There are four ways to get TikTok content done for you without hiring a content team: an agency retainer, a freelancer, a creator platform, or software that makes the content. Relay is one of the software options: paste your website or App Store link (no brief to write), Relay makes a month of TikTok slideshows and videos, you swipe to approve, and it sends each approved post to your TikTok inbox on its day. As of October 2026 it costs $49 to $249 a month after a lower first month.
Key takeaways
- Virlo’s 2026 agency guide puts entry-level retainers from $1,500 a month for 4 to 8 videos (as of October 2026). Tiers, paid-ads add-ons and minimum terms are in our TikTok agency cost guide.
- Vire’s hiring guide puts freelance editors at about $800 to $3,000 a month for 20 to 40 clips of footage you film (as of October 2026).
- Creator platforms put real people on camera: SideShift Starter is $299 a month ($210 a month billed yearly) plus a recommended $2,000 to $5,000 a month in creator pay, as of October 2026.
- Software is the cheapest per post. Relay makes 40, 120 or 300 posts a month and sends up to 20, 60 or 150 approved posts to your TikTok inbox, for $49, $99 or $249 a month (as of October 2026).
- Relay keeps you in the loop: plan on 15 to 45 minutes a week on Starter or Growth (our estimate), plus finishing and posting each one in TikTok. Opt-in Autopilot can approve drafts for you.
What are the four ways to get TikTok content done for you?
- Agency retainer. A team plans, makes and posts for you. MarketerHire says an agency “owns four jobs: content production, paid media, creator partnerships, and measurement.” The most hands-off and most expensive option, it is worth it when you need people on camera, comment replies and paid ads under one accountable team. Retainer tiers, paid-ads pricing and minimum terms are in our agency cost guide. Side by side: Relay vs a TikTok agency.
- Freelancer. An editor or writer takes one slice of the work. It is the cheapest way to get footage you already film cut well, and it costs the most founder time.
- Creator platform. You brief real creators, approve their videos and pay for each one. SideShift tracks creator posts across TikTok, Instagram, YouTube and Facebook. It is the right buy when a real face sells the product.
- Software that makes the posts. AI writes and designs the posts and sends them to your account, at the lowest cost per post.
How do the four options compare on cost, time and control?
Prices as of October 2026; founder time is our estimate. Per-post math: what it costs to post on TikTok every day.
| Option | Monthly cost | Founder time a week | Who approves | Who posts | What you own |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agency retainer | From $1,500 for 4 to 8 videos (full tiers) | Low: review batches, a monthly call | You sign off on what the agency sends | The agency | The account if it’s in your name; files only if the contract says so |
| Freelancer | $800 to $3,000 for 20 to 40 edited clips | High: you plan, film, brief and upload | You | You, unless you pay them to | What the contract assigns |
| Creator platform | SideShift $299 plus creator pay; Billo from $99 a video | Medium to high: briefs, picking creators, reviews | You, video by video | Creators, or you | Usage rights set by each contract |
| Relay (software) | $49, $99 or $249 after a $25, $45 or $149 first month | About 15 to 25 minutes (Starter) to 75+ (Scale), by our estimate | You, every post (or Autopilot, if you switch it on) | You, in TikTok: Relay sends each approved post to your TikTok inbox on its day | Your TikTok account; Relay owns the posts and licenses them to you while your plan is paid (terms) |
The baseline all four replace is an in-house hire: a US social media manager averages $94,240 in total compensation, about $7,850 a month before benefits (as of October 2026).
ReelFarm makes 100 AI slideshows for $49 a month (as of October 2026) and says it “generates & publishes original content for you every day, automatically,” which suits founders who want no per-post review. Full head to head: Relay vs ReelFarm. Fastlane has a free plan and posts to TikTok, Instagram, YouTube and LinkedIn from $29 a month (as of October 2026). Relay’s approach is swipe approval (or opt-in Autopilot), new takes of posts that do well and, on Scale, a creator network: approved drafts can go to creators who post them from their own accounts, within Scale’s 150 posts a month.
