the short version
- Two studios that publish ranges do not agree on a single number, because a 60-second film is not one product.
- Flowjam describes tiers from $1,500 to $75,000 and sells its own filmed plans from $15,000. Epipheo’s projects run from $5,000 to $150,000 and up, and they will not produce under $15,000.
- Ignura’s launch film is 30–60 seconds, about two weeks, from £3,000, for X, your site and the App Store.
- The price moves with who makes it, whether anyone is filmed, the script, the style, revisions, voice and rush. Runtime is the small part.
In this post5 sections
A startup launch video is the 30 to 60 seconds you put on X, on the homepage, and sometimes in the App Store. Quotes differ by a factor of ten for “the same video” because the video was never the same. One is a freelancer animating a script you wrote. The next is a crew, a founder on camera, and a composer.
This post does not invent a market average. Two studios publish ranges on their own sites, and we publish ours. The figures are theirs and ours, checked on the pages linked, in October 2026. Where a page is a studio describing other people’s prices, we attribute it. We do not own those jobs and we did not audit them.
How we structure the 45 seconds, once you are making one, is the launch film structure. Whether the opening survives a mute autoplay is the stop-scrolling test.
What the published ranges actually are
Flowjam is a launch-video studio. Their pricing article, last reviewed 27 September 2026, says the ranges come from briefs they quote, projects they deliver, and quotes founders forward them. Treat that as one studio’s map, not a census.
They describe four tiers:
| Tier | Their published range | What they say you are buying |
|---|---|---|
| Freelancer, animated | $1,500–$5,000 | One motion designer, 30–60 seconds, stock music, two revision rounds |
| Studio, animated | $5,000–$15,000 | A small team, script, storyboard, animation, a proper soundtrack, more revision rounds |
| Founder on camera | $15,000–$35,000 | A director and a camera, the shoot cut into the film, original music |
| Cinematic | $35,000–$75,000+ | A multi-day shoot, a larger team, an original score, several cuts and platform versions |
Their own plans, in the same article, are filmed: $15,000 for the film, $20,000 with a 100,000-view guarantee, $30,000 with 500,000, and $40,000 with a million. They say they ship in 14 days. We are not repeating the view guarantees as results. They are what that menu charges. A guarantee you cannot read the terms of is not a number to plan on.
Notice the gap. The article’s cheap tiers are Flowjam describing the market. Flowjam’s own checkout, as printed there, starts at $15,000 and is filmed. Do not email them for the $1,500 tier and expect it to be their product.
Epipheo publishes a different map, for explainers rather than only launch films. Most of their projects, they say, land between $5,000 and $150,000+. The three bands on the page are Essential at $5,000–$25,000 (30–60 seconds, 2D or motion graphics, stock or AI voice, two revision rounds, 4–6 weeks), Signature at $25,000–$75,000, and Flagship at $75,000+. They also say the minimum production they will take is $15,000. Below that, they tell you to use a template tool or a freelancer.
Their comparison table, which is their characterisation and not a survey we ran, puts a DIY or AI tool at $0–$500 a month, a freelancer at $2,000–$15,000 a project, and an agency engagement (themselves) at $15,000–$150,000+. Style bands on the same page, for a 60–90 second piece: motion graphics $10,000–$35,000, 2D $15,000–$45,000, 3D $35,000–$120,000, live action $40,000–$250,000. A social ad cut, 15–30 seconds, they list at $5,000–$20,000.
Epipheo and Flowjam overlap, and they do not match. Both put a serious studio film in the tens of thousands. Flowjam’s article is willing to describe a freelancer film under $5,000. Epipheo’s floor for their own production is $15,000. A founder reading one of those pages and treating it as “the price” will mis-budget. Read both, then decide which product you are in.
What we charge
Ignura’s launch film is 30–60 seconds, for X, your site and the App Store, in about two weeks, from £3,000. That is the line on the launch film page and on the pricing page. It sits under Epipheo’s minimum and under Flowjam’s own filmed plans, and inside the freelancer-to-small-studio band those articles describe. We are not claiming their tiers are a law. We are telling you our number so you can place it.
