Social Media Management Pricing
What NZ and AU agencies, freelancers, and contractors charge for social media management, broken down by service tier.
What this report covers: Organic social media managementManaging a brand's social presence without paid advertising. This includes creating content, posting, engaging with followers, and reporting on results. Read more →. This covers the work involved in creating content, posting consistently, managing your accounts, and engaging with your audience, including strategy, content creation, community managementResponding to comments, messages, and mentions on your accounts, in a consistent tone, on behalf of the business. Read more →, and performance reportingA regular summary, usually monthly, of how your content performed and what it means for your business. Read more →.
What it does not cover: Paid advertising: boosting postsPaying a platform to push a specific post to more people beyond your existing followers, on top of its organic reach. Read more → or running ads on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, or LinkedIn. Paid advertising management is its own topic, covered in a future Wisen report.
Which provider type is right for your situation?
Pricing depends heavily on who's doing the work: a junior freelancer, an experienced one, an agency. Here's what each tier means and who it typically suits.
Freelancer (junior)
An independent practitioner, usually earlier in their career. Works alone. Good for businesses that have a clear idea of what they want and need reliable execution support.
Freelancer (experienced)
An independent practitioner with established skills. Can bring strategy as well as execution. A common choice for small businesses that want agency-quality work at freelancer rates.
Boutique agency
A small specialist agency, usually 2 to 15 people focused on social media or digital marketing. Offers a team rather than one person. The price range is wide. Scope of work explains it, not quality.
Mid-sized & large agency
Larger agencies with broader service offerings. Pricing is by proposal only and is not published. Generally suited to businesses with more complex needs or larger budgets. If you are reading this report, you are probably not in this tier yet.
Overview
What the market looks like right now, and what an experienced practitioner actually charges.
What an experienced NZ social media freelancer charges. After adjusting for the exchange rate, NZ and AU skilled practitioners charge within the same range. NZ is not materially cheaper than AU.
The AU platform average for an experienced social media practitioner. After adjusting for the exchange rate, AU and NZ rates sit within the same band.
Scope, not quality, explains the boutique price range
Within the boutique agency tier, NZ prices range from NZD$299 to $4,000/mo. The difference reflects whether original short-form videoBrief video content, typically under 60 seconds, designed for platforms like TikTok and Instagram Reels. Read more → and custom creative are included, not the quality of the agency.
NZ and AU freelancer rates are closely aligned
Experienced NZ freelancers place at NZD$80 to $85/hr. AU equivalents average AUD$66/hr with active placements at AUD$65 to $85/hr. After adjusting for the exchange rate, both markets sit within the same band.
Social media is now a search and discovery channel
TikTok and Instagram are being used as search enginesA tool people use to look for information. Increasingly that includes searching directly inside a social platform like TikTok or Instagram, not just Google. Read more → by 18 to 35-year-olds in both markets. The goal of social media has shifted from "reachThe number of unique people who saw your content on a given platform. Read more → and likes" to being found by people actively looking.
Both markets are moving fast toward video
AU recorded its strongest-ever March quarter at AUD$4.9B, with social video the fastest-growing format at +29.4% year on year. NZ video grew +27% in 2025. Providers who can produce video are in stronger demand.
NZ and AU small businesses significantly underinvest in marketing
NZ and AU small and medium businesses spend an average of 2.02% of revenue on marketing. The global average is 7.7%. That gap of nearly 6 percentage points means most NZ and AU businesses are spending less than a third of what comparable businesses spend globally.
Market data
Platform reach, ad spend, and how much businesses like yours actually put toward marketing, across NZ and AU. This is the backdrop the pricing above sits inside.
NZ digital marketing industry report · April 2026 · Source-verified
| Platform | NZ users | Key signal |
|---|---|---|
| 3.4M | 58% use it daily · 1hr 24min average per day | |
| 3.1M | Fastest-growing platform among NZ professionals | |
| 2.53M | 56% of 18 to 29-year-olds use it daily · dominant under 35 | |
| TikTok | 1.89M | 42% of 18 to 29-year-olds use it daily · 1hr 42min average per day |
| YouTube | 85%+ | Of all New Zealanders who use the internet |
NZ internet use: 96.2% of the population (5.06M people). 94% access the internet via mobile.
