What a designer on retainer costs
Studio is $3,995 a month and Scale is $6,995 a month. Studio gives you one concurrent request slot, Scale gives you two. Both are month to month with no contract.
The two tiers
Studio
$3,995per month
1 concurrent request slot
- A named designer who reviews and signs every delivery
- Month one foundation: audit, tokens, component library, docs
- Unlimited requests in the queue, one active at a time
- 48h target turnaround on a standard request
- Delivery in code, plus Figma to code via a reviewed pull request
Scale
$6,995per month
2 concurrent request slots
- Everything in Studio
- Two requests drafting and in review at the same time
- Built for teams shipping on more than one surface at once
What it compares to
Compare it against the $400,000 to $700,000 a year an in-house design system team costs to run.
Cancel anytime.
Final scope confirmed on the call before anything is billed.
FAQ
How much does Wraith cost?
- Studio is $3,995 a month and Scale is $6,995 a month. Studio gives you one concurrent request slot, Scale gives you two. Both are month to month with no contract.
What's the difference between Studio and Scale?
- The number of concurrent request slots. Studio has one slot, Scale has two, so Scale keeps two requirements moving at the same time. Everything else, the designer, the review, the 48 hour target, is the same on both.
What is a concurrent request slot?
- A slot is one requirement being worked at a time. When a deliverable is reviewed and handed back, the slot frees up and the next request from your queue moves into it. Studio has one slot, Scale has two.
Is there a contract or minimum commitment?
- No. Wraith is month to month, with no contract and no notice period. You cancel from the Stripe customer portal whenever you want.
Can I cancel anytime?
- Yes, from the Stripe customer portal, and it takes effect without a notice period. You keep everything already delivered. There is no pause option today, so a cancel and restart is how you take a break.
What happens to my work if I cancel?
- You keep everything already delivered. The work lives in your own Figma file and your own code, so cancelling does not remove anything or lock you out of it.
How does this compare to hiring a designer in-house?
- A subscription is month to month at $3,995 or $6,995, with no contract, no notice period and no hiring process. You get one senior designer's review on every deliverable, scoped to design-system work rather than the full remit of an in-house hire.
Also worth comparing
- Wraith vs DesignjoyTwo one-designer subscriptions at a similar price, with different scope and a different delivery format.
- Wraith vs SupersideAn enterprise creative subscription with a $15,000 monthly minimum, against a $3,995 design-system subscription.
- Wraith vs hiring a founding designerWhat a US founding designer actually costs, and the specific work a subscription does and does not replace.
- What is an AI design service with human sign-off?The four things that have to be true, and how the category differs from a design subscription and from DIY AI tools.