TL;DR
A UK marketing consultant typically costs £400 to £550 a day in 2026, or roughly £56 to £71 an hour. Two to four days a month comes to about £840 to £2,140. Agencies charge roughly double per day. The price that matters is what gets built, not the rate.
Why trust this page: I'm a marketing consultant, so I have an interest here and I'll say where I'm not the right fit. Every figure below links to where it came from, and anything that's my own arithmetic is labelled.
Marketing consultant day rates in 2026
The two best public sources are freelance platforms that publish rates from real bookings and profiles.
- YunoJuno: an average of £418 a day for UK marketing consultants in its 2026 figures, based on its booking data. According to Whito's summary of the 2026 report, that's up from £389 the year before and draws on more than 182,000 data points.
- Malt: an average of £535 a day for experienced marketing consultants active on the platform in the last three months.
Seniority moves the number a lot. Across marketing and communications freelancers, YunoJuno's report (via Whito) gives about £305 a day for midweight, £405 for senior, £468 for lead and £538 for director level.
Location matters too. Malt's city figures put London at £574 and Brighton at £576, against £426 in Manchester and £428 in Birmingham, though several of those cities have fewer than ten consultants in the sample.
Hourly rates
Few consultants publish an hourly rate, so the simplest guide is the day rate divided by a 7.5-hour day. That gives about £56 an hour on YunoJuno's average and about £71 on Malt's (my arithmetic, and Whito's for the first figure).
Expect short, one-off calls to cost more per hour than that. An hour of advice needs preparation and follow-up around it, so it's priced as a standalone job. My own strategy call, for example, is £125 for the hour.
Monthly retainers and projects
Most small businesses don't buy single days. They buy a set amount each month, or a fixed-price project. At the day rates above:
- Two days a month: about £840 to £1,070.
- Four days a month: about £1,670 to £2,140.
That's my arithmetic on the YunoJuno and Malt averages, before VAT if the consultant charges it. For comparison, agency-side research from Whito suggests SMEs start at about £1,000 to £2,000 a month for meaningful agency work, with single-channel retainers (SEO, PPC or social) at £1,250 to £3,500. Those figures are indicative and exclude VAT and ad spend.
Projects are usually quoted as a fixed price worked out from the days involved. Ask what's included, so a "£3,000 website" doesn't turn into £3,000 plus copywriting, plus tracking, plus changes.
Marketing consultant vs agency
Per day, a consultant is usually the cheaper option. Whito's review of published rate cards puts agency day rates at about £895 to £1,125, and agency hourly rates at £120 to £150 where they're published. That's roughly double a freelance consultant.
The trade-off is capacity. An agency can put a designer, a copywriter and an ads specialist on your account at once. A consultant is one person, so work happens in order. For most small businesses with one or two priorities, that's fine. If you need several channels running at volume straight away, an agency or a mix makes more sense. There's a fuller side-by-side on fractional CMO vs agency vs freelancer, and the employment-cost comparison is on in-house vs outsourced marketing.
What changes the price
- Advice only, or advice and delivery. Some consultants write the plan and hand it over. Others build it too. Check which you're being quoted for.
- Seniority and specialism. Someone with a strong track record in your sector, or in a technical area like CRM or search, charges more.
- Days and commitment. More days a month often means a lower day rate. Longer minimum terms do too, but they raise the total you're committing to.
- What's excluded. Ad spend, software, design, photography and other freelancers are often extra.
- VAT. Many quotes exclude it. Ask whether the consultant is VAT registered.
What you get for the money
A good marketing consultant should give you three things: a clear view of what to do first, the judgement to stop doing what isn't working, and either the work itself or a brief good enough for someone else to do it.
The gap most small businesses fall into is the last one. A plan with nobody to build it costs you twice: once for the advice, and again for the delivery. If there's nobody in the business to hand the work to, look for a consultant who builds as well as advises.
That's how I work. I sell a monthly subscription rather than days: £995, £1,950 or £3,950 a month, month to month, with unlimited requests worked one at a time (two at a time on the top plan). The website, funnel, search work, sales tools and CRM are built, not just planned. It isn't the right fit if you need paid ads at volume, PR, or lots happening at once. Details are on the pricing page and the marketing consultant page.
Questions to ask before you hire a marketing consultant
- Will you do the work, or advise on it? Get the split in writing.
- What will exist after 30 and 90 days? Pages, campaigns, tracking, not just a strategy document.
- What's not included? Ad spend, tools, design, copy, freelancers, expenses.
- What's the minimum term and notice? Multiply the monthly fee by the minimum term to see the real commitment.
- Do you charge VAT? It changes the number by a fifth.
- Who owns the accounts and the work? Your website, ad accounts, CRM and files should be in your name.
- Can I see work for a business my size? Ask for a real example with the numbers and where they came from.
The practical summary
Budget about £400 to £550 a day, or £56 to £71 an hour, for a UK marketing consultant in 2026, and about £840 to £2,140 a month for two to four days. Agencies cost roughly twice as much per day but give you more hands at once. Before comparing prices, decide whether you need advice, delivery or both, because that changes which quote is actually cheaper. If you want both on one monthly fee, see the marketing consultant page.
Sources: YunoJuno marketing consultant rates 2026 (booking data); Whito, freelance marketer vs agency day rates, September 2026 (summary of YunoJuno's 2026 report and agency rate cards); Malt average freelance rates for marketing consultants (experienced, active in the last three months; some city samples under ten freelancers); Whito, UK agency retainers research, May 2026 (agency-side, indicative, excludes VAT and ad spend). All checked 11 October 2026. Rates change; check before you buy.
Fair questions
How much does a marketing consultant cost per day in the UK?
Booking data puts the average at about £418 a day in 2026 (YunoJuno), and experienced consultants on Malt average about £535. Senior and director-level people charge more, and London rates run higher than most of the UK.
What's a marketing consultant's hourly rate in the UK?
Dividing those day rates by a 7.5-hour day gives roughly £56 to £71 an hour. Short, ad hoc calls are often priced higher per hour than a full day, because there's set-up and thinking time around them.
How much is a marketing consultant retainer a month?
It depends on days. Two days a month at typical UK day rates is about £840 to £1,070; four days is about £1,670 to £2,140. Agency retainers for a single channel run about £1,250 to £3,500 a month in agency-side research.
Is a marketing consultant cheaper than an agency?
Per day, usually yes. Published agency day rates sit around £895 to £1,125, roughly double a freelance consultant's. An agency gives you more hands at once, so compare the work delivered, not just the rate.
Do marketing consultants charge VAT?
Only if they're VAT registered, which is required above the turnover threshold. Many quotes exclude VAT, so ask. I'm a sole trader and not VAT registered, so my prices have no VAT to add.
