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Malt's published barometer puts the average day rate at €430 for a graphic designer or photographer in France and €465 for a motion designer. At that rate, Design Elite's Elite plan at €1,399.90 per month excluding VAT equals 3.3 freelance days. The question is what the other sixteen buy you, and what a freelancer does better.
The No. 1 subscription-based design studio in France
Recruiting, testing, briefing, chasing, covering vacations: none of that appears on a freelancer invoice, and all of it is yours. A subscription removes it.
No listing, no portfolio triage, no paid trial project to find out what someone can actually do.
A freelancer on vacation or overbooked stops your production. A team with a project manager does not.
€949.90 to €2,099.90 per month excluding VAT whatever the volume, instead of a day rate multiplied by days you have to forecast.
Design Elite is a subscription design studio: Prestige at €949.90, Elite at €1,399.90 and Commando at €2,099.90 per month excluding VAT with no commitment, down to €759.90, €1,119.90 and €1,679.90 on a twelve-month term.
Unlimited requests, a project manager who sequences them, one team across the whole brand. Motion design is on the Commando plan only, which is worth weighing against the €465 average day rate Malt reports for that specialty.
We do not do development, email marketing, video production, paid media, CRM setup or moderated user research. For those, a specialist freelancer is the right hire.
Freelancers bill by the day or by the project. The public barometer Malt calculates across its 634,035 members gives an average day rate of €430 for graphic designers and photographers and €465 for motion designers and directors. It is a solid reference point precisely because it is published and kept current, which few players in this market do.
What a freelancer does better than a subscription, said straight: the direct relationship and picking the person. You see the exact portfolio, you talk to whoever does the work, you can bring them on site, fold them into your team rituals, and cover skills we do not have, from development to user research. On a few days of work, it is also cheaper in absolute terms.
The model breaks when the need becomes continuous. One person cannot be in two places: vacations, overload, the end of a contract or a shift in their client priorities all stop your production, and replacing them starts with hiring again. There is also no art director above the work guaranteeing that January and September still look like the same brand.
€949.90 to €2,099.90 per month, excluding VAT
A full month, whatever the volume
Unlimited requests, prioritized
A team with backup and a project manager
You pick the studio, not the individual
No, everything runs remotely
Design only, motion design on Commando
The design workload is continuous
€430 average day rate in design, €465 in motion
Lower for a few days, its real advantage
Capped by one person's available days
Vacations, overload and contract ends stop it
You see the portfolio and talk to the maker
Possible, and sometimes decisive
Depends on the profile, including outside design
A defined project, or a skill outside design
Billing model
Entry cost
Capacity in busy months
Continuity
Choosing the person
On-site presence
Scope
Pick this when
Freelance designer
Average day rate, Malt barometer
€430 / day
Design Elite
Elite plan, €1,399.90 per month excl. VAT
3.3 days at that rate
Design Elite
Spread over 20 working days
€70 / day
At the average day rate Malt publishes, the Elite plan is 3.3 freelance days. If your monthly need runs well past that, the subscription is cheaper by arithmetic, not by argument.
A versatile design team, expert in branding, acquisition and conversion.
Quality work, excellent service, and competent teams who are attentive to our projects; resulting in a highly beneficial partnership for our business! Thank you DesignElite
CamilleGuillaume Sun
Co-Founder - Breez
Excellent experience with the Design Elite team, especially with Samy, Nicolas, and all the project managers we've collaborated with. They quickly understood our needs and offered creative, relevant, and tailored solutions. The work is always meticulous, communication is smooth, and the team is highly responsive. This is a huge time and resource saver for us, as they manage all design aspects internally. Their key strength is responsiveness. Visuals are usually delivered in less than two days, and the team also steps up when there are urgent requests or modifications needed. If you're looking for a print or web design agency for your visuals, Design Elite is the number one choice. I recommend them without hesitation. Thank you for your work.
Adama Drame
CMO - Notez-Nous
A game changer for my static ads and nurturing! I opted for the largest subscription plan because we need to produce tons of creatives for our Meta ads. The process is extremely smooth, and the execution is perfect. We're seeing very good KPIs on the ads we produce with them. I recommend!
Lorenzo de Blegiers
CEO - Clarifié
I've been a client for a year, and Design Elite is the best design solution for me. An attentive, proactive team delivers tailor-made results (based on client needs and inspirations), and there's a no-commitment subscription. I highly recommend it.
Laura C.
CEO - Gamme
Design Elite is an agency I highly recommend; they are attentive, responsive, and thorough. The entire team is very professional, and their designs are stunning. Thank you for your work!
Ava Biton
CMO - Permifast
Super responsive, deadlines met!
Kiki Guro
Founder - STS
Truly top-notch professionalism! The packages are very affordable and they are always available!
Guillaume Rassemi
CEO - Oh My Desk
Excellent experience with Design Elite! The team is extremely professional, responsive, and always attentive. A big thank you to Samy for his vision and dedication, and to Margaux, the project manager, who handles everything with great professionalism and efficiency. Communication is fluid, deadlines are consistently met, and the quality of work is truly outstanding. I highly recommend their services to any company looking for a reliable and talented design team.
Eddy Jelal
Serial Entrepreneur
Move to a simple, fast and flexible model that produces design continuously and fuels their growth. Book a discovery call to see how we can accelerate yours.
