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2026 benchmark

What a static Meta ad costs in 2026

Published prices from AI tools, freelancers, design subscriptions, static ad studios and agencies, per ad, with sources.

By Kaleb Phillips, Founder, Duggie. Published . Last updated . Prices checked 23 October 2026.

Download the data (CSV) How to cite this

Disclosure: this benchmark is published by Duggie, a creative studio that sells static Meta ads. Duggie is one of the providers in the table, listed with the same method as everyone else. Every other number links to the seller's own page or to the published guide it came from.

The short answer

  • AI ad tools: about $0.20 to $1.24 per generated static ad, with no human review (Higgsfield Ads Studio, Mako).
  • Freelancers: Upwork lists a median of $15 to $35 an hour for graphic designers. At 1 to 2 hours per ad concept in three sizes (our estimate), that is roughly $15 to $70 per ad, before revisions and copy.
  • Static ad studios with published prices: $6.67 to $75 per ad in USD depending on volume and what is included (Ads on Steroids, Babbas, Duggie, dull studio, STATIKS). Studio Nathan publishes £200 to £225 per concept in GBP.
  • Performance creative agencies: $150 to $500 per static in Darkroom's 2026 guide, and about $750 per static in inBeat's guide. Retainers run $5,000 to $15,000 a month (Darkroom). Superside starts at a $15,000 monthly minimum on an annual term.

The price per ad is the easy part to compare. What each price includes (sizes, copy, human review, revisions, turnaround and refund terms) explains most of the gap, so the table shows all of it.

Key findings

  1. The spread is huge. Published per-ad prices run from about $0.20 (an AI tool) to about $750 (an agency pricing guide), a gap of more than 3,000 times.
  2. Studios sit in the middle. Entry plans at the five USD-priced static ad studios work out to $9.95 to $75 per ad. Studio Nathan is priced separately in GBP at £200 to £225 per concept. Bigger plans bring the per-ad price down to as little as $6.67.
  3. Refund promises are rare. Only 4 of the 15 rows publish a money-back or refund promise: Mako, Duggie, dull studio and STATIKS.
  4. Speed varies more than price. Published first-delivery times range from minutes (AI tools) and 1 to 2 hours (Duggie) to 5 business days (STATIKS), 7 days (dull studio) and about three weeks to go live (Superside).
  5. Few sellers say how many sizes you get. Duggie and Studio Nathan explicitly include three aspect ratios; dull studio includes two. Check the sizes column before comparing concepts with exported files.
  6. Most agencies don't publish rates. The two agency rows come from published pricing guides (Darkroom and inBeat). Superside publishes a monthly minimum, not a per-ad price.

The data

The 2026 benchmark table

"Per ad" means one ad concept as each seller defines it. Resizing one concept does not create another concept. Where a price covers variations or several sizes, the Sizes column says so. Per-ad figures are list price divided by concepts per period; per-file quotes are labelled separately. Currency is as published; Studio Nathan is in GBP and is not ranked against USD prices.

