How much does fashion e-commerce photography cost?
On price lists read on 10 October 2026, a US studio starts at $39 to $50 a product photo, before booking fees, and $95 an on-model image. Retouching photos you shot yourself starts at $0.95 an image on a $95 a month plan. Made from your photo here, an image is 5 credits, $0.50, the price you pay.
What studios charge, from their own price lists
Every figure below was read on the studio’s public pricing page on 10 October 2026, and the page is named next to it. These are starting prices from US studios that publish theirs; many studios only quote on request, and prices change, so open the page before you budget.
| Studio and service | Published price | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Squareshot, product photo on a white or colored backdrop | From $50 an image, or $750 for a 2-hour shoot | squareshot.com/ecommerce-photography-pricing, read 10 October 2026 |
| Squareshot, model shoot | From $95 an image, or $2,950 for a 4-hour shoot | squareshot.com/ecommerce-photography-pricing, read 10 October 2026 |
| Squareshot, full day (8 hours) | $1,125 to $4,450 for products; $2,950 to $7,450 with a model | squareshot.com/ecommerce-photography-pricing, read 10 October 2026 |
| Squareshot, ghost mannequin clothing on its plans | 1.5 of its plan credits an image, sold at $45 to $60 each inside a monthly plan from $1,500 a month: $67.50 to $90 an image (our calculation from its published credit prices) | squareshot.com/ecommerce-photography-pricing, read 10 October 2026 |
| soona, product photo | $39 a photo, plus a $149 studio pass a booking, waived with a membership at $13 or $49 a month billed yearly | soona.co/pricing, read 10 October 2026 |
| soona, people and styling | Full-body model $159 an hour; ghost mannequin styling $129 an hour; hair and makeup $299 a model | soona.co/pricing, read 10 October 2026 |
| Pixelz, retouching photos you shot yourself | From $0.95 an image, on its $95 a month Professional plan | pixelz.com/pricing, read 10 October 2026 |
Why the price per image is never the whole bill
A per-image price is the floor. What a shoot actually costs depends on what sits around the camera, and the same price lists show it:
- People are billed by the hour or the day. On soona a full-body model is $159 an hour and hair and makeup $299 a model, on top of the price of each photo.
- Styling is its own line. Ghost mannequin styling, the dressing of the form before the shot, is $129 an hour on soona.
- Preparation is per item. Squareshot lists steaming at $3 an item.
- Access can be per booking. soona charges a $149 studio pass a booking to customers without a membership.
- Usage rights have limits. Squareshot’s model day includes one model and six months of usage rights; longer use is an extension.
- A ghost mannequin image is two pictures joined in editing, the garment and the inside of its neck. That is why it is priced above a flat product shot.
What an image costs made from your own photo
There is a third way between a studio and a retoucher: photograph the garment yourself, on a hanger, flat or worn, and have the product shot made from that photo. Here, the ghost mannequin packshot and the on-model shot cost 5 credits an image, $0.50, the price you pay; 10 credits for the front and the back of one garment. The first 2 renders are free, with no account, and a free account opens with a one-time welcome of 50 credits, then gets 15 credits a month.
The price is lower because nobody is in a studio, and the result says so: the color, print and cut come from your photo, while the model, the drape on the body, the inside of the neck and any back you did not photograph are generated. The guide linked below explains which product shot each channel needs and what renders true.
When a studio is still worth its price
- Fabric close-ups a buyer judges the cloth by: texture, weight, sheen. A real camera on the real garment.
- A campaign or a lookbook with a cast, a location and an art director.
- Garments whose fit is the whole sale, tailoring and swimwear, where a real body in the real size answers the question a generated one cannot.
- Volume with strict consistency rules from a marketplace or a wholesale buyer, where a contract and a set look are worth paying for.
Questions
How much does a ghost mannequin photo cost?
On the price lists read on 10 October 2026: $67.50 to $90 an image on Squareshot’s plans (our calculation from its published credit prices: 1.5 of its credits at $45 to $60 each, on a monthly plan from $1,500 a month), or from $0.95 an image at Pixelz on its $95 a month plan if you shot the garment on a form yourself. Made from your own photo here, 5 credits, $0.50, the price you pay.
How much does an on-model photo cost?
Squareshot lists model shoots from $95 an image, or $2,950 for four hours. soona charges $39 a photo plus $159 an hour for a full-body model and $299 a model for hair and makeup. All read on 10 October 2026.
Is a day rate cheaper than paying per image?
Only if the day is full. Squareshot lists a product day at $1,125 to $4,450 against $50 an image; ask a studio how many finished images its day includes, then divide.
What does it cost to make the images from my own photo?
Your first 2 renders are free, with no account. Then 5 credits ($0.50) a render; a free account opens with a one-time welcome of 50 credits, then gets 15 credits a month.
Are these prices current?
They were read on each studio’s public pricing page on 10 October 2026 and are starting prices. Studios change them; open the page named next to each figure before you budget.