Chapter 5 · Pricing
Your price is a decision.
Make it on your numbers.
Most people in drone photography start by charging what the next person charges and hope it works out. This chapter builds your price from what a job really costs you, checks it against the market, and turns it into a menu, a quote and a habit of raising it.
Pricing is the biggest lever you have
Guess first. Then scroll and watch one job, with the example numbers you'll replace in a minute.
One job at $710.
The price, split
$710
Start from your numbers, not theirs
Your floor is the lowest price that pays you, your taxes, the materials and your share of the monthly bills. Below it, a job costs you money, however busy you are.
Pick one job to price
Your time
Billable time pays for the unbilled time too: driving, setup, quoting and texting.
Driving, loading, quoting, invoicing for this job
You're paid for 15.5 h but the job takes 16.5 h of your day. The price has to cover all of it.
Your pay and the taxes on it
Pay yourself like an employee first. What's left over after that is the business's.
Per hour, before taxes
Added to self-employment tax (14.1% of your pay)
Materials for this job
Supplies, chemicals, parts, fuel for the job. An example to start; put in your own.
Your monthly bills (overhead)
Costs you pay every month whether you work or not. Spread over your jobs, every job carries a share.
That's $23 a job, or $1 for every hour you're paid to work.
One job, all in
16.5 h × $25
26%
$790 ÷ 35 jobs
Profit after you're paid: repairs, slow months, growth
Price = floor ÷ (1 − cushion) = $568 ÷ 0.80 = $710
Why divide, not add 20%? Adding 20% to costs leaves you only 17% of the price.
What customers pay for real estate aerial photo package across the U.S..
$568
Your floor
$710
Your price
Competitors are a check, not an anchor
Because you don't know their costs. They may have a paid-off truck, no insurance, a spouse's income, or be losing money and not know it yet. Your floor is yours; the market only tells you if there's room above it.
Real Estate Aerial Photo Package
Your floor
$568
Your price
$710
Typical U.S.
$150–$350
National typical range for this trade, not your city. Set your city to look for a local one. Prices vary a lot by city.
Below your floor
Don't. Every job digs the hole deeper, and being busy hides it until the money runs out.
Floor above the market
Find the cost that's out of line, raise how many jobs you do a week, or sell a bigger job where your quality shows.
Room above your floor
Price toward the middle of the range or above, and let your quote, photos and reviews show why.
Ask the AI to check prices in your area
An AI search of local prices for this menu. Treat it as a starting point and check a few real businesses near you.
You sell results
Hourly pricing pays you less the better you get. A price for the finished job lets you keep what you gain by getting faster, and the customer knows the number before you start.
With practice, a better setup, the right tools
The job took 15.5 h. Now it takes 11.6 h. Same result for the customer.
Charge by the hour ($46/hr)
This job pays
$533
Per hour on the job
$46
Charge by the job ($710)
This job pays
$710
Per hour on the job
$61
Ways pros in this trade set the price
Standard for Real Estate
Flat-Rate Packages
Best for residential real estate. The client knows exactly what they get (e.g., 15 photos + 1 video) for a set price. Removes negotiation friction.
High-Value Commercial
Value-Based Pricing
Best for commercial construction or advertising. You aren't selling 'flight hours,' you're selling the footage they need to close a $50k deal. Your price should reflect their gain.
Ongoing Contracts
Subscription/Retainer
Best for construction progress monitoring. They need you on-site twice a month, every month. Create a subscription to guarantee revenue and ensure your place on their schedule.
When Specialized
Hourly (Only for Consulting)
Avoid hourly for photography. Only use it when a client has a 'complex discovery' mission where you don't know how long it will take to get the data they need.
The money that leaks out of quotes
The visit to look at a job, the trip to the supply store, the extra work you find halfway through. Some of these are your call and depend on your market. Decide each one on purpose, then put it on your quote.
Your call
Do you charge to come look?
There's no one right answer. It depends on how busy you are, what customers near you expect, and how big the job is. Here are the three ways it's done and when each fits.
What's normal in this trade · it varies by market
Free estimates are common for small jobs, and a fee is more common for big ones or for visits that take real planning. It varies by market: check two or three local pros' websites or call one and ask how they quote.
Not sure? Starting out, free estimates usually win you more reps. Once you're booked out, a fee credited to the job is the common next step.
The math, whichever you pick
Minutes
1 in 3
Each one costs you about $27 of your time. With 1 in 3 booking, giving them free costs $55 for every job you win. That can be worth it while you build a name; just know the number.
Materials you buy for the job
Buying materials takes your time and money: the store run, storage, returns, and the wait until the customer pays. A markup pays for that. If you don't buy materials, skip this one.
You pay
$50
Customer pays
$63
Margin
20%
Markup is not margin: a 25% markup is a 20% margin. Many shops use a higher markup on small parts and a lower one on big-ticket items. Some states tax materials you resell; check in Chapter 3.
