Proofreading & editing prices
Suiting your needs and your budget
Prices at a glance
The table below is a guide to the price ranges you can expect for editing or proofreading at various word counts. In exceptional circumstances, the final charge may be a little more or less than the typical ranges shown. These prices apply to both fiction and non-fiction.
Please note: my minimum charge is £20.
There’s a 10% discount for any single document over 30,000 words.
For details of what each service includes, please see the dedicated editing or proofreading pages, or the overview.
| Word count | Structural assessment | Line-edit | Proofread |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1,000 |
N/A | £20 - £30 | £20 |
| 10,000 | £120 - £200 | £150 - £300 | £100 - £140 |
| 30,000 | £360 - £600 | £450 - £900 | £300 - £420 |
| 50,000 (inc. 10% discount) | £540 - £900 | £675 - £1,350 | £450 - £630 |
| 80,000 (inc. 10% discount) | £860 - £1,440 | £1,080 - £2,160 | £720 - £1,000 |
| 100,000 (inc. 10% discount) | £1,080 - £1,800 | £1,350 - £2,700 | £900 - £1,260 |
| 120,000 (inc. 10% discount) | £1,290 - £2,160 | £1,620 - £3,240 | £1,080 - £1,510 |
Estimates and quotes
Some editors base their prices on word count only. However, writing varies hugely. A complex structure or a high rate of error will always take longer than straightforward writing with few mistakes. So my editorial charges are broadly based on the time needed to complete the work.
To ensure this is fair to both you and me, I prefer to give an estimate or firm quote before starting any work.
Estimates: An estimate will be able to tell you whether your project is likely to be at the lower or higher end of one of the above price ranges. I do not charge to provide an estimate.
To give a reasonable estimate for editing or proofreading, I need to see as much of your writing as possible, and some other details (please see below).
Quotes: A firm quote requires a more in-depth assessment. I can only give a firm quote after I have done a sample edit. This costs £40 (please see sample edit page for full details).
If you would like an estimate or quote for proofreading or editing, please send me your writing, together with the following information:
which service you need (ie, structural assessment, line-editing or proofreading)
if someone else has already read it (eg, a beta reader)
word count
the genre & target audience
if English is not your first language
document type (eg, Word, PDF, website)
any deadline
Flexibility and peace of mind
I’m happy to discuss flexible arrangements for the payment of larger projects - please just ask.
Deposit: For work over 30,000 words, once you have decided to go ahead with my services, I do ask for a deposit of £100. This gives assurance to both parties that a work slot has been booked and the full project will be completed and invoiced.
The deposit is deducted from your final invoice. It is only refundable in the unlikely event that I am unable to do your work.