ProviderCategoryPublished priceAdsPer adSizes per adAd copyTurnaround (as published)Human reviewGuarantee or risk reversal
Higgsfield Ads StudioAI tool4 credits per ad, about $0.05 per creditUp to 20 per product per runabout $0.20 [1]Not stated on the guideGeneratedGenerated in-appNone stated (you review)Not stated on the guide
MakoAI tool$44.99 for a 2-week intro, then $3.30 a day80 static image ads a month (plus video)about $1.24 at $3.30 a day for 30 days [2]Not statedGenerated"Your first ads in minutes" [2]None stated (you review)30-day money-back guarantee [2]
Upwork freelance graphic designerFreelancer$15 to $35 an hour median; $15 to $150 range, about $25 average [3]Per hourabout $15 to $70 (estimate: 1 to 2 hours per concept)VariesUsually separateVaries by freelancerThe designerVaries; marketplace terms
Upwork freelance marketing designerFreelancer$30 to $60 an hour [4]Per hourabout $30 to $120 (estimate: 1 to 2 hours)VariesVariesVariesThe designerVaries
ManyPixels (Advanced)Design subscription$699 a month, billed monthly [5]Unlimited requests, one project at a timeNot fixedVariesNot ad-specificFirst drafts next business day [5]Design teamPause or cancel anytime [5]
Design PickleDesign subscriptionNot published; "You get the number on the call" [6]ScopedNot publishedVariesNot ad-specificMost requests in 1 to 2 business days [6]Design teamNot published
Ads on SteroidsStatic ad studio (one-off batches)$350 / $900 / $2,000 [7]10 / 60 / 300$35 / $15 / $6.67Not statedHooks includedAverage about 18 hours; smallest plan within 3 business days [7]"Human QA" [7]Broken outputs replaced [7]
BabbasStatic ad studio$199 a month [8]20$9.95 [8]"Sized for Meta" (not specified)Not statedWeekly batches; schedule set at onboarding [8]Not stated5 free samples; month to month [8]
DuggieStatic ad studio$500 a month [9]20$25 ($8.33 per file)3 (4:5, 1:1, 9:16), 60 files a month [9]Yes (primary text, headline, description) [9]First delivery usually within 1 to 2 hours of subscribing (same day), then new ads every 7 days; revisions usually back in 1 to 2 hours, next business day at worst [9]A named person reviews every file [9]14-day money-back guarantee on the first payment, no questions asked [9]
dull studioStatic ad studio$799 / $1,499 / $2,499 a month [10]20 / 40 / 80 concepts$40 / $37 / $31 [10]2 aspect ratios [10]Not statedFirst batch in 7 days (3 days on the top tier); revisions in 48 hours [10]Human creative direction and QC [10]Full refund on the first month; unlimited revisions [10]
Studio Nathan Ad StudioStatic ad studio (hand-designed)£900 / £1,640 / £2,400 a month [11]4 / 8 / 12 concepts (briefs)£200 to £225 per concept; £16.67 to £18.75 per exported file [11]3 (1:1, 4:5, 9:16); 4 variations per concept, 12 files [11]Client supplies (see source)Monthly; every brief delivered by month end [11]Hand-designed by one designer [11]3 rounds of feedback; cancel anytime [11]
STATIKSStatic ad studio$3,000 / $5,000 / $10,000 a month [12]40 / 100 / 240$75 / $50 / $41.67Not stated on the plan cardsCopy included in research, strategy and executionFirst batch within 5 business days of onboarding, then weekly [12]Team100% money-back guarantee; late month's fee refunded; unlimited revisions within the brief [12]
Performance creative agency (Darkroom 2026 guide)Agency$150 to $500 per static; retainers $5,000 to $15,000 a month [13]Starter tier: 15 to 25 statics plus 3 to 5 video edits$150 to $500VariesVariesVariesAgency teamOne round of revisions per asset at the starter tier [13]
Performance creative agency (inBeat guide)Agencyabout $750 per static ad [14]Per assetabout $750VariesHeadline and copyVariesAgency teamVaries
SupersideCreative agency subscription$15,000 a month minimum on an annual term, plus a $1,000 a month software fee [15]Scoped budgetNot published per adVariesVaries"Live in about three weeks" [15]Dedicated teamUnused budget rolls over up to 3 months [15]
  • Studio Nathan includes four variations of each concept in three ratios: twelve files per brief. Its £16.67 to £18.75 quote is per exported file; the comparable concept price is £200 to £225 (£900 / 4, £1,640 / 8, £2,400 / 12). We keep GBP separate from USD and do not compare them without a currency conversion.
  • "Not stated" means we could not find it on the page we cite. It does not mean the provider does not offer it.
  • The two freelancer rows are the only ones that rely on an estimate (hours per ad). Every other per-ad figure is list price divided by volume.
  • Want the raw numbers? Download the CSV (15 rows, UTF-8).

What the price includes matters more than the price

  1. Sizes. Meta placements use different aspect ratios. A "$40 concept" in two ratios and a "$25 concept" in three are not the same deliverable. Count files, not just concepts.
  2. Copy. Primary text, headline and description are part of the ad. If copy is not included, someone on your team writes it. Our free Meta ad copy CSV template and copy length checker help either way.
  3. Human review. AI tools are priced per generation and leave the checking to you: product accuracy, text artifacts, offer details and legibility in every crop. Services price that checking in.
  4. Revisions. Published policies range from one round per asset (Darkroom's starter tier) to three rounds (Studio Nathan) to unlimited (dull studio, STATIKS). Revision speed varies too: dull studio publishes 48 hours, and Duggie usually returns revisions in 1 to 2 hours (the next business day at worst).
  5. Turnaround. From minutes (AI tools), 1 to 2 hours for a first delivery (Duggie) and about 18 hours (Ads on Steroids) to 5 business days (STATIKS), 7 days (dull studio), a monthly cycle (Studio Nathan) and about three weeks to go live (Superside).
  6. Risk reversal. Published refund terms in this table: Mako (30 days on the first payment), Duggie (14 days on the first payment), dull studio (first month), STATIKS (100% money-back, plus a late month refunded). Babbas offers free samples instead.

How to work out your own cost per testable ad

  1. Decide how many new concepts a month your budget can actually test. Meta's help page on creative fatigue says it "occurs when an audience has seen the same creative too many times" and recommends you "create a new ad with a new image or video that is materially different from the original creative" [16].
  2. Multiply by the per-ad price of the option you are considering.
  3. Add the hours your team spends on briefs, copy, review and resizing. That hidden time is usually what makes the cheapest option on paper the most expensive one in practice.