How do you get done-for-you TikTok content with Relay?
- Paste your website or App Store link. Relay learns what you sell, who it is for and how you sound, then asks some quick one-tap questions.
- Relay makes the month. It looks at what is getting views in your niche, then makes slideshows and videos for your brand in your voice.
- Swipe to approve. Right to approve, left to pass. Edit the words first, or switch on Autopilot to approve for you.
- Connect your TikTok once. Relay spreads what you approve across the month and sends each post to your TikTok inbox on its day. You open the draft, add a caption if it is a video, choose who can see it and tap Post. When you post, turn on the AI-generated content setting if the post uses realistic AI imagery, and the content disclosure toggle where it applies.
- Get more of what works. Every post’s views sit in one place, and when a post does well, Relay makes new takes of it.
What does a week with Relay look like for a solo founder?
A solo founder on Starter (40 posts made, up to 20 published a month), approving in one sitting:
| When | What you do | Time (our estimate) |
|---|---|---|
| Once, at the start | Paste your link, answer the one-tap questions, connect your TikTok | One sitting |
| Monday | Swipe through about 10 drafts, approve about 5, cut any line you can’t back up | 10 to 15 minutes |
| Friday | Check views in one place, note which hook won, approve any new takes of a winner | 5 to 10 minutes |
| Posting days | Open the draft Relay sent to your TikTok inbox, caption it if it is a video, set who can see it and the disclosure, tap Post | A few taps a post, plus a caption on videos |
| Any day | Reply to comments and DMs, if you want to | Your call: not part of Relay’s self-serve plans |
That is roughly 15 to 25 minutes a week, plus posting. On Growth (about 30 drafts a week) plan on 30 to 45 minutes, and on Scale (about 70) 75 minutes or more (our estimate). Health, money or results claims take longer to check.
Approving is worth keeping on your plate: even tools that post with no review leave you responsible for what your brand says. The FTC puts it plainly: “Before a company runs an ad, it has to have a ‘reasonable basis’ for the claims.”
Which Relay plan fits a founder?
Prices as of October 2026:
- Starter, $49 a month ($25 first month): a solo founder testing TikTok, about 5 posts a week.
- Growth, $99 a month ($45 first month): a founder plus a cofounder or marketer (up to 3 people), about 2 posts a day.
- Scale, $249 a month ($149 first month): a team posting at volume (up to 5 people), plus Relay’s creator network.
Yearly billing gives two months free, and you pay $0 today on a 1-day trial (card required) that converts to the paid first month unless you cancel before it ends.
When is Relay not done-for-you enough?
- You need someone on camera. Relay’s self-serve plans make AI slideshows and videos. For ads made by real creators, Relay’s managed UGC ads service makes UGC ads from its network of 50,000 creators at about $5 a creative (as of October 2026).
- You need Instagram, YouTube or LinkedIn. Relay’s self-serve product works with TikTok only. Fastlane covers TikTok, Instagram, YouTube and LinkedIn.
- You want comments and DMs answered. Relay’s self-serve plans don’t include comment or DM replies. LYFE Marketing’s plans include “Page Monitoring & Responding to Activity,” starting at $1,350 a month for 12 posts (as of October 2026).
- You want paid ads run for you. Self-serve Relay doesn’t manage ad spend, and its managed service makes ad creative only. For media buying, a TikTok ads manager on retainer costs $1,500 to $5,000 a month for $10,000 to $50,000 in ad spend (Vire, as of October 2026).
- You want posts to go live with no step on your side. Relay’s opt-in Autopilot can approve for you, but you still tap Post in TikTok. ReelFarm says it publishes automatically.
Get started
Relay has generated over one billion views. If software fits, paste your website at relaystudio.ai ($0 today, 1-day trial, card required), or see what a month of TikTok posts looks like.