Production studio rental rates in New York City range from $100/hr for bare rooms to $500+/hr for fully equipped commercial studios. Here’s what drives the difference — and what Union Square Loft charges.
The NYC production studio market breaks into four rough tiers:
Bare rooms with minimal gear. You bring everything — lights, sound, camera, and crew. Usually smaller spaces in outer boroughs or multi-use lofts with no dedicated infrastructure. Fine for social content, but limiting for commercial work.
Some house lighting, basic cyc or seamless backdrop, limited sound monitoring. A/V quality is inconsistent. Common in Midtown and outer Manhattan. Good for headshots, simple interviews, and low-budget branded content.
Professional lighting rigs, quality monitoring, experienced operators. This is where commercial shoots, music videos, and corporate branded content live. USL operates at this tier — with Fulcrum Acoustics 4.2 surround, full LED lighting, Sony FX6 available, and 30+ years of operator experience in the room.
Brand-name studios in Midtown or the Meatpacking District. You’re paying for address and reputation as much as infrastructure. Useful when client perception requires it.
Every USL booking includes the complete house gear inventory. No A/V rental add-ons. No surprise fees.
What’s included in every booking: Fulcrum Acoustics 4.2 surround, full LED lighting rig (Luxli, Ikan, Colbor), 6 C-stands, seamless backdrop, 75” 4K touchscreen, 2 projectors, all furniture, prep kitchen, freight elevator. 13-foot ceilings. 9-foot Broadway windows with full blackout.
The biggest variable in production studio quality isn’t the room — it’s who runs it. Carlos Montoya has been in A/V since 1992, served as former TEDx Bushwick executive producer, and has designed the systems in four major NYC research facilities. He is on-site for every session. That expertise doesn’t show up on a rate card, but it shows up in the work.
13-foot ceilings change what’s possible. High-key lighting, wide shots, gimbal moves, hanging rigs — none of these are available in an 8-foot room. USL’s 13-foot ceilings are the physical feature that separates it from most Midtown studios at twice the price.
A room that looks great can still sound bad on camera. USL runs Fulcrum Acoustics 4.2 surround monitoring, a Soundcraft UI24R 24-track mixer, and multiple professional mic options. You can hear mix problems in real time. Most studios at this price point can’t say that.
873 Broadway at Flatiron is a 5-minute walk from Union Square station (4/5/6/L/N/Q/R). Freight elevator. Street-level access. No location premium markup.
Self-serve bare studios start around $75–$100/hr but include nothing beyond the room itself. You bring all lighting, sound, and backdrops. At that price point, the total cost including rentals often approaches a full-service studio rate.
No. Production teams bring their own cameras, or hire Carlos Montoya with the in-house Sony FX6 (+$150/hr). We do not rent cameras without an operator.
At USL: 8 hours at $275/hr = $2,200 for the full room and all gear. Add the Sony FX6 with Carlos as operator (+$150/hr) and a full day is $3,400. No A/V rentals on top.
Yes. Multi-day and weekly rates are available. Contact us for a quote — longer bookings get priority scheduling and rate discounts.
Fulcrum sound, full lighting, 13-foot ceilings, Sony FX6 available. 30+ years on Broadway. Starting at $275/hr.
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