Magazine Box Photo Booth Rental in the San Francisco Bay Area

The Magazine Box is different from every other booth we rent, so the easiest way to explain a magazine box photo booth rental in the San Francisco Bay Area is to walk through the day it's at your event.

1. Before the event, you pick your cover design: the title, your names, the date and the headlines.
2. On the day, we bring the life-size box and set it up for a $175 travel fee. Or you pick it up and drop it off yourself.
3. When guests arrive, the light-up cover is waiting. They step inside and become the cover story.
4. All night, guests take photos on their own phones. The included lighting kit makes every shot look like a print edition.
5. At the end, the box comes down. It's an all-day rental, so there's no clock running.

Here's what it costs, what you can add and where it fits best around the Bay.

Magazine box photo booth rental San Francisco Bay Area pricing

The Magazine Box is $850 for the whole day. That includes:

• The life-size magazine box
• Standard customization of the cover
• A lighting kit
• All-day rental

There are no hourly tiers. You pay the same whether your event runs three hours or ten.

Getting it there works one of two ways. We bring it and set it up for a $175 travel fee, or you pick it up and drop it off yourself.

Tax and payment. Bay Area events are taxed at 10.25%. On its own, picked up, the Magazine Box comes to $937.13 with tax. A 35% deposit, $297.50 on the $850 rental, holds your date. Card payments add a 5% fee.

Add-ons and when they're worth it

Because guests use their own phones, the Magazine Box doesn't print or send anything on its own. The add-ons fill those gaps, or make the setup bigger.

• Printer photo booth: $550. A booth next to the box that prints for every guest.
• 4x6 prints: $250. Bigger prints from that printer booth (needs the printer booth).
• Digital photo booth: $450. Photos, GIFs and boomerangs sent to guests' phones.
• Photographer: $750. A photographer stationed with the Magazine Box.
• Flower frame: $550. A floral frame around the cover.
• Balloon garland: $450. Styled around the box.
• Red carpet and ropes: $200. Red carpet with stanchions and ropes.
• Audio phone booth: $299. Guests pick up the phone and leave you a voice message.
• Attendant: $50 an hour, from 2 to 10 hours.

A simple rule: if you want guests to leave with something in hand, add the printer booth. If you want pro shots of every cover, add the photographer. If it's mostly about the look, the flower frame or balloon garland does the job.

Where the Magazine Box fits around the Bay

Galas and fundraisers. A black-tie gala at the Fairmont San Francisco on Nob Hill is the kind of night where a magazine cover with the event's name fits right in. Add the photographer and the red carpet, and arrivals turn into a real press moment.

Weddings. A custom Wedding Edition cover suits a ballroom reception, a reception after a San Francisco City Hall ceremony, or a vineyard wedding in Napa. The flower frame softens the look for outdoor and garden settings.

Milestone birthdays. A 30th, 40th or 50th in Palo Alto, Walnut Creek or Oakland gets a cover with the guest of honor's name and age as the headline.

Bridal parties and showers. The box fits a whole group of bridesmaids, and a shower in San Mateo or Pleasanton gets photos everyone wants to post the same night.

Always check your venue's own rules on vendors and setup space before the day.

Four sample budgets

All before the 10.25% Bay Area tax.

1. Gala on Nob Hill: Magazine Box ($850), travel fee ($175), photographer ($750) and red carpet and ropes ($200). Total $1,975.
2. Napa wedding: Magazine Box ($850), travel fee ($175), flower frame ($550), printer photo booth ($550) and 4x6 prints ($250). Total $2,375.
3. 50th birthday in Palo Alto, picked up: Magazine Box ($850), balloon garland ($450) and digital photo booth ($450). Total $1,750.
4. Bridal shower in San Mateo, picked up: Magazine Box ($850) and audio phone booth ($299). Total $1,149.

Questions people ask

Is the Magazine Box priced by the hour?

No. It's $850 for the whole day, with standard customization, the lighting kit and the life-size box included.

Do guests get prints from the Magazine Box?

Not on its own. Guests take photos on their own phones. Add the printer photo booth for $550 if you want prints for every guest.

What's on the cover?

The cover title, your names, the date and the headlines. You pick your design after you book.

Can we skip the $175 travel fee?

Yes. You can pick up the Magazine Box and drop it off yourself instead.

See every booth on the Bay Area photo booth rental page, get the details on the Magazine Box, or request a free quote for your date.