If only there were a neat, one-size-fits-all answer. The truth is, UK voiceover rates vary depending on a whole range of factors: project type, usage, duration, and—crucially—the experience of the voice you hire.

This blog will give you a clear sense of what to budget for different kinds of projects, plus a reality check on why the cheapest option isn’t always the smartest investment.

The two parts behind every quote: session and usage

Professional voiceover quotes usually break down into two main elements:

1. Basic studio/session fee (BSF) – the cost of recording, editing, and delivering the files. (My BSF is £300 by the way.)
2. Usage/licence fee – the cost of using the recording, which depends on where and how it will be heard (internal only vs. national TV ad, for example) and for how long. Because having a voice heard across TV or social is more “valuable” than internal training, and that needs proper compensation.

So when a client asks you “How much will the voiceover be?”, remember that size isn’t everything! The script may be short, but the price is really driven by how the audio will be used. And there are so many different types of voiceover job – and this is where it can get complicated.

What drives the cost of a voiceover? (Or, why your “cheap voiceover” sometimes comes back to bite)

Here are the biggest factors that influence the price:

• Length and word count: A two-minute internal explainer is cheaper than a 10-hour audiobook. But a 60 second TV ad can be as much as a decent new car!
• Usage and reach: Internal training? Modest fee. National TV ad? You’ll need broadcast licensing. There’s a simple algorithm based on TVRs.
• Complexity and style: Technical scripts, medical narration, multiple characters, or niche accents need more prep.
• Turnaround speed: Rush jobs usually come with rush rates.
• Revisions and retakes: A pro like me will include fair revisions, but extensive rewrites aren’t free.
• Studio vs home setup: If I use my own professional home studio (as I do) it lowers overheads for you vs booking big studios.
• Experience and quality: You’re paying not just for a voice, but for reliability, consistency, experience and the ability to nail the read first time. Trust me, it adds real value.

Sample UK voiceover rates (ballpark figures you can whisper to your clients!)

Here’s a rough idea of what different types of projects might cost in the UK market. These aren’t rigid rules, but they give you solid benchmarks for client discussions:

These ranges cover the “average” professional. Experienced, in-demand voices may charge more, and rightly so (more on that in a minute).

Price vs value: why the cheapest voice can be the most expensive mistake

Here’s where things get interesting. Clients often fixate on cost, but for agencies and most clients, what really matters is value. You’re not just buying a few minutes of recorded audio—you’re buying everything that comes with it.

Think about it this way:

• Experience saves you money: A pro can deliver the right tone in fewer takes, meaning less editing, fewer revisions, and faster project turnaround. Time saved = money saved.
• Cheap voices cost more in the long run: If the recording isn’t up to scratch, you may need to re-record with someone else, explain delays to your client, or worse—deliver subpar work. That “bargain” £50 read suddenly looks very expensive.
• Professionalism matters: Deadlines, consistent quality, file formats, availability. An amateur might leave you hanging; a pro voiceover artist won’t.
• Your client notices: A polished voiceover elevates the entire production. A ropey one can undermine all the great design and strategy work you’ve put in.
• Creative polish: The difference between “reads the words” and “makes your message land.”
• Peace of mind has value: Knowing the job will be done right the first time means you can focus on everything else your client needs.

So yes, you could get a cheaper voice from, say, a freelancer in a less saturated market. But there’s a reason some voices cost more—and why creative agencies and clients often prefer me:

FAQs agencies ask about voiceover pricing

Why do voiceovers cost so much for ads?
Because the reach (TV, radio, online campaigns) massively increases the value of the voice. A national ad that airs for months is very different to a one-off internal training video.

Isn’t there always someone who’ll do it cheaper?
Yes, but if they can’t deliver broadcast-quality audio on deadline—or if their performance falls flat—you’ll end up paying more to fix it. Plus, a pro knows how to approach the script with minimal direction and adds ideas and experience to the mix. My clients often come in with one idea, I offer my take – and that’s the one they use!

Can’t AI just do it now?
Synthetic voices exist, but they can’t capture nuance, humour, or subtle persuasion the way a real human can. If your client cares about brand identity (and they should), a professional voice is non-negotiable.

