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NUJ Rate for the Job:
Words, other / news
Rates archived as at 2025-07-09
These rates have been reported by members of the National Union of Journalists and others, and printed in the Freelance, newsletter of London Freelance Branch. They are sorted by publisher/publication, then by date (most recent first). TIP: Use the "Find in page" command under your browser's "Edit" or "Search" menu to be sure of finding all occurrences of a publication/publisher. AND do note the year in which the rate was reported! See also the Freelance Fees Guide, which gives general recommendations. And read the disclaimer and the key to exactly what the entries mean.
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Work for which we had no rate-per-thousand-words, whose primary use was in a national newspaper. See also regional papers.
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Tell us what you've been paid for Words, other / news |
Freelance Fees Guide
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| Publication / Programme - details & terms | Group | Year |  |
Total paid | GR |
XXXX |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aswat el Ger unspecified piece | 2008 |  |
75.00 | XX | ||
| Daily Express Brutus column | _UM | 1999 | |
50.00 | ||
| Daily Mail news story, made around 4 pars | _Assoc | 2013 | |
125.00 | ||
| Daily Mail | _BarcB | 2011 | |
166.00 | XX | |
| Daily Mail Diary piece, length unspecified | _Assoc | 2011 | |
100.00 | XX | |
| Daily Mail Real Life piece, £1000 for 1800 words FBSR | _Assoc | 2010 | |
556.00 | O | |
| Daily Mail page lead, sent all round (not exclusive) no terms specified | _Assoc | 2009 | |
150.00 | GR | XX |
| Daily Mail feature FBS | _Assoc | 2007 | |
1800.00 | GR | |
| Daily Mail filler | _Assoc | 1998 | |
100.00 | ||
| Daily Record news page lead FBS | _TMG | 2004 | |
70.00 | XX | |
| Diez Portiento (Argentina) article+photos | 1998 | |
100.00 | |||
| Evening Standard live concert review | _Lebedev | 2010 | |
140.00 | X | |
| Evening Standard comment/news piece | _EPL | 2009 | |
500.00 | ||
| Evening Standard diary item | _Assoc | 1999 | |
40.00 | ||
| Evening Standard diary item | _Assoc | 1999 | |
40.00 | ||
| Evening Standard diary item | _Assoc | 1997 | |
100.00 | ||
| Evening Standard whole pink page (member: 'too low'!) | _Assoc | 1994 | |
200.00 | XX | |
| Evening Standard - ES magazine page | _Assoc | 1998 | |
450.00 | ||
| Evening Standard - ES magazine per page | _Assoc | 1998 | |
450.00 | ||
| Express Scottish front page lead FBS | _NS | 2004 | |
120.00 | ||
| Financial Times feature FBS | _Pearson | 2005 | |
400.00 | ||
| Financial Times diary column 'up to' | _Pearson | 1994 | |
200.00 | ||
| Guardian Weekly 1200-word article + image "reduced rate" | _GMG | 2009 | |
110.00 | XXX | |
| Guardian commissioned blog post - rate in new NUJ House Agreement from 01/10/21 is same as 2012 | _GMG | 2021 | |
90.00 | HA | XX |
| Guardian Commissioned blog post - Comment is Free - minimum | _GMG | 2012 | |
90.00 | HA | |
| Guardian Learn Direct online - flat rate (for 5 years) | _GMG | 2012 | |
200.00 | ||
| Guardian page for education section, extra online material | _GMG | 2012 | |
500.00 | ||
| Guardian unspecified feature | _GMG | 2012 | |
285.00 | ||
| Guardian blog piece for Life & Style, online only | _GMG | 2011 | |
87.00 | GR | |
| Guardian feature for Family supplement (NB agreed minimum is £301.63 incl. 6.5% online uplift) | _GMG | 2011 | |
291.00 | ||
| Guardian Comment is Free | _GMG | 2011 | |
85.00 | ||
| Guardian 'Comment' blog | _GMG | 2009 | |
85.00 | ||
| Guardian 300-word gig reviews , terms as Guardian agreement | _GMG | 2008 | |
100.00 | ||
| Guardian 150-word music, film reviews , terms as Guardian agreement | _GMG | 2008 | |
50.00 | ||
| Guardian diary piece no terms discussed | _GMG | 2007 | |
50.00 | X | |
| Guardian diary piece no terms discussed | _GMG | 2007 | |
30.00 | XX | |
| Guardian short weekly column | _GMG | 1998 | |
100.00 | X | |
| Guardian weekly short column | _GMG | 1998 | |
100.00 | XX | |
| Guardian Comment is Free standard online comment piece | _GMG | 2014 | |
