Knowing how to price your DJ jobs
Knowing how to price your DJ jobs
Something that most DJs really struggle with is deciding how much to charge for DJ jobs. It can be very tough to judge how much you should be charging. There are many different factors and things to take into consideration when deciding on a price quote for DJ work.
Each DJ job should be priced differently taking into consideration the various factors from this article. You should not get in the habit of just having a set price for your services as this is being lazy and can end up costing you money or more importantly some top DJ work.
It is important to set yourself a minimum price for DJ work and that you always cover your expenses. Do not get caught in the trap of free to play DJ sets to build yout reputation. This really is not the way forward. You pay out money on fresh new tracks, new equipment, travel, and are doing a DJ job, you deserve to at least have your expenses covered, a few free guest lists, and a few free drinks!
How far is the DJ job from you? If the booking is a large distance from where you live your costs will be higher. Take into account any expenses you will incur for travelling to the club or party and unless it is added as part of your DJ rider you should always factor in your travelling costs to your price quote.
How big is the venue? If the venue you have been booked for holds one hundred people then consider it different to a venue which holds one thousand people. You couldn't realistically charge the same price for a small and large venues so try and work out a method for your price quotes. Maybe something like fifty Pounds per one hundred people would be a fair way?
Are you the warm up DJ? If you have been brought in to do the warm up DJ job you cannot expect to charge as much as the peak time DJ which is usually a headline act. If you have been offered warm up DJ work this usually means you are on trial to see how well you perform, so it is best to play for just expenses to get your foot in the door.
Are you the peak time DJ? If you have been hired as the main DJ for the event you should be getting paid an amount to show that. If a booker has contacted and offered you peak time DJ work this means they already know your skills and want your vibe for their event. They will expect to pay the going rate for a peak time DJ for their promotion and venue size.
How long is your DJ job? Quite a few DJs charge by the hour which can be a good method for pricing national DJ work. A good idea would be to charge a set amount for your one or two hour DJ sets then offer a discounted rate to the booker if they hire you for further hours.
Is this a regular booking? If you have been offered a DJ job and it may turn out to be a regular booking, consider offering your DJ services for a cheaper than usual rate. This may turn out to be regular and guaranteed DJ work which would be a far greater reward than just a one off booking. It will help to get your name known and build your reputation as a DJ.
What is a usual price? There is no standard or usual DJ price but we would suggest that a local DJ job would be in the region of fifty to one hundred and fifty Pounds and a national DJ job around two hundred and fifty to five hundred Pounds. Please do not see this as definitive, but simply a guide.
Will the DJ job improve your reputation? There will be DJ jobs that come available which may greatly improve your DJ reputation. It is a very good idea to play these sorts of DJ bookings as cheaply as possible, or just for expenses. This is because the increase in repuation would be a bigger demand and more DJ work.
For DJ jobs you do not care about? We all get offers for DJ work but sometimes you are not that bothered about it. These are the sorts of bookings where you can try and be a bit cheeky with your price quote. Ask for double what you normally would. It doesn't matter if the booker decides not to hire you, but you could end up with a nice result and earning more than usual.
We hope this article will help you with your pricing your DJ jobs.
Something that most DJs really struggle with is deciding how much to charge for DJ jobs. It can be very tough to judge how much you should be charging. There are many different factors and things to take into consideration when deciding on a price quote for DJ work.
Each DJ job should be priced differently taking into consideration the various factors from this article. You should not get in the habit of just having a set price for your services as this is being lazy and can end up costing you money or more importantly some top DJ work.
It is important to set yourself a minimum price for DJ work and that you always cover your expenses. Do not get caught in the trap of free to play DJ sets to build yout reputation. This really is not the way forward. You pay out money on fresh new tracks, new equipment, travel, and are doing a DJ job, you deserve to at least have your expenses covered, a few free guest lists, and a few free drinks!
How far is the DJ job from you? If the booking is a large distance from where you live your costs will be higher. Take into account any expenses you will incur for travelling to the club or party and unless it is added as part of your DJ rider you should always factor in your travelling costs to your price quote.
How big is the venue? If the venue you have been booked for holds one hundred people then consider it different to a venue which holds one thousand people. You couldn't realistically charge the same price for a small and large venues so try and work out a method for your price quotes. Maybe something like fifty Pounds per one hundred people would be a fair way?
Are you the warm up DJ? If you have been brought in to do the warm up DJ job you cannot expect to charge as much as the peak time DJ which is usually a headline act. If you have been offered warm up DJ work this usually means you are on trial to see how well you perform, so it is best to play for just expenses to get your foot in the door.
Are you the peak time DJ? If you have been hired as the main DJ for the event you should be getting paid an amount to show that. If a booker has contacted and offered you peak time DJ work this means they already know your skills and want your vibe for their event. They will expect to pay the going rate for a peak time DJ for their promotion and venue size.
How long is your DJ job? Quite a few DJs charge by the hour which can be a good method for pricing national DJ work. A good idea would be to charge a set amount for your one or two hour DJ sets then offer a discounted rate to the booker if they hire you for further hours.
Is this a regular booking? If you have been offered a DJ job and it may turn out to be a regular booking, consider offering your DJ services for a cheaper than usual rate. This may turn out to be regular and guaranteed DJ work which would be a far greater reward than just a one off booking. It will help to get your name known and build your reputation as a DJ.
What is a usual price? There is no standard or usual DJ price but we would suggest that a local DJ job would be in the region of fifty to one hundred and fifty Pounds and a national DJ job around two hundred and fifty to five hundred Pounds. Please do not see this as definitive, but simply a guide.
Will the DJ job improve your reputation? There will be DJ jobs that come available which may greatly improve your DJ reputation. It is a very good idea to play these sorts of DJ bookings as cheaply as possible, or just for expenses. This is because the increase in repuation would be a bigger demand and more DJ work.
For DJ jobs you do not care about? We all get offers for DJ work but sometimes you are not that bothered about it. These are the sorts of bookings where you can try and be a bit cheeky with your price quote. Ask for double what you normally would. It doesn't matter if the booker decides not to hire you, but you could end up with a nice result and earning more than usual.
We hope this article will help you with your pricing your DJ jobs.
