{
  "slug": "shorts-vs-longform",
  "title": "Shorts vs Long-Form ROI Calculator",
  "heading": "Shorts vs Long-Form ROI Calculator",
  "category": "other",
  "url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/shorts-vs-longform",
  "summary": "Compare revenue per production hour for short and long video.",
  "description": "Shorts win on views and lose badly on RPM; long-form is the reverse. The honest comparison is revenue per production hour, and it often flips once you count editing time.",
  "formula": "Revenue per hour = (Views ÷ 1,000 × RPM) ÷ Production hours, for each format.",
  "dateModified": "2026-09-30",
  "run_url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/api/public/calc?tool=shorts-vs-longform",
  "inputs": [
    {
      "id": "shortViews",
      "label": "Views per short",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 45000,
      "unit": null,
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "shortRpm",
      "label": "Shorts RPM",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 0.12,
      "unit": "$",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "shortHours",
      "label": "Hours per short",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 0.75,
      "unit": null,
      "min": 0.05,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "longViews",
      "label": "Views per long-form video",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 18000,
      "unit": null,
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "longRpm",
      "label": "Long-form RPM",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 9,
      "unit": "$",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "longHours",
      "label": "Hours per long-form video",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 12,
      "unit": null,
      "min": 0.5,
      "max": null
    }
  ],
  "outputs": [
    {
      "id": "shortPerHour",
      "label": "Shorts revenue per production hour",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": true
    },
    {
      "id": "longPerHour",
      "label": "Long-form revenue per production hour",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "shortRev",
      "label": "Revenue per short",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "longRev",
      "label": "Revenue per long-form video",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "ratio",
      "label": "Shorts advantage vs long-form",
      "format": "decimal",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "shortsToMatch",
      "label": "Shorts needed to match one long-form video",
      "format": "decimal",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    }
  ],
  "worked_example": {
    "inputs": [
      "Views per short: 45000",
      "Shorts RPM: 0.12 $",
      "Hours per short: 0.75",
      "Views per long-form video: 18000",
      "Long-form RPM: 9 $",
      "Hours per long-form video: 12"
    ],
    "outputs": [
      "Shorts revenue per production hour: $7.20",
      "Long-form revenue per production hour: $13.50",
      "Revenue per short: $5.40",
      "Revenue per long-form video: $162.00",
      "Shorts advantage vs long-form: 0.53",
      "Shorts needed to match one long-form video: 30"
    ]
  },
  "how_to": {
    "title": "How to use this",
    "steps": [
      "Enter views per short.",
      "Enter shorts rpm ($).",
      "Enter hours per short.",
      "Enter views per long-form video.",
      "Enter long-form rpm ($).",
      "Enter hours per long-form video.",
      "Read your shorts revenue per production hour on the right — it updates as you type.",
      "Hit Share to keep the scenario or send it to someone."
    ]
  },
  "scenarios": [
    {
      "name": "Conservative",
      "description": "Lower-end numbers — what if things land soft?",
      "values": {
        "shortViews": 27000,
        "shortRpm": 0.072,
        "shortHours": 0.44999999999999996,
        "longViews": 11000,
        "longRpm": 5.3999999999999995,
        "longHours": 7.199999999999999
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Typical",
      "description": "Defaults — the most common real-world setup.",
      "values": {
        "shortViews": 45000,
        "shortRpm": 0.12,
        "shortHours": 0.75,
        "longViews": 18000,
        "longRpm": 9,
        "longHours": 12
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Ambitious",
      "description": "Higher-end numbers — what if things really pop?",
      "values": {
        "shortViews": 72000,
        "shortRpm": 0.192,
        "shortHours": 1.2000000000000002,
        "longViews": 29000,
        "longRpm": 14.4,
        "longHours": 19.200000000000003
      }
    }
  ],
  "limitations": [
    "Estimates assume standard, average conditions — local rules, pricing, and materials vary.",
    "Results are rounded for readability; add a buffer before ordering, booking, or committing.",
    "Double-check anything with a real cost attached against a local quote."
  ],
  "faq": [
    {
      "q": "How does the shorts vs long-form roi calculator work?",
      "a": "Shorts win on views and lose badly on RPM; long-form is the reverse. The honest comparison is revenue per production hour, and it often flips once you count editing time. The underlying maths is: Revenue per hour = (Views ÷ 1,000 × RPM) ÷ Production hours, for each format."
    },
    {
      "q": "What do I need to enter?",
      "a": "6 values: views per short, shorts rpm, hours per short, views per long-form video, long-form rpm, and hours per long-form video. Each field starts with a sensible default, so you can change one number at a time and watch the result move."
    },
    {
      "q": "What does the shorts revenue per production hour result mean?",
      "a": "It is returned as a money amount in US dollars and updates live as you edit the inputs, so you can compare two or three versions of a scenario in a few seconds."
    },
    {
      "q": "Is this calculator free, and do I need an account?",
      "a": "Yes, it's free, and no account is required. Nothing you type is stored on our servers — the maths runs entirely in your browser."
    },
    {
      "q": "How accurate is the result?",
      "a": "It applies the standard formula exactly, so the arithmetic is precise. Estimates assume standard, average conditions — local rules, pricing, and materials vary."
    },
    {
      "q": "Who is this tool for?",
      "a": "It's built for anyone doing everyday planning maths — a quick estimate that would otherwise need four browser tabs and a calculator app."
    }
  ],
  "related": [
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/video-production-cost",
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/cross-platform-repurposing"
  ],
  "license": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "citation": "RevenueLab — Shorts vs Long-Form ROI Calculator (https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/shorts-vs-longform)"
}