90.00 | GR | |
| Guardian Comment is Free standard online comment piece | _GMG | 2014 | |
90.00 | GR | |
| Guardian Comment is Free standard online comment piece | _GMG | 2014 | |
90.00 | GR | |
| Guardian Comment is free | _GMG | 2009 | |
80.00 | ||
| Herald 200-word review | _NQ | 2007 | |
50.00 | XXX | |
| Herald (Glasgow) London theatre review | _SMG | 1994 | |
40.00 | X | |
| Independent on Sunday half-page lead business story, 500 words, used as second lead for the whole week | _INM | 2009 | |
100.00 | XXXX | |
| Independent features 800-1200 words-ish | _Lebedev | 2013 | |
200.00 | X | |
| Independent back end lead with research | _Lebedev | 2013 | |
200.00 | XX | |
| Independent gig review (400 words) certain exes paid, such as ticket costs, no extra payment for web use | _INM | 2008 | |
120.00 | GR | |
| Independent Saturday mag 2pp | _INM | 1994 | |
500.00 | X | |
| Irish Examiner book review FBS | _Crosbie | 2013 |  |
125.00 | GR | X |
| Irish Examiner feature, length not specified | _Crosbie | 2006 | |
70.00 | XX | |
| Irish Independent online column | _INM | 2012 | |
90.00 | ||
| Irish Post feature + 3 photos - terms? | _Smurf | 2003 | |
100.00 | ||
| Irish Sunday Times 300 words news report @ £100 First Irish Serial + web | _NI | 2013 | |
333.33 | ||
| Irish Times The Irishwoman's Diary | _ITtrust | 2005 | |
120.00 | ||
| Irish Times 400 word book review | _ITtrust | 2004 | |
220.00 | O | |
| Irish Times foreign news feature terms not discussed, but they also ran piece on their website | _ITtrust | 2001 | |
80.00 | XX | |
| Mail on Sunday kill fee for news story | _Assoc | 2010 | |
350.00 | ||
| Mail on Sunday £2500 agreed, story spiked, all expenses paid plus kill fee, after negotiation, of | _Assoc | 2009 | |
2000.00 | ||
| Mail on Sunday Assistance with page 1 lead | _Assoc | 2000 | |
500.00 | ||
| Mail on Sunday page lead | _Assoc | 1998 | |
500.00 | ||
| Mail on Sunday Analysis spread | _Assoc | 1997 | |
1600.00 | ||
| Mail online 'real life' story - made lead on femail second UK serial rights | _Assoc | 2014 | |
40.00 | GR | XX |
| Metro travel piece: 900 words including boxes, plus photos. Editor: "Look, we know it's not much but how do you think we manage to put out a free paper?" Member: "No way." | _Assoc | 2008 | |
150.00 | XXXX | |
| Metro 250-wd arts previews licence not known | _Assoc | 2007 | |
37.50 | X | |
| Miami Herald newsy feature from Venezuela , no exes paid, worldwide licence sought before publisher would use copy. | 2009 |  |
250.00 | XXX | ||
| Mirror words + pic | _TMG | 2014 | |
30.00 | ||
| Mirror words + pic | _TMG | 2014 | |
30.00 | ||
| Mirror Ticket feature 750 - 1200 words FBS | _TMG | 2006 | |
350.00 | ||
| Mirror six-par stick | _TMG | 2000 | |
120.00 | ||
| News Of The World live music review, 100-150 words | _NI | 2010 | |
50.00 | X | |
| News of the World page lead mid-paper | _NI | 2010 | |
500.00 | ||
| News of the World story research | _NI | 2009 | |
200.00 | GR | |
| News of the World spread | _NI | 1996 | |
3500.00 | ||
| Politiken (Denmark) 750 word news piece - filed in English | 2003 | |
300.00 | |||
| Singtao EU (Hong-Kong based newspaper) articles of unspecified length, between £30 and £100 per article | 2012 | |
100.00 | X | ||
| Sun p7 page lead (exclusive) | _NI | 2013 | |
950.00 | ||
| Sun news story, made 3 pars bottom of p6 | _NI | 2013 | |
55.00 | ||
| Sun "small page lead" story, worcount not specified | _NI | 2011 | |
500.00 | O | |
| Sun football report , no exes | _NI | 2010 | |
30.00 | XXX | |
| Sun 5-par story | _NI | 2009 | |
60.00 | ||
| Sun exclusive football transfer story, 4 pars used | _NI | 2009 | |
40.00 | XXX | |
| Sunday Express spread | _NS | 2003 | |
1500.00 | ||
| Sunday Mirror page lead | _TMG | 1998 | |
750.00 | ||
| Sunday Telegraph 750 words | _BarcB | 2014 | |
250.00 | X | |
| Sunday Telegraph 750 words | _BarcB | 2014 | |
250.00 | X | |
| Sunday Telegraph 400 word story spiked then refreshed and used following week all rights | _BarcB | 2009 | |
300.00 | GR | |
| Sunday Times (Scotland) column | _NI | 2000 | |
250.00 | ||
| Sunday Times kill fee for 1200 words commissioned | _NI | 2010 | |
