Touch-ups | £70 to £160 | - | Packages from £70 | |
| | Extras (Flower girl, Teens etc) | - | - | £0 to £83 | |
| Special Effects 🎬 | SFX, Halloween, Body Paint | £10 to £30 | £80 to £300 | £25 to £50+ | |
| Film/TV 🎥 | Makeup Artist (All levels) | £13 to £80 (Role and budget dependent) | £130 to £880 (Based on a 10-11 hour day) | - | |
| Fashion 👗 | Luxury lookbooks | - | - | £150 to £325 | |
| | Films (luxury designer) | - | - | £175 to £475 | |
| | Fashion week (E.g. London Fashion Week) | - | - | £400 to £600 | |
| | Editorials / Photo shoots | - | From £150 (half day) | £120 to £250 | |
| All 🌎 | Travel | - | - | £0.45 to £0.50 per mile + fees | |
| | Additional Fees | From £25/hr (e.g. early start) | - | From £50-£70 (e.g. extra artist) | |
| | Kit Hire / Box Allowance | - | £10 to £50+ per day (Role dependent) | - | |

Time-based pricing

Time-based pricing refers to charging based on an hourly or daily rate for the shoot or event.

It is the most straightforward way to price your services and provides clarity for both you and the client.

It also appears to be the most common pricing model for freelance makeup artists across multiple niches - particularly charging an hourly rate^9,10,11.

If you think about it, it makes sense to charge for your time for professional makeup artistry in particular.

Whether you’re prepping bridal makeup or doing model makeup for a shoot, it can take hours to do the first round, then more time to do touch-ups.

You want to earn for all of those hours - and an hourly rate allows just that.

Project-based pricing

Charging a custom price per project is also common among makeup artists.

It can be particularly useful if you also want to price in the cost of everything aside from the actual makeup session, like travel time, carrying out smaller jobs such as evening touch-ups, etc.

A prime example of this is bridal makeup, where you’ll have a set price for just the bride along with packages covering the whole bridal party.

This makes things easy and straightforward for the client, as they’ll know exactly what they’ll be paying without any hidden costs.

It also allows you to factor in the value of the project, as well as the prestige of the client.

Note: With project-based pricing, there’s always the chance that there will be unexpected complications, expenses or extra time-consuming work, which can eat into your earnings.This is why it’s so important to ensure you know exactly what will be involved in the work and how long it’ll take.Don’t forget to factor in extra expenses like travel time or the purchase of new brushes, products or other equipment.

What's the average going rate for freelance makeup artists?

For bridal work, prices can range from £80 for a simple package to over £450 for a full day with an experienced artist, and this varies significantly by location.

A makeup artist working in film or TV can expect to earn approximately £15.36 to £24 an hour, depending on their role and the production budget.

For special effects work, the average rate is between £80 to £300 per day, with more complex projects commanding higher fees.

How to calculate your freelance makeup artist rate

1. Decide on a pricing model
2. Assess the competition and your niche
3. Factor in your skills and experience
4. Cross-check your rate against the market
5. Account for your expenses

Step 1: Decide on a pricing model

Depending on your client, the type of event you’ll work at, and/or your specific skills, you may want to use a mix of time-based and project-based pricing.

You can combine this to make custom pricing or set packages for different kinds of work.

This will give you options depending on what kind of work comes your way, and make it easy to quote at a moment’s notice.

Step 2: Assess the competition and your niche

The next step is research. You need to know what other professionals in your niche and with your level of experience are charging for the same kinds of work.

If you’re a specialist with a substantial portfolio in a particular area, you may be able to charge more for your services.

For example, if you specialise in special effects for TV/film, prestige bridal clients or high-end fashion shoots.

However, it depends on what niche you work in, how competitive it is and what kinds of budget your target clients have.

Service type also affects your rate. Certain kinds of work command a higher price tag, with weddings being a prime example.

This is an area you’ll need to research, looking at the going rate for each type of job for an artist with your level of experience.

Step 3: Factor in your skills and experience

Your skills, experience and the strength and breadth of your portfolio will also affect your calculations.

Step 4: Cross-check your rate against the market

If you want to do this the easy way, then either ask an AI model like ChatGPT to calculate this for you, or find a free makeup artist rate calculator.

