A press release costs 0 USD to 1,500 USD and more in 2026. Writing runs from 0 USD with a free AI generator to 150 to 1,000 USD for a freelancer (eReleases, July 2026). Distribution runs from 0 USD on PRLog to 760 to 805 USD for a US national wire release (Prezly, August 2026). PressPilot reaches 100 chosen journalists from 29 EUR (about 32 USD) a month.
Key takeaways
- 0 to 8,700 USD is the full range for one release, from PRLog's free plan to PR Newswire's international circuits (Prezly, August 2026).
- 760 to 805 USD buys a 400-word US national release on Business Wire or PR Newswire, before word overage, files and PR Newswire's 195 USD membership.
- 120 to 699 USD is the pay-per-release band: PRWeb from 120 USD, EIN Presswire 149 USD, eReleases 399 to 699 USD, Newswire.com 399 to 965 USD.
- 100 EUR a month to 25,800 USD a year covers the platforms: Prezly at 100 EUR a month, Prowly at 258 USD, then Cision (12,625 USD median), Muck Rack (13,000 USD) and Meltwater (25,800 USD) on annual contracts (Vendr, February 2026).
- 29 EUR (about 32 USD) a month sends a release to 100 journalists you picked on PressPilot, newsroom included and the first AI draft free. That is 0.22 to 0.60 EUR (about 0.25 to 0.67 USD) per journalist depending on the plan, the one number no wire can quote.
- Writing is the other half of the bill: 0 USD with a free AI generator, 150 to 1,000 USD with a freelancer, 3,000 USD and up for full agency work (eReleases, July 2026).
Price per service in 2026
The table lists 14 services in the order a buyer usually meets them: wires first, then pay-per-release services, then platforms billed by the month or the year, then a free site. Every price carries its source and date. The last column shows what the same job costs on PressPilot credits, at 29 EUR a month for 100 journalists or 195 EUR for a pack of 500. PressPilot does not syndicate to a wire, so the wire rows are not like for like: they compare a syndication circuit with a targeted send.
| Service | Category | Price (source, date) | PressPilot equivalent |
|---|---|---|---|
| PR Newswire | Wire | 805 USD per US national release (400 words), plus 195 USD annual membershipPrezly Academy (August 2026) | 500 targeted journalists: 195 EUR |
| Business Wire | Wire | 760 USD per US national release (400 words)Prezly Academy (August 2026) | 500 targeted journalists: 195 EUR |
| GlobeNewswire | Wire | About 350 USD base, 700 to 1,200 USD for a typical releasePrezly Academy (August 2026) | 500 targeted journalists: 195 EUR |
| Newswire.com | Pay per release | 399 USD (Starter) to 965 USD (Feature) per releasenewswire.com (2 September 2026) | 500 targeted journalists: 195 EUR |
| eReleases | Pay per release | 399, 499 or 699 USD per release, PR Newswire distribution includedereleases.com (2 September 2026) | 300 targeted journalists: 79 EUR a month |
| PRWeb | Pay per release | 120 USD (Basic) to 480 USD (Premium) per releaseprweb.com (2 September 2026) | 100 to 300 targeted journalists: 29 to 79 EUR a month |
| EIN Presswire | Pay per release | 149 USD for one release, 499 USD for 5 plus 1, 999 USD for 15einpresswire.com (2 September 2026) | 100 targeted journalists: 29 EUR a month |
| PressPilot | Targeted outreach | 29 EUR (about 32 USD) a month for 100 journalist credits, or packs from 60 EUR (about 67 USD) for 100, excl. VATpresspilot.io/pricing (September 2026) | This is PressPilot |
| Prezly | PR platform, subscription | 100 EUR per month billed annually (Essential: 1 user, 5,000 contacts)prezly.com (2 September 2026) | 29 EUR per month for 100 credits |
| Prowly | PR platform, subscription | 258 USD per month billed annually, 369 USD month to monthPrezly Academy (28 August 2026) | 79 EUR per month for 300 credits |
| Muck Rack | PR platform, annual contract | 13,000 USD per year median, 8,000 to 20,860 USD across buyersVendr (February 2026), Prezly Academy (August 2026) | 348 EUR per year (29 EUR per month, 100 credits) |
| Cision | PR platform, annual contract | 12,625 USD per year median across 107 deals, 3,150 to 30,368 USDVendr (February 2026), Prezly Academy (August 2026) | 348 EUR per year (29 EUR per month, 100 credits) |
| Meltwater | PR platform, annual contract | 25,800 USD per year median, 5,375 to 56,993 USDVendr (February 2026) | 348 EUR per year (29 EUR per month, 100 credits) |
| PRLog | Free site | 0 USD (2 links, 1 photo, ads shown), 29 to 99 USD per release on paid plansprlog.org (2 September 2026) | 100 targeted journalists: 29 EUR a month |
Business Wire, GlobeNewswire, Cision, Muck Rack and Meltwater do not publish a rate card. Their figures come from buyers who documented a quote (Prezly) or from contract values collected by Vendr. Business Wire's own pricing page is a quote form.
