Ghost Mannequin Service Cost: What You'll Pay in 2026

Ghost mannequin editing costs $0.85 to $3.99 per image at Reframe Visuals, depending on the garment. A plain T-shirt sits at the bottom of that range. A lined jacket or a dress with no inside shots sits at the top. The rest of this guide explains why, what you need to send, and how to budget a clothing catalog without surprises.

What you are paying for

A ghost mannequin image shows a garment as if an invisible body were wearing it. The shape is full, the neck opening shows the back of the collar, and there is no mannequin in sight. It is the standard look for apparel on Amazon, Shopify and most fashion storefronts because it shows fit without the cost of a model shoot.

It is not one photo. It is a composite:

1. The worn shot. The garment on a mannequin, shot from the front (and the back, if you want both views).
2. The inside shots. The same garment turned inside out or laid flat, showing the inside of the collar, sleeves and hem.
3. The edit. An editor removes the mannequin, cuts the garment out, and builds the hollow interior from the inside shots so the neck joint looks natural.

The third step is skilled work. The cut-out is part of it, so you do not order background removal or a clipping path on top: it is already in the price. A plain cut-out starts at $0.39 but leaves the mannequin in the photo. Here the editor is rebuilding part of the garment, not just removing a background.

Budgeting a ghost mannequin catalog drop?
Test our hollow-body neck joint reconstruction and collar symmetry on your own garments. Submit 3 test garments for free sample editing with 12h–72h turnaround.

Ghost mannequin pricing by tier

Tier	Price per image	Garments that usually fall here
Simple	$0.85	T-shirts, tank tops, basic knits, plain tees with a crew neck
Medium	$1.89	Collared shirts, polos, hoodies, dresses with a simple neckline
Complex	$3.99	Jackets, coats, tailored blazers, layered pieces, garments with no inside shots

Prices are at 24h Standard turnaround. We confirm the tier from your sample edit before you order, so you know what the batch will cost before it starts.

If you are also cleaning up wrinkles, the Ghost Mannequin Complete bundle (ghost mannequin plus garment retouch) is $1.54 per image.

What the price covers

Every ghost mannequin order includes the same steps, whatever the tier:

1. The cut-out is included. Background removal or a clipping path, whichever the garment needs, with no separate line on your order.
2. The mannequin comes out by hand, edge by edge, including around collars and seams.
3. The neck joint is fitted from your second photo. The inside of the collar, label included, is matched to the shape and light of the front shot.
4. The garment is reshaped. Collar, shoulders, sleeves and hem are lined up so both sides match, and 100% symmetrical on demand. If you prefer a relaxed, natural drape, say so in the brief.
5. A second editor checks every image before it is delivered.
6. Revisions are free and unlimited for 14 days after delivery.

Many studios list the mannequin work and the cut-out as two separate lines, so a low ghost mannequin number is not the whole price. When you compare quotes, add up every line: the mannequin work, the cut-out, the reshaping and any revision fee. Then ask which of the six items above are in the total. A lower number per image can be fair. It can also mean the cut-out is billed on top, the reshaping is left out, nobody checks the file, or a revision costs extra. The simplest test is to send the same hard garment to each studio and put the results side by side. We edit up to three images free for exactly that.

If you also need wrinkles, lint and creases cleaned up, the Ghost Mannequin Complete bundle covers ghost mannequin plus garment retouch for $1.54 per image.

What pushes a garment up a tier

Collar and neckline. A crew neck is a simple oval. A tailored collar has a stand, a fold and a back panel, and the editor has to rebuild all three so they sit correctly.

Number of openings. A T-shirt has a neck, two sleeves and a hem. A jacket adds a front opening, pockets, a lining and sometimes a hood. Each opening needs its own interior.

Fabric and structure. Soft knits drape and forgive small errors. Stiff denim, wool coats and padded jackets hold a shape, and any inconsistency in the join is visible.

Pattern at the seam. Stripes, plaids and prints must line up across the join. A stripe that jumps at the collar tells the shopper the image is edited.

Missing inside shots. If you only have the worn shot, the editor has to invent the interior. That is the single biggest reason a garment moves to the Complex tier, and it is almost always avoidable at the shoot.

The inside shots: the cheapest way to lower your bill

Most of the cost you can control is decided before the editor opens the file. Shoot these with every garment and you will usually land in a lower tier:

• Turn the garment inside out, or hold the collar open, and shoot the inside back of the neck straight on
• Shoot each sleeve opening if the garment is lined or has a cuff
• Keep the light and camera position identical to the worn shot, and photograph the mannequin's position so the garment lines up
• Shoot at the same height for each garment type: chest level for tops, hip level for bottoms

If you do not have inside shots, send what you have. We will tell you which tier it falls under and whether a re-shoot of just the inside would save money. For a garment type you shoot again and again, it usually does.

A clothing catalog, priced

Take a 200-image seasonal drop: 120 tops, 60 collared pieces and 20 outerwear items.

Tier	Images	Price	Subtotal
Simple	120	$0.85	$102.00
Medium	60	$1.89	$113.40
Complex	20	$3.99	$79.80
Total	200		$295.20

That is about $1.48 per image on average, and the 20 jackets account for 27% of the bill. If those jackets are the hero products of the collection, the money is well spent. If not, shooting proper inside views for them is the quickest saving.

Ghost mannequin vs. a model shoot

A model shoot buys you motion, styling and mood. Ghost mannequin buys you consistency: every garment shown at the same scale, in the same light, against the same background. For a catalog of hundreds of SKUs that consistency is what makes a category page look like one store.

Most apparel sellers use both. Ghost mannequin for the main image and the grid. A few lifestyle or model shots for the hero banner and the product page gallery. If you sell on marketplaces, check the category rules before choosing, because the first image is where most of them are strict. Our marketplace requirement guides cover the main ones.

Do it yourself or send it out?

You can build a ghost mannequin composite in Photoshop. The steps are well documented. Two things make it expensive in practice. The first is consistency: the 400th neck joint has to match the first. The second is your time. If you pay yourself or an employee more than the cost of the service per image, outsourcing is cheaper from the first batch.

If you do it in-house, our guide to neck joint technique shows what to look for.

Want to see what your garments would cost?

Send us one simple piece and one hard one, with inside shots if you have them. We edit up to three images free so you can see the finished neck joint and the tier before you commit. For a full catalog, request a quote with your volume and we will price the batch.

How to brief a ghost mannequin order

A good brief takes two minutes and saves a revision round:

• Worn shots and inside shots for each garment, with matching file names
• Output background: white, transparent, or a specific color
• Whether you want a soft shadow under the garment
• Final pixel size and file format
• Any marketplace the image is going to, since each has its own rules for the main image
• Notes on anything unusual: zip-off sleeves, detachable hoods, belts, buttons you want left open or closed