How Much Does Stock Footage Cost?
How much does stock footage cost?
Answer - From free to £500+ per clip. Typically, £10-£100 for HD, £50-£200 for 4K, and £1,000-£10,000+ for premium packs fit for TV or film.
But here’s my spin—I’m Chris Homer, a battle-scarred broadcast pro who’s shot across the globe, and at www.chrishomer.uk, I’m dishing out cinematic 4K footage from £29 a clip.
Packs? £100 to £18,995, currently averaging £21.46 a clip across 13,682 clips. No extra fees for 4K, no broadcast upcharges—just raw value.
This isn’t a stock footage pricing audit; it’s my two decades’ worth of wisdom, mused over while rain drums my window and I daydream of mountain summits. I’ll stack my stuff against the top 10 providers (my take, not their ledger), compare it to shooting your own, and wax lyrical about why my library—seen on Netflix, billions of views strong—is your golden ticket. Let’s dive in.
Here I am… searching for the perfect shot!
The Quick Answer: Stock Footage Costs in 2025
For the Google crowd wanting a fast fix:
Free: Low-res scraps (think Pexels)—blog bait, not TV material.
Budget: £5-£30/clip (Shutterstock, Storyblocks vibes)—HD, basic, often subscription-walled.
Mid-Tier: £50-£150/clip (Pond5, Getty-ish)—4K, decent, but watch for broadcast or 4K fees.
Premium: £200-£500+/clip, £1,000-£10,000+ packs (Artgrid, Frame.io feels)—top-shelf, wallet-shredding.
Chris Homer: £29 singles (e.g., “Flying Over British Countryside with Sheep”), packs from £100 to £18,995 (Birmingham #236, £17.94/clip)—4K, cinematic, broadcast-ready, no sneaky costs.
That’s my rough sketch from memory, not a live ticker—prices shift, and I’m no bean-counter. Just an old cameraman watching rain streak the glass, dreaming of the next peak. Stick around; I’ve got tales to tell.
The Top 10 Providers vs. Me: My Take, Not Their Invoice
Disclaimer: This is my opinion, forged from 20 years on the world’s biggest productions—Global sports, dramas—not a forensic pricing check. I’m just riffing from experience, not auditing the books.
Stock footage is a wild ride, and the top dogs have their claws out. Here’s how I see the top 10 (circa March 2025) versus me, Chris Homer, a one-man storm with a few nice lenses:
Shutterstock: Felt like £10-£79/clip, £29/month for 10. 4K upcharges—£50? TV rights—£100+? Wide circulation-£500? Generic shots, corporate sheen.
Getty Images: £150-£500/clip in my day. A 4K London aerial? £1,000+ with broadcast fees. Classy, costly.
Pond5: £15-£200/clip, maybe as low as £75 for 4K. Royalty-free until TV fees hit—£150+ easily? Good, not gripping.
Storyblocks: £12-£30/clip, £199/year unlimited-ish. 4K extras, 181 Birmingham clips vs. my 1,059—outgunned.
Adobe Stock: £30-£200/clip, £49/month for 10. Fees stacked for 4K, commercial use—not my TV jam.
Artgrid: £399/year unlimited, £50-£100/clip vibes. Pretty, but vague—pay big, grab what’s there, not great.
Frame.io (Getty): £200-£600/clip, packs in thousands. High-flying, but feels like jet fuel prices.
Motion Array: £25/month HD, £50 for 4K. Broadcast fees hid in the shadows—hit-or-miss quality.
Videohive (Envato): £10-£100/clip, £40 avg. Niche, budget-friendly, light on UK meat.
Pexels: Free, low-res, no 4K or TV chops. YouTube scraps, not pro turf.
Me?
www.ChrisHomer.uk £29 singles—like “Flying Over British Countryside with Sheep,” 31 seconds of 4K Shropshire drone poetry.
Clip Packs? A few random examples….
1,059 clips, 5h 53m, £18,995 (£17.94/clip).
102 clips, 28m 28s, £1,795 (£17.60/clip).
94 clips, 41m 33s, £1,950 (£20.74/clip)—that £29 sheep shot’s in there. No 4K fees. No TV gouging. Shot with drones, gimbals, helicopters—better than their premium, cheaper than their middling stuff. My lens, my rules—take it as my rain-soaked ramble, not gospel.
Why My Footage Stands Tall
I’m no stock mill—I’m a specialist cameraman who’s wrestled drones in 30+ countries, slung blimps over stadiums, and cooked steaks in Snowdonia blizzards, beard dripping ice. My footage? It’s hit Netflix, clocked billions of views—TV, docs, films, you name it. :
Birmingham Clip Pack #236 - 1,059 clips—drone arcs over Grand Central, gimbal slow-mos at the Bullring, Spaghetti Junction hyperlapses—£17.94/clip. :
Isle of Skye Clip Pack #205 - 102 clips—Neist Point cliffs, Old Man of Storr unveils—£17.60 each.
That £29 “Flying Over British Countryside with Sheep”? 31 seconds of Long Mynd serenity—wild sheep, heather, drone magic.
Why I’m untouchable, in my book:
Cinematic Soul: Tokyo chaos, blimps over the countryside, helicopters above London—I’ve lived it. Slow-mo cityscapes, misty timelapses, rugged vistas—TV gold.
No Fee Nonsense: 4K? Free. Broadcast? Free. Getty’s £200 TV tax? Sod off—one price, all in.
