Freelancer: $400–$1,000 a month
Usually 2–3 posts a week, often without video. On top of that: you supply the photos, write a brief, go back and forth on every approval — and cover the vacations.
What a restaurant social media manager costs
The straight answer: a freelancer runs $400–$1,000 a month, an agency $1,000–$2,500, and doing it yourself takes 10–15 hours a month. Here is what each option really gets you — and the alternative that posts every day for the price of a few coffees.
Agency: $1,000–$2,500 and up
Strategy, calendar and reports — with 6–12 month contracts and packages designed for groups. For an independent restaurant it is usually oversized.
Nueve: from $9 a month
Posts every day, videos included, built from your own dishes and photos, published at the right time — no brief, no instructions, no contract.
The hidden cost of doing it yourself
Finding the idea, shooting the photo, writing the caption, posting, replying: count 10–15 hours a month. At your real hourly value as an owner, that is often more expensive than an agency — and it comes out of your evenings.
What you really pay with a human
The quoted rate is only the start: photo shoots to organize, briefs to write, approvals that drag on, cover during holidays. And if the person leaves, you start over with the next one.
What AI changes about the price
The work that justified those rates — finding the idea, creating the image or video, writing, publishing, replying to reviews — is done automatically, every day. You keep control; you just stop doing the work.
How to choose, honestly
A human is worth the price for events, local partnerships or a very particular brand voice. To simply be present everywhere, every day, with real videos: automation does it better, for about 1% of the price.
Try the alternative
Set your restaurant up in minutes and watch what it publishes. Free trial, no demo call, no contract.