What Should a Production Assistant Charge Per Day in 2026?
The PA rate is the number the industry tests you with. Quote too low and you signal that you do not know your value. Quote the same number twice in a row and it becomes your rate. Productions talk, coordinators share deal memos, and a rate that felt fine on your third job can follow you into your tenth if you never raise it.
This guide is different from the others on this site in one important way: equipment is not the second income line for PAs. Career stage is. The rate conversation for a production assistant is less about what gear you bring and more about what you know, what productions you have credits on, and whether you understand how to price the full scope of what the job requires — including the hours, the vehicle, and the overtime that most deal memos try to avoid mentioning.
Data here comes from ProductionHub's 2025 PA rate survey, Mandy.com benchmarks, No Film School community discussions, Glassdoor and Indeed salary data through early 2026, and Stage 32 PA rate threads.
Rate Ranges by Experience Level
Entry PA rates on non-union productions land between $150 and $200 per day in most markets. Los Angeles and New York run at the top of that range. Smaller markets and student or micro-budget productions often come in below it. ProductionHub's 2025 data puts the median PA day rate at $225, with experienced PAs and Key PAs pulling the average up.
The Key PA tier — four or more years of experience, often supervising a team of set PAs, managing logistics for the 1st AD, or running the production office — bills $350–$500 per day. At that level, the title "PA" is starting to undersell the role. Many Key PAs are doing work that an APOC (Assistant Production Office Coordinator) or a DGA Trainee would handle on a union show, at rates that are beginning to reflect that scope.
Glassdoor's April 2026 data puts the average film and TV PA salary at $42,000/year in Los Angeles. At 200 billable days — an optimistic freelance volume that assumes consistent booking — that income requires a day rate of $210. A PA billing $175/day who works 200 days a year grosses $35,000 before self-employment tax. Health insurance, retirement, and slow periods are not in that number. The rate floor matters more than it looks on a single deal memo.
Day Rate vs. Weekly Flat: The Math That Matters
Most narrative film and television productions hire PAs on a weekly flat rate rather than a day rate. The flat sounds larger than the day rate. It rarely is, once the hours are counted.
| Experience | Day Rate | Weekly Flat | Typical Hours | Effective Hourly |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Entry | $175/day | $700–$800/wk | 60 hrs | $11.67–$13.33/hr |
| Working | $225/day | $900–$1,100/wk | 60 hrs | $15.00–$18.33/hr |
| Experienced | $325/day | $1,200–$1,400/wk | 60 hrs | $20.00–$23.33/hr |
| Key PA | $425/day | $1,500–$1,800/wk | 60 hrs | $25.00–$30.00/hr |
A 60-hour week is not unusual on a narrative shoot. Some weeks run longer. An entry PA taking $800/week on a production that works 60-hour weeks is earning $13.33/hour — below minimum wage in California and several other states once overtime is factored in. The weekly flat obscures this. Productions use it because it caps their labor cost. PAs accept it because the number looks like a real salary. Run the math before you sign the deal memo.
California law requires overtime pay after 8 hours in a workday and after 40 hours in a workweek, regardless of whether a worker is classified as a day player or a weekly hire. If you are working in California on a non-union production and your deal memo does not address overtime, the production may still owe it to you under state law. Know what your state requires before you agree to a flat.
Rates by Production Type
Production type sets the rate range more than experience level does at the entry and working stages. A first-year PA on a studio feature earns more than a two-year PA on a micro-budget indie — not because of skill, but because the budget is there and the production is accustomed to paying market rates. Know what type of production you are pricing for before you name a number.
| Production Type | Day Rate | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Student / micro-budget | $100–$150 | Deferred pay is common — this is not a rate to accept once you have any credits |
| Corporate / branded content | $175–$250 | Shorter days than narrative; most consistent freelance volume for entry PAs |
| Commercial (non-union) | $200–$300 | Faster pace; agency oversight; shorter shoot windows than TV or film |
| Indie narrative (non-union) | $150–$250 | Long days are standard; get overtime terms in writing before call time |
| Commercial (union adjacent) | $275–$375 | Working alongside union crew; some days may qualify toward DGA eligibility |
| Network TV / streaming (PA on union show) | $300–$400 | Most consistent path to DGA Training Program qualifying days |
| Studio feature | $350–$500 | Highest PA rates; long days normalized; budget does not scale PA pay proportionally |
A note on deferred pay
Deferred pay means you get paid if and when the project makes money. Most micro-budget projects never make money. Working for deferral is a volunteer day with paperwork. It makes sense once: on a project where the credit is worth more than the cash, where the director has a real track record, and where the deferral agreement is signed and legally binding. Outside those conditions, it is a rate of zero dressed up in industry language.
The AD Career Track: Where PA Rates Lead
For PAs on the set side, the career path runs through the assistant director department. PA rates are the entry point. The trajectory upward is significant — first ADs on major productions bill $900–$2,000 per day — but the path requires both logged days and deliberate positioning.
The jump from Key PA to 2nd 2nd AD is the hardest step on the track. It typically requires DGA Trainee Program completion or sponsorship from a working 1st AD. Many PAs stall at the top of the PA tier for years not because they lack experience, but because they have not made the specific moves — qualifying days, union relationships, AD mentors — that open the next door.
Office PAs run a different track: PA to Production Secretary to APOC to POC to UPM. The rates follow a similar curve but the work is administrative rather than set-based. Both tracks are legitimate; they require different skills and lead to different careers.
