PR Newswire Pricing Guide 2024: Costs & Plans Broken Down

You've probably noticed that PR Newswire don't publicly share their pricing. So, unless you want to speak with their sales team, it can be a challenge to understand exactly how much it’ll cost you to send a press release. 

Not ready to jump into PR Newswire's sales cycle yet? Don’t worry, we’ve done all the research on their pricing, so you don’t have to. 

Let’s start by breaking down PR Newswire’s pricing with a simple TL;DR.

Pricing options: These vary widely – meaning you can pay anywhere from $350 to $10,000+ to distribute a single press release through PR Newswire.

To make it easier to follow, here're all the different factors that influence these prices:

• Membership fee: Theres a $195 membership fee just to access to PR Newswire
• Base pricing: $325-$8,700 for a 400 word release (costs change based on where you're distributing)
• Extra fees: Additional words, multimedia files, and adding your branding all come with extra fees (more on the specific fees below)
• Average cost: To distribute a 1,000 word press release nationally (US) with 2 images and branding, expect to pay $2,985 (or more)
• Free version: There’s no free version available, the only way to test PR Newswire is to pay to send a press release with them
• Pricing transparency: PR Newswire keep their pricing hidden, so you’ll need to speak with their sales team for a custom quote

PR Newswire's pricing is super complex, coming with loads of different tiers and add-ons. To simplify it, we’ve grouped their pricing factors into three distinct categories: annual membership, distribution, and add-ons. 

To access PR Newswire, you first have to pay a $195 annual membership fee (goes up to $249 if you need an invoice). 

Here's what it gets you:

• Access to the PR Newswire distribution network
• Editorial support and services (i.e. proofreading and press release advice)
• Phone/webinar training
• Educational content
• 24/7 customer support
• Analytics and reporting tools
• Regulatory support to make sure your releases are compliant

Bear in mind, this membership does not actually get any of your releases distributed. That will come at an extra cost. 

Putting this in perspective: For the same price as PR Newswire’s membership fee alone ($249), you could get access to Prezly’s earned media toolkit for 5 months (+ 14 days with our free trial).

To actually distribute your release, you’ll need to pay a distribution cost per release. This changes based on where you want your release distributed (state & local, regional, national, or international) and what is in it (word count, multimedia files, etc). 

Below are some tables we've created to make it all easier to understand.

State & local distribution: $350 per release in most states/local areas, though this increases to $445 for releases in New York and New Jersey.

Regional distribution: $475 per release for New England, the Pacific Northwest, the Southwest, and the Washington DC region. For all other US regions, $575 per release.

National distribution: $805 per release ($880 if you also want them to share your release on their social feeds). 

Multicultural distribution: Prices vary more widely for multicultural distribution, though range anywhere from $325 to $1,075 per release.

International distribution: You’ll also find a wide variation in pricing for international distribution depending on where you’re targeting (Europe, Asia, Global, etc.). These start from $1,500 and go all the way up to $8,700.

If you want your press release to be a bit longer, include multimedia, or even just have your logo on it, you’ll also be looking at extra fees.

Here’s a breakdown on PR Newswire's additional costs:

Word count: The standard distribution pricing covers a 400-word press release. If your content exceeds this, you’ll be charged extra, ranging from $140–-$245 for every additional 100 words.

Multimedia inclusions: Adding images, videos, or audio to your press release costs an additional $325 per multimedia item. For PDFs, it’s an extra $125.

Logo addition: To include your company’s logo, there’s an additional cost of $495.

Let’s say you have a 1,000-word press release with your logo on it and two images that you’d like to distribute nationally. Considering the prices above, you’d be looking at:

• $195 for the membership
• $805 for national distribution
• At least $840 for 600 additional words
• $650 for two images
• $495 for your logo
• = $2,985 total (or more) for one press release. 60x the cost of one month with Prezly.

Before signing up, consider these expenses to make sure that newswire services will bring in enough business to justify the high costs. 

Otherwise, it may be worth assessing if other approaches will be more impactful for your PR strategy. For example, if you were to follow an earned media approach, you’d be looking at…

$90/month for:

• An online newsroom site
• Unlimited press releases that are
  • Multimedia
  • Branded
  • Easy-to-share
• An email pitching tool to distribute your press releases
• A database to store all of your PR contacts and interactions in

= $90/month for unlimited press releases + a full suite of distribution tools to earn real coverage with.

With such a high cost, it's crucial to understand the likely return on investment (ROI) of PR Newswire before committing to it. 

Giving an exact financial figure is difficult, so instead, here's a straightforward look at the average results businesses will see from using PR Newswire and how they can factor into ROI:

• Reach and Exposure (number of views): ~1,000+
• Media Pickups: 100-300 media outlets
• Site Traffic Impact: 10%-20% increase
• Conversion Rates: ~1-3% improvement in conversions (i.e. sales or inquiries)

Looking at these numbers, to roughly estimate ROI for your business, compare the cost of distribution with the value of expected outcomes.

