How do you find and hire UGC creators for your brand?

Last updated · by Elena Sofia Marchetti

To hire UGC creators, find them through a creator marketplace, an agency, your own customers, hashtag search or a job post. Check five things: portfolio, niche fit, on-camera delivery, turnaround and rights. Then send a tight brief, agree usage terms and pay when you approve the work. Start with a small paid test before you scale.

Where can you find UGC creators?

There are five main places to find UGC creators: a creator marketplace, a UGC agency, your own customers, hashtag and platform search, or a public job post. For video, marketplaces are the easiest option because portfolios, briefs, rights and payment all sit in one place. Search and job posts cost less, but you do all the vetting yourself.

#Collabz suits the marketplace route for UK and US DTC brands that want vetted creators to apply to a brief, with usage rights and payment handled in-platform.

Creator marketplace

You post a brief, review the creators who apply and pay through the platform. This suits brands that want speed and a clear record of who agreed to what. Before you pay anything, check three things: that creators are vetted, that usage rights are written into the order, and that you can filter by country, gender and niche.

UGC agency

An agency shortlists creators, writes the brief and edits the videos for you. It usually charges a management fee on top of the creator fees. That's worth it when you need a lot of scripted, edited videos across many products. For a first test of a few videos, it's usually more than you need.

Your own customers

Reviewers, repeat buyers and people who already tag you clearly like the product. Invite them through email or your post-purchase flow. Offer a fee rather than free product alone, and expect to coach the less camera-confident ones on lighting, framing and keeping the first seconds tight.

Hashtags and platform search

TikTok's help centre says creator search in TikTok One takes keywords such as 'skincare'. You can then filter by country or region, follower count, audience gender ratio and engagement rate. On Instagram, search your niche hashtags plus 'UGC', then check bios for a portfolio link. It's free but slow.

Job posts

A listing on a freelance board, LinkedIn or a UGC jobs community brings in lots of applicants quickly. Put the deliverables, the fee and the usage terms in the post itself. If you don't, you'll spend days sorting through pitches that don't match the budget, the format or the market you sell in.

What are the best UGC platforms and apps (for brands and creators)

How do you find female, male, UK or US UGC creators in your niche?

Filter on three things before anything else: who appears on camera, where they live and which niche they already film. Brands search for 'woman UGC' or 'UGC women' because most beauty, skincare and fashion buyers want someone who looks like their customer. The supply matches that demand. Collabstr's 2026 Influencer Marketing Report found women make up 80% of creators on its marketplace and men 18%. Lifestyle, beauty and fashion were the top niches for women.

Female creators

This is the largest pool, especially in lifestyle, beauty and fashion. Narrow it by age range, skin type or hair type when the product depends on it. Ask for a clip of the creator using a similar product, not only a styled photo, so you can judge how they show texture, results and routine.

Male creators

There are far fewer male creators, so start looking earlier for men's grooming, supplements or fitness products. Lifestyle, comedy and health and fitness are their most common niches. Expect fewer applications per brief, and widen your country filter or raise the fee if the first round comes back thin.

UK or US

Match the creator's country to where the ad will run. Accent, currency, plug sockets and spelling all tell viewers whether the video is local. If you sell in both markets, brief each one separately instead of forcing one script across both. Also confirm the product can ship and arrive in time for the deadline.

Niche

Prioritise creators who already film your category. A supplement brand needs someone used to filming routines who knows which claims they can't make. A fashion brand needs someone who can do try-ons and talk about fit. Knowing the niche cuts revision rounds more than a large follower count does.

How do you find the right influencers for your brand

Which kind of content creator should you hire?

Hire a UGC creator when you want videos and photos to run on your own channels and in your own ads. Hire a creator who posts when you also want their audience. People looking to hire content creators often mix the two up, but the brief, the fee and the rights are different for each.

If the creator posts about you on their own feed, the FTC's Disclosures 101 guidance counts free or discounted products, as well as payment, as a material connection that must be disclosed. In the US, that means a clear '#ad'.

UGC creator

A UGC creator delivers files, not reach. You pay for the content plus a licence to use it, and you post or advertise it yourself. Follower count matters very little. What matters is on-camera delivery, a strong hook, clean sound and editing, and getting files back on the agreed date.