Where Duggie fits

Duggie is $500 a month for 20 static ads, which works out to $25 per ad, or $8.33 per file across the three sizes. Among the USD-priced static ad studios in this table, that sits above Babbas ($9.95) and the two larger Ads on Steroids plans ($15 and $6.67), and below dull studio ($31 to $40) and STATIKS ($41.67 to $75). Studio Nathan is £200 to £225 per concept in GBP; we have not converted or ranked that against the USD options. The agency rates in this table start at $150 per static.

What the $25 covers: every ad in Feed (4:5), Square (1:1) and Story (9:16); primary text, headline and description in a copy.csv; a named person reviewing every file; a first delivery that usually arrives within 1 to 2 hours of subscribing, with new ads every 7 days after that; revisions that usually come back in 1 to 2 hours (the next business day at worst); and a 14-day money-back guarantee on the first payment.

Duggie may not be the right fit if you need video, more than 20 new concepts a month for one brand, or a team to plan and manage your campaigns. Duggie makes and reviews the creative, and your team decides whether and when to run it. If you connect your Meta ad account, Duggie uploads the approved images and ad copy for you. See Duggie's pricing.

Methodology

  • Who is included: providers that publish a price for static ad creative or for the design capacity used to make it, plus two published agency pricing guides, because most agencies do not publish rates.
  • Where the numbers come from: each seller's own public page, read on 23 October 2026 (US Eastern time). Third-party guides are labelled as such.
  • What we left out: prices behind a login, sales call or bot challenge; video-only offers; and any number we could not read on a public page on the check date.
  • Arithmetic: per ad concept = list price / concepts per period, rounded to the cent. Resizes stay within their concept; per-file quotes are labelled separately. Freelancer per-ad costs use an hours estimate we state openly.
  • Corrections: if you are listed and a number is wrong or out of date, email [email protected] with the URL of your current price and we will update the table and the changelog.

How to cite this

This benchmark and its data are licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0). You can quote, chart, translate and republish it, including commercially, as long as you credit Duggie and link to this page.

Plain-text citation

Duggie (2026). What a static Meta ad costs in 2026. Prices checked 23 October 2026. https://duggie.io/static-ad-cost-2026. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.

HTML attribution

<p>Source: <a href="https://duggie.io/static-ad-cost-2026">Duggie, What a static Meta ad costs in 2026</a> (prices checked 23 October 2026). Licensed under <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY 4.0</a>.</p>

Embed the summary table

<table>
  <caption>Published price per static Meta ad, 2026</caption>
  <thead><tr><th scope="col">Option</th><th scope="col">Price per ad</th></tr></thead>
  <tbody>
    <tr><th scope="row">AI ad tools (no human review)</th><td>about $0.20 to $1.24</td></tr>
    <tr><th scope="row">Freelancers (Upwork rates, 1 to 2 hours per ad)</th><td>about $15 to $70</td></tr>
    <tr><th scope="row">Static ad studios</th><td>$6.67 to $75</td></tr>
    <tr><th scope="row">Performance creative agencies</th><td>$150 to $750</td></tr>
  </tbody>
</table>
<p>Source: <a href="https://duggie.io/static-ad-cost-2026">Duggie, What a static Meta ad costs in 2026</a> (prices checked 23 October 2026). Licensed under <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY 4.0</a>.</p>

Full data: static-ad-cost-2026.csv (15 rows, UTF-8, same license).

FAQ

Questions about static ad costs

Spotted a wrong number? Email [email protected].

How much does one static Meta ad cost in 2026?

From about $0.20 with an AI tool, which leaves review to you, to $150 to $750 at a performance creative agency, per the agency pricing guides cited on this page. Static ad studios that publish prices charge $6.67 to $75 per ad depending on volume and what is included.

Is it cheaper to hire a freelancer?

Upwork lists a median of $15 to $35 an hour for graphic designers. If one ad concept in three sizes takes one to two hours, that is roughly $15 to $70 per ad before copy and revisions. Your time spent briefing and reviewing is extra.

Why do agencies charge so much more per static?

Agency prices usually bundle research, strategy and project management, and are sold as retainers. Darkroom's 2026 guide puts performance creative retainers at $5,000 to $15,000 a month.

How fast can I get static ads?

AI tools generate ads in minutes, and you review them yourself. Among the services in this table that publish a first-delivery time, Duggie usually delivers within 1 to 2 hours of subscribing, Ads on Steroids averages about 18 hours, STATIKS delivers a first batch within 5 business days of onboarding, dull studio within 7 days (3 days on its top tier), and Superside says it goes live in about three weeks.