150.00 | ||
| Sunday Times Money column | _NI | 1998 | |
250.00 | X | |
| Sunday World news page lead | _INM | 2012 | |
130.00 | X | |
| Telegraph revision of two existing articles on Greek islands, generation of new destinations for use in Saturday print supplement, and online in perpetuity | _BarcB | 2013 | |
2000.00 | O | |
| Telegraph news story, wordage unspecified | _BarcB | 2010 | |
110.00 | X | |
| Telegraph paperback reviews, 110 words, down from £75 | _BarcB | 2009 | |
40.00 | XXX | |
| Telegraph reviews - commissioners trying to cut rate to £60 | _BarcB | 2009 | |
100.00 | ||
| Telegraph stories used online only, regardless of length | _BarcB | 2009 | |
25.00 | XXXX | |
| Telegraph 900-word feature, rate is reduction from 2007 incl. web use | _BarcB | 2008 | |
300.00 | XX | |
| Telegraph 150-word album reviews | _BarcB | 2008 | |
75.00 | XX | |
| Telegraph city diary piece no terms discussed | _BarcB | 2007 | |
35.00 | ||
| Telegraph 'a small column' | _Holl | 1994 | |
125.00 | ||
| The People page 17 lead, weird foreign Web included | _TMG | 2014 | |
1000.00 | ||
| The Sunday Times (Ireland) news story - 350 words | _NI | 2007 | |
82.50 | ||
| Times 20 x 100-word listings plus picture research | _NI | 2013 | |
400.00 | ||
| Times 120-word album, DVD, film reviews | _NI | 2008 | |
50.00 | X | |
| Times 80-word album reviews, Sounds section | _NI | 2008 | |
40.00 | X | |
| Times 450-500-word book reviews, Books sec, Sat ed | _NI | 2008 | |
150.00 | ||
| Times news page lead | _NI | 2007 | |
130.00 | XXX | |
| Times arts feature: for anything between 800-1200 words. no licence terms discussed | _NI | 2006 | |
350.00 | ||
| BBC News Online 750 words plus 5 original photos | _BBC | 2012 | |
216.00 | ||
| BBC News Online 800 words on G8/G20 summit , £63 extra for pix , terms not discussed | _BBC | 2010 | |
150.00 | ||
| BBC News Online 350 word news story, includes pix , terms not discussed | _BBC | 2010 | |
100.00 | ||
| PA sport match report 50-75 pounds | _PA | 2007 | |
50.00 | XX | |
| PA sport night lead (600-800 words) pathetic | _PA | 2007 | |
50.00 | XXX | |
| RTE online/teletext film review | _RTE | 2006 | |
51.00 | GR | |
| unnamed Irish tabloid Central America news story talked up from "recession price" of Euro 180 offered, same paper offered Euro 500 two years ago | 2010 | |
250.00 | |||
| Key to the rates, by column: |
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| 1 Publication / Programme, any details of work and licence | ||||||
| 2 Owner at the time the rate was reported, where known | Group | |||||
| 3 The year in which the rate was reported | Year |
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| 4 Currency: either or or (US) | |
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| 5 Amount paid (total of basic licence and extra licences for web use, database resale...) | Amount |
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| 7 "Going Rate" according to experienced NUJ members - do try to better it: | GR |
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| or Minimum rate set out in NUJ House Agreement: | HA |
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| 8 Underpaid, in the fallible opinion of the Freelance editor: | | 50.00 | X |
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| or Just sometimes we're pleasantly surprised: | | 1500.00 | O |
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These are archived rates. Other rates:
| Type of work: | In the "sector": (click or tap below!) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Words, per 1000 | News | Local | Mag | online | Book | PR | Other |
| Words, other | News | Local | Mag | online | Book | PR | Other |
| Photography | News | Local | Mag | online | Book | PR | Other |
| Broadcasting | News | Local | Other including podcasting | ||||
| Shifts | News | Local | Mag | online | Book | PR | Other |
| Other: | Cartoons | Crosswords | Illustration | Punditry | Retainer | Teaching | Tip-off | Translation | ||||||
| Recently reported rates | all from the past few months |
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