Quick answer
A 100,000-follower fitness account at 3% engagement prices a sponsored post at about $2,400 — $24 per 1,000 followers — with reels at $2,760 and stories at $840. Brands pay for buying intent, not follower counts, so niche and engagement move the rate more than size.
How the Instagram Money Calculator works, step by step
Enter your followers, average engagement rate, niche, and how many sponsored posts, reels and stories you expect to sell in a month. The calculator builds a per-format rate from reach and engagement rather than followers alone, then totals the month.
The baseline model multiplies followers by a per-1,000-follower rate set by niche: finance and investing at $38, business and marketing at $32, beauty at $26, fitness and health at $24, tech and gadgets at $24, travel at $21, fashion at $20, food at $19, comedy and entertainment at $12, and gaming at $10. Finance audiences command more because the products sold to them carry more margin. At the calculator's defaults — 85,000 followers, 3.2% engagement, beauty niche — the post rate is $2,357, the reel $2,711 and the story $825, for a $33,946 month across four posts, six reels and ten stories.
Engagement adjusts the baseline. The factor is your engagement rate divided by 3, clamped between 0.4 and 2: 3% engagement leaves the rate unchanged, 6% doubles it, and 1.2% cuts it to 0.4 times. Weak engagement moves the price down regardless of follower count, because reach is what the brand is buying.
Formats price differently. A reel costs 1.15 times a feed post in this calculator, reflecting reels' reach advantage; a story costs 0.35 times a post, and stories are usually sold in sequences. Bundling formats into a package raises the total while giving the brand a discount per piece — the structure most mid-size creators actually sell.
These are negotiation ranges built on industry norms, not guarantees — Instagram publishes no rate card. Usage rights and exclusivity are priced separately from the post itself, and cross-check your rate against reach: brands buying on CPM typically pay $10 to $30 per 1,000 accounts reached, so a rate your reach cannot justify will not survive the first renewal.
The formula
Post rate = (followers / 1,000) x niche rate per 1,000 x engagement factor, where the factor is engagement / 3, clamped between 0.4 and 2. Reel rate = post rate x 1.15; story rate = post rate x 0.35.
Worked example — try it on the calculator above
Worked example: 100,000 followers, 3% engagement, fitness niche
Baseline: 100 x $24 per 1,000 followers = $2,400 per post. Engagement at 3% gives a factor of exactly 1.0, so no adjustment. A reel prices at $2,400 x 1.15 = $2,760 and a story at $2,400 x 0.35 = $840. A typical monthly package — two posts, two reels and six stories — totals $4,800 + $5,520 + $5,040 = $15,360, usually offered at a round $14,000 to $15,000 as a bundle. The same account at 6% engagement would price the post at $4,800, because the engagement factor doubles. The same account in finance, at $38 per 1,000 followers, would price the post at $3,800 and the package at $24,320 — niche alone moves the month by nearly $9,000.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much should I charge for a sponsored post?
Start from $10 per 1,000 followers for a feed post at average engagement — the rough industry baseline — then adjust: add for engagement above 3%, a high-value niche (finance, B2B, tech), usage rights or exclusivity; accept less for a long-term ambassador deal with guaranteed volume. Cross-check against your reach: brands buying on CPM typically pay $10 to $30 per 1,000 accounts reached.
How many followers do you need to make money on Instagram?
Brand deals in the nano and micro tiers (1,000 to 50,000 followers) are routine in focused niches — a 5,000-follower account reviewing local restaurants or specific software can charge $50 to $250 per post. Affiliate income and digital products can start at any size. What sponsors buy is an audience that acts, which a small engaged niche provides better than a large passive one.
What are usage rights and why do they cost extra?
Usage rights let the brand reuse your content in its own ads. They are priced separately from the post itself — commonly 30 to 100% of the base rate per period of use, with paid-ad (whitelisting) rights at the top of the range. Granting unlimited usage in perpetuity for free is the most common way creators undercharge; always time-limit rights in writing.
Do reels pay more than posts?
Usually, yes, where reels deliver more reach — brands follow the views. This calculator prices reels at 1.15 times a feed post, and rates of 1.2 to 1.5 times a static post are common for reels from accounts whose reels outperform. If your reels underperform your posts, price to your own data: sponsors renew on reported reach, so rates anchored to your insights screenshots are the ones that hold.
Estimates, not advice. This calculator provides educational estimates based on the inputs you enter and the assumptions shown on this page. It is not financial, tax or investment advice, and it cannot see your full situation. Verify important figures against official sources, and consider a qualified professional for decisions about your own money. See our Disclaimer and Methodology.