What should a static ad price include?

At minimum: the sizes you need for your placements, ad copy, a stated number of revisions and how fast they come back, a delivery date and clear refund terms.

Can I reuse this data?

Yes. The benchmark and the CSV are licensed under CC BY 4.0. Quote it, chart it or republish it, including commercially, as long as you credit Duggie and link to this page. A ready-made citation is in the How to cite this section.

How often is this benchmark updated?

Every quarter. The date at the top shows when prices were last checked. If you are listed and a number is out of date, email [email protected] with a link to your current price.

Sources

All checked 23 October 2026 (US Eastern time).

  1. Higgsfield, "Higgsfield Ads Studio" guide: each ad costs 4 credits; approximate dollar values use $0.05 per credit; up to 20 variations per product per run. https://higgsfield.ai/blog/higgsfield-ads-studio
  2. Mako homepage: from $44.99 for a 2-week intro, then $3.30 a day; 80 static image ads; 30-day money-back guarantee; "Your first ads in minutes". Per-ad figure is our calculation: $3.30 x 30 / 80. https://trymako.ai/
  3. Upwork, "Graphic Designers on Upwork Cost $15-$35/hr": median hourly rates $15 to $35; range $15 to $150; average about $25. https://www.upwork.com/hire/graphic-designers/cost/
  4. Upwork, "Upwork Hourly Rates: Average Rates by Skill and Experience in 2026" (published May 12, 2026): marketing designers $30 to $60 an hour. https://www.upwork.com/resources/upwork-hourly-rates/
  5. ManyPixels pricing: Advanced $699 a month billed monthly; one project at a time; first drafts next business day on the Advanced and Business plans; pause or cancel anytime. https://www.manypixels.co/pricing
  6. Design Pickle pricing: "You get the number on the call"; most requests come back within one to two business days. https://designpickle.com/pricing
  7. Ads on Steroids homepage: entry plan $350 (10 ads), Growth $900 (60), Scale $2,000 (300); average delivery about 18 hours; entry plan within 3 business days; human QA before delivery, broken outputs replaced. https://adsonsteroids.com/
  8. Babbas homepage: $199 for 20 ads delivered in weekly batches; $9.95 per ad; 5 free samples; month to month. https://babbas.co/
  9. Duggie pricing: 20 custom static ads a month for $500; Feed, Square and Story versions, 60 files; a named person reviews every file; first delivery usually within 1 to 2 hours of subscribing, then new ads every 7 days; revisions usually back in 1 to 2 hours, next business day at worst; 14-day money-back guarantee on the first payment. https://duggie.io/pricing
  10. dull studio homepage: $799 (20 concepts, $40 each), $1,499 (40, $37), $2,499 (80, $31); first batch in 7 days (3 days on $2,499); revisions in 48 hours; 2 aspect ratios; full refund on the first month; unlimited revisions. https://dull.studio/
  11. Studio Nathan Ad Studio: £900 / £1,640 / £2,400 a month for 4 / 8 / 12 briefs; £200 to £225 per concept, or £16.67 to £18.75 per exported file; each concept has four variations in 1:1, 4:5 and 9:16 (twelve files); every brief delivered by the end of the month; three rounds of feedback; cancel anytime. https://www.studionathan.co/ad-studio
  12. STATIKS homepage: $3,000 (40 ads a month), $5,000 (100), $10,000 (240); 100% money-back guarantee; late month's fee refunded; first batch within 5 business days of onboarding; unlimited revisions within the brief. https://statiks.co/
  13. Darkroom, "Marketing Agency Cost 2026: Real Pricing by Service" (third-party guide): performance creative $5,000 to $15,000 a month; starter tier $5,000 to $8,000 for 15 to 25 static assets and 3 to 5 video edits with one round of revisions per asset; $150 to $500 per static. https://www.darkroomagency.com/observatory/marketing-agency-cost-2026-pricing-by-service
  14. inBeat, performance creative pricing guide (third-party guide): static ads $750, image-based ads with headline and copy. https://www.inbeat.agency/blog/performance-creative-pricing-guide
  15. Superside pricing: $15,000 monthly minimum on an annual term; $1,000 software fee; Dedicated from $30,000 a month; live in about three weeks; unused budget rolls over for up to three months. https://www.superside.com/pricing
  16. Meta Business Help Center, "About creative fatigue recommendations in Meta Ads Manager". https://www.facebook.com/business/help/1346816142327858

Further reading that informed this page: The Social Outline, "Performance Creative Agency Pricing in 2026"; Showfolk, "How much does Facebook ad creative cost? (2026)"; Adrio, "How much does ad creative cost? (2026)". All read 23 October 2026.

Changelog

  • 23 October 2026: first edition. Prices checked 23 October 2026.