Wire services: 350 to 8,700 USD per release
PR Newswire
PR Newswire charges a 195 USD annual membership (249 USD if you pay on invoice) before any release. The US national circuit is 805 USD for 400 words, 880 USD with social sharing, then 245 USD per extra 100 words. State and local circuits start at 350 USD, regional at 475 to 575 USD, and the widest international options reach 8,700 USD. Each image or video adds 325 USD, a PDF 125 USD, a logo 495 USD (Prezly, August 2026). eReleases' July 2026 guide reads the same grid from the buyer side: 350 to 445 USD local, 575 USD regional, 805 to 1,300 USD national, 3,500 to 8,700 USD international (eReleases, July 2026). Full breakdown: PR Newswire pricing 2026.
Business Wire
760 USD for 400 words on the US national circuit, no membership, 195 USD per extra 100 words, 425 USD for the first attachment and 225 USD for each one after (Prezly, August 2026). Frequent senders sign annual contracts instead: Vendr puts the median at 19,000 USD a year. Details in Business Wire pricing 2026.
GlobeNewswire
The cheapest of the three wires accepted for SEC disclosure: about 350 USD base, 140 to 175 USD per extra 100 words, 100 USD and up for a logo, 200 USD per image, up to 1,200 USD for video. Prezly's worked example, a 600-word release with a logo and one image, comes to 930 USD, and a typical release lands between 700 and 1,200 USD (Prezly, August 2026).
Pay-per-release services: 120 to 965 USD
These services resell wire reach or their own syndication network per release, with no membership. EIN Presswire charges 149 USD for one release, 499 USD for five plus one, 999 USD for fifteen, and names AP News, Google News and Bloomberg Terminals among its outlets (einpresswire.com). eReleases packages PR Newswire distribution at 399 USD (400 words, one industry list), 499 USD (500 words, two lists) and 699 USD (600 words, three lists plus a direct email to journalists), with writing at 300 USD extra (ereleases.com). Newswire.com runs from 399 USD (Starter) to 965 USD (Feature, with AP News and Yahoo) (newswire.com). PRWeb, owned by Cision, starts at 120 USD, but syndication to its 1,200 websites begins at the 245 USD Standard plan and an email to one journalist list at 360 USD (prweb.com).
PR platforms: 100 EUR a month to 25,800 USD a year
Platforms sell the tools around the release: a contact database, email sending, a newsroom, sometimes monitoring. Prezly publishes its prices: 100 EUR a month billed annually for one user and 5,000 contacts, 250 EUR for two users and 10,000 contacts, with no journalist database of its own (prezly.com). Prowly lists 258 USD a month billed annually or 369 USD month to month (Prezly, August 2026). The three enterprise tools price by quote. Vendr's buyer contracts, updated in February 2026, give a median of 12,625 USD a year for Cision across 107 deals, 13,000 USD for Muck Rack and 25,800 USD for Meltwater, with lows near 3,000 to 8,000 USD and highs up to 57,000 USD (Vendr). Prezly's own reading puts Cision's platform at about 7,200 USD a year to start and its database alone at 5,700 to 6,000 USD (Prezly, August 2026). See Cision pricing 2026 and Muck Rack pricing 2026.
PressPilot sits between the pay-per-release services and the platforms: 29 EUR a month for 100 credits, 79 EUR for 300 and 179 EUR for 800, or one-off packs at 60 EUR for 100, 195 EUR for 500, 340 EUR for 1,000 and 750 EUR for 2,500, all excl. VAT and billed in euros (about 32, 89 and 201 USD a month, or 67, 219, 381 and 840 USD per pack, at the ECB rate of 9 October 2026). One credit is one journalist contacted, credits never expire, there is no contract, and the database counts about 45,600 journalist contacts, about 14,000 of them in the US (October 2026). Full grid on the pricing page.
Free options, and what they really include
PRLog's free plan publishes your release with 2 links and 1 photo, shows ads, and distributes to its own 8,000 subscribers. Google News distribution starts at the 49 USD Premium plan (prlog.org). OpenPR accepts one free release every 30 days (Prezly, August 2026). The other free option is your own inbox: a short email to 20 journalists you found yourself costs nothing but time. We compare all of them in free vs paid press release distribution.
