Editing Prices
Editing is priced by the word, because words are the work. There is no setup fee, no account to open, and no charge for a quote. Below are the rates, what a real manuscript comes to at each of them, and — the part most people actually want — the same paragraph edited four different ways, so you can see what you would be paying for.
The rates
| Level | Per word | What it is for |
|---|---|---|
| Proofread | 3¢ | A clean draft that needs the mistakes taken out and nothing else touched. |
| Light edit | 3.5¢ | A draft that reads well but is carrying more words than it needs. |
| Medium edit | 4¢ | A finished draft you want to read like a published book. Most manuscripts. |
| Heavy edit | 5¢ | A draft with the right material in the wrong order, or a voice not yet settled. |
Minimum charge $50, which covers anything shorter than a few pages.
What that means for a real manuscript
Standard turnaround, fiction, no citations to check.
| Length | Proofread | Light edit | Medium edit | Heavy edit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20,000 words Novella, or a long report |
$600 | $700 | $800 | $1,000 |
| 50,000 words Short novel |
$1,500 | $1,750 | $2,000 | $2,500 |
| 80,000 words A typical novel |
$2,400 | $2,800 | $3,200 | $4,000 |
| 120,000 words A long novel or a full non-fiction book |
$3,600 | $4,200 | $4,800 | $6,000 |
Those are the arithmetic, not a promise. A word count tells us how big a job is, not what condition it is in. The firm quote comes from reading the document.
What moves the price
Three things sit on top of the per-word rate.
How quickly you need it back
| Turnaround | Effect on the price |
|---|---|
| Standard (5-7 days per 20,000 words) | no change |
| Rush (2-3 days per 20,000 words) | 50% more |
| Next day (24 hours per 10,000 words) | double |
| Same day (12 hours per 10,000 words) | triple |
Standard is the default and the one most people should take. Rush work costs more because it displaces other work, not because it is done differently.
What kind of document it is
| Document | Effect on the price |
|---|---|
| Fiction | no change |
| Biography | 10% more |
| Academic paper | 20% more |
| Scientific document | 30% more |
| Literary manuscript | no change |
| Business or corporate document | 10% more |
| Thesis or dissertation | 20% more |
Technical and academic work carries terminology, conventions and reference styles that have to be checked rather than read past. That is the difference.
References and citations
| Effect on the price | |
|---|---|
| No citations | no change |
| Citations to check | 10% more |
The whole sum, in one line
words × rate for the level × document type × turnaround × citations , with a $50 minimum. That is exactly what the calculator below does. There is no other formula.
What each level actually changes
This is where most of the money goes, and it is the choice people most often get wrong. Here is one paragraph, edited four ways.
One paragraph, four levels
One paragraph from a novel, at each of the four levels. Everything a level changed is marked, so you can see the size of the job rather than take our word for it.
The draft
The old house on Carrow Street had been standing empty for nearly thirty years, it’s windows boarded and the garden gone completely wild. Nobody in the village could remember who had actually owned it last, and the few people who claimed they did remember, gave answers that contradicted each other. Martha had walked past it every single day of her childhood and she had always felt that there was something about the place that seemed to be watching her back.
As the author sent it. Three mechanical errors, a good deal of padding, and a last sentence that explains a feeling instead of delivering it.
Proofread
The old house on Carrow Street had been standing empty for nearly thirty years, its windows boarded and the garden gone completely wild. Nobody in the village could remember who had actually owned it last, and the few people who claimed they did remember gave answers that contradicted each other. Martha had walked past it every single day of her childhood, and she had always felt that there was something about the place that seemed to be watching her back.
Mistakes out, nothing else touched. Three changes: it’s becomes its, a comma that split a subject from its verb is removed, and a missing comma is added before and she had always felt. The author’s sentences are untouched.
3¢ a word — $2,400 for an 80,000-word manuscript.
Light edit
The old house on Carrow Street had stood empty for nearly thirty years, its windows boarded and the garden gone wild. Nobody in the village could remember who had owned it last, and the few who claimed they did gave answers that contradicted each other. Martha had walked past it every day of her childhood, and she had always felt that there was something about the place that seemed to be watching her back.
The mistakes, plus the words that are not earning their place. Completely, actually and single go; had been standing becomes had stood. Same sentences, same rhythm, roughly twenty fewer words.
3.5¢ a word — $2,800 for an 80,000-word manuscript.
Medium edit
The old house on Carrow Street had stood empty for nearly thirty years, its windows boarded, its garden gone to seed. Nobody in the village could say who had owned it last, and those who claimed they could contradicted each other. Martha had walked past it every day of her childhood, and every day she had felt it watching her.
Sentences rebuilt where they are working too hard. Note the last one: she had always felt that there was something about the place that seemed to be watching her back becomes every day she had felt it watching her. The sentence stops describing the feeling and starts producing it. This is what most finished manuscripts need.
4¢ a word — $3,200 for an 80,000-word manuscript.
Heavy edit
For thirty years the house on Carrow Street had stood empty, windows boarded, garden gone to seed. Ask in the village who owned it last and you got four answers, none of them the same. Martha had walked past it every day of her childhood. Every day, it watched her back.
The order changes. The image moves to the front, the throat-clearing goes, and the villagers’ contradiction becomes something the reader does rather than is told about. For drafts where the material is right and the shape is not — and only for those.
5¢ a word — $4,000 for an 80,000-word manuscript.
Not sure which one your draft needs? Send it over — we will tell you, including when the honest answer is the cheaper one. Full rates and worked examples.
Four prices, four different jobs. Paying for a heavy edit on a manuscript that is already well structured is money spent on work it does not need. Asking for a proofread on a draft with structural problems leaves those problems in place, perfectly punctuated. If you are not sure which you need, send us the document — we will tell you, including when the honest answer is the cheaper one.
Estimate your own
Estimate your own
Move the pieces around and the estimate follows. Nothing is sent anywhere — this works entirely in your browser.
Our rates:
Proofread 3¢ · Light edit 3.5¢ · Medium edit 4¢ · Heavy edit 5¢ a word.
Minimum charge $50.
How the price is worked out
This is a rough estimate, not a quote. Send us the document, or a representative sample and the total word count, and we will confirm: 1) the level and type of editing it needs, 2) the price, and 3) the delivery date before any work begins.
Then get a firm quote
Send the document, or a representative sample and the total word count. You get back a fixed price, the level of editing it covers, and a delivery date — before anyone starts work. The quote is free and nothing is owed if you decide against it. Your writing is read only by the editor working on it, is never published, and any file you send is removed from our server automatically.