The quick answer

TL;DR

Pick 100 Creatives if you run paid social on Meta, TikTok or Google, need a steady volume of static and video ads plus the product imagery behind them, and have $4,000 or more per engagement.

  • Every engagement is quoted in writing with a fixed total, in ranges of $4,000 to $10,000, $10,000 to $25,000, $25,000 to $50,000 and $50,000+.
  • Creative batches come back in 48 hours, and revisions within 48 hours.
  • Statics, AI video and product imagery come from one team, made without a physical shoot.
  • Nothing is charged until you approve the quote.

Pick something else if you need a few ads a month and can brief them yourself (a freelancer, or an AI tool such as AdCreative.ai from ~$39/mo), you have daily design work beyond ads and a creative lead to manage it (an in-house designer; US median pay is $62,960 a year, per the BLS), you want one flat fee for a queue of design requests (ManyPixels, ~$699 to ~$2,599/mo), or you want an agency to plan tests and write scripts (Creative Milkshake from ~$7,000/mo, Darkroom from ~$8,000/mo).

Competitor prices on this page come from each vendor's own pricing page, checked in September 2026. They carry a ~ because vendors change them. The full list of 21 services, with source links, is on our ad creative agency pricing page.

Option 1: Freelancers (Fiverr, Upwork)

Freelance marketplaces such as Fiverr and Upwork, and designers you find through referrals, let you buy ad creatives one project at a time. You post a brief, compare proposals and pay per project. Each freelancer sets their own rate, so compare quotes on the same brief, for example 10 statics in 3 sizes.

A freelancer fits a brand that needs a handful of ads, has clear creative direction and wants no monthly commitment. You also take on the management: writing the brief, chasing the deadline, giving feedback and keeping the brand consistent from one freelancer to the next.

Pros
  • Pay per project, with no monthly commitment
  • Wide choice of styles and price points
  • Useful for testing a new channel or format
Cons
  • You write the briefs and manage feedback
  • Availability and quality vary from person to person
  • Capacity is one person's week
  • Brand consistency depends on your guidelines

Option 2: A performance creative agency

A performance creative agency decides what to test, writes the scripts, casts creators or actors and produces the ads, usually working with your media buyer. Published prices start at ~$7,000 a month at Creative Milkshake, whose typical subscriptions run ~$7,000 to ~$50,000 a month, and at ~$8,000 a month for Darkroom's performance creative service. Y'all's September 2026 cost guide puts integrated performance creative and media buying at $10K to $40K a month. At the enterprise end, Superside's subscriptions start at a ~$15,000 monthly minimum on an annual term.

Pros
  • Strategy, scripts and production from one team
  • Audience research and creative strategy included at Creative Milkshake
  • Covers video, UGC-style ads and statics
Cons
  • Starting prices of ~$7,000 to ~$8,000 a month
  • Longer timelines: Creative Milkshake quotes 3 to 7 weeks depending on scope
  • Superside requires an annual commitment

An agency makes sense when you want someone else to choose the angles. If your media buyer already knows what to test and needs the ads made, part of an agency retainer pays for planning you already have.

Option 3: An in-house designer

An in-house designer knows your brand, sits in your planning meetings and turns a request around without a brief leaving the company. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics puts median pay for graphic designers at $62,960 a year, or $30.27 an hour, as of May 2025 (bls.gov). That's pay alone, before benefits, software and the time someone spends directing the work.

If the same designer also covers email, social, web and sales material, ad creative competes with those requests for their week. An in-house hire fits a brand with design work every day and a creative lead who can direct it.

Pros
  • Knows the brand in depth
  • Available every working day
  • No outside briefing
Cons
  • Salary plus benefits and software (BLS median pay: $62,960 a year)
  • Hard to add capacity for a launch or peak season
  • One person's skills and one person's hours

Option 4: An unlimited design subscription

An unlimited design subscription charges a flat monthly fee for a queue of design requests. You can submit as many as you want, and the team works on a fixed number at a time: 1 active request at The Creative Unlimited for ~$599 a month, 3 on Kimp's Graphics plan for ~$1,397, and 1 to 4 on GetAds' plans for ~$1,750 to ~$5,250. ManyPixels charges ~$699 to ~$2,599 a month and Penji ~$995 to ~$4,500.

A subscription fits a team that sends small requests every week and has someone to write the briefs. It's a weaker fit for a fixed set of ads needed by a date, because monthly output depends on active requests and turnaround. Our guide to unlimited ad creatives shows that arithmetic.

Pros
  • Flat, published monthly prices
  • Ads, social, email and decks in one queue
  • No contracts at ManyPixels, Kimp and Penji
Cons
  • You write every brief on self-managed plans
  • Output is capped by active requests and turnaround
  • Video costs more: Kimp Graphics + Video is ~$1,697 against ~$1,397 for Graphics

Option 5: An AI creative agency (like 100 Creatives)

100 Creatives is an AI-powered creative agency in Calgary, Canada, that makes static and video ads, and the product imagery behind them, for DTC and consumer brands advertising on Meta, TikTok and Google. We publish this page, so weigh this section with that in mind.

Every engagement gets a written quote with a fixed total before work starts, in ranges of $4,000 to $10,000, $10,000 to $25,000, $25,000 to $50,000 and $50,000+, and nothing is charged until the quote is approved. Production starts with a brand intake covering visual language, model preferences, colorways and export specs. Video ads are made with AI video tools and art-directed by our team, product imagery is made without a physical shoot, and creative batches come back in 48 hours, with revisions within 48 hours. The static ad design service page lists what an engagement includes.