Hidden costs
| Add-on | PR Newswire | Business Wire | GlobeNewswire | PressPilot |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Each extra 100 words | 245 USD | 195 USD | 140 to 175 USD | 0 |
| First image or video | 325 USD | 425 USD | 200 USD (image) | 0, hosted on your newsroom |
| Company logo | 495 USD | 0 USD | 100 USD and up | 0 |
| Membership or contract | 195 USD a year | None per release; annual contracts median 19,000 USD | None | None |
| Social sharing or amplification | 75 USD (880 minus 805) | 95 USD | Not listed | Included |
Sources: Prezly, PR Newswire, Prezly, Business Wire, Prezly, GlobeNewswire, all verified August 2026; Business Wire contract median from Vendr, February 2026.
The cost of writing
| Who writes it | Price per release | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Freelance writer | 150 to 1,000 USD | eReleases, July 2026 |
| Junior agency writer | 500 to 1,000 USD | eReleases, July 2026 |
| Senior agency writer | 1,000 to 2,500 USD | eReleases, July 2026 |
| Full-service agency, release plus outreach | 3,000 USD and up | eReleases, July 2026 |
| eReleases writing service, added to a package | 300 USD | ereleases.com, September 2026 |
| Free AI generator, no signup (PressPilot) | 0 USD | presspilot.io, October 2026 |
| PressPilot AI draft inside your account, EN, FR, ES, PT | First draft free, then 5 credits (1.10 to 3 EUR) | presspilot.io/pricing, October 2026 |
A worked example: a 600-word funding round with one image
The base price is rarely the invoice. Take the release most startups send, a 600-word funding announcement with one photo, and price it on each channel with the rate cards above.
- PR Newswire, first year: 805 USD base, plus 2 word blocks at 245 USD (490 USD), plus one image at 325 USD, plus the 195 USD membership. 1,815 USD.
- Business Wire: 760 USD base, plus 2 word blocks at 195 USD (390 USD), plus the first attachment at 425 USD. 1,575 USD.
- GlobeNewswire: Prezly's own example for 600 words, a logo and an image. 930 USD.
- eReleases PR Pro: 600 words, three industry lists, two images and a direct email send, PR Newswire distribution included. 699 USD.
- PressPilot: 500 journalist credits, image hosted on your newsroom, draft written by the AI. 195 EUR.
The wires are not wasted money for a listed company that must disclose. For a private company whose goal is a reporter writing about the round, the 1,815 USD buys a syndicated copy on sites nobody chose, and the 195 EUR buys 500 named inboxes.
Total cost by scenario
Writing plus distribution, for three common situations. Ranges use the cheapest and the usual outsourced route from the tables above; your quote will move with word count, images and how many journalists you target.
| Scenario | Writing | Distribution | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local startup news | 0 USD with the free AI generator, or a freelancer from 150 USD | 100 chosen journalists on PressPilot, about 32 USD (29 EUR), or EIN Presswire at 149 USD | About 32 to 300 USD |
| National product launch | Freelancer, 150 to 1,000 USD | 300 chosen journalists on PressPilot Team, about 89 USD (79 EUR), or eReleases at 399 to 699 USD | About 240 to 1,700 USD |
| Listed company disclosure, 600 words and one image | Senior agency writer, 1,000 to 2,500 USD | Business Wire 1,575 USD or PR Newswire 1,815 USD in the first year (worked example above) | About 2,575 to 4,315 USD |
Writing figures: eReleases, July 2026. Distribution figures: the sources in the tables above. PressPilot amounts converted from euros at the ECB rate of 9 October 2026 (1 EUR = 1.1206 USD). For the cheapest routes only, see the cheapest press release distribution guide.
What you get for the money
Two survey figures explain why targeting is worth more than circuit size. Cision's 2025 State of the Media, based on more than 3,000 journalists in 19 markets, found that 72% still call the press release the most useful resource PR teams offer, and that 86% immediately reject a pitch that is not aligned with their beat or audience (Cision, May 2025). Muck Rack's 2025 State of Journalism reports that 84% of journalists say PR pitches lead to stories and 86% ignore an off-topic pitch (Buchanan PR, summarising Muck Rack, July 2025). The release works. The unread blast does not. Price the channel by how many of the right people it reaches, not by how many endpoints it lists.
Frequently asked questions
- How much does a press release cost in 2026?