AU digital audience reports · April 2026 · Source-verified
| Platform | AU users | Key signal |
|---|---|---|
| 19M | Around 80.6% of all AU social media users | |
| 18M | 85% of AU adults · +12.5% year on year | |
| 15.2M | 56% of the AU population · short-form video is the top format | |
| TikTok | 5.8M | Monthly active users |
| Snapchat | 6.4M | Monthly active users |
NZ digital advertising revenue report · March 2026 · Audited data · Source-verified
AU digital advertising revenue report · March 2026 + May 2026 · Audited data · Source-verified
What this means: most NZ and AU small businesses are spending less than a third of what comparable businesses spend on marketing globally. Professional social media management is often the first step toward closing that gap.
AU under-16 social media ban (both markets)
Australia's ban on social media use by under-16s was enforced in December 2025. AU audiences on TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat are now slightly older on average. Worth considering when assessing which platformsThe individual social media services, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn and so on, each with its own audience, format, and algorithm. Read more → make sense for your business.
AI is changing what social media management involves (both markets)
AI tools have reduced the time needed for basic copywriting, image editing, and scheduling. The result: demand is strong for practitioners who can direct AI workflows and develop brand strategy. Junior rates are under soft downward pressure; senior specialist rates hold or grow.
Social platforms are being used as search engines (both markets)
NZ and AU consumers aged 18 to 35 increasingly use Instagram and TikTok to find products and local businesses. This changes what good social media management involves. It is not just about reach and engagement. It is about being discoverable to people actively looking.
NZ pricing by provider type
All figures in New Zealand dollars (NZD). Research period: June 2026.
Junior freelancer
NZD- Content creation from supplied briefs or direction
- SchedulingPlanning posts to go live at set times, then publishing them to your chosen platforms. Most providers use tools that post automatically. Read more → and posting across 2 to 3 platforms
- Basic community monitoringChecking your social accounts regularly for comments, messages, and mentions, then responding on behalf of your brand. Read more →: checking and responding to comments and messages
- Monthly reporting using each platform's built-in analyticsData about how your content is performing: who saw it, who engaged with it, and what happened as a result. Social platforms provide this data for free inside their tools. Read more →
Best suited to: Businesses with an established brand voice and content direction that need reliable, consistent execution support.
Experienced freelancer
NZD- Content strategyA plan defining what to post, on which platforms, how often, and toward what goal. Read more →: a plan defining what to post, on which platforms, and toward what goal
- Original content creation: copywritingWriting marketing text: captions, ads, and other on-brand copy. A specialist skill, not the same as general writing. Read more →, graphic direction, and short-form videoBrief video content, typically under 60 seconds, designed for platforms like TikTok and Instagram Reels. Read more →
- Community managementActively responding to comments, messages, and mentions on behalf of a brand, in a consistent tone and voice. Read more →: actively engaging with followers in your brand's voice
- Performance reportingA regular summary, usually monthly, of how your social content performed, including what worked, what did not, and what to do next. Read more → with analysis and recommendations, not just numbers
Best suited to: Businesses that need strategic direction, a consistent brand voice, and content built to grow an audience over time.
Boutique agency
NZDIncluded
- Content using stock imageryPre-made photos and graphics available for purchase or free use, not created specifically for your brand. Read more → or images you supply
- Scheduling and posting across 3 platforms
- Community monitoring and responses
- Monthly performance reports
- Dedicated content managerThe person at an agency responsible for creating and scheduling your social media content. Read more →, quarterly strategy session
Not included
- Original video or short-form videoBrief video content, typically under 60 seconds, designed for platforms like TikTok and Instagram Reels. Read more → produced from scratch
- Custom graphics created specifically for your business
- Original contentContent created specifically for your brand from scratch, not stock images or templates. Includes custom graphics, writing, and video. Read more →: custom graphics, copywriting, and photography direction
- Short-form videoBrief video content, typically under 60 seconds, designed for TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts. Read more → and reel production at upper tiers
- Active daily community managementActively interacting with your audience by responding to comments, starting conversations, and building relationships on behalf of your brand. Read more → and engagement
- Strategy calls and monthly reporting with recommendations
Mid-sized agency
NZ mid-sized agencies do not publish standalone social media management pricing. You will need to approach agencies directly and go through a briefing process before they will provide a figure.