Work you find halfway through
Rot under the siding, a second stain, a customer who asks for "one more thing". A change order is a written price for extra work, agreed before you do it. Put this line on every quote.
Anything not listed above, or any problem we find once work starts, gets a written price first. We only do it after you say yes.
How to handle it on the day is in Customer Service.
Your quote, building as you go
Your Drone Photography Co
Quote for [Customer name]
- Option 1: Aerial Essentials$150
- Option 2: Pro Real Estate Suite$235
- Option 3: Construction Monitoring$1,225
Good until [date].
Discounts cost more than they look
A discount comes straight out of the part you keep. Slide it and see how much more work it takes to stand still.
Price: $639
Left per job after you're paid: $71 (was $142)
To make what 10 jobs made, you need 21.
Offer less, not cheaper
Point to the smaller option. The price of each job stays the same.
Add, don't subtract
Throw in something that costs you little but they value.
Discount for a reason
Two neighbors on the same day save you a drive. Pass some of that on.
What you'll hear, and what to say
Scroll and each answer turns over.
The customer says
"I can hire a kid with a drone for $50."
Never argue. Highlight the difference between a toy flyer and a professional operator.
Keep scrolling for the fix
You say
"I understand. If you're looking for simple snapshots, there are cheaper options. What I provide is commercial-grade liability insurance, FAA-certified flight operations, and post-production that ensures the images help sell the property. It’s really about what level of risk and quality you want to associate with your professional brand."
The customer says
"That's outside of my budget."
Don't discount; modify the scope. Keep your profit margin intact.
Keep scrolling for the fix
You say
"I appreciate that. I have a more limited package that covers the essentials which might fit better, or we can look at a smaller deliverable set. Which parts of the shoot were most important for your goal?"
The customer says
"Can you do it cheaper if I don't need the edited video?"
It is okay to remove features to lower a price, but never lower the price for the same work.
Keep scrolling for the fix
You say
"Yes, I can remove the video editing component to bring the price to [X]. That saves you money while keeping the high-quality photos you need for the listing."
Your price is never finished
Your costs go up every year whether you raise prices or not. Two habits keep you ahead: watch how many quotes say yes, and review your prices once a year.
How many quotes say yes?
60%
Some say no. That's healthy.
Hold your price. Test small raises on new customers and watch this number.
"Nearly everyone says yes means you're too cheap" is a common rule of thumb, not a study. Your own trend matters more.
Test a raise
Raise your price on the next 10 new quotes only. Keep the yes-rate and compare.
$710 becomes $745
$35 more a job, all of it kept: that's 25% more of what's left after your costs.
Review it once a year
Fuel, insurance, supplies and your own pay go up. If your price doesn't, your cushion shrinks every year without you noticing.
Your floor moves from $568 to $596. Same cushion: $745.
Raise prices for new customers first, and give regulars a month's notice.
Mastering the Trade
Video training
How pros handle the business side of flight operations.
Core skill
Structuring Drone Photography Pricing
Helps you avoid the common mistake of under-charging for your post-production time.
Gear used in this video
We may earn a commission from some links. It never changes what we recommend, and we'll tell you when the free option is enough. As an Amazon Associate, BeProEx earns from qualifying purchases. Disclosure
Common Mistakes
What people get wrong
Avoid these traps to stay profitable in a competitive field.
1Ignoring the 'Editing-to-Flight' ratio.
You spend 1 hour flying and 2 hours editing. If you only price for the flight, you lose money.
Instead: Price by the deliverable, not the flight hour.
2Skipping insurance in the cost calculation.
A crash without insurance can bankrupt you. A crash with insurance is just a deductible.
Instead: Always factor your annual premium cost into every quote.
3Not having a clear 'Scope of Work'.
Clients will ask for 'just one more' photo or video edit, turning a profitable job into a drain.
Instead: State exactly how many photos/minutes of video are included in writing before taking off.
Recommendations
Quoting and Invoicing tools
Start lean. Only pay for tools that save you massive time.
Invoicing & Payments
Professional invoices get paid faster and look better to commercial clients.
Free way: Wave Accounting (invoicing and payment tracking).
When it's worth paying: When you need automated recurring billing or advanced CRM features.
Robust, free invoicing for service pros. Not the right fit if Pros needing advanced automated client booking portals.
We may earn a commission from some links. It never changes what we recommend, and we'll tell you when the free option is enough. As an Amazon Associate, BeProEx earns from qualifying purchases. Disclosure
Your Move · Do This Today
Set your prices
0/5 done · sign in to save progress
Your business plan, prices
Your prices, on your numbers
- Floor for real estate aerial photo package: not saved yet
- Three-option menu: not saved yet
- On every quote: nothing added yet
- Yearly price review: not set yet
Question 1 of 3
What is the recommended first step when you are setting your initial prices?
Next · Chapter 6
Get Clients
Your prices are set and you know why. Next: getting them in front of the people who'll pay them.
Chapter 5 · Pricing
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Chapter 5 · Pricing
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