What a session rate should actually cover
Published 28 August 2026 · 6 min read
Most people quote for the hours they will be in the room. That is the part everyone remembers and the smallest part of the work.
A four-hour tracking session is rarely four hours. There is the listening you do beforehand, the charts or the lyric you prepare, the travel, and the revisions afterwards that nobody wrote down. Quoting only for the room means the rest is free.
What to include
The second thing people forget is the deposit. Half up front is normal here, and it is the difference between a booking and an intention.
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Frequently asked
When is the deposit taken?
When the studio confirms your slot, not when you request it. If they decline, nothing is charged.
Can I cancel a booking?
Free up to 48 hours before. Inside 48 hours the studio keeps the deposit.
When do I get paid?
Within seven days of a completed session, to the account on your profile.
Why was my listing removed?
Usually a prohibited item or someone else's photos. You always get an email saying which.
Marketplace rules
What you may list
Only what you own and can hand over or ship. No counterfeits, no stolen gear, no listings for something you have not got yet.
Offers
An offer is binding for 48 hours. A seller may counter once. Neither side is charged until an offer is accepted.
Deposits and disputes
Rental deposits are held, not paid out, until the item comes back. If the two sides disagree we hold the deposit until both have been heard.
Removal
We remove listings that break these rules and email you the reason. Repeated breaches end an account.
My deposit was taken but the booking isn't showing
Almost always a payment that succeeded at your bank but had not reached us when you last looked.
What to do
- Check My bookings
- Give it fifteen minutes
- Still missing? Send us the reference
Offers now expire after 48 hours
31 August 2026
Marketplace offers used to sit open indefinitely, which left sellers unsure whether an offer was still real. From today an offer expires after 48 hours unless it is answered. Nothing changes for offers already open.
Go to MarketThis guide is out of date
It described how deposits worked before August 2026. There is a current version.
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