How Much Do You Charge?

It’s an age old question about as complex as “Why do bad things happen to good people?” and “What came first, the chicken or the egg?”

As a comedian, how much should you charge to perform?

This is not an easy question to answer both internally and when somebody asks you. There are a lot of possible issues.

First of all, odds are when you started, you did a lot of free shows. Maybe you have become used to performing for free or for very little. It’s hard to justify asking for money to do what you love. It also doesn’t help that many venues expect us to consider “exposure” or “free food” a correct payment to entertain their crowds.

Additionally when you stop doing comedy for cheap or for free, there is a very real chance that the booker can call someone else to work cheaper then you…and so there is the very real threat that if you charge to much, the gig will go to someone else. (Sidenote, this isn’t really a threat…they’ll get what they pay for!)

This is a tough question, and ultimately YOU get to decide what is the right rate for you. Here’s what I do for me, and I hope it helps you out too.

My Initial Rate

So when I am approached and asked to do comedy by a venue, corporate, or private event I will typically charge $10 per minute. So if they want a 45 minute set, I start at $450…if they want 20 mins, I’ll charge $200.

But don’t stop there, consider travel and lodging. Will you be driving far to go do this set? Will you have to buy a hotel? At some point as a professional comedian, if this is your JOB, you need to stop spending more then you’re making. It’s a harsh reality, but it’s one all full-time comics have to reach if they want to be successful in their business.

Typically I’ll charge an extra $100 per hour I am driving. Or if I’m flying, I’ll want to consider how expensive the plane ticket is. I’ll ask if lodging is an option and if it’s not I’ll charge an extra $100 for that too…I frequently will say something like, “I’d charge $600 to come perform here, but if you have a place for me to stay I’ll charge $500.” I don’t like getting hotels, and am okay taking a pay cut if they do that work for me. (And often they’ll find a better place then what I would have paid for!)

You may be thinking “Wow, $10 per minute is way to expensive to charge as a comedian.” I respectfully disagree, because whoever is hiring you is hiring more then the time you are performing. If you are hired for 45 minutes, they are also paying for all the work you have put in to get that 45 minutes of material.

And make no mistake, you have put in a lot of work to get to where you are now. All those open mics. All those bombs. All of that joke writing, and rewriting. The sacrifices you have made to get to where you are. The time spent booking gigs, shooting out emails, getting rejected, and finding more opportunities. You have a skill that not many people have, and if you do it well…you deserve to get paid for it! Never forget that.

This is just the START of my consideration for answering the question “How much do you charge.”

In the spirit of Christmas (which is in 2 days from the time I am posting this)

“But wait, there’s Myrrh…”

There are a lot of extra factors that will likely go into how much you charge. Here are the ones that I keep in mind.

Is this a gig that will increase your “street cred” or help further your career in some kind of way? Does it “look good on the comedy resume”?

You will likely settle for way less money from comedy club gigs then you would for a private or corporate event. Why? Because for most of us comedians, rising up in the comedy club circuit is the dream. These are the “sexiest” shows and we want to be part of them! Let’s be honest, they’re usually the most fun too.

Comedy clubs also are your entry point for meeting bigger comedians, bookers, and people that could maybe connect you to more work down the road. This is, after all, a business where “who you know” is what ultimately opens doors…so often times comedy clubs will pay you less, but it’s a good idea to still take those gigs.

A few weeks ago I took a massive pay cut to perform for the first time at a comedy club. Even worse then that, I was subbing in for another feature and they knew I’d take a pay cut so they offered me LESS then what they were going to pay the feature and I took it…because I wanted to get in on that comedy club.

Remember, comedy is our business and in business, especially at the beginning you have to spend money to make money.

Is the show being produced by a friend, or is it for a good cause?

It’s not uncommon for comics to settle for way less, or no pay, for local shows when they are in town. Often times other comedians will be producing Indie showcases at a local bar or coffee shop and ask you to be on it. Usually if I am not doing anything, I’ll agree to be on it and settle for working for split tips or sometimes free because I want to support the show, my friend, and I probably have material that I’m not ready to travel with but needs to be funnier.

If I’m not paying for much gas, or lodging, I don’t mind doing a cheap or free show in town. In my mind, it’s a fun night out, and if I wasn’t going there I’d probably be doing the same thing at an open mic.

Also sometimes we do comedy for charity events. Maybe you really care for the cause and choose not to charge them, or charge them essentially enough to get you there. That’s YOUR CALL, and it’s fine! One of the benefits of working for yourself is you get to choose when to bend your own rules to help the people you want to help.

(Note: Something I have just now gotten in the habit of doing is being transparent with my comic friends that book me for free shows…I am very grateful to be on it, and I thank them for booking me…but I also let them know that if a paid gig comes up on that date, I’ll need to take that. The comics who are also my friends completely understand, and want that for me as well…Now if they are paying you to be on the show, and something else comes up that is paid…that’s a different conversation and method of thinking for a different article, on a different day.)

Do you just…not want to do the show?

Here’s a fun business tactic that will work one way or another for you. Do you ever get offered a really bad show? Of course you could say no right away, which is fine. OR, charge way more then you should. Either they will not want to hire you (and then you get out of doing a bad gig) or they will want you enough to pay the extra money…which is a testament to your merit as a comedian (and you know what? If they want you that much and you’re available, suck it up and do the gig!) AND you’ll get a good pay check!

Recently I was offered an opportunity to do a zoom comedy show and I overcharged because i don’t like zoom comedy shows. They didn’t hire me, which is totally fine and probably worked out for both of us. A while back, I was asked to do a weird comedy show way far away and instead of saying “No”, I overcharged and they agreed to pay the amount…So I made the trip, actually had a lot of fun, the people really enjoyed my routine, and I made really good money from it.

Does overcharging for your services rub you the wrong way? I get that. Something else you can also do is also be willing to provide suggestions of performers that might work cheaper then you. Maybe they live closer to the gig or maybe their in general rates are lower then yours…Then, you turned down the gig, still helped the booker, AND found work for another comedian.

When your product (routine) is worth more then “$10 a minute”, it’s okay to charge more!

Do you think Jim Gaffigan or Nate Bargatze also charge $10 a minute for their routine?

Absolutely not. They have a better product and more established career. People are willing to pay way more for them, and as well they should!

As you grow in your comedy career, don’t be afraid to charge more when you feel you have earned it and can provide a service worth what you charge. If you do this to soon, nobody will want to spend that kind of money on you, but there is a time and place for increasing your rates.

One of the best pieces of advice someone gave me a while back was “Nobody will value yourself more then you do.” People may not always pay you want you deserve, but they most definitely will not pay you more then what you ask for.

(Actually, I did have ONE customer, in 12 years of comedy, that heard how much I was charging and said, “That’s to cheap for you, we’re going to double it.” But I highly doubt that will ever happen again.)

As we go into 2025, perhaps it’s time to ask yourself how much is your standup comedy worth if someone wants to pay you? Maybe it’s time to raise your prices to reflect the value of what you do better? Or maybe you’ve been doing things for free and it’s time to start making some money when you can. (And remember, you can always STILL WORK FOR FREE when you want!)

Or maybe you’re new enough at comedy that you know it’s a bad idea to try to get paid for your act, for now….But maybe that’s something to work towards for 2026!

Whatever you decide I hope you know you are a person of great value, comedy or no comedy, and you appreciate everything about yourself because you are worth it. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

What do you think of the “How much should I charge” tips I provided? Do you agree or disagree? Do you have any other wise words for everyone that reads this post? Feel free to comment below and share with the rest of us!