How much does a PR agency cost?

PR agency retainers commonly run US$5,000 a month or more. Most agencies charge a monthly retainer, so you pay whether or not a story runs.

The short answer

Retainers commonly run US$5,000 a month or more. That is the figure we use throughout this site. Pricing varies by agency, by city and by how much work is included, so treat any single number as a starting point and ask for a written scope.

Why agencies charge a retainer

PR work is mostly ongoing effort: reading the news, developing angles, building journalist relationships and pitching week after week. Agencies price that as a monthly fee because the work happens whether or not a story is published.

That is also the catch. A retainer pays for the effort, not the outcome. Coverage depends on editors saying yes, so a good month of work can still produce nothing, and the invoice arrives anyway.

What the money usually pays for

• Research: tracking the news and spotting stories you could comment on
• Ideas: turning what you know into angles a journalist might use
• Vetting: judging which opportunities are worth your time
• Connecting: knowing who to pitch, usually from the agency's own contacts
• Pitching: writing and sending the emails on your behalf
• Account management: calls, reports and meetings

Some of that is skilled work that is hard to replace. Some of it is research and organizing that software can now do every morning.

Why the price varies so much

Three things move the number most: how senior the people on your account are, how many hours are included, and how many other clients the team is juggling. A boutique with a founder on your account will price differently from a large firm that hands you to a junior.

Scope matters just as much. A retainer that covers only media relations costs less than one that also covers events, social, messaging work and reporting. Ask for a line-by-line list so you can compare like with like.

Other fees to watch for

• Set-up or onboarding fees at the start
• Charges for press releases, media kits or photography
• Minimum terms, often several months, with notice periods
• Costs passed through for events, wire services or tools

Compare the price with the outcome

Divide the monthly fee by what you can actually verify: pitches sent, replies received and pieces published. That gives you a fair way to judge value over a few months.

Questions to ask before you sign

1. What exactly is in the monthly fee, and what costs extra?
2. How long is the minimum term, and what does it cost to leave early?
3. Who will actually do the work day to day?
4. How many pitches a month will go out, and to whom?
5. How do you report results, and what counts as a result?
6. Who owns the journalist relationships if we stop working together?

When an agency makes sense

An agency earns its fee when you have a large launch, a crisis, a regulated industry or a team with no time at all. It also makes sense when you want a professional handling sensitive messaging.

When you can do it yourself

If you are a founder or small business owner with something real to say, most of the value is in showing up consistently with a good angle. That takes about 15 minutes a day, not a retainer.

A lower-cost route

EarnedDesk is US$199 a month with a 3-day free trial. Each morning it picks the stories worth responding to, gives you five ideas with an honest verdict, and shows you the journalist who wrote each article. You write and send the pitch from your own email, and the relationship stays with you.

It won't run a campaign for you, and it can't guarantee coverage. If you want hands-on help, Bootcamp is a done-with-you media training service, priced on application.