Making a Roblox game can cost nothing. Roblox Studio is free, and publishing a game for players aged 16 and up is free. Costs only come in if you choose them: reaching players under 16 (a Roblox Plus or Premium subscription for two months, or a refundable publishing fee), assets, advertising, or paying freelancers. A small game built by one person usually costs $0 to a few hundred dollars. A game built with hired help typically costs anywhere from a few hundred to tens of thousands of dollars.
Here's where money actually goes, what freelancers charge, and how to avoid the most common hiring mistakes.
What's Free
- Roblox Studio, including all its building, scripting and testing tools
- Publishing your game and updating it
- Creating game passes and developer products (Roblox takes 30% of each sale, but nothing up front)
- Roblox's documentation, the Developer Forum and the official tutorials
- Free models, audio and images in the Toolbox, though check free models for hidden scripts before you use them
You can make, publish and earn from a game without spending a cent. Our guide on how to make a Roblox game walks through the whole process.
What You Might Pay For
Reaching Players Under 16
Since 2026, new games are shown first to age-checked players aged 16 and older. To publish for Roblox Kids (ages 5 to 8) and Roblox Select (ages 9 to 15), Roblox asks creators to verify their age, turn on 2-step verification, and either:
- keep a Roblox Plus or Premium subscription for two months in a row, or
- pay a one-time, refundable publishing fee (1,000 Robux per game when the rule launched in 2026).
Roblox refunds the fee automatically after your game becomes eligible for younger audiences, or after a set period if it never does. Roblox has also said it hopes to reduce the fee over time, so check the current amount on its Kids and Select page.
Advertising
Roblox's Ads Manager lets you run sponsored game ads and search ads. You buy ad credits to fund campaigns, and one ad credit costs 263 Robux. There's no point running ads before your game keeps players, so treat this as a later cost. Our guide on getting players covers what to do first.
Assets and Tools
Some developers buy models, sound effects, animations or plugins from the Creator Store or other marketplaces. You don't need any of it for a first game. Thumbnails and icons are something you can make yourself in our free Art Studio.
What Freelancers Charge
Hiring is where real costs appear. Prices vary a lot with skill and scope, and there's no official rate card, but here's what you'll typically see quoted on job boards and the Roblox Developer Forum in 2026:
| Role | Small job | Typical hourly rate |
|---|---|---|
| Scripter | $10 to $100 for one small system | roughly $15 to $50 an hour |
| Builder | $20 to $200 for a small map or area | roughly $15 to $40 an hour |
| 3D modeler | $10 to $150 per model, by detail | often priced per model |
| UI designer | $20 to $200 for a set of menus | often priced per screen |
Bigger work scales up from there. A full saving, shop and monetization system can run into the low thousands of dollars, and a complete game built by a team commonly costs $5,000 to $50,000 or more.
Newer developers charge less and are often happy to build up their portfolio. Experienced developers with shipped games charge more and are usually worth it, because they finish faster and their code holds up when your game grows.
Paying in Robux vs. Dollars
Many Roblox freelancers accept Robux. Keep in mind what Robux are worth to them: they cash out at $0.0038 per Robux in 2026, so 10,000 Robux is worth about $38 to the person you pay, even though buying 10,000 Robux costs you much more than that. If you pay in Robux, price it fairly by its cash-out value, and use your group's payout tools rather than transfers so the payment is clean.
Percentage Deals
Some people offer to work for a share of the game's earnings instead of upfront pay. It can work between people who trust each other, but most percentage deals end with nobody getting paid, because most games don't earn much. If you offer one, put the split in writing and set it up through group payouts.
How to Hire Without Getting Burned
- Look at shipped work. A portfolio of real games or videos of working systems beats any amount of talk.
- Write a clear brief. Exactly what the system should do, how it should look, and how you'll test it. Vague jobs cost more and end in arguments.
- Pay in milestones. Split bigger jobs into stages and pay as each one is delivered and tested. Never pay the full amount up front to someone you haven't worked with.
- Keep ownership. Have freelancers work in your game (or your group's game) through Team Create, so the files never live only on their account.
- Remove access when the job is done. Take collaborators off Team Create and group roles you no longer need.
You can post a job or browse developers on the Blox Academy forum, where Roblox developers offer services and studios post work.
Example Budgets
| Game | Typical approach | Rough cost |
|---|---|---|
| First obby or tycoon | Solo, free tools | $0 |
| Small simulator | Solo, a few bought assets and a commissioned icon | $20 to $200 |
| Simulator with hired scripting | You design and build, a scripter does systems | $300 to $3,000 |
| Fully outsourced game | A team does design, build, scripting and art | $5,000 to $50,000+ |
Add an ad budget on top once your game is ready for it.
The cheapest path is to learn the skills yourself. Our plan for learning Roblox scripting gets most people to building their own systems in a few months, and it means you can judge freelancers' work when you do hire.
Common Questions
Is it free to make a Roblox game?
Yes. Studio and publishing are free. You only pay for optional things like assets, ads, freelancers, or the requirements for publishing to players under 16.
How much does it cost to publish a game on Roblox?
Nothing for players aged 16 and up. To reach younger players, you need a Roblox Plus or Premium subscription for two months or a refundable publishing fee, which was 1,000 Robux per game when the rule launched in 2026.
How much does a Roblox scripter cost?
Small, well-defined jobs often cost $10 to $100. Hourly rates for experienced scripters commonly fall between $15 and $50. Large systems and full games cost far more.
Can I pay developers in Robux?
Yes, many accept Robux. Use group payouts so the payment counts as Earned Robux for them, and remember that Robux are worth $0.0038 each when they cash out.
Is it worth paying someone to make my Roblox game?
Only if you know exactly what you want and can afford for the game to earn nothing at first. Many developers get further by learning the basics themselves and hiring for the one or two things they can't do yet. For realistic income expectations, read how much Roblox developers make.
