What should be optional in a illustration proposal?

In this template: Spot illustrations ($120.00 USD per illustration), Animated versions ($200.00 USD per animation). Optional lines sit next to the base price with a switch, so clients choose them without a follow-up email.

Pricing guide for illustrators

How much to charge for illustration

Updated October 23, 2026. Example prices in US dollars from the illustration template.

Example starting total$2,930.00 USD

Short answer: Price illustration as one fixed line (style sample and palette at $450.00 USD) with a starting total of $2,930.00 USD, then 2 optional lines (spot illustrations, animated versions) the client can switch on, and quantities the client sets within your limits. Set your own numbers; the structure is what gets accepted.

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Below: the price lines from our illustration quote, what is fixed, what the client can switch on, and how to show it so the client accepts instead of haggling.

The example pricing

Line	Example price	How it is sold
Style sample and paletteOne finished illustration and the colors for the set	$450.00 USD	Included
Hero illustrationsLarge pieces for the main pages	$380.00 USD per illustration	IncludedClient picks 1 to 12
Spot illustrationsSmall pieces for features and icons	$120.00 USD per illustration	Optional, on by defaultClient picks 1 to 30
Animated versionsSubtle motion for the hero pieces, as Lottie files	$200.00 USD per animation	Optional, off by defaultClient picks 1 to 12

Starting total with the defaults on: $2,930.00 USD, before the client chooses among 2 optional lines, with 3 quantities the client sets within your limits. Example prices in US dollars; the template works in 16 currencies and every number is yours to change.

How to present it

Design is bought on trust, so the proposal has to show the work before it talks about money. Put the directions or a comparable project up front, then the price. A client who has already pictured the result argues less about the number.

Price the outcome, not the hours. "Three directions, one refined mark, every file" is a thing a client can want; "twelve hours" is a thing they can haggle over. Keep revisions explicit: two rounds included, a third by the round, priced.

Put the extras on the page as optional lines rather than in a follow-up email. Brand colours, business cards, an extra direction: when they sit next to the base price with a switch, a fair share of clients turn one on.

Questions people ask

How much should I charge for illustration?: Price illustration as one fixed line (style sample and palette at $450.00 USD) with a starting total of $2,930.00 USD, then 2 optional lines (spot illustrations, animated versions) the client can switch on, and quantities the client sets within your limits. Set your own numbers; the structure is what gets accepted.
What should be optional in a illustration proposal?: In this template: Spot illustrations ($120.00 USD per illustration), Animated versions ($200.00 USD per animation). Optional lines sit next to the base price with a switch, so clients choose them without a follow-up email.
How do I present illustration pricing so it gets accepted?: Design is bought on trust, so the proposal has to show the work before it talks about money. Put the directions or a comparable project up front, then the price. A client who has already pictured the result argues less about the number.

Why this structure gets accepted

One fixed line the client can say yes to. Style sample and palette is priced as a whole, so the conversation is about the result, not the hours.
Options on the page, not in follow-up emails. Spot illustrations, Animated versions sit next to the base price with a switch. People choose what they can see.
The total moves as they choose. On a Quote and Sign page the client toggles lines and sets quantities, watches the total update, and signs with their name. What they chose becomes part of the signed record.

Put it in front of a client

Open this pricing as a real quote, change the words and numbers, and send the link. Your client reads it on a phone or laptop, picks the extras, and taps Accept. You both get the signed PDF.