Here are some back-of-the-napkin ROI examples:

Legal firm with an average contract value (ACV) of $10,000

• PR Newswire distribution cost: $3,000
• Traffic from distribution: 1,000
• Leads from distribution: 5
• Sales from distribution: 1
• Revenue: $10,000
• ROI: $7,000

Ecommerce brand with an average order value (AOV) of $30. 

• PR Newswire distribution cost: $1,000
• Traffic from distribution: 500
• Conversion rate with distribution: 4%
• Revenue: $600
• ROI: -$400

Before closing things up, we feel it’s necessary to share a brief disclaimer about the risks involved in investing into wire services.

For many PR professionals, wire services like PR Newswire are a staple in their toolkit. Often, they’re perceived as a fast track to media exposure and authority. But does the reality live up to the expectation?

Expectations: The common pitch is that wire services will amplify your press release across major news outlets, potentially boosting your SEO and establishing your brand as an authority in your field. They're often viewed as a shortcut to gaining authority and visibility in a crowded digital space.

Reality: The reality of how news wire services work, however, is more nuanced. From our experience, the harsh truth is that wire services are mostly overpriced and useless. Their impact on SEO and search engine visibility is often small, with most press releases never even appearing in the SERP (search engine results page). While wire services do distribute your content widely, it’s usually to ineffective channels. This leaves you competing for attention in crowded, low-impact channels that your desired audience often doesn’t even use.

A comment left by an ex-wire-service user on a Reddit post questioning the efficacy of wire services.

Source: Quora

In summary: 

• Press releases distributed via wire services usually don’t get picked up
• Most journalists actively ignore releases from wire services
• The best way to distribute a release is through your own network of contacts

This reality check is crucial when considering the cost of wire services like PR Newswire and their potential for providing ROI. As we explain more about PR Newswire's pricing, keep these points in mind to help assess its true value for your PR efforts.

As we've explored the pricing and offerings of PR Newswire, alongside competitors and alternatives, a few key points stand out. 

First, while PR Newswire and similar wire services offer widespread distribution, their actual impact and value is often minimal (especially for the high price tag).

On the other hand, following a PR strategy centered around building direct relationships with journalists can create high-impact, long-term results (at a far lower cost).

Ultimately, wire services may have their place in your PR planning, but we suggest shifting your focus towards relationship-building and strategic storytelling.

Still want to use wire services, but not sure about PR Newswire?

Let’s compare PR Newswire with other key players in the wire services market. 

Remember, the cheapest option isn’t always the best; it’s about finding the right balance of cost, reach, and service quality. Here's a look at some alternatives and their starting prices, to give you a broader perspective:

Instead of offering any newswire services at Prezly, we’ve built a toolkit fully focused on helping you earn more real media coverage. Use Prezly to create and distribute unlimited press releases. All for a simple monthly price.

• EIN Presswire: Starts at $99 per release – offers dedicated SEO services, but limited to 5 distribution channels per release
• eReleases: Starts at $399 per release – the only service other than PR Newswire that offers custom national distribution
• 24-7 Press Release: Starts at $29 per release – Affordable, but only focuses on small markets
• PR Underground: Starts at $75 per release – affordable and user-friendly, but struggles with large media files
• ACCESSWIRE: Starts at $175 per release – higher-priced, but offers unlimited media and word counts
• SBWire: Starts at $49 per release – includes tracking services, but does not have SEO functionality
• Send2Press: Starts at $99 per release – well-rounded, but limited in media outlets you can distribute to
• Newswire: Starts at $349 per release – a robust platform, but comes with additional fees for high word counts, multimedia, and more
• NewswireJet: Starts at $59 per release – distributes to hundreds of outlets, but only suitable for small- and medium-sized companies

For more detailed pricing information and to understand how these services align with your specific PR goals, we recommend reaching out directly to each company.

Shaken up after seeing how expensive wire services like PR Newswire are?

Luckily, today, success in PR isn't solely dependent on wire services. If anything, we suggest skipping them altogether. 

Instead, we’re strong advocates for earning distribution by building relationships with journalists and influencers in your industry through targeted outreach, which our PR outreach software can help you with.

How does this work exactly? Specifically, we suggest using an all-in-one PR tool (like Prezly) to build your own list of media contacts, grow relationships with them through personalized outreach, and share your visual press releases with them (along with your wider audience) through your own SEO-friendly multimedia newsrooms.

An example of what your online newsroom might look like:

Example: A minimalist newsroom made with Prezly

See full example

By following this more modern, holistic approach to press release distribution, you’ll attract more journalists and achieve long-term results without having to invest any money into wire services. 

You’ll also have full control over your message, can more effectively build your brand’s authority, and earn far more meaningful media coverage.

Now that you have a deeper understanding of PR Newswire's pricing and the broader world of PR distribution options, it's time to take the next step. 

If you're looking for a more targeted and relationship-focused approach to PR, Prezly might be the perfect fit for your needs.

With Prezly, you’ll have the tools you need to craft a PR strategy that resonates with your audience and aligns with your brand's goals, all while being mindful of your budget.