What you get
  • A written quote with a fixed total, from $4,000
  • 48-hour batch turnaround; revisions within 48 hours
  • Statics, AI video and product imagery from one team
  • No studio, models or location to book
Where we're the wrong pick
  • Budgets under $4,000
  • Teams that add small requests every day (a subscription fits better)
  • Brands that want the agency to run the ad account
  • Most client work is under NDA, so the portfolio on our site is spec work

Side-by-side comparison

Costs from public sources: BLS (May 2025) and vendor pricing pages checked September 2026. ~ marks a vendor figure that can change.
Factor Freelancer Performance agency In-house Unlimited subscription 100 Creatives
Cost Quoted per project by each freelancer From ~$7,000/mo (Creative Milkshake) or ~$8,000/mo (Darkroom performance creative) Median pay $62,960/yr before benefits (BLS) ~$599 to ~$5,899/mo on monthly billing Quoted per engagement from $4,000, fixed total
Turnaround Agreed per project 3 to 7 weeks at Creative Milkshake, by scope Depends on their queue Per request, e.g. 48 hours at Creative Kaiju 48-hour batches; revisions within 48 hours
Who writes the brief You The agency, with your input You or your creative lead You, on self-managed plans You send products and placements; brand intake before production
Formats Whatever that freelancer offers Video, UGC-style and static ads, by agency One person's skill set Graphics; video on some plans AI static and video ads, plus product imagery
Capacity One person Scoped in the retainer One person, full-time 1 to 6 active requests or slots, by plan Scoped in each quote
Commitment Per project Monthly retainer; Superside requires an annual term Employment No contracts at ManyPixels, Kimp and Penji Per quote; ongoing work can stop before the next billing date

Sources: BLS, Creative Milkshake, Darkroom, Superside, The Creative Unlimited, Flocksy, Creative Kaiju, No Limit Creatives, ManyPixels, Kimp, Penji, GetAds, AdCreative.ai, 100 Creatives pricing. Vendor pages checked September 2026.

Which should you choose?

Choose a freelancer when:

Choose an in-house designer when:

Choose an unlimited design subscription when:

Choose a performance creative agency when:

Choose 100 Creatives when:

If you need 30 or more static ads a month

A DTC brand that needs 30 or more new statics a month for Meta has three realistic routes. If your media buyer briefs the angles, get a quote from 100 Creatives for a recurring batch and compare it with an ad-focused subscription such as GetAds, at ~$3,250 a month for 2 active requests or ~$5,250 for 4 (checked September 2026). If you want the creative team to choose the angles and run the testing plan as well, a performance creative agency from ~$7,000 a month is the closer fit. One freelancer or one in-house designer can carry that volume only if ads are most of their job.

Frequently asked questions

Should I hire a creative agency or freelancer for ad design?
Hire a freelancer if you need a few ads, can write the brief and your budget is under $4,000. Hire a performance creative agency if you want the agency to plan and script the ads: Creative Milkshake, which includes strategy and scriptwriting, starts at ~$7,000 a month, and Darkroom's performance creative service at ~$8,000. If you need a steady volume of AI-made statics and video with a fixed total per engagement, 100 Creatives quotes from $4,000 with a 48-hour batch turnaround.
How much does a creative agency charge for ad design?
Published prices checked in September 2026: Creative Milkshake starts at ~$7,000 a month, with typical subscriptions of ~$7,000 to ~$50,000; Darkroom's performance creative service starts at ~$8,000 a month; Superside starts at a ~$15,000 monthly minimum on an annual term. Unlimited design subscriptions cost ~$599 to ~$5,899 a month on monthly billing. 100 Creatives quotes each engagement with a fixed total, from $4,000.
What are the risks of hiring a freelancer for ad creatives?
Quality and availability depend on one person, so a busy week with another client can delay your ads. You write the brief, manage feedback and keep the brand consistent, and capacity stops at what that person can make in a week. Freelancers work well for a few ads with clear direction. For a steady monthly volume, compare them with a design subscription, an agency or a quoted batch.
Is it better to hire an in-house designer or outsource ad creatives?
Hire in-house if you have design work every day beyond ads and a creative lead to direct it. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics puts median pay for graphic designers at $62,960 a year as of May 2025, before benefits and software. Outsource if your ad volume rises and falls, or you need formats outside one designer's skills, such as AI video and product imagery. 100 Creatives quotes AI static and video batches from $4,000.
How fast can I get ad creatives made?
It depends on the model. 100 Creatives returns creative batches in 48 hours, and revisions within 48 hours. Unlimited design subscriptions quote turnaround per request, such as 48 hours at Creative Kaiju or 24 hours for simple tasks at Kimp. Creative Milkshake quotes 3 to 7 weeks depending on scope. A freelancer's timeline is whatever you agree for the project.
Is an unlimited design subscription cheaper than a creative agency?
On published monthly prices, yes. Unlimited design subscriptions run ~$599 to ~$5,899 a month on monthly billing, and performance creative agencies start at ~$7,000 a month. The subscription buys production capacity, and your team writes the briefs, while Creative Milkshake's price includes research, strategy and scriptwriting. 100 Creatives prices differently: it quotes AI static and video batches from $4,000 with a fixed total.