Tips for getting better value from your voiceover budget

1. Be specific in the brief – usage, audience, tone, file format. Clear briefs save money.
2. Bundle jobs – recording multiple scripts in one session keeps costs down.
3. Plan ahead – avoid rush fees by scheduling voiceovers early in the project timeline.
4. Ask for usage clarity – always confirm media, territory, and duration up front.
5. Work with the same voice over time – long-term collaboration builds efficiency (and trust).

The bottom line: what’s a voiceover really worth?

So, how much does a voiceover cost? In the UK, a simple narration couple start around £200. A broadcast commercial could run into four figures with usage fees. An audiobook may be hundreds per finished hour.

But the real question isn’t “How much does it cost?” It’s “What’s the value of getting it right first time?”

A pro voiceover doesn’t just tick a budget line. It makes your client’s content sound credible, trustworthy, engaging—and by extension, it makes your agency look brilliant.

Why hire me?

I’m Claire Wyatt, a professional UK voiceover artist with 20+ years’ experience. I offer:

• Broadcast-quality recordings from my own studio.
• Versatility across corporate, commercial, e-learning, IVR, Gaming, Drama and more.
• Transparent pricing and clear usage rights (no nasty surprises).
• A friendly, reliable partnership with agencies who want to impress their clients.

In short: great value for money, because I bring the skills, speed, and professionalism that save you time, stress, and revisions.

If you’d like your next project to sound as good as it looks, drop me a line at claire@clairewyatt.com

Let’s make your client’s brand unforgettable—without the budget headaches.

The post How much does a voiceover cost? (and why value matters more than the sticker price!) appeared first on Claire Wyatt Female Voiceover.

I smashed it again!

Last year I started a new tradition: write a motivational list on a post-it note with personal and professional goals for the year and pin it to my studio wall.

Well, it worked pretty well as you can read in last year’s blog. In 2018 I built a new studio, won an award, gained some great new clients and got healthy and strong.

So, I decided I had to do it again. And guess what? It worked again!

This was 2019’s list:

• Win an award
• Complete my family
• Lose 1.5 stone (if not pregnant)
• Get a regular new e-learning client
• Get a new regular radio commercial client
• Renew my Commercial demo reel
• Maintain or improve my income
• Do the loft extension
• Read more books

Again, some stretching stuff in there – and some stuff out of my control. But it’s so useful to keep your goals front and centre and have a clear direction of travel.

So, how did I do?

Well, I only went and smashed it again!

 

Best Female Radio Drama

Radio Drama Award

Educational Voiceover Award

OneVoiceNominee

The post 2019 Review of the year in Voiceover appeared first on Claire Wyatt Female Voiceover.

It’s an absolute honour to have my work recognised and have my name up against some fantastic other talent – many of whom I consider friends.

This year I’m a finalist in the following categories:

• Female Voiceover Artist of the Year
• Best Female Radio Drama Performance
• Best Female Radio Commercial

That’s the 2nd year in a row for both Best Female and Radio drama, a 1st for Radio Commercial and last year I was a finalist in the Best Corporate Performance.

It’s a wonderful reflection of the hard graft I put in during 2018. It was a tough year, but full of so many successes. I voiced my 1st video game and cinema commercial, built a new studio, became a continuity announcer and smashed my income targets. Let’s hope 2019 can be just as good!

Listen to my entries here:

My nomination for Best Female Radio Drama Performance is for my work on ATA Girl; the amazing World War II drama produced by Big Finish. It was an honour to bring the amazing story of the female pilots to life.

Can you spot me in the amazing image?

If you’d like to know more about some of my radio drama work, including 6 Doctor Who dramas and a Torchwood, then check out my blog.

About the Awards

The awards are part of the One Voice Conference created by Gravy for the Brain. They say “The One Voice Conference is aimed at all levels of Voiceover Professional; from Beginner to Expert. Our goal is to take the voiceover industry forward and create a new standard of voice acting conference. Everyone is invited because each and every one of us works, plays a part, or simply loves the world of voiceover.”