Depth That Drops Jaws: Currently (March 2025),—256 packs, 13,682 clips. More clips than raindrops outside, quality sharper than my summit dreams.
UK Grit, Global Edge: Birmingham’s pulse, Skye’s wild heart, Norwich’s charm (#97, 24 clips, £800)—I capture what big platforms sand down.
I’m Chris Homer—ex-Army ISTAR, “Drone Jedi”, 20 years on the world’s wildest gigs. Rain’s tapping; I’m plotting peaks. My footage isn’t cheap—it’s a bloody bargain, my take anyway.
Clip Packs vs. Shooting It Yourself: My Hard-Earned Maths
Think my packs cost a mint? Try filming it yourself—I’ve got the scars. Here’s my back-of-the-napkin breakdown, from a guy who’s dodged Rajasthan heat and Snowdonia gales:
Birmingham (Like #236)
DIY: 1,059 clips, 5h 53m. 20-30 days—drones (£3,000+), crew (£500-£1,000/day), permits (£1,000-£3,000), travel (£1,000), hotels (£2,000), editing (10-20 days, £300-£500/day). Total: £30,000-£60,000. Rain for a week? Add £10,000—Lisbon taught me that.
My Pack: £18,995. 1,059 clips, £17.94 each. 4K, done—no sodden boots, no council haggling.
Isle of Skye (Like #205)
DIY: 102 clips, 28m 28s. 5-10 days—flights (£500-£1,000), hotels (£1,000), crew (£5,000-£10,000), gear (£2,000), permits (£500), editing (£1,500-£3,000). Total: £10,000-£20,000. Fog rolls in? You’re knackered.
My Pack: £1,795. 102 clips, £17.60 each. Neist Point, Quiraing—shot, graded, yours.
Long Mynd (Like #36)
DIY: 94 clips, 41m 33s. 5-7 days—drone (£3,000), crew (£2,500-£5,000), travel (£500), permits (£300), editing (£1,500). Total: £7,800-£15,000. Sheep scatter? Tough.
My Pack: £1,950. 94 clips, £20.74 each—that £29 sheep shot included. No chasing livestock.
Snowdonia Winter (Like #147)
DIY: 121 clips, 34m 50s. 7-14 days—flights (£500), hotels (£1,400), crew (£7,000-£14,000), gear (£2,000), permits (£500), editing (£2,100-£4,200). Total: £13,500-£30,000. Blizzard shuts you down? Cry into your pot noodle.
My Pack: £4,500. 121 clips, £37.19 each. Cloud inversions, wild camping—done, no frostbite.
I’ve shot in Tokyo madness, Moroccan deserts—£10,000 permits, £50,000 gigs. My packs? I’ve eaten the pain; you get the glory. No weather dice, no crew drama—just 4K brilliance, my summit-soaked opinion.
Creation Costs: My Life in the Lens
Why’s my pricing so sharp? I’ve lived it—£400,000 cameras, £75,000 drones, £1m blimps. Decades of flights, hotels from luxe to lousy, permits up to £10,000—my Tokyo pack (#101, £2,500) costs A LOT to get there! Months of dawn drone runs, gimbal hikes—£50,000+ in sweat and tech. I’ve camped in -37°C windchills, sizzling steaks with an icy beard, for…… the “fun” of it?
A bespoke shoot? £20,000-£60,000 for a couple of weeks in Birmingham —crew, gear, transport, permits, edits. My pack’s £18,995—I’ve fought the battles, you cash the wins. Rain’s hypnotic today; I’d rather be up high, but this library’s my summit for now.
Netflix, Billions of Views, and No Fee Chases
My footage isn’t theory—it’s battle-tested. Seen on Netflix—dramas, docs—clocked billions of views worldwide, no exaggeration. I won’t spill client beans (they’re cagey), but my shots—drones over stadiums, gimbals in urban sprawl—light up screens. A big provider once hounded me for £800 extra on a 2-second clip—cheeky sods. My way? Buy once, use forever—no 4K fees, no TV fees. in a series? £18,995, sorted. Multiple shots, in a film? £1,795, yours. No ambushes—just art, my 20-year lens on it.
Why “Cheap”? It’s Value, Rainy Days and All
£29 for “Flying Over British Countryside with Sheep” isn’t cheap—it’s a gift from the gods.
It’s Direct: No suits—just me, rain-gazing, summit-dreaming, to you.
Heart: I want filmmakers, TV crews, indies thriving—not broke.
A bespoke Norwich shoot? £5,000+, and the weather roulette. My pack’s £33.33/clip—cinematic, instant. Value’s my hymn, sung to this rainy rhythm.
Chris Homer, Rainy Days, Epic Plays
Another disclaimer: This is my yarn—20 years on mega-productions, not a price tag audit. If I’m off on today’s rates, chalk it up to an old pro dreaming out the rainy window.
Stock footage costs plenty—unless you’re with me. I deliver 4K cinematic fire at honest prices. My current 76 hours and 13,682 clips—sings it.
Depth, variety, soul. No 4K upcharges, no TV fees—radical, brilliant.
I’ve slung wires over Moscow, flown drones at Wembley, earned a Brigadier’s nod in Iraq—bespoke shoots can be £50,000 flops. My library? Instant, cheaper, sharper. At chrishomer.uk, it’s £29 to £18,995—your next epic’s here, while I watch rain and crave peaks.
Thanks for reading my musings.
Chris Homer
