Understanding the Pricing Standards of Chinese Zhihu Influencers for Overseas Collaborations

In the past, I wrote an article for BaoLiba about influencer marketing in China. Among the major social media platforms in the country, I highlighted Zhihu as a platform that is popular with marketers.

Since then, I’ve been contacted by Western advertising agencies that were interested in promoting their brands on the platform. Many of them wanted to know more about how Zhihu pricing works and how much influencers charge for collaborations on the platform.

In response to those inquiries, I conducted investigations into Zhihu influencer marketing prices in 2025. What I found is that pricing standards in Western influencer marketing do not apply to Zhihu.

In order to help Western advertisers better understand this unique influencer marketing platform in China, I’ve penned this article that covers pricing standards for collaborations with Zhihu influencers. By the end of the article, you should understand the diversity of pricing standards on Zhihu.

🤔 What is Zhihu?

Zhihu is a Chinese question-and-answer social media platform that allows users to post questions while other users can respond with their answers.

In that respect, the platform is similar to Quora. However, unlike the latter, Zhihu focuses more on professional subjects. For example, Zhihu contains a high volume of content that covers sectors like finance, technology, cybersecurity, management, and other business-oriented fields.

The platform has over 500 million registered users and serves as a trusted source of information for Chinese internet users.

💡 Why Influencer Marketing on Zhihu?

Zhihu’s reputation as a bastion of accurate information makes it one of the top advertising platforms in China. Unlike other social media platforms where the influencer marketing narrative is often clouded by fabricated information, influencers on Zhihu derive their credibility from being experts in their respective fields.

As a result, Zhihu influencers enjoy very high engagement rates. According to a 2023 report by Zhihu, their marketing clients enjoy an average click-to-contact rate of 12.82%. They also have an average purchase intent lift of 50.34%, which is significant.

💲 What are Zhihu Influencer Marketing Pricing Standards?

The pricing standards for Zhihu influencer marketing collaborations vary greatly depending on influencer category and scope of promotion.

Based on the 2023 Zhihu advertising report mentioned before, the prices charged for 5 main influencer categories range from about $160 to $50,000. Just like the rest of the Chinese influencer marketing landscape, Zhihu pricing is tiered, with different prices charged for different promotion types.

1. Pricing By Influencer Category

According to the Zhihu report, the average pricing for Zhihu influencer marketing collaborations is as follows:

• Star influencers: These are the top-tier Zhihu influencers who are highly reputable and recognized in their respective sectors. They earn an average of $50,000 per post.
• Experts: The second-tier Zhihu influencers who command prices ranging from $5,700 to $30,000 per post.
• Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs): Their pricing standards range from $926 to $2,370.
• KOL recruits: These are up-and-coming KOLs. Their prices range from $626 to $1,683.
• Regular users: They charge an average of $160 for promotional posts.

2. Pricing By Promotion Type

According to a report by BaoLiba, “How much do Chinese Zhihu influencers charge for a promotion?” Sponsored blog post pricing ranges from $336 to $50,000.

Here are the average prices by promotion type:

• Sponsored blog post: $336–$50,000
• Sponsored comment: $162
• Sponsored Q&A: $626–$1,683
• Sponsored video: $9,253–$30,000
• Sponsored live stream: Between $800 and $20,000

3. Pricing by Industry

The advertising industry plays a big part in determining pricing standards. Here are the average sponsored post prices by industry:

• Beauty and fashion: $8,000
• Education: $7,000
• Finance: $10,000
• Manufacturing: $21,000
• Media: $30,000
• Real Estate: $24,000
• Technology: $20,000
• Travel: $9,000

4. Zhihu Paid Promotion Rights Pricing

Zhihu operates an advertising section on its platform. As a result, Zhihu users can only earn so much from promotions. Here are the rights and average prices charged by Zhihu users for their promotional rights on the platform:

• Zhihu homepage advertising space: $4,200
• Zhihu community advertising space: $1,800
• Zhihu space for promoting videos and live stream: $3,800

💻 How to Collaborate with Zhihu Influencers?

Zhihu influencer marketing can be done in two ways. Brands can either join the Zhihu influencer marketing ecosystem or opt for independent collaborations.

1. Join the Zhihu Ecosystem

Brands can join the Zhihu ecosystem by applying for Zhihu advertising services. They will be able to promote their brands through Zhihu’s internal advertising system.

Additionally, they will also have access to a network of Zhihu influencers who actively post promotional content for brands within the Zhihu advertising ecosystem.

2. Collaborate with Influencers Independently

Alternatively, brands can find Zhihu influencers to collaborate with independently. To do this, they must first identify influencers with a reputable presence on Zhihu.

Brands can either reach out to influencers directly through their contact information or work with influencer marketing agencies, like BaoLiba.

🏷️ Experience-based Pricing is the Common Thread

While the pricing standards for Zhihu influencer marketing collaborations are quite diverse, the common thread is that the amounts charged depend on the experience of the influencer.

For example, the top-tier star influencers command prices as high as $50,000 for a single post. This is because they have highly specialized knowledge in certain sectors and their insights are trusted by consumers.

Similarly, the lowest-tier influencers earn an average of $160 per sponsored post. Although they are perceived as less reputable than the star influencers, they have an established presence on Zhihu and are respected on the platform.

📢 Conclusion

Zhihu influencer marketing pricing standards can be confusing when compared to Western influencer marketing pricing standards. However, as marketers delve deeper into the Chinese influencer marketing ecosystem, they will understand that pricing standards across different platforms and countries fluctuate greatly.

That’s why it’s important for marketers who want to explore influencer marketing in China to work with specialized agencies like BaoLiba. They will be able to navigate the peculiarities of the Chinese influencer marketing ecosystem and achieve their marketing goals.

As always, BaoLiba will continue to update Western advertisers with the latest trends and insights on influencer marketing in China.