To get a quote: briefDescribe your business, goals, platforms you use, budget, and any current challenges. The agency uses this to tailor their quote and plan. Read more → the agency on your business, your goals, and the platforms you want to focus on. Most agencies will ask for a meeting before they provide a number.
Large / full-service agency
Large NZ agencies price work individually based on scope, brand size, and which channels are involved. Pricing is not published. Same briefing process applies as mid-sized agencies. If you are at this stage, you likely already have a marketing manager or team who will lead the process.
What this means for you
AU pricing by provider type
All figures in Australian dollars (AUD), excluding GST unless noted. Research period: June 2026.
Junior freelancer
AUD- Content creation from supplied briefs
- SchedulingPlanning posts to go live at set times, then publishing them to your chosen platforms. Most providers use tools that post automatically. Read more → and posting across 2 to 3 platforms
- Basic community monitoringChecking your social accounts regularly for comments, messages, and mentions, then responding on behalf of your brand. Read more →
- Monthly reporting
Best suited to: Businesses with an established brand voice that need reliable execution support.
Experienced freelancer
AUD- Content strategyA plan defining what to post, on which platforms, how often, and toward what goal. Read more → and platform-specific planning
- Original content creation: copywritingWriting marketing text: captions, ads, and other on-brand copy. A specialist skill, not the same as general writing. Read more →, graphics, and video
- Community managementActively responding to comments, messages, and mentions on behalf of a brand, in a consistent tone and voice. Read more → with on-brand voiceThe consistent personality, tone, and language a business uses across everything it says. Read more →
- Performance reportingA regular summary, usually monthly, of how your content performed and what it means for your business. Read more → with analysis and recommendations
Best suited to: Businesses that need strategic direction and content built to grow an audience over time.
Boutique agency
AUD- Original creative developmentCreating content, graphics, video, copy, specifically for your brand, rather than using templates or stock imagery. Read more →, not stock imagery
- Active community engagementActively interacting with your audience by responding to comments, starting conversations, and building relationships on behalf of your brand. Read more → management
- Strategy reviews and detailed performance reportingA regular summary, usually monthly, of how your content performed and what it means for your business. Read more →
Mid-sized agency
Typically includes a full creative and content production team, multi-platform strategy, a dedicated account manager, detailed performance reporting, and video production and campaign activations at the upper end.
To get a quote: brief the agency on your business, your goals, and the platforms you want to focus on. Most agencies will ask for a meeting before providing a figure.
Large / full-service agency
Large AU agencies do not publish standalone social media management pricing. Full digital marketing programmes at this tier can reach AUD$22,000+/month, with social management forming part of a larger retained scope.
Same briefing process applies as mid-sized agencies. If you are at this stage, you likely already have a marketing manager or team who will lead the process.
What this means for you
Questions to ask every social media provider
Ask these before you engage anyone, agency or freelancer. Each one comes straight out of what the pricing data above actually shows.
About this report
Research period: June 2026
Markets covered: New Zealand and Australia
Scope: Organic social media managementCreating content, posting, engaging with followers, and reporting on results, without paid advertising. Read more →. Paid advertising is out of scope, and is covered in a future Wisen report.
Provider tiers: Junior freelancer, experienced freelancer, boutique agency, mid-sized agency (AU only, NZ equivalent not published), large/full-service agency.
This report is built from AI-assisted research across live NZ and AU sources, including agency websites, freelancer platforms, industry publications, and platform data, then reviewed and verified against direct market knowledge. The figures are checked for local accuracy. They are not borrowed from international benchmarks and adjusted downward.
Wisen has no commercial relationships with any provider named in the research. That independence is the point.
Figures from published pricing pages or active placement listings accessed during the June 2026 research period. The source is on record.
Figures calculated from source-verified data using a disclosed method: typically hourly rate × estimated retainer hours. Not a published figure, but derived transparently.
Full data sources and methodology: wisen.co.nz/methodology