Best Explainer Video Companies: How to Build Your Shortlist

James Crawford

Published September 17, 202610 min readUpdated September 17, 2026

You typed "best explainer video companies" into Google and got back a dozen lists. Each one ranks a different studio first. Not one of them tells you what your video will cost.

That is a rough place to start when you run a dental practice or a plumbing firm and you have a few hundred dollars set aside.

Here is the part nobody says out loud. Almost every ranking list is published by a company that sells explainer videos.

So this guide does something different. It shows you how those lists get built, how to read a studio's work in ten minutes, and how to shortlist and brief three companies yourself in one afternoon.

There is no single best company, because the right one depends on your budget, your deadline and the job the video has to do. Read the ranking lists for names only. Then judge three companies yourself on showreel work in your field, a written quote, script approval and revision rules.

Who actually writes the best explainer video companies lists?

Most ranking lists are published by a video studio on its own blog, and that studio almost always appears in the top two. The order you are reading is a marketing decision, not a test result.

We read three of the longest studio rankings published for 2026. All three sat on the same company's website. That company placed itself first or second in every one.

That does not make the names wrong. Plenty of good studios appear on those lists. It does mean the ranking reads like an advert with numbers on it.

Here is a ten-second check you can run on any list. Look at the web address at the top of your browser, then look at who sits at number one. If the two match, you are reading a sales page.

Directory sites work differently but carry their own tilt. They sort by review count, or by which studios pay for a featured profile.

Use the lists for names. Do the judging yourself.

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What do ranking sites measure, and what do they leave out?

Ranking sites measure showreel polish, client logos and review counts. None of those three things tells you what you will pay or how the job will run.

Price is the biggest gap. Explainer video prices run from about $99 for a do-it-yourself tool to $50,000 or more for an enterprise brand film, according to Yum Yum Videos' 2026 explainer video cost guide.

A name without a price band cannot help you. Neither can a name without a delivery date.

Most best explainer video companies lists leave out the six things that decide whether you are happy six weeks later:

The price band for a simple 30 to 60 second video
How many revision rounds are included
Who writes the script, you or them
Whether the voiceover is a real person
Who owns the finished files
How long delivery takes, from deposit to final cut

Every one of those changes your deal more than a place on a list ever will.

How do you judge a studio's showreel in ten minutes?

A showreel is a one-minute highlight cut of a studio's favourite shots. Skip it and watch three full videos instead, because a full video shows whether the studio can explain a business like yours.

Watch the first one with the sound off. If you cannot work out what the company sells, the animation is decoration.

Watch the second one listening for structure. A simple explainer script has four parts, hook, problem, solution and call to action, according to Biteable's explainer video script template.

Watch the third one with a stopwatch. Most explainer videos run 60 to 90 seconds, which is roughly 150 to 225 words of voiceover, according to Knowlify's 2026 guide to making an explainer video.

Then ask one question. Has this studio ever explained a service, or only apps? A roofing company and a software product need very different scripts.

Three full videos beat forty thumbnails.

Which type of company matches the job you need done?

Four types of company make explainer videos: full-service video agencies, boutique animation studios, fixed-price production services and freelance marketplaces. Each type is built around a different budget and a different kind of job.

Type of company	Typical price for one video	What you get	Who it suits
Full-service agency	$5,000 to $10,000, more for 3D (Vidico, 2026)	Strategy sessions, original illustration, a producer who runs the job	Funded launches and national campaigns
Boutique animation studio	£2,960 average across 45 agencies (Squideo, 2026)	Custom art direction, small team, you talk to the animator	Product demos and software walkthroughs
Fixed-price production service	$1,500 to $4,000 for AI-assisted studio work (Creamy Animation, 2026)	Set scope, set price, fast turnaround	Local service businesses and first videos
Freelance marketplace	From about $99 (Yum Yum Videos, 2026)	One person, variable quality, you manage the job	Very small budgets and simple briefs

Most best explainer video companies lists mix all four types together, which is why the prices look random.

Our own 30-second explainer sits in the fixed-price row at $297, normally $497, with the script, a human voiceover and the animation included, delivered in 7 days.

Those rows sit side by side, but they are not doing the same job. A five-figure agency video buys strategy time and characters drawn for your brand. A fixed-price video buys a clear 30 or 60 seconds, fast.

What belongs in the one-page brief you send every company?

A one-page brief is a short document that tells every company the same seven things. Send an identical brief to everyone and, for the first time, the quotes compare.

Audience: who watches, in plain words (homeowners with a leak, parents booking a first dental visit)
Goal: the one action you want, such as a call, a booking or a purchase
Length: 30, 60 or 90 seconds
Style: whiteboard, 2D motion graphics or live action
Placement: homepage, Facebook ads, waiting-room screen
Deadline: the date it must be live
Budget band: a range, not a secret

Style deserves a moment of thought before you write it down. Whiteboard animation is the budget option for step-by-step teaching and professional services, 2D motion graphics is the all-round choice, and live action adds a real face or product, according to Pexo's 2026 guide to explainer video types.

Hiding your budget feels clever. It is not. It costs you two weeks while six companies quote for six different videos.

Once your brief is out, our eight questions to ask an explainer video company covers the contract wording in more detail.

