A single press release distributed in the United States costs somewhere between $99 and about $2,400 in 2026, depending almost entirely on which route you take rather than on what you are announcing. The spread is that wide because the major newswires do not publish their rates. As of September 9, 2026, exactly one of the three big US wires shows a price on its own website — Business Wire, and only for its smallest circuit.
That is the real difficulty in budgeting for this. You are not comparing prices; you are comparing one published price, a reseller’s rate card, and a set of figures other people have reported. This guide separates those three things and shows the arithmetic on a single release.
The short answer: what is actually published
These are prices from each provider’s own website, checked on September 9, 2026.
| Provider | Published price | What that price covers |
|---|---|---|
| Business Wire | $475 | 400 words, US domestic local distribution. Their words: “Starting price for 400 words, U.S. domestic local distribution” |
| eReleases | $399 | 400 words, national distribution over Cision PR Newswire (eReleases is a PR Newswire reseller) |
| Presswire | $250 | North America distribution, editorial review, no word-count surcharge |
| PR Newswire | Not published | prnewswire.com/pricing/ returns 404 |
| GlobeNewswire | Not published | globenewswire.com/pricing returns 404 |
Two things are worth noticing before the detail.
First, Business Wire’s $475 is for local distribution — a city or state, not the country. Everything above that tier is a quote. The page says pricing depends on “word count, geographic circuit, and any enhancements such as multimedia or translation,” which is accurate and also means you cannot price a national release from their website.
Second, the cheapest options in this market are not on that table, because they are not distribution in the same sense. More on that below, because it is where most of the confusion and most of the wasted money live.
What a national wire release actually costs
For national distribution over one of the big wires you have to rely on reported figures. The most useful source is eReleases, which resells PR Newswire and publishes this on its own pricing page:
For a press release of 500 words, the Cision PR Newswire price list shows a range between $715-$865 for a local city/state distribution to more than $1500 for a national press release distribution, plus a $305 setup fee.
That is a commercial partner quoting the price list, not an estimate from a blog, which makes it the best-sourced number available for PR Newswire.
For Business Wire’s national circuit, third-party trackers (Prezly, Press Ranger, PressPilot and Vendr among them) consistently report a base around $760 for 400 words, $195 for each additional 100 words, and roughly $425 for the first multimedia attachment. Treat those as reported, not published — but note they are consistent across independent sources, and they sit sensibly above Business Wire’s own $475 local figure.
GlobeNewswire is reported in the $350–$1,200 range per release with word-count overage fees. That is a wide band and nobody outside the company can narrow it.
The add-ons decide the bill
The headline price is rarely the price. On the US wires the same four things move it:
- Word count. This is the big one. Base prices buy 400 or 500 words, and a normal business announcement with a couple of quotes and a boilerplate runs 600–800. eReleases charges $150 per extra block of 100 words, or part of a block. Business Wire is reported at $195 per 100. PR Newswire is reported at $245–$275 per 100.
- Multimedia. One photograph is reported at around $425 on Business Wire, with further attachments around $225. eReleases includes two images but charges $150 to embed them in the body.
- Targeting. eReleases includes one industry list and charges $150 for each additional one, $150 for local saturation, and $150 for a direct-to-journalist influencer send.
- Setup and membership. PR Newswire’s $305 setup fee is reported per release. A membership fee of around $195 is also widely reported.
A 400-word press release is a short one. Pricing a wire release on the base rate is how a $499 budget becomes a $1,200 invoice.
A worked example: one 700-word release, one photo, national US reach
Same announcement, four routes. Published figures are marked; reported figures are marked and attributed.
eReleases Newsmaker — $799 (published) $499 for 500 words, plus $150 × 2 for the extra 200 words. Add $150 if you want the image embedded in the body: $949.
Business Wire national — about $1,770 (reported) $760 base for 400 words, plus $195 × 3 for the extra 300 words ($585), plus $425 for the first multimedia attachment.
PR Newswire national — about $2,300 (reported) More than $1,500 for 500 words plus a $305 setup fee, plus roughly $245–$275 × 2 for the extra 200 words.
Presswire — $250 (published) $250 for North America distribution with no word-count surcharge, so the 700 words cost the same as 400. A tracking report is $95 if you want documented pickup; online syndication is $290.
The arithmetic is straightforward, but the comparison is not quite like-for-like, and it would be dishonest to pretend otherwise. The next section explains what the difference buys.
Cheap distribution, and what “cheap” means here
Below all of these sits a tier at $99 or less. EIN Presswire is reported at around $99 for a single release, with bundles from $295 for six. Various services advertise under $50.