A full list of all the categories and nominees is available and the event takes place in the DoubleTree by Hilton, Docklands hotel on 11th May 2019. This black-tie event will feature a 3-course dinner, drinks and a wonderful awards show, located by the Thames river.Tickets for the awards go on sale on March 1st 2018 at 09:00 GMT.

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As many of you may know, it didn’t get off to the best start with some personal loss and sadness in early January. But, I’m never one to be defeated by what the world throws at me so instead; I threw myself into life head-first and set myself some challenges. So, let’s see what a year in voiceover can bring.

In early January I wrote a very important post-it note. I set myself business and personal challenges and I stuck it on my monitor as a daily reminder. This is what it said:

• Win an award
• Lose 2 stone (I’m not weight obsessed but illness had taken it’s toll)
• Build a new studio
• Win new clients with my new ISDN line
• Win new clients in general!
• Organise some training to continue to improve my voice
• Complete my family

Pretty stretching stuff I think you’ll agree. Add a pre-school kid into the mix (she didn’t start until September) and a husband having a hip replacement over the summer and it all starts to sound vaguely ridiculous. I mean, how many hours do I think there are in a day?!

Wanna know how I did?

I smashed it! Well, nearly! Of course there are some things we have no control over (not pregnant!). But, all the things within my control have gone brilliantly.

• I designed, built and kitted out my brand new and upgraded sound studio
• I installed an ISDN line and I’m thrilled to be working with new clients because of it
• I was a finalist in the Female Voiceover Artist of the Year category at the One Voice Awards. I was also a finalist in the Best Overall Performance in the Corporate/Explainer Category and the Best Female Radio Drama Performance. Sadly, I didn’t win, but three nominations is pretty darned good in my books.
• I’ve been hitting the gym all year and eating a healthy, balanced diet. When I started I couldn’t run for 30 seconds without feeling sick and getting very wobbly. 12 months on, I can run 5k with ease and I’ve lost 2 stone in weight. I can just about manage to do 10k so long as I walk here and there and I’m aiming for another 2 stone next year. Huzzah! And all that fitness improves my breath control so I’m a better VO artist to boot. Winner, winner low fat chicken dinner!
• I’m working with the amazing Nancy Wolfson to keep my voice and skills in tip-top condition. Her training is keeping me fresh and ahead of the game in terms of commercial vocal styles and stopping me from falling into lazy bad habits. I want to make sure I’m always giving my clients the best and continued professional training and development is the best way to do it.

Well, that’s the post-it note sorted. But it doesn’t stop there! In addition in 2018 I have…

• Voiced my 1^st ever video game (still under NDA so I can’t tell you – gah!)
• Been heard in Cinemas for the 1^st time in a commercial
• Completed my 1^st ELT job (English Language Training)
• Won my 1^st ever Continuity gig (more on that in 2019)
• Voiced countless Halloween and Christmas commercials across UK radio
• ATA Girl, the audio drama I starred in, has been shortlisted in the BBC Audio Drama Awards

And of course, I think I voiced about 15 GDPR scripts and yet I still have absolutely no bloody idea what is right and wrong! I think we’re all in the same boat there right?

Obviously there’s more – like attempting to understand Instagram, learning epic new hacks in my DAW (Reaper) that speeds up and improves my editing and production and attending my first e-learning conference. It’s been a busy and successful year and I’m so thrilled to have achieved so much. Especially considering the personal challenges along the way. So a huge thanks to my clients and colleagues who’ve been there on the journey with me.

So, what does 2019 hold?

Hopefully more fantastic work with my existing clients and I hope to add some new ones too. I’m going to continue my training to make sure I’m offering the best quality work and stretch my voice into new dimensions.

I’d love to work more in gaming and cinema and I’m really excited to be moving in to Continuity too.

The main thing is that I still love my job. I just love that every day is different. I work across drama, commercials, education, corporate, continuity and more. I’ve voiced for various sectors including the built environment, education, charity, retail, finance and countless others. Who knows what 2019 holds? But I think I need to sit down with a gin and write another post-it note – they clearly work!

The post 2018 Review of a year in voiceover appeared first on Claire Wyatt Female Voiceover.

I was thrilled to be asked by the fantastic director Barnaby Edwards to be part of a three-part narrated audio drama for Audible. Not only is it narrated by the legendary Miriam Margolyes but it meant being reunited with with fantastic colleagues and friends. These included Helen Goldwyn, Tracy-Ann Oberman Richard Earl, Nicholas Pegg, Sarah Sutton and Niky Wardley.

The original drama is called Apprentice – Scarlet City – Part I. I played a couple of parts, but most notably the sassy and seductive Lillian who uses her looks and wit to great effect! I won’t say more as it will spoil it for you.

Pre-order a copy on the Audible site.

So, what’s it all about?

Here’s the Publisher’s Summary:

This Original multicast drama blends history with fiction to tell the story of Jonah, a young apprentice from London who raises himself from poverty by wit and luck to become one of the most powerful merchants of the age.

A rags-to-riches tale, Jonah’s journey spans the breadth of human experience, from the intricacies of Edward III’s political intrigues to the cutthroat world of international trade, from the triumphs of war to the agonies of personal loss – love, friendship, joy, heartbreak and glory. Set largely in London, the Scarlet City, the centre of medieval England, the Scarlet City trilogy is a thrilling portrait of the age and the people who made it so rich, colourful and extraordinary.

London, 1330. Jonah Durham grows up in the household of his tyrannical cousin Rupert, and only his grandmother, the calculating Cecilia Hillock, recognizes his talent and intelligence. After her death he inherits a handsome fortune, bestowing him with both wealth and independence but also the wrath of his increasingly dangerous cousin. However, a fateful encounter with the young King Edward III is set to radically change Jonah’s life and the future of English cloth production.

Cast information

Narrated by Miriam Margolyes, OBE (Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Romeo + Juliet, Mulan) and starring Douglas Booth (Riot Club, Loving Vincent, Shelley) as Jonah, and Alison Steadman, OBE (Gavin and Stacey, Orphan Black, Shirley Valentine) as Cecilia Hillock.

Also featuring: Daniel Anthony, Josephine Arden, John Banks, Tim Bentinck, Clare Buckfield, Oliver Coopersmith, Beth Chalmers, Elliot Chapman, Trevor Cooper, Ray Coulthard, Gareth David-Lloyd, Richard Earl, Andrew French, Helen Goldwyn, James Joyce, Tony Millan, Tracy-Ann Oberman, Katarina Olsson, Steven Pacey, Nicholas Pegg, Nigel Planer, Siobhán Redmond, Christopher Ryan, David Schofield, Dan Starkey, Sarah Sutton, Niky Wardley, Alexander Wlahos, and Claire Wyatt.

My other audio drama and audio book work

If you’d like to hear more, then please visit my audio book and audio drama page. I’ve created characters for Doctor Who and Torchwood, narrated children’s stories and adult fiction!

The post An epic audio drama from Audible appeared first on Claire Wyatt Female Voiceover.

My voiceover skills are usually put to the test on these fabulous audio drama sci-fi jobs (playing anything from telepathic Hyenas to sentient computers!) but with this one I’m playing a human. This is the first Torchwood I’ve done so it was fabulous to work with Tracy-Ann Oberman and a delight to be reunited with the wonderful Barnaby Edwards as director.

The day started with a surprise as I’d prepared my character as a Londoner but it soon became clear that I sounded too much like another actress in the cast. A quick on-the-spot whizz through a few accents choices and we settled on Bristolian. It actually made the character even more fun and unique.

Working with legends!

Now, Big Finish jobs are always fun. They have a knack for putting great teams together, the lunches are legendary and the scripts always brilliant. AND you get to work some absolute legends. For once it wasn’t a Doctor! This time I had the pleasure of working with Jane Asher and Trev from Trev and Simon (my pant-swinging 80s childhood hero!).

You can pre-order your copy now by going to the Big Finish Website.

Synopsis

Torchwood One – we defend the British Empire. We keep everyone safe. For your own good.