£3,000 and up is 50% upfront and 50% on delivery. The film is on that line. We do not charge by the hour, and we do not sell a view guarantee on the film. The only results promise we make is on UGC: if a video doesn’t hit 10k views within 2 weeks, you get your UGC money back. A launch film is a different asset. It has to work muted, on a homepage, for months. The structure is six beats and an end card, not a creator talking.
If the film is one piece of a larger launch, Ignite is the four-week version of the whole menu, from £16,000. You do not have to buy it to get the film.
What changes the price
These are the levers named on the Flowjam and Epipheo pages. We are not adding levers they did not.
Who is in the chair. Flowjam’s first tier is one freelancer. The second is a small studio. Epipheo puts a freelancer at $2,000–$15,000 and their own production from $15,000. Headcount is the jump, not the stopwatch.
Filmed or animated. Flowjam prices a founder shoot as its own tier, from $15,000. Epipheo’s live-action band starts at $40,000. A camera day is not the animation column. If you do not need to be on camera, say so before anyone scouts a location.
The script. Epipheo says a locked script is the cheap version, and starting from a blank page adds two to four weeks. A smooth film of a confused product is the failure mode. Pay for the script, or bring one you would say out loud.
Style and length. Epipheo says 3D, character animation and live action each roughly double the budget at the same runtime, and that every extra 15 seconds is roughly another week of animation. Flowjam argues studios should not be compared per minute, because the work before the first frame dominates. Do not add a minute to feel you got more video.
Revisions, voice, rush, extra cuts. Epipheo says each extra revision round adds roughly 8–12% and about a week. They price AI or stock voice as nearly free, and professional union voiceover at $1,000–$5,000. Both studios say compressing the schedule runs about 25–50% more. Epipheo may decline under three weeks. Flowjam treats two weeks as a rush against a 4–6 week ordinary timeline. Our ordinary film is about two weeks, and that is the £3,000 starting scope, not a rush fee. Flowjam says studios they see charge $500–$1,500 per extra aspect ratio. Epipheo lists social cutdowns, bundled with the master, at $2,000–$8,000. A 16:9 film does not become 9:16 by cropping. Put the cuts in the first quote. The stop-scrolling test is how you judge the opening before anyone animates it.
How to pick a band without a spreadsheet
Match the film to the job it has to do, then read a published band.
If the film is one post and you can direct, Flowjam’s freelancer tier ($1,500–$5,000) is the band they describe. If it is the homepage for a year, you are in studio territory: their animated tier is $5,000–$15,000, Epipheo will not start under $15,000, and our film starts at £3,000. Those can all be true, because the films are not the same object. Ask who writes the script, whether anyone is filmed, how many revision rounds, which aspect ratios, and what a hook change costs after animation starts. A $40,000 quote for “show the app” should name the camera, the 3D, the voice or the extra cuts. A caption over a screen recording is not that quote.
Skip the view-guarantee upsell unless you can read exactly what is counted, on which platform, and what you are refunded. We do not sell one on the film.
Questions
How much does a startup launch video cost?
Published answers, not a blended average: Flowjam describes $1,500–$75,000 by tier and sells filmed plans from $15,000. Epipheo describes $5,000–$150,000+ and will not produce under $15,000. Ignura’s launch film starts at £3,000. Pick the row that matches who is making it.
Why do two 60-second videos have different prices?
Because the 60 seconds are the last step. Script, headcount, a camera, 3D, voice, revisions and extra cuts are the rest of the invoice. Epipheo and Flowjam both say this, in different numbers. Runtime is the part that looks comparable and is not.
Can a startup get a launch film for a few thousand pounds?
Yes. Ours starts at £3,000 for 30–60 seconds in about two weeks. Epipheo says that below $15,000 you should hire a freelancer or use a tool, which is them describing their own floor, not a rule about every studio. Read the scope before you celebrate the small number. Two revision rounds and a template is a different film from a script, a poster and cuts for more than one place.
What should I cut if the quote is too high?
Cut the camera, the extra length, the extra aspect ratios and the union voice before you cut the script. A short muted film with a clear opening beats a long filmed one you cannot afford to finish. If you want that trade made on your brief, book a free 15-minute call and send the date. We will tell you whether a £3,000 film is the piece, or whether the hole is somewhere else on the menu.