- Count two lines: writing and distribution. Writing costs 0 USD with a free AI generator, 150 to 1,000 USD with a freelance writer and 500 to 2,500 USD with an agency writer (eReleases, July 2026). Distribution costs 0 USD on PRLog, 149 USD on EIN Presswire, 399 to 699 USD on eReleases and 805 USD on PR Newswire for a US national release, up to 8,700 USD internationally (Prezly, August 2026). PressPilot sends to 100 journalists you chose from 29 EUR (about 32 USD) a month.
- How much does press release distribution cost per journalist?
- On PressPilot, 0.22 to 0.60 EUR depending on the plan: 29 EUR a month buys 100 journalist credits, and one credit is one journalist you chose by beat and country. Wires do not sell per journalist. PR Newswire's 805 USD buys a circuit of websites and terminals, and you do not pick who reads it (Prezly, August 2026). eReleases' 699 USD PR Pro package is the only wire product we found that adds a direct email to industry journalist lists (ereleases.com, September 2026).
- Why does PR Newswire cost 805 USD per release?
- 805 USD is the US national circuit for 400 words. Each extra 100 words adds 245 USD, each image or video 325 USD, a logo 495 USD, and the 195 USD membership renews every year (Prezly, August 2026). The price pays for syndication to financial terminals and news sites, which is what a listed company needs for disclosure. It does not pay for a reporter to write a story.
- How much does a PR agency charge per press release?
- eReleases' 2026 cost guide puts a junior agency writer at 500 to 1,000 USD per release, a senior writer at 1,000 to 2,500 USD, and full-service agency work at 3,000 USD and up (eReleases, July 2026). Freelance writers charge 150 to 1,000 USD per release. Distribution is billed on top unless the retainer includes it.
- What is the cheapest press release service?
- To reach journalists you chose: PressPilot at 29 EUR (about 32 USD) a month for 100 journalist credits, or 60 EUR (about 67 USD) for a one-off pack of 100, with a free first AI draft and a hosted newsroom. The cheapest wire is EIN Presswire at 149 USD per release, or 66.60 USD per release on its 15-release Corporate pack (einpresswire.com, September 2026). PRWeb starts at 120 USD, but syndication to its 1,200 websites only begins with the 245 USD Standard plan (prweb.com, September 2026). The full ranking is in our guide to the cheapest press release distribution.
- Are press releases worth it?
- For news that matters to a defined group of reporters, yes. In Cision's 2025 State of the Media, 72% of journalists still call the press release the most useful resource PR teams offer, and 86% reject a pitch outside their beat (Cision, May 2025). So the release is worth it when it reaches the right reporters; a wide circuit nobody chose rarely is, unless you need a disclosure record.
- Are there hidden costs beyond the distribution fee?
- Yes, mostly word count and files. PR Newswire bills 245 USD per extra 100 words and 325 USD per multimedia file. Business Wire bills 195 USD per 100 words and 425 USD for the first attachment. GlobeNewswire bills 140 to 175 USD per 100 words and 200 USD per image (Prezly, August 2026). Writing adds 150 to 2,500 USD if you outsource it (eReleases, July 2026). PressPilot charges per journalist only; AI drafts are free the first time, then 5 credits each.
- Is a free press release site worth using?
- For a dated public copy of the text, yes. For coverage, rarely. PRLog's free plan shows ads and limits you to 2 links and 1 photo, and Google News distribution starts at its 49 USD plan (prlog.org, September 2026). 1888PressRelease's free tier displays other companies' releases next to yours and may remove yours after 12 months (1888pressrelease.com, September 2026). Our free vs paid guide goes through each site.
- Should a solo founder pay for a press release?
- Yes, if the news is real. 29 EUR (about 32 USD) on PressPilot puts the release in front of 100 journalists you picked, and one article pays it back. 86% of journalists reject pitches outside their beat (Cision, May 2025), so targeting is the part worth paying for, not circuit size. Skip wires unless a regulator requires one.
Related guides
- PR Newswire pricing 2026
- Business Wire pricing 2026
- Cision pricing 2026
- PRWeb pricing 2026
- GlobeNewswire pricing 2026
- EIN Presswire pricing 2026
- Meltwater pricing 2026
- Muck Rack pricing 2026
- Prowly pricing 2026
- Prezly pricing 2026
- Cheapest press release distribution in 2026
- Free AI press release generator
- Best press release distribution services 2026: 14 compared
- Free vs paid press release distribution
- How much should you spend on PR?
805 USD per circuit, or about 32 USD per 100 journalists
PressPilot writes the first draft, lets you pick journalists by beat and country from about 45,600 contacts, hosts the release on your newsroom and tracks who opened and replied. No contract, credits never expire.