How much does it cost to hire a model in Australia?.
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By Taryn Williams, Founder, WINK Models. Last reviewed September 2026.
How much does it cost?
Hiring a commercial model in Australia through WINK Models typically costs $180 to $300 per hour, or $700 to $2,000 per talent for a half or full day. Promotional staff start at $85 to $150 per hour. A 15% agency service fee and 12% superannuation are added to every booking, plus usage where images are published.
What are Wink's rates?
| Booking type | Typical rate | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Commercial model, hourly | $180 to $300 per hour | 2 hour minimum |
| Commercial model, half or full day | $700 to $2,000 per talent | Half day up to 4 hours, full day up to 8 hours |
| Promotional staff and brand ambassadors | $85 to $150 per hour | Events, activations, sampling, retail |
| Usage | Quoted per job | Depends on media, duration and territory |
| Hair and makeup (if talent does their own) | From $100 per talent | Only applies if no HMU artist is on set |
| Wardrobe (if talent supplies their own) | $75 per talent | Also applies to separate wardrobe fittings |
| Travel | At cost | Applies for regional or interstate jobs |
| Agency service fee | 15% | Added to all bookings |
| Superannuation | 12% | Added to all bookings, paid to the talent’s fund |
All rates are exclusive of GST.
What affects the price of a model?
Four things move the rate more than anything else.
Experience. A model with years of campaign work and a strong portfolio sits at the top of the range. Newer talent sits lower.
Category. Swimwear and lingerie shoots attract higher rates, as do specialist categories like hand modelling or work that needs a particular skill.
Time on set. Hourly bookings suit short shoots. For anything over about 3 hours, a half or full day rate usually works out better value.
Usage. How and where the images are used is often the biggest variable. More on that below.
What is usage, and why does it change the fee?
Usage is the licence to publish a model’s image. The base rate covers their time on set. Usage covers what happens to the images afterwards.
It’s priced on three things:
Media: organic social and website sit at the lower end. Paid digital, print, outdoor and TV sit higher.
Duration: 12 months is standard. Two or three years, or perpetuity, costs more.
Territory: Australia only is standard. Global use costs more.
A 12 month organic social licence adds very little. A national TV or billboard campaign running for two years can cost several times the base rate. If you’re unsure what you need, tell us where the images might end up and we’ll quote the right licence rather than the biggest one.
Usage can be extended later. If a campaign performs and you want to keep running it, we’ll quote a rollover.
What costs extra?
Most shoots have a hair and makeup artist and a stylist on set, so there’s nothing extra to pay. If you’d like the talent to arrive camera-ready and do their own hair and makeup, a fee from $100 per talent applies. If they’re supplying their own wardrobe, or attending a separate fitting, that’s $75 per talent.
Travel is charged at cost when a shoot is regional or interstate, or when talent need to fly in.
What does a booking actually cost all in?
Here are two worked examples, before GST.
A half day model shoot at $800:
Talent fee $800 + agency service fee $120 + super $96 = $1,016
A 6 hour promo shift at $100 per hour:
Talent fee $600 + agency service fee $90 + super $72 = $762
Usage, HMU, wardrobe and travel are added on top where they apply.
How do I get an exact quote?
Call us on (02) 8005 4388 or send your brief through the booking page. Tell us the date, hours, number of talent, the look you’re after and where the images will be used. We’ll come back with options and a quote that matches your budget.
Working with a tight budget? Get in touch anyway. Tell us what you have to spend and we’ll do our best to make it work, whether that’s adjusting hours, the number of talent or the usage licence.
Frequently asked questions
No. Superannuation is added at 12% on top of the talent fee and paid into the model's fund on your behalf.
Two hours for hourly model bookings.
Usually, once you're past about 3 hours on set.
Often, yes. Tell us your budget upfront and we'll suggest ways to make it work, like a shorter call time, fewer talent or a narrower usage licence.
If the talent is unrecognisable, or the content isn't published, usage generally doesn't apply. We'll confirm when we quote.
Cancellations within 24 hours are charged at 100%, within 48 hours at 75%, and at 50% any other time after the booking is confirmed.
Yes. We book talent across New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland.