Video Production Budget Calculator
What a film like this actually costs before you quote a number you cannot hold. The calculator above takes format, shoot days, crew size, locations and post scope and returns budget range, cost per block and contingency — computed in your browser, with no sign-up and nothing leaving your device.
Video Production Budget Calculator
- Crew & fees
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- Equipment
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- Location
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- Total incl. contingency
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- Realistic range
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Day rates are editorially maintained market bands (DACH, commercial/corporate) — see the page footer for the as-of date. Your calculation stays in your browser.
What the number actually depends on
Crew and gear typically run 45 to 60 % of a commercial budget; post is 15 to 25 %.
A 10 % contingency is the industry floor. Below that, one weather day turns into an invoice conversation.
The gap between a number that goes into a quote and one that holds on the day is rarely the formula — it is whether the constraints were entered honestly. That is why the inputs are spelled out below.
Common mistakes
These come up most often in practice. They rarely break the maths; they routinely break the day:
- Quoting before the shot list exists
- Leaving music licensing and archiving out of the number entirely
In day-to-day production
Doubling shoot days rarely doubles cost — prep and post stay flat, so the marginal day is cheaper.
The number belongs in pre-production — the point where a decision is still free to change. Working it out on the shoot day is no longer calculating; it is finding out.
In TillyGen this is not a separate step: the result sits inside the plan itself, alongside the shot list, schedule and call sheet. Change a constraint and the dependent values move with it — the affected parts of the plan are flagged rather than quietly left behind.
Frequently asked
How accurate is the Video Production Budget Calculator?
The maths is exact; the inputs rarely are. Treat the result as a solid floor and add your buffer deliberately rather than smuggling it into the inputs — a flattered input hides the buffer from everyone who plans with it later.
Is the calculator free?
No. It runs entirely in your browser, with no sign-up and nothing transmitted. There is no usage limit and no account.
Where does this fit in production planning?
In pre-production. There it is a basis for deciding; later it is only a finding.
Can I export the result?
The calculator itself only displays the value. In TillyGen it lands directly in the shot list, schedule and call sheet, and goes out as PDF, CSV or through the API to everyone working from it.
What does the calculator return?
Budget range, cost per block and contingency. The first value is the one you carry into the plan; the rest show how sensitively it reacts to the inputs.
What should I watch for in the result?
Mainly this: quoting before the shot list exists. That is the mistake that most often turns a correctly calculated number into one that does not hold.