Something’s happened. Something’s twisted its way into Torchwood One. Something old. Something which should have been forgotten, wiped, abandoned. Soemthing which has been waiting. Something which knows how the world should be ruled, how people should be used.

When humanity’s threatened, Yvonne Hartman is required.

Directed By: Barnaby Edwards

Cast

Tracy-Ann Oberman (Yvonne Hartman), Gareth David-Lloyd (Ianto Jones), Jane Asher (Elaine), Paterson Joseph (Matthew), James Wilby (Pascal), Adjoa Andoh (Fiona), Niky Wardley (Stacey), Daniel Anthony (Julian), Tim Bentinck (Tommy), Trevor Neal (Jason), Claire Wyatt (Tanya), Helen Goldwyn (Receptionist), Nicholas Pegg (Soldier) and WOTAN

The post My latest audio drama voiceover available to order appeared first on Claire Wyatt Female Voiceover.

As an actor I gained a reputation as the go-to person for playing multiple roles in one show. In fact, I’ve rarely ever been in a show where I only play one character! It requires an active imagination, an ability to manipulate your body, a willingness to make a fool of yourself and, of course, a great ear for accents and vocal character.

And it’s not just inventing characters. I’ve had to impersonate real people too. It takes a lot of listening and playing around before you find all the elements that make up someones voice. Are they breathy, nasal or shrill? What pitch and speed do they talk at? Is there a defect or impediment? What shapes do they make with their mouths and faces to form the sounds? Detailed research and a lot of hard graft but I get there in the end.

Anne Hegarty from The Chaser

What’s great is that all my theatre training and experience is now bleeding into my voiceover work. A recent client found me via Google precisely because they needed a skilled voiceover artist who could also do impersonations. They needed someone to impersonate some people from the TV game show The Chaser as well as coming up with characters playing the game. It was a lot of fun. Sadly, I’m not allowed to share the content so I’ll have to leave it to your imagination. But they did share the avatars with me.

Jenny Ryan from The Chaser

My many acting roles

Here’s just a selection of some of the shows I’ve done where I’ve had to take on characters and do impersonations:

• Vanity Fair by William Thackeray. I played the wealthy,grouchy and flamboyant octogenarian Lady Steyne as well as an hilarious and loving Irish military wife. I also played a teenager, a middle aged mum and a sour and snobbish Governess.
• Cyrano de Bergerac by Edmond Rostand. In this I played a man. Yup, you heard that right. At 5’2″ and the tender age of 25 I played the comic role of Ragueneau the pastry chef as well as a few extra characters here and there.
• Coronation Street on Stage by Jonathan Harvey. To celebrate 50 years of the iconic soap we toured and amazing show featuring some of the most famous characters and scenes. It was the hardest  job and most epic vocal challenge of my life! I played 11 characters including Vera Duckworth, Elsie Tanner, Annie Walker and Hayley Walker. The hardest part was doing an accurate impersonation but one that would work on stage to audiences in their 1000s. A breathy TV voice would never carry. So I had to adapt the voice but still sound like the character. Not easy! And then you add the millions of costume and wig changes. I was a sweaty mess by the end of each show.
  • You can see a short video of me playing Annie Walker on YouTube – watch from about 45 seconds in.

“Claire Wyatt is an instantly recognisable Elsie Tanner, her Vera Duckworth pairs well with Lailey’s Jack, but the audience’s hearts almost audibly go out to her Hayley and Sangster’s Roy Cropper.” Theatre Review

Some memorable Doctor Who Audio drama characters

• The Boy that Time Forgot – I played Madam Teegarna, a Scorpion-like alien military leader, as well as other minor characters.
• Exotron – in this I played a telepathic hyena called a Farakosh, a young Northern technician and a computer!
• Return to the Web Planet – I played Mother Earth herself in this spooky existential tale.
• The Silver Turk – this was fun to record as I had to play the posh Countess Mitzi Wittenmeier as well as her young Scottish maid in the same scene. I also played at least three more minor characters.

I also use my character skills for radio commercials too. And of course there’s Halloween and the Xmas season approaching!

