What it costs
Most projects land between $300 and $10,000. Where yours falls depends almost entirely on the build — modelling a product and authoring its materials is the expensive part, and it is paid once. Every image after the first reuses it.
Near the bottom of the range
One straightforward product, clean CAD or a dieline, a studio backdrop, stills only, a handful of angles. A can, a carton, a bottle with flat label artwork. The model is quick to build, the lighting is a studio setup rather than a constructed world, and there is nothing to simulate.
Near the top of it
A full CG environment rather than a backdrop, simulation work — liquid, cloth, condensation, particles — film as well as stills, heavy transparency, or a product that has to be modelled from photographs because no usable CAD exists. Any one of those moves a quote materially; several together is what a five-figure project looks like.
What actually moves the number
- Whether usable CAD exists — this is the single biggest factor
- Geometry complexity: a can is not a chair, a chair is not a car interior
- Transparency and refraction — glass, liquid and caustics cost real time
- Studio backdrop versus a built environment
- Simulation of any kind
- Stills only, or stills and film
- How many angles and variants (this one lowers the cost per image)
- Deadline, and whether it needs rearranging around other work
How the quote works
Fixed, against an agreed shot list, before anything begins. Not hourly — if a build takes longer than expected that is the studio’s problem, not an invoice you did not expect. If the scope changes mid-project the change is quoted separately rather than absorbed silently and argued about later.
How to make your own quote cheaper
Send CAD. It is the difference between building a product and cleaning one, and it is often the difference between the middle and the bottom of the range. After that: order angles together rather than one at a time, and say up front if you will need variants, because a model built knowing that gets organised differently. The CAD preparation guide covers what to send.
When we will tell you not to
If you have one simple product, it already exists in your warehouse, you need three images and you will never need a variant — book a photographer. That is cheaper than anything on this page and you will get a better result. The comparison guide sets out where the crossover actually falls.
Questions
How much does 3D product rendering cost at SOC/STUDIO?
Most projects land between $300 and $10,000. A single straightforward product — a can, a carton, a bottle with flat label artwork — sits near the bottom of that range. A full campaign with a built environment, simulation and film sits near the top. The quote is fixed against an agreed shot list before anything starts.
Why is it a range rather than a price per image?
Because the build dominates the cost, not the picture. Modelling a product and authoring its materials is slow and paid once; taking another camera angle of an asset that already exists is fast and nearly free. A per-image rate card would either overcharge for the tenth angle or undercharge for the first.
What makes a project sit at the top of the range?
A full CG environment rather than a studio backdrop, simulation work such as liquid or cloth, animation as well as stills, complex transparency, or a product that has to be modelled from photographs because no CAD exists.
What makes it sit at the bottom?
Clean CAD, a simple form, a studio backdrop, stills only, and a small number of angles. Sending usable files is the single biggest lever a client has on their own quote.
Do you charge hourly?
No. Projects are quoted fixed against a defined shot list, so the risk of a build taking longer than expected sits with the studio rather than with you.
Is there a discount for multiple images?
It is built into how the quote works rather than applied as a discount. The first image carries the model; every image after it reuses that model, so a set of ten costs far less than ten times a single image.
Do you take on small projects?
Yes — that is what the bottom of the range is for. One product, a handful of angles, clean files. Small projects that go well are how most long relationships start.
How quickly can you quote?
Usually within a business day once the product, the shot list and the deadline are known. Send whatever exists rather than waiting for a complete brief.