There are a number of these tools available online, including this freelance rate calculator from Upwork.

It’s not industry-specific, but does offer a simple way to work out how much you need to earn to cover your essential living expenses, support your lifestyle and earn a decent profit for your work.

Step 5: Account for your expenses

You must also factor in your costs and expenses. These can include:

• Travel costs, insurance, marketing and updating/replenishing your cosmetics kit
• The purchase of portable lighting and other equipment
• Investment in training to expand your skills
• Research and development time - if you’ll be expected to develop looks yourself, you’ll need time to work on them and practice the techniques required. This should be reflected in the rate for the work.

Take control of your freelance finances with Wise Business

Wise Business gives you a single platform from which you can track your income, manage your spending on your kit, and sort your accounts ahead of submitting your Self Assessment each year.

And once you go global with your talents (think weddings in Tuscany and gigs during Paris Fashion Week), you can use the Wise Business card to spend abroad in 40+ currencies (once you've paid the one-time set up fee of £50).

What’s more, you can get paid by international clients in their currency using your own local account details in 8+ currencies.

Be Smart, Get Wise - the business account that supports your freelance career today and is ready to grow with you tomorrow.

Register for Wise Business ✍️

*Disclaimer: The UK Wise Business pricing structure is changing with effect from 26/11/2025 date. Receiving money, direct debits and getting paid features are not available with the Essential Plan which you can open for free. Pay a one-time set up fee of £50 to unlock Advanced features including account details to receive payments in 22+ currencies or 8+ currencies for non-swift payments. You’ll also get access to our invoice generating tool, payment links, QuickPay QR codes and the ability to set up direct debits all within one account. Please check our website for the latest pricing information.

“The Wise debit card is an amazing thing as well. Being able to have a debit card that always has the right currency is amazing, I often need to take business trips... without any fear of currency risk is also fantastic.”

-- Michael Houghton, Freelancer

FAQs

Are freelance makeup artist rates negotiable?

Yes - although it depends on the client and type of work.

If you’re booked for a fashion shoot for example, you may not have much room to negotiate without risking losing the work to another artist.

This goes for other highly competitive industries such as film and TV.

If you have a specialism (such as special effects work, for example), you may be in a stronger position to negotiate a higher price.

For work such as bridal, you can usually set your own prices and work with the client to find a compromise that works for both of you.

However, this isn’t to say you should undervalue or shortchange yourself.

It’s important to set yourself a minimum rate (based on what you need to cover your expenses and earn a living) and know your value.

How often should I increase my prices as a freelance makeup artist?

A mistake many freelancers make is to keep their prices the same, year after year. It’s actually common practice to review prices annually, and you may also want to increase them if:

• You improve your skills or develop a specialism
• You gain experience, build a strong portfolio and/or work with high-profile clients
• Your cost of living increases due to inflation.

Can I charge more as a freelance makeup artist in London?

Yes, you may be able to charge more if you live in an expensive part of the country.

Location is likely to play a part in how much to charge as a freelance makeup artist, simply because prices and the general cost of living are higher in some parts of the UK - London being a prime example.

Just bear in mind that clients may not necessarily want to pay London prices if they themselves are based in a cheaper part of the country.

Sources:

1. Christiane Dowling, SFX Makeup Pricing
2. FT Makeup London, Special Effects Makeup Artist
3. KS Makeup and Beauty, Makeup rates
4. Bectu, Hair and makeup rate card
5. Diana Morton, Makeup Artist Prices/Services
6. Caroline Stewart Makeup Artistry, Full Price List
7. Beautiful You, Prices
8. London Beauty Artists, Makeup Services
9. Blush and Blow London, Bridal Rates
10. Mel Kinsman, Pricing Information
11. Edit Clinics, Wedding Makeup

Sources last checked October 14th, 2025

*Disclaimer: The UK Wise Business pricing structure is changing with effect from 26/11/2025 date. Receiving money, direct debits and getting paid features are not available with the Essential Plan which you can open for free. Pay a one-time set up fee of £50 to unlock Advanced features including account details to receive payments in 22+ currencies or 8+ currencies for non-swift payments. You’ll also get access to our invoice generating tool, payment links, QuickPay QR codes and the ability to set up direct debits all within one account. Please check our website for the latest pricing information.