Creator who posts

This creator films and publishes to their own audience. You pay for the content and for the distribution, so where their audience lives, how engaged it is and how well it fits your product all matter. Disclosure rules apply to every post, and you'll usually agree the posting dates and caption terms in advance.

Freelance editor or social manager

If you already have raw footage and need cut-downs, captions and new hooks, hire an editor or a freelance social media manager instead of a creator. It's cheaper per asset, handles volume better, and gets more out of footage you've already paid for.

How do you vet a UGC creator before you hire them?

Vet every creator on five points: portfolio, niche fit, on-camera delivery, turnaround and rights clarity. A strong portfolio with vague rights terms will cost you later. A cheaper creator who misses deadlines can cost you a launch window. Score each shortlisted creator on all five before you make an offer.

Portfolio

Ask for several recent videos in the format you need, ideally including one made for a paid ad. Check how strong the hook is in the first seconds, plus the lighting, the sound and whether the product is shown clearly. Ask which videos ran as ads, not just which ones looked best.

Niche fit

Look for previous work in your category or a close one. A skincare creator who already knows how to film textures and routines needs less direction than a generalist. A creator who has worked with competitors may have exclusivity terms, so ask before you brief.

On-camera delivery

Watch for natural pacing, clear speech and enthusiasm that feels genuine. If the portfolio is heavily edited, ask for a short unscripted intro video so you can judge the creator's raw delivery. Judge it as a viewer scrolling past, not as a brand manager reading a script.

Turnaround

Confirm how many days they need from product arrival to first draft and how many revision rounds are included. Check how they deliver files: raw plus edited, with captions on or off, and in which aspect ratios. A missed deadline usually means the agreement never set one.

Rights clarity

Get the licence in writing. It should say where you can use the content and for how long, whether paid ads are included, and whether partnership ads (whitelisting) run from the creator's own handle cost extra. Fix vague terms before the product ships, not after the ad starts performing.

What are UGC usage rights and how long should a licence last

UGC hiring benchmarks

  • 35% Share of Collabstr collaborations that were UGC in 2025, up from 15% a year earlier.
  • $154 Average paid per UGC collaboration, against an average creator asking price of $180.
  • 80% Nearly 80% of brand collaborations cost under $300, so small tests are the norm.
  • 18% Men make up 18% of the creator base (women 80%), so male creators are harder to find.

Source: Collabstr, 2026 Influencer Marketing Report, 2026

What does the hiring process look like, step by step?

Hiring a UGC creator takes six steps, from defining the job to paying on approval. Most disputes start when brands skip the written terms in step four.

Step 1: Define the job

Decide what the videos are for (paid social, product pages or organic posts), which product they feature, which platform they're for and how many you need. These choices set the format, the type of creator and the licence, so make them before you look at a single profile.

Step 2: Write the brief

Keep it to one page: product, customer, key messages, claims the creator must and must not make, hooks to test, length, aspect ratio and deadline. Include the fee and usage terms so creators can rule themselves out before they apply.

Step 3: Source and shortlist

Post the brief or search directly, then shortlist using the five vetting checks. Aim for more applicants than you need, so you can drop anyone whose rights terms, turnaround or on-camera style doesn't fit without restarting the search.

Step 4: Agree terms in writing

Before any product ships, put these in a written agreement: the fee, the deliverables, the number of revision rounds, the deadline, the scope and length of usage, and any partnership-ads access. Make sure both sides have the same version.

Step 5: Ship and film

Send the product with a short note repeating the deadline and the key messages. Ask the creator to confirm when it arrives, so the turnaround clock starts on a known date and you can chase a late draft fairly.

Step 6: Review, approve, pay

Send one combined round of feedback with timestamps, then approve the final files. Pay on the agreed date, and record the licence end date next to each asset in your content library.

How do you write a UGC creator brief (template)

How should you brief, pay and manage UGC creators?

Brief in one page, pay a fixed fee on approval, and keep all feedback, files and licences in one place rather than spread across DMs. Clear terms up front prevent most revisions, late deliveries and rights disputes.

Briefing

Say what problem the product solves, who it's for, and the two or three messages that matter. Then let the creator script it in their own words. List any banned claims, especially for supplements and skincare. Give a few hook angles to test rather than a word-for-word script.