The DGA Assistant Directors Training Program
The DGA-AMPTP Assistant Directors Training Program is the primary path to becoming a DGA-covered 2nd AD on union productions. It is jointly sponsored by the Directors Guild and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. Roughly 300–350 people apply each year. Five to seven are accepted.
Acceptance is a multi-stage process: an online assessment, a one-on-one interview with independent evaluators, and a final board interview with DGA and producer representatives. Once accepted, trainees complete 350–400 days of paid, on-the-job training on union productions over approximately two years, combined with monthly seminars. At the end of the program, trainees are eligible for DGA membership as 2nd ADs.
One common misconception: PA days on union productions do not count toward a day total that unlocks program eligibility. The 350–400 days are worked as a trainee inside the program, after acceptance — not logged as a PA before applying. What PA experience on union productions does do is strengthen an application. Working alongside DGA members, getting recommended by a working 1st AD, and demonstrating genuine set experience all matter in a competitive application pool. The days are not the currency — the relationships and the résumé are.
There is also a separate Qualification List path through the DGA for crew members who have been employed on DGA-signatory productions in a covered category. The specifics vary by category and council. If the AD track is your goal, the DGA's own resources at dgatrainingprogram.org are the authoritative source — the program details and application windows change, and third-party summaries (including this one) go stale.
The Hidden Costs PAs Forget to Price
PA jobs carry costs that are invisible on the deal memo. A rate that looks reasonable at face value can run negative once the real expenses of the day are counted.
Vehicle and mileage
Most PA jobs require a car. Runs, pickups, base camp errands, and equipment transport all assume you have a reliable vehicle and are willing to use it. Mileage reimbursement at the IRS standard rate ($0.70/mile for 2025) is standard on most productions and legally required under many state labor laws when personal vehicles are used for work. A PA who absorbs 50 miles of driving per day at their own expense is working below their stated rate. Put your mileage on the deal memo. Ask for reimbursement on every job that requires it.
Phone data and personal equipment
Call sheets, maps, production apps, and communication with the AD team run through your phone. A full shoot day with active data use can push significant data consumption. Some productions provide a phone stipend; most do not unless you ask. A $10–$20/day phone allowance is a reasonable ask on productions running longer than a week, and several large productions include it as a standard deal point.
Early call transportation
A 5 AM call time is before public transit runs in most cities. Getting to set means driving, parking, or rideshare — costs that compound across a multi-week shoot. Productions sometimes provide parking validation or a van pickup point. When they do not, those costs belong in your rate calculation even if they do not appear on the deal memo.
Overtime without a contract
On non-union productions, PA overtime is not automatic. A 14-hour day at a flat day rate means you worked the last four hours free. A signed deal memo that specifies your overtime rate — typically 1.5x after 10 hours, 2x after 14 hours on most union-adjacent productions — is the only protection you have. Get it before call time. A production that will not put overtime terms in writing is a production that plans to use them.
Six Mistakes That Keep PAs Underpaid
1. Taking a weekly flat without running the hourly math
A $900/week flat sounds like progress over a $175/day rate. On a 60-hour week, it is $15/hour — less than California minimum wage with overtime included. Run the math before you agree. If the weekly rate divided by expected hours falls below what your time is worth, negotiate for a day rate, a higher flat, or an overtime clause. The production knows the math. You should too.
2. Working for deferral
Most deferred projects never pay out. The credit may have value on a strong project with a real director and a real distribution path. On most micro-budget shoots, the credit is also worth very little. A day of PA work at $0 is a day you did not use to book a paying job, build a relationship with a coordinator who pays market rates, or rest. Treat deferral as a deliberate strategic choice, not a default.
3. Not putting mileage and vehicle reimbursement on the deal memo
If the production needs your car, that is a cost of doing business for the production — not for you. Ask for mileage reimbursement at the IRS rate on every job that requires a personal vehicle. Most productions expect this ask and have a line item for it. The ones that push back are the ones that were planning to absorb the cost into your rate without telling you.
4. No overtime clause before the shoot starts
Negotiating overtime after a 14-hour day does not work. The only leverage you have is before you agree to the rate. A deal memo without overtime terms is a deal memo that pays you a flat rate for an unlimited number of hours. Insist on overtime language — 1.5x after 10 hours is a reasonable starting point on non-union productions — and get it signed before call time on day one.
5. Not documenting union production credits
If the AD track is your goal, your credits on DGA-signatory productions are part of your application. PA days on union shows do not formally count toward a day total that unlocks DGA eligibility — that is a common misconception. What they do is build the résumé and relationships that make a Training Program application competitive. Keep a log of every production you work: name, whether it was DGA-signatory, dates, and the 1st AD or UPM you worked under. When application time comes, that documentation is the difference between a credible application and a blank page.
6. Quoting the same rate to every new production
Existing productions have a rate in their head. New productions set a fresh anchor. Every time you start a new relationship, you have the opportunity to quote a higher number — and that number, once accepted, becomes the baseline for every future negotiation with that coordinator or UPM. PAs who forget to raise their quote between bookings leave money on every new job they take.
Find the day rate that covers what you need to clear
Enter your take-home goal. The calculator adds self-employment tax, health insurance, and an optional profit margin — then shows you the day rate you need and how it compares to market floors for production assistants at your experience level.
Calculate My RateA deal memo is not the same as a contract
Most productions hand PAs a one-page deal memo that protects the production. It specifies your rate, your start date, and not much else. It does not address what happens if the shoot goes over, who owns the work you create, or what your remedies are if you are not paid. As you move into Key PA and APOC roles — or start issuing your own agreements when you are hired directly — having a real contract template is the difference between a handshake deal and one you can enforce.
View the Contract Pack →