CB Comedy Booker

For Comedians

How Much Should a Stand-Up Comedian Charge? (2026 Rate Guide)

· 11 min read

The single most-asked question in comedy green rooms: what should I be charging? Most comics underprice for years because no one will give them a straight number. Here is the straight number.

These are 2026 rates pulled from working-comic surveys, club booking data, and our own experience producing shows. They're U.S. and U.K. norms — adjust for your market.

The short answer

Level Club feature Club headline Corporate / private Wedding
Open-mic level (yr 0–2) — — $100–$300 $200–$400
Working feature (yr 2–5) $50–$200 / set — $500–$1,500 $500–$1,200
Working headliner (yr 5–10) — $300–$1,200 / show $2,000–$5,000 $1,500–$3,500
Touring headliner / TV credit — $1,500–$5,000 / show $5,000–$15,000 $3,000–$10,000
National name / late-night credit — $5,000–$25,000 / show $15,000–$50,000+ $10,000+
Household name (Netflix special) — $25,000+ $50,000–$250,000+ rarely accepted

A few notes before you use this table to argue with a booker:

  • Club rates are often non-negotiable. Clubs run on tight math and pay every feature the same. Don't fight it; the value is the credit and the tape.
  • Private and corporate rates are negotiable. This is where comics leave money on the table.
  • Travel is on top. Always.

Why corporate pays 5–10× club rates

Because the math is different. A comedy club has 200 seats at $20 — they sell $4,000 of tickets and pay 20% of that to talent. A corporate event has a $50,000 entertainment budget for one evening. They are not paying you to fill the room (they already filled the room with employees); they are paying for the certainty that you will not bomb in front of their CEO.

Three rules for corporate pricing:

  1. Quote a number above your club rate, not below. A common mistake is saying "I usually get $200 for a feature, so I'll do this for $300." You should be quoting $1,500.
  2. Bundle travel into the quote, then break it out. "Fee is $2,500 plus travel of $400" feels different than "$2,900."
  3. Always charge a deposit. 50% on signing, 50% on the day. Without a deposit, corporate clients sometimes cancel a week before with no consequences.

What's actually negotiable

Item Negotiable? Notes
Fee Sometimes Clubs no, corporate yes
Travel Almost always Most corporate gigs cover flights and hotel
Per diem Yes $50–$100/day is standard
Set length Yes Charge proportionally
Recording rights Yes If they want to record you, that's extra
Buyout / exclusivity Yes "Don't perform in our city for 30 days before the show" — charge for it
Cancellation terms Always Get a kill fee in writing

Things that look negotiable but really aren't: the headliner getting paid more than you (yes, always); the green room being terrible (sometimes); the audience being drunk (always).

How to actually quote a number

The trick: state your number first, in writing, with a brief justification. Don't ask "what's the budget?" — that's an invitation to be lowballed.

Hi [name],

For a 25-minute clean set at your sales kickoff on June 14th in Denver, 
my fee is $3,500 plus travel ($600 estimated). That includes a meet-and-
greet with leadership, up to two sound check passes, and a 15-minute 
Q&A. 50% deposit secures the date.

Happy to discuss.

Watch what happens. Half the time they accept. The other half they counter, and you negotiate from a higher anchor than they would have offered. Comics who ask "what's your budget" leave 30–50% on the table.

A few specific scenarios

Wedding: charge more than you think. Weddings are emotionally high-stakes, the audience is mixed-age and often half-drunk, and you cannot afford to bomb. $1,000 minimum even if you're early career. The bride and groom are not your friends — they are your client.

Corporate fundraiser / non-profit: they will tell you the budget is small. Sometimes that's true. A reasonable discount is 25%. A reasonable discount is not 75%. If they can't afford 75% of your rate, they can't afford a comedian.

Bar gig with a "door split": you should be paid a guaranteed minimum, not just a door split. A door split with no floor is the bar transferring all the risk to you. "I'll do it for $200 guarantee plus 50% of the door over $400" is a fair structure.

Festivals: most don't pay headliners well — you're getting exposure and a tape. Make sure the tape is professional quality (negotiable) and that you're booked for the right slot (also negotiable).

The under-pricing trap: Once you set a low rate with a client, you cannot raise it next year by 300%. You can raise it by 10–20%. Set your rate where you want it to be, not where you can afford to start.

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