A production company, a commercial videographer, or an AI commercial?
A production company charges thousands and takes weeks. An AI commercial costs a fraction and takes less time. What you lose, what you keep, with numbers.
Short answer
Hire a production company when the ad needs real people in a real place: your actual store, your product moving in a customer's hands, a known face, or a broadcast conform (the station-ready file) done for you. Pick an AI commercial when you need a real-looking spot without a crew, a shoot day or a five-figure quote, and you can live with generated people and places. Many brands do both: one filmed hero spot a year, and AI commercials for the versions, cut-downs (shorter versions of the same ad) and tests in between.
What a production company is
A production company plans, films and edits your commercial with a crew; search for commercial video production or TV commercial production companies and these are the firms you find, and a commercial videographer is the one-person version of the same service. A small agency or production company charges a day rate of $2,500 to $8,000, editing at $100 to $300 an hour, and a project minimum of $5,000 to $15,000; a finished 30-second commercial runs $5,000 to $50,000 and up (Vidico, 21 Sep 2026). A freelance producer is cheaper: a day rate of $600 to $1,200, editing at $60 to $150 an hour and a project minimum of $1,000 to $3,000 (Upwork and Vidico). A simple local TV spot from a local production company runs $1,500 to $10,000 (Adwave, citing Moonb's 2026 guide). All of these are the companies' own published ranges, checked November 4, 2026.†
What we are
customcommercials.ai makes the commercial with AI instead of a crew. You write a brief. We write the storyboard (a shot-by-shot plan with a picture for most shots) and show a preview still (one picture of what each shot will look like) for most shots, free. You approve and pay once for the finished length. Then we make every shot: AI spokespeople (realistic presenters who say your lines on camera), cinematic B-roll (the footage that plays while someone talks), stills, a voice, music and an end card (the last screen with your name and what to do next), delivered in wide 16:9, vertical 9:16 and square 1:1. Reshoots (making one shot again with new words or a new description) are included up to an allowance shown on the commercial's page; edits and re-renders afterward are free. Our pricing page has the rate, what a commercial costs compares every option with sources, and AI commercials shows how one is made.
Side by side
| What | A production company | customcommercials.ai |
|---|---|---|
| Who makes the ad | A producer, a director, a crew, actors and an editor. | AI models directed by a storyboard you approve: HeyGen presenters, Kling 3 Pro and Veo 3.1 Fast B-roll, FLUX stills, an ElevenLabs voice. |
| How you pay | A quote: $5,000 to $50,000 and up for a 30-second spot, with a project minimum of $5,000 to $15,000. A freelancer from $1,000 to $3,000.† | A set price for each format and finished length, shown in dollars on the storyboard before you approve. |
| What you see before paying | A treatment and a quote; sometimes storyboards, at a cost. | The whole storyboard with preview stills and the exact price, free. |
| What you get | Real footage of your real place, product and people, lit and shot by professionals; a conform for the station if you pay for it. | Generated people and places that follow your storyboard; your product from your own photo or clip; a 1080p file you check against the station's specs. |
| Shapes | Cut-downs and other shapes are extra editing hours. | Wide, vertical and square from one approval. |
| Revisions | Another edit round, or another shoot day. | Reshoots included up to an allowance; edits and re-renders free within the included limits. |
| Time | Weeks: pre-production, a shoot day, post-production. | Each shot is made in the background; you watch them arrive on the commercial's page. |
| Contract or minimum | A signed quote and a project minimum. | No plan, no minimum beyond 6 seconds. Time you buy stays usable for 365 days. |
Prices checked November 4, 2026.
A production company's own figures: vidico.com/news/video-production-cost/.
† The ranges come from production companies' own marketing (Vidico, 21 Sep 2026; Adwave citing Moonb's 2026 guide); no audited survey exists.
When a production company is the better choice
- The ad must show your real store, kitchen, office or team.
- Your physical product must move in a real person's hands.
- You want a known actor, a spokesperson from your own company on camera, or a specific location you own.
- The station wants a broadcast conform and you want someone to deliver it.
- The finish of real lenses, real lighting and a real crew is the point of the spot.
When we are
- You need a real-looking spot and have no budget for a crew.
- You want to see the plan, with a preview still for most shots, and the price, before spending anything.
- You need versions: a new hook (the first two seconds that make someone stay), a new offer, a new length, without a second shoot day.
- You want three shapes from one approval for TV, YouTube and social.
- You want to test ideas cheaply before filming the one that works.
Commercials open soon
We are not taking new orders yet. Email us and we will tell you when they open, and what the price is before anyone pays.
Questions
How much does a production company charge for a commercial?
A small agency or production company charges $5,000 to $50,000 and up for a 30-second commercial, with a project minimum of $5,000 to $15,000, a day rate of $2,500 to $8,000 and editing at $100 to $300 an hour (Vidico, 21 Sep 2026). A freelance producer starts at a project minimum of $1,000 to $3,000. A simple local TV spot runs $1,500 to $10,000 (Adwave, citing Moonb's 2026 guide).
What do you lose with an AI commercial?
Real footage of your own place and people, your exact product in motion, and the finish of a crew's lenses and lighting. Text inside the footage comes from our titles, not from the model. You also check the words yourself before you publish, and you conform the file to a station's specs if it asks.
When should I hire a production company?
When the ad has to show something real that cannot be generated: your store, your staff, your product in a hand, a known face, or a location you own. Also when a station needs a delivered conform and you want it handled, or when the craft of a real shoot is the message.
Can an AI commercial look as good?
For many spots, close enough that viewers watch the ad, not the pixels: cinematic B-roll, a realistic presenter, a clean end card. It is still generated footage, so some shots look generated, and we show you every preview still before you pay so you decide. For a real place or a real product in motion, a shoot still wins.
Can I mix both?
Yes. Many brands film one hero spot a year and use AI commercials for the versions, the cut-downs and the tests in between. Your filmed footage can also go into a commercial here as your own media (uploading your own media needs a paid plan).