What these buy is syndication, not distribution, and the distinction is the single most useful thing to understand about this market:
- Syndication publishes your release automatically on a network of news and information websites. No journalist chooses to run it. It produces links and a public record. It is a legitimate product, and it is cheap because it is automatic.
- Distribution puts the release in front of journalists and editors who then decide whether to use it. It costs more because a person, and a media list built by people, is involved.
eReleases makes exactly the same distinction on its own pricing page, which is worth noting because they have no incentive to be generous about it. Neither do we: a syndication package at $99 is genuinely cheaper than anything Presswire sells, and if a public record with links is what you need, it may be the right purchase.
The problem is that syndication is frequently sold using the language of distribution. If a service quotes a number of “media outlets” without naming a single journalist or newsroom system, assume syndication.
When the expensive wire is the right answer
There is a case where paying PR Newswire or Business Wire several times more is not only reasonable but necessary, and it has nothing to do with reach.
If you are a listed company issuing material information — earnings, a disclosure that has to reach the market simultaneously, anything touching Regulation FD or an exchange requirement — the wire’s regulated disclosure distribution is the product you are buying. The audience is the financial data systems and the regulatory record, not a reporter. Presswire does not offer that and does not claim to. Neither do the $99 services, whatever their marketing implies.
For a product launch, a funding round below the disclosure threshold, a hire, research findings, an expansion or a partnership, you are buying editorial attention, and the price difference is much harder to justify.
What Presswire charges, and why it is structured differently
Presswire publishes its full rate card. Distribution to the UK, Europe, North America or Asia is $250 per release; worldwide is $400. Online syndication is $290, a tracking report is $95, translation is $380 per language, and PA Mediapoint delivery to UK and European newsroom terminals is $235.
Two structural differences matter for a US buyer:
No word-count surcharge. A 400-word release and an 800-word release cost the same. On the wires, those 400 extra words cost $600 to $1,100 depending on the provider. That single difference accounts for most of the gap in the worked example above.
The listed price is the price you pay. Presswire’s rates are exclusive of VAT, and UK VAT is added only for UK-based businesses. A US company pays $250.
Every release is read by an editor with PR experience before it goes anywhere. That is a slower process than an automated network, and it is the reason Presswire is not competing at $99.
If your announcement is aimed at British rather than American newsrooms, the pricing and the options are different enough to be worth their own guide — see how much press release distribution costs in the UK.
How to choose, briefly
Work in this order and the budget answers itself:
- Decide what you actually need: a regulatory record, editorial attention, or a public link record. These are three different products at three different prices.
- Count your words before you compare prices, then re-price every option at your real length. This changes the ranking more often than anything else.
- Ask where it lands. “5,000 outlets” is not an answer. Which newsrooms, which systems, and does a journalist see it or does a server publish it?
- Check what a documented result costs. Tracking and monitoring are separate line items almost everywhere.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a press release cost in the US in 2026?
Between about $99 and $2,400 for a single release. Automated syndication starts near $99; a national wire release of normal length lands between roughly $800 and $2,400 once word-count and multimedia fees are added; editorially reviewed distribution through Presswire is $250 for North America with no word-count surcharge.
Why don’t PR Newswire and GlobeNewswire publish prices?
Neither has said. Both prnewswire.com/pricing/ and globenewswire.com/pricing returned 404 when checked on September 9, 2026, and pricing is handled through a sales conversation. Business Wire publishes one starting price, $475 for 400 words on its US local circuit, and quotes everything above that.
Does a longer press release cost more?
On the US wires, yes, and substantially. Base rates cover 400 or 500 words, with reported overage of $150 to $275 per additional 100 words. Presswire does not charge a word-count surcharge.
Is a cheap press release service worth it?
It depends what you are buying. A $99 service usually provides automated syndication — publication on a network of websites without any journalist involvement. That produces a public record and links, which is a real thing to want. It does not produce editorial coverage, and no price point guarantees that.
What is the cheapest way to reach US journalists?
Reaching the right ten journalists costs less than reaching five thousand of the wrong ones. Research the reporters who actually cover your subject, then choose a distribution route that reaches them — a targeted list, an industry circuit, or direct outreach. Buying the largest circuit available is usually the most expensive way to be ignored.
Plan your next release
Presswire publishes every rate on its pricing page, including distribution, syndication, monitoring and translation, so you can budget a campaign without a sales call. If you want the detail on how the distribution itself works, see press release distribution, or read our comparison of the three distribution models if you are still deciding which product you need.
When your announcement is ready, you can send a press release directly.
Prices verified September 9, 2026. Published prices are taken from each provider’s own website on that date; reported prices are attributed to their source and are not the provider’s official rates. Rates change — check before you budget.