How do you build a shortlist of three companies in an afternoon?

Five steps take you from a blank page to three quoted companies in about four hours. Collect names, cut on showreels, send one brief, score the replies, ask for fixed quotes.

Step 1: Collect twelve names in thirty minutes

Open two or three ranking lists and one directory, then write down twelve company names. Ignore the order, because you only want a pool to work from.

Step 2: Cut the list to six with the showreel test

Watch three full videos from each company and keep the six whose scripts explain a business like yours. Sound off for the first, structure for the second, stopwatch for the third.

Step 3: Send the same one-page brief to all six

Email your seven-line brief to all six companies on the same afternoon. Ask each one for a fixed total price, a delivery date and the number of revision rounds.

Step 4: Score the replies, not the sales pitch

Give every reply one point for a fixed price, one for a named delivery date, one for revisions in writing and one for asking a question about your customers. A company that asks nothing about your customers will write a generic script.

Step 5: Pick three and ask for a written quote

Keep the three highest scores and ask each for the quote in writing, with the deposit and the final payment split out. Three quotes is enough to see the shape of the market.

Want something bigger? Book a free 30-minute video call → We plan your custom video with you and send a fixed quote within 24 hours.

Is a big-name studio worth five times a fixed-price service?

A big-name studio earns the extra money when the video carries a product launch, a funding round or a national campaign. For a video that explains a local service, most of the extra buys custom illustration your customers will never notice.

Be fair to the expensive option, though. Five figures buys strategy time, characters drawn for your brand, a producer who chases everyone, and a team that has solved your problem before.

What it cannot buy is a guaranteed result. According to Wyzowl's 2026 State of Video Marketing survey, reported by Levitate Media, 82% of video marketers say video gives them a positive return.

The old claim that video lifts conversion by 80% or more comes from pre-2020 data. Real results now run from a 10% drop, when the wrong video sits on the wrong page, to a 100% lift when the right video sits in the right place, according to Foundry CRO's 2026 landing page video benchmarks.

So the money question is not which studio looks grandest. It is how much you can spend and still be glad you tried.

What should the contract promise before you send a deposit?

Six promises belong in writing before any money moves, starting with a fixed total price and your approval of the script before animation begins. Ask for all six in one email and read the reply carefully.

Fixed total price, including the voiceover and any music licence
Your written approval of the script before animation begins
A number of revision rounds, written as an actual number
Voiceover stated as a real person or a computer voice
Full ownership of the finished video and the source files
A delivery date, and what happens if the studio misses it

If a company will not put a revision number in writing, walk away. "Revisions until you are happy" sounds generous and means nothing on the day you disagree.

Our own explainer package includes 3 revision rounds and a money-back guarantee, and both sit in writing before you pay.

A dentist and a software founder pick different companies

Two owners can run the same five steps and end up with different companies, because the job in front of them is different.

The dentist wants 30 seconds for the homepage and a Facebook ad, explaining what a first visit feels like. Whiteboard or simple 2D does the job, the script matters more than the art, and speed matters most of all. A fixed-price service wins.

The software founder wants 75 seconds showing real screens in a demo flow. Screen animation takes skill, the script needs a product person, and the video will run for two years. A boutique studio wins, even at ten times the price.

Neither owner picked a better company. They picked a better fit.

Plenty of owners are making the same call right now. Explainer videos are the most common single video type marketers make, with 73% having produced one, according to Levitate Media's 2026 video conversion statistics.

If the money side is still fuzzy, our breakdown of what explainer videos cost in 2026 puts real numbers against each route.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need an explainer video company in my own city?

No. Animation gets made and delivered online, so the company's city rarely matters. Location only helps when the video needs live filming at your premises, such as a clinic tour or a workshop walkthrough.

How many companies should I ask for a quote?

Three. Two leaves you guessing, and five turns an afternoon into a fortnight of email. Send the same one-page brief to six companies, then ask the three strongest replies for a fixed written quote.

What is a reasonable deposit to pay upfront?

Half upfront is normal for a custom project, with the balance due on final delivery. Fixed-price packages usually take the whole amount at the start, which is fair when the company offers a money-back guarantee in writing.

Can one company handle both my website video and my ads?

Yes, and asking for both in one brief usually costs less than booking two separate jobs. Ask for a 60-second cut for the website and a 30-second cut for ads, quoted together as one project.

How long does the whole hiring process take?

Choosing takes one afternoon if you follow the five steps. Quotes come back in two to four working days, and production runs from about a week for a fixed-price package to six weeks for a custom studio build.

The short version

Ranking lists are a starting point, never an answer. The best explainer video companies for your business are the three you shortlisted yourself, using work you watched and a brief you wrote.

Collect twelve names. Cut to six on three full videos each. Send one identical brief. Score the replies on fixed price, delivery date, revisions and curiosity about your customers.

Then choose on fit, not on fame. A local service video and a software demo need different companies, and the cheaper route is often right for the smaller job.

Get the six promises in writing before the deposit leaves your account. That is the whole method, and it costs you one afternoon instead of a fortnight.

Ready to get your own video made? Order a 30-second explainer for $297 and have it in 7 days, or book a free call if you want a custom video from $1,299.

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