If you stage 20 or more photos in a month, a QuickStage plan costs less than pay-as-you-go; at 19 or fewer, pay-as-you-go costs less. We call it the 20-photo rule: pay-as-you-go is $1 per photo and the Basic plan is $19.99 a month for 75 photos, so 20 photos ($20.00) is the first count that costs more than the plan. On annual billing Basic works out to $16.58 a month, so the line drops to 17 photos. All prices are as of October 2026.
The rest of this guide shows the math for every plan, turns photo counts into listings, and covers when annual billing pays off and how switching works.
What does each QuickStage option cost?
| Option | Monthly price | Annual price | Photos per month | QuickFix re-dos per month | Per photo, monthly | Per photo, annual |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pay as you go | $1 per photo, no subscription | n/a | Buy 1 to 50 at a time | No monthly allowance | $1.00 | n/a |
| Basic | $19.99 | $199 | 75 | 7 | $0.267 | $0.221 |
| Pro | $39.99 | $399 | 225 | 20 | $0.178 | $0.148 |
| Studio | $99.99 | $999 | 650 | 50 | $0.154 | $0.128 |
| Agency | $199.99 | $1,999 | 1,500 | 100 | $0.133 | $0.111 |
The per-photo columns are the plan price divided by the photos included. For example, Basic is $19.99 ÷ 75 = $0.267 monthly, and $199 ÷ 12 ÷ 75 = $0.221 on annual billing. Our plan cards round those to the cent ($0.27 and $0.22), which is where "as low as $0.13 per photo" (Agency, monthly) and "$0.11 per photo" (Agency, billed yearly) come from. Those rates assume you use every photo in the plan. Use fewer and your real cost per photo is higher, which is the whole reason a break-even rule is worth having.
The two ways of paying also behave differently:
- Pay-as-you-go credits never expire. They stay in your balance until you use them.
- Plan photos reset every month. Unused plan photos don't roll over, on monthly and annual billing alike.
- QuickFix re-dos come with plans. A QuickFix re-runs a staged photo with a note on what to change and never uses a photo credit. Every plan has a monthly allowance; a pay-as-you-go purchase adds photo credits only. Every new visitor also gets one free QuickFix.
- Neither has a contract. You can cancel a plan anytime.
Where is the break-even for each plan?
A plan beats $1 credits once your photo count, in dollars, passes the plan's monthly cost.
| Plan | Monthly price | Beats pay-as-you-go from | Annual price per month | Beats pay-as-you-go from |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Basic | $19.99 | 20 photos a month | $16.58 | 17 photos a month |
| Pro | $39.99 | 40 photos a month | $33.25 | 34 photos a month |
| Studio | $99.99 | 100 photos a month | $83.25 | 84 photos a month |
| Agency | $199.99 | 200 photos a month | $166.58 | 167 photos a month |
"Annual price per month" is the yearly price divided by 12: $199 ÷ 12 = $16.58. Seventeen photos at $1 is $17.00, which is more than $16.58; sixteen is $16.00, which is less.
In practice only the Basic line decides between pay-as-you-go and a plan, because Basic already covers up to 75 photos. The other rows tell you something simpler: at the volumes each bigger plan is made for, it is never the more expensive choice next to $1 credits.
How many listings is that?
Photo counts are easier to plan in listings. For example, if you stage 6 photos per vacant listing (an assumption for the math, not a statistic; swap in your own number), the options line up like this on monthly billing:
| Photos you stage in a month | Listings at 6 photos each | Pick this |
|---|---|---|
| 1 to 19 | Up to 3 | Pay as you go |
| 20 to 75 | 4 to 12 | Basic |
| 76 to 225 | 13 to 37 | Pro |
| 226 to 650 | 38 to 108 | Studio |
| 651 to 1,500 | 109 to 250 | Agency |
If you stage 10 photos per listing instead, divide differently: two listings is already 20 photos, so Basic wins from your second listing of the month.
What does this look like with real numbers?
For example, an agent with 2 vacant listings a month. At 6 photos each that's 12 photos, or $12.00 pay-as-you-go against $19.99 for Basic. Pay as you go wins by $7.99, and any credits left over keep for the next listing.
For example, an agent with 5 vacant listings a month. That's 30 photos: $30.00 pay-as-you-go against $19.99 for Basic. The plan saves $10.01 a month. The real cost per photo is $19.99 ÷ 30 = about $0.67, not $0.27, because 45 of the 75 photos go unused. It's still the cheaper option.
For example, a team with 50 vacant listings a month. That's 300 photos: $300.00 pay-as-you-go against $99.99 for Studio, the first plan that covers 300 photos. Studio saves $200.01 a month and leaves 350 photos of room.
To check your own count, QuickStage's monthly-photo calculator and plan cards do this math for any number from 1 to 1,500.
When is annual billing worth it?
Annual billing is one payment a year at just under 10 times the monthly price, which is why the plan cards say "2 months free." The yearly saving against 12 monthly payments:
- Basic: $19.99 × 12 = $239.88, against $199. You save $40.88.
- Pro: $479.88 against $399. You save $80.88.
- Studio: $1,199.88 against $999. You save $200.88.
- Agency: $2,399.88 against $1,999. You save $400.88.
That gives a second rule, the 10-month rule: annual is worth it if you would otherwise pay for the plan in 10 or more months of the year. Ten months of Basic is $199.90, just over the $199 annual price; nine months is $179.91, which is less. The same holds for every tier.
Annual is worth it when:
- you clear the plan's break-even in most months of the year, and
- you're confident which tier you need.
Annual isn't worth it when:
- your listings are seasonal. For example, 8 listings a month for six months and none for the other six costs $119.94 on monthly Basic (6 × $19.99) if you cancel for the quiet months, against $199 on annual;
- you're still learning your volume. Start monthly or pay-as-you-go and move up once you know.
One thing annual billing does not change: plan photos still refresh every month. Paying for a year of Basic gives you 75 photos each month, not 900 to spend whenever you like.
If you change your mind, you can request a refund within 7 days of your most recent charge. Refunds are reviewed and prorated by unused credits across the billing term.
How does switching between options work?
- Pay as you go to a plan. Subscribe whenever your count crosses the line. Credits you already bought don't expire, so they stay in your balance.
- Upgrading a plan. It takes effect immediately. You pay the price difference between the plans and get the new plan's full monthly photos right away.
- Downgrading a plan. It takes effect at the end of your current billing period. You keep your current plan and its photos until then.
- Cancelling. Cancel anytime from the manage-subscription page, with no cancellation fee. Your plan photos stay active until the end of the current billing period, and any pay-as-you-go credits you bought remain yours.
Plan changes carry no switching fee and happen in the self-serve billing portal.
Is the staging itself any different?
No. A photo costs one credit whichever way you pay, and you get the same top-quality, photorealistic results in about 30 seconds. On every option QuickStage is built to keep walls, windows, floors and paint colors as photographed and to add only movable furniture and decor.
Whichever option you choose, label every staged photo as virtually staged and keep the original. In California, Business and Professions Code §10140.8 requires a disclosure and access to the unaltered image. This isn't legal advice; check your MLS and broker.
Bottom line
Count the photos you stage in a typical month. Under 20, buy QuickStage single-photo credits at $1 each; they don't expire. From 20 to 75, Basic at $19.99 is cheaper, and the bigger plans take over as your count passes each allowance. Choose annual only if you'd pay for the plan in at least 10 months of the year.
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