The Ultimate Guide to Sell Your Pictures Online

Are you a photographer? Are you looking for a place to showcase your photos and also make a profit out of it? Selling pictures online is a good way to make money as a photographer. There are a plenty of photographers out there. The good thing is, there are plenty of ways to sell your photos on the internet!

But lots of photographers make money online by choosing a specific type of photography they’re good at.

Lets look at the best 10 websites to sell your pictures and also make the most out of it.

Top 10 Ways to Sell Your Pictures Online

1. Adobe Stock (Best Way to Sell Pictures Online)

Adobe Stock is a platform where photographers, graphic designers, and artists can sell their work to businesses and individuals looking for high-quality illustrations, images, videos, and specific kind of templates. It’s part of the Adobe Creative Cloud suite.

A perk of Adobe Stock is that you get free access to Adobe Portfolio. This lets you create your own personalized website to display your work. Since it comes with Adobe Stock, it’s super easy to manage and update your portfolio with your latest creations. On Adobe Stock you can earn royalties ranging from 20% to 46%.

2. ShutterStock

Shutterstock is well-known for it stock photographs. And also popular among content creators for those who sell pictures online. It’s one of the leading stock photography website, with a huge collection of high-quality content.

Shutterstock is a platform where photos are at lower prices. To increase downloads, the key strategy is to upload a number of images. Shutterstock is a good place to start for new photographers. Even though you might not make as much money as on other sites, it’s a great way to learn how to sell your photos online. Earnings on Shutterstock are typically ranging from 20% to 30%. And you can get additional income if you refer to anyone else.

3. iStock

iStock, also called iStockphoto, is a website where you can buy and sell images, illustrations, videos, and audio clips. It started in 2000 and was later bought by Getty Images in 2006. On iStock, you can upload content, and when they’re approved, people can buy them.

iStock also has helpful forums and guides to teach you how to sell your photos online if you’re not sure where to start. You earn money when someone buys your content. At first, you might get 15% of the sale, but if your stuff becomes really popular, you could get up to 45%.If a customer purchases your photo using their subscription credits, you only receive 15% of the sale. If you are into exclusivity, iStock photo will give you 22% to 45%. This rate works on a contract with a 30-day notice period.

4. Getty Images

Getty Images is another stock photograph website to sell pictures online. Over the years, it has evolved into one of the world’s leading destination for stock photography website. Getty Images another branch is iStock. While iStock focuses on providing more affordable content, Getty Images offers high-end and premium content that can be sold in thousands of dollars.

Getty Images offers a starting rate of 20% for high-quality photo sold, which can increase but that depends. To be able to sell your photos online, you’ll need to create account with a set of photos for review.

5. Canva

Selling photos on Canva is a brilliant way for photographers to make money by sharing their pictures. Other users can then buy these photos to use in their designs. Canva is a popular website where people make designs for things like social media posts and presentations.

This stock website makes it easy for people to buy pictures. Users have to drag and drop the photos. Then they click to purchase them to remove the watermark. It’s easy and photographers get paid when someone buys their pictures. Canva also helps promote popular photos, giving photographers even more chances to make sales and get noticed. Overall, it’s a great way for photographers to earn money and show off their work to lots of people.

Check out How You Can Add Fonts To Canva 

6. Alamy

Alamy is a British stock photography website that was started in 1999. Signing up with Alamy is free, and it’s an especially great option for students. That’s because students receive a special 100% commission rate for 2 years.

Photographers receive between 17% and 50% of sales, depending on image popularity and license type. There are no long-term contracts with Alamy and you can be paid in multiple currencies. This photo-selling site may not have as many buyers as Shutterstock or Adobe Stock, it’s still a great source for extra earn.

7. Etsy (Sell Your Pictures Through Products)

Etsy is the largest online marketplace for handmade items, offering a platform where sellers can market physical prints or digital photography downloads. Its large audience surpasses that of many stock photography websites. Additionally, Etsy functions as your personal eCommerce store, allowing you to sell digital images as well as prints or other merchandise featuring your photography on products such as mugs or blankets. Signing up is free, but for added benefits, you can opt for a $10 monthly subscription. Moreover, you have the flexibility to choose the type of products you want to sell, whether it’s digital downloads with various licensing options or physical prints through a print-on-demand service like Printful.

