How much an AI commercial costs, explained with AI25's published starting prices: what each tier includes, what pushes a budget up or down, how AI compares with a traditional shoot, and how to brief so the estimate stays under control.
A pricing guide for brands and agencies, using the starting prices AI25 publishes on its pricing page.
Short answer: at AI25, an AI creative test starts from €2,500, a commercial or brand film from €6,500 and a hybrid production with a live-action shoot from €8,000. Single specialist layers start lower: post-production from €1,500 per project and 3D, CGI & VFX from €1,800 per scope. Prices exclude VAT, and every project is quoted as a fixed estimate agreed in writing before production begins.
Those are starting points, not package prices. The rest of this guide explains what sits inside each tier, what moves a budget, and how to write a brief that gets you an accurate number quickly.
Why “how much does an AI commercial cost?” has no single answer
An AI commercial is still a film. It needs a concept, a visual direction, a sequence of shots, an edit, colour and sound. Generative tools change how some shots are made; they do not remove the decisions around them. That is why two briefs that both say “short spot, AI” can be priced very differently.
The useful question is not “what does AI cost?” but “what does this film need?” A single hero cut for one platform is a different job from a campaign with verticals, cutdowns, language versions and broadcast masters.
What drives the cost of AI video production
Scope and number of deliverables
The biggest variable is how many finished assets the production has to deliver. A hero cut plus verticals, cutdowns and ad variants takes more editing, versioning and quality control than one master. Planning every format from the start costs less than reframing later.
Production method per shot
Some shots suit generative AI: imagined environments, stylised worlds, scale that would be hard to build. Others need a camera, a performer or an exact product. When a real performance or a real product has to be on screen, the project moves into hybrid production, which adds a shoot day and supervision. Products that must match exactly may need a 3D build rather than generated imagery.
Consistency requirements
Characters, products and environments that must stay recognisable across a whole film need locked references and a deliberate review process. The more shots that must hold the same face, label or material, the more production and review time the film needs.
Revision rounds
Revision rounds are agreed in the estimate. On AI25’s pricing, the AI creative test includes one revision round and the commercial or brand film includes two, defined up front. Additional rounds, or changes to an approved direction, are scoped separately so their effect on cost and timing is clear.
Localisation and versions
Running one film in several markets is its own scope. Language versions with dubbing or voice replacement, lip-sync and rebuilt graphics are priced per language: localisation and versioning starts from €1,200 per language.
Schedule
Rush work and out-of-scope additions are quoted separately before they are produced. A realistic delivery date is one of the simplest ways to keep a budget stable.
AI video pricing at AI25: the published tiers
All figures below are starting prices from ai25.studio/pricing. They exclude VAT, and third-party costs are confirmed in the written estimate where they apply.
AI creative test: from €2,500
One film at a contained scope, typically 2-4 weeks. It includes a single hero cut, fully finished, with concept, direction and grade included, one revision round, and rights and production records from day one. It suits a team that wants to see how the work holds up before committing a campaign to it.
Commercial or brand film: from €6,500
A full campaign from concept to master, typically 4-6 weeks: concept, treatment and shot planning, two revision rounds defined up front, verticals, cutdowns and ad variants, and broadcast and platform masters.
Hybrid production: from €8,000
Live action combined with AI, 3D and VFX, typically 4-6 weeks, for briefs that need a real performance or a real product on camera. It covers a shoot day with VFX and AI supervision, generated environments around live plates, 3D for products that must match exactly, and finishing in the same pipeline with one grade.
Ad variants & performance set: from €2,500 per set
A hero cut plus the verticals, hooks and UGC-style variants a media team needs for testing, from one production, typically 1-2 weeks.
Specialist layers inside someone else’s production
Post & specialist layer, from €1,500 per project: AI, 3D or VFX only, to your direction, plus editing, colour, sound, compositing, upscaling, versioning and delivery.
3D, CGI & VFX layer, from €1,800 per scope: product visualisation, 3D environments, character animation and compositing onto your live-action plates.
For agencies
Agencies that need production under their own name can use white-label production, from €4,000 per month, with an NDA signed before the brief is discussed. The agency page explains how that works.
AI vs traditional production: where the money goes
A traditional shoot spends much of its budget on physical production: locations, sets, crew days and travel. AI production shifts effort towards visual development, generation, review and finishing. Neither is automatically cheaper; the right method depends on the shot.
AI tends to add value where a shoot would be impractical: impossible locations, stylised worlds, many versions from one build, or a late brand change that would otherwise mean a reshoot. Live action is still the right call for talent-led emotional performance, live events and documentary material. Many briefs are well served by a mix, which is exactly what hybrid production is for. On AI25 projects that choice is made shot by shot and explained in the treatment.
The price of a professional AI film reflects creative direction, consistency across a runtime, licensed and documented assets, finishing and delivery in every format the campaign requires.
How to brief so the estimate stays under control
You get a faster, more accurate number when the brief answers the three questions that change the price:
The deliverables list: hero cut, cutdowns, verticals, language versions, subtitles.
What must be exact: products, packaging, logos or people that cannot be approximated.
Delivery date and budget range: when the film is needed and roughly what it can cost.
With that in hand, AI25 sends a first treatment on the schedule agreed for your brief, then a fixed estimate with scope, deliverables, revision rounds and timeline in writing. The number in the estimate is the number on the invoice. For the full brief, see our guide to writing a video production brief for an AI commercial; for the decisions before it, see how to plan a commercial video.
Get an estimate for your film
See every tier on the pricing page, or send your brief and get a first treatment on the schedule agreed for your brief.
Quick answers
Process, timelines, pricing & deliverables.
How much does an AI commercial cost?
At AI25, a commercial or brand film starts from €6,500 and an AI creative test from €2,500, excluding VAT. Hybrid production with a live-action shoot starts from €8,000. The final price is a fixed estimate based on scope.
Do AI25 prices include VAT?
No. All prices on the AI25 pricing page exclude VAT. Applicable third-party costs are confirmed in the written estimate.
Can the price change after the estimate is agreed?
The estimate is fixed and agreed in writing. Rush work and out-of-scope additions are quoted separately before they are produced, so any change is visible before it costs anything.
Is AI video production cheaper than a traditional shoot?
Not automatically. AI removes some physical production costs but adds visual development, generation and review. It is often more efficient for versions, impossible locations and late changes; live action remains the right choice for real performances.
What is included in the AI creative test?
A single hero cut, fully finished, with concept, direction and grade included, one revision round, and rights and production records from day one. It typically takes 2-4 weeks.
How quickly can I get a number?
Send the brief with deliverables, deadline and budget range. You receive a first treatment on the schedule agreed for your brief, followed by a fixed estimate in writing.