Paying

Agree a fixed fee per video, price usage separately, and pay within a set number of days of approval. According to the ASA and CMA influencer guide, free products count as payment even when unsolicited. So any creator who posts gifted product needs a clear 'Ad' label up front in the UK.

Managing

Keep one thread per creator, one revision round per video, and a shared folder for raw and edited files. Track each licence's end date so you can pull or renew ads before usage runs out. Rebook creators whose videos perform before they fill their calendars.

What should you budget in money and time?

Budget for the video fee, usage rights, product and shipping, and allow a few weeks from brief to a live ad. The biggest cost increases come from paid-ad usage, longer licences, rush deadlines and exclusivity.

Collabstr's 2026 Influencer Marketing Report puts the average paid UGC collaboration on its marketplace at $154, against an average asking price of $180. It also found nearly 80% of brand collaborations cost under $300.

Per video

For UK creators, a single short video is typically £80-250 (industry range) before extended usage. Bundles of three or more usually bring the price per video down. Experienced creators who make performance ads charge at the top of the range.

Usage and partnership ads

Paid-ad usage and longer licences add cost. An uplift of typically 20-50% of the base fee (industry range) is common. Access to run partnership ads or whitelisting from the creator's own handle is usually a separate monthly fee with a fixed end date.

Timeline

Sourcing takes days on a marketplace and longer through hashtag search or job posts. Once the product arrives, expect typically 7-14 days to a first draft (industry range), plus a few days for revisions. Allow extra time for international shipping and for any compliance review of claims.

How much do UGC creators charge (UGC rates)

How should a brand get started with UGC?

Start by testing one product with a small group of creators. Judge the videos as ads, and only then scale the winners into a regular roster. A small, controlled test tells you more than one big order.

Pick one hero product

Choose a bestseller with a clear demo or before-and-after moment, such as a serum, a protein powder or a wardrobe staple. One product keeps the test clean, the brief short and the results easy to compare across creators.

Hire a small, varied batch

Brief several creators on the same product, each with a different hook: problem and solution, unboxing, routine or testimonial. Varying both the face and the hook shows you what your audience actually responds to.

Test as ads, not opinions

Run the videos as paid social with equal budgets. Compare hook rate, click-through rate and cost per purchase. Internal taste is a poor guide to which UGC will sell, so let the spend decide which creators and angles go forward.

Build a roster

Rebook the creators whose videos win, and agree longer licences on proven videos so you can keep running them. Add new creators each month to fight ad fatigue. Over time, the roster becomes your fastest route to fresh creative without starting the search again.

Sources and further reading

Frequently asked questions

What is the monthly whitelisting fee for a UGC creator in the UK?

There's no fixed rate. UK creators typically charge £50-200 per month per creator (industry range) for partnership-ads or whitelisting access, on top of the content fee. Agree it monthly with a fixed end date, and put the handle, the ad platforms and the spend cap in writing.

Is there a tool for creating UGC-style video ads?

Yes. Creator marketplaces and TikTok One let you brief real creators and turn their videos into ads. AI video tools create synthetic presenters instead, so check each ad platform's rules before using them. For testimonials and product demos, real creators who have used the product are the safer choice.

Do UGC creators need a large following?

No. When you post the content yourself, you're paying for production and a licence, not for reach. That makes portfolio quality and on-camera delivery far more important than follower count, which only matters when the creator also posts to their own feed.

Can you pay UGC creators in free product only?

You can offer it, but experienced creators expect a fee, and gifted-only briefs attract fewer and less reliable applicants. If a gifted creator posts about you, the post still needs 'Ad' in the UK or '#ad' in the US, because free product counts as payment.

How many UGC creators should you hire for a first campaign?

Hire a small batch of creators rather than relying on one person, so you can compare faces, hooks and styles. Keep the brief the same for everyone, so any difference in ad performance comes from the creator and the hook, not the instructions.

How long does it take to hire a UGC creator?

On a marketplace, applications often arrive within days of posting a brief. Hashtag search or a job post usually takes longer. After that, add shipping time and the creator's filming turnaround before you see a first draft.

Can you hire UK and US UGC creators for the same product?

Yes, but brief each market separately so accent, spelling, currency and claims match where the ad will run. Confirm that the product can ship to each creator in time, and that the agreement covers usage in every market where you plan to advertise.