Etsy charges nominal fees, including a listing fee at $0.20 each but the first 40 listings are free, a transaction fee of 6.5% of the sale price, and a processing fee of 3% for payments received through platform . However, you are responsible for printing and shipping items to customers.

8. SmugMug

SmugMug is a fantastic platform for photographers who want to make money by selling pictures online. One of the awesome features of SmugMug is that they have partnerships with different print labs. This means you can sell traditional prints or have your images printed on a wide range of products.

They give you the freedom to set your own prices for your photos and allow you to keep a whopping 85% of the sales commissions. So how do they let you earn that much money? Let’s say you sell a 5×7 photo for $10.79, and the default price set by SmugMug is $0.79. The difference, which is $10.00, is your markup. From this, you get to keep $8.50 as profit, which is 85% of the $10 markup. SmugMug offers three membership plans, but the catch is that you need to subscribe to the Pro plan, which starts at $12.50 per month. Unfortunately, there isn’t a free option available to kickstart your photo-selling journey. So to start using SmugMug, you’ll need to sign up for one of their monthly membership plans.

Check this out: 4 Easy Ways To Get Studio-Quality Portraits Using Only Natural Light.

9. 500px (Get 100% Commission When Selling Pictures Online)

500px is a platform where both amateur and professional photographers can come together as a community. It offers various features such as hosting and sharing photos, connecting with other creators, giving and receiving feedback, and creating a portfolio to sell photos online and make money. Before your images can be sold, 500px carefully looks at each photo’s uniqueness, technical quality, overall aesthetic, production value, and commercial viability and then it’ll be available for purchase.

What sets 500px apart in terms of selling photos is its payment system. You have the option to pay a monthly subscription fee to access the platform’s full range of features and sell your photos. With a paid subscription, you receive 100% commission on any sales, while users with free accounts receive 60%.

Learn to Capture Great Shots with Your Smartphone

10. Picfair

If you’re aiming for more control over your online photo portfolio, Picfair can be a great choice. It offers a platform where you can upload and sell your photos directly. You have the option to link your custom domain name to your Picfair store. Essentially, Picfair provides you with the opportunity to create your own stock photo website, ensuring that you get 100% of your earnings from photo sales.

Instead of taking a commission, Picfair allows you to set the prices for your downloads. The platform sustains itself through your monthly subscription fees, while also managing essential aspects like print production, shipping, and digital image licensing. You can create your customized store starting at just $5 per month.

How Much Money Can You Make When You Sell Pictures Online?

Selling photos online can bring in varying amounts of money, influenced by factors like the quality of your photos, how unique they are, and where you sell them. Photos that stand out and meet popular demand tend to attract more buyers, and different platforms offer different prices and commissions.

Being consistent with uploading high-quality photos and having a good quantity available can also help you earn more. Building a strong portfolio and interacting with your audience can lead to repeat customers and positive recommendations, which can boost your income further. Succeeding in online photo sales requires dedication and understanding your audience and market trends. While some photographers earn a decent amount of extra cash through stock photography, others manage to turn it into a profitable online business.

Which Website Is The Best To Sell Your Pictures Online?

Creating your own website is often considered the best way to sell pictures online. It’s easy and worthwhile to create your photography site and sell images with Envira Gallery, and you won’t pay any commission fees. Plus, since most stock agency sites don’t require exclusive selling rights, you can maintain your own site while earning passive income from other photo-selling websites.

If you are seeking a wider audience and a suitable platform for beginners, popular options like Adobe Stock and Shutterstock are recommended. If you’re a seasoned photographer with high-quality images, 500px is another excellent choice.

Conclusion

Selling photos online can be an easy way to earn extra income for photographers. While it may not lead to becoming wealthy overnight, it serves as a valuable additional earning stream.

Non-stock websites typically yield higher earnings per image, but they may require more effort to manage. On the other hand, stock photography websites have much less of a workload, allowing you to earn money simply by sharing your portfolio. It’s worth exploring all the websites mentioned in this article to find the best fit for your needs.