Don’t forget to get in touch if you’d like to find out more.

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I spent another joyous day with the team at Big Finish productions last week recording an episode of Torchwood. It’s all hush hush at the moment until it’s released, but I can talk about the other great projects I’ve done for them. And I can tell you this – it’s never a dull day and I usually die at least once!

My first encounter with Big Finish (the production company that make audio content for Doctor Who, Torchwood and other great sci-fi hits) was back in 2007. It was a bit of a trial by fire! I got a call and was asked if I could do the voice of a telepathic hyena! “Sure!” I said without the first clue as to how I would do it. “Oh, and you’ll also be playing a construction worker, some tannoy announcements and the voice of a sentient computer” says the lovely director. “No problem” I say while swallowing down my terror. Multi-roling is what I’m well known for in my acting life, but with audio work it’s even harder. You have no costume or physicality to help differentiate your characters for the audience.

In audio drama your skills are stripped bare – it’s just your voice and the imagination of the listener. A challenge I relish! The job was Exotron. A Doctor Who story with Peter Davison and Nicola Bryant. I had an absolute blast and it obviously went well as I was soon asked back to do more.

Over the last few years I’ve worked with Doctors Peter Davison, Colin Baker and Paul McGann and had the pleasure of working with some amazing other actors including David Schneider, Isla Blair and the late Sam Kelly. Every project has it’s challenges. From evil, scuttling Scorpions to Mother Life herself – I never know what’s coming. I once had to play both an elderly Countess and her young Scottish maid in the same scene and in conversation! It was a relief to finally play the Doctor’s companion in the The Ninth Doctor Chronicles recently – just one character and my own accent!

Creating atmosphere

PARADISE 5: Richard Earl, Nicola Bryant, Colin Baker, Helen Goldwyn and Claire Wyatt

And it’s not just the named characters you’ll be playing on a Big Finish job. Oh no! Most of the fun comes when creating the wild tracks. Death scenes, chattering aliens, Victorian crowd scenes – there’s always some extra hubbub that needs voicing. Ask yourself how to ‘chatter’ in a made up Scorpion language and then make it sound different for fear, anger and various types of death!

You have to have a warmed up voice, an open mind and a willingness to play and make a prat of yourself.

I work hard to practice accents and play around with my voice to see what tones, energies and characteristics I can create. Audio drama is all about being versatile and creative. And I can’t wait to do more.

As soon as it’s released I’ll let you know about the Torchwood job.

Listen to my Doctor Who stories here:

• The Boy that Time forgot
• Exotron
• The Ninth Doctor Chronicles – The Bleeding Heart
• Paradise 5
• Return to the Web Planet
• The Silver Turk

The post The versatile voice of radio drama appeared first on Claire Wyatt Female Voiceover.

Networking pays off

I’ve been earning a great living through corporate work, on-line videos, E-Learning programmes and a bit of IVR (telephone systems). But, as any business owner knows, diversity of income sources and regularity of bookings is key to success. So, I’d been wanting to get into regular radio for a while. Building my voiceover business has been a challenge as I’ve been raising a young family at the same time. (I must do a blog on that at some point!) So, finding time to upgrade my commercial reels and target my marketing to new voiceover sectors has been hard. And there are tonnes of British Female Voiceover artists out there – so how do I get noticed?

Well, it all came together at VOX this year. I met some fabulous producers, I had my new brand, new business cards, my sales patter and elevator pitch sorted and my confidence SKY HIGH! And it worked! I booked one job, it went well, word spread and now I’m doing more.

I love the work

Working in radio is great! You never know what’s coming in and who you’ll have to be. The caring and understanding voice of a divorce solicitor? The adventurous Mum taking her kids to a theme park? The inspiring voice of the Fostering services? Or perhaps a crazy character for a Christmas commercial?

The last minute nature of it and the diversity of styles sure keeps you on your toes! It’s normal to get a call 1st thing in the morning to arrange a session for that day. But each one can be quite short – especially if you’re a great sight reader like me. So it’s easy to fit them into your day even if you’re out and about as I was the other day.

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