RedBubble vs. FineArtAmerica: Which is Best?

Print-on-demand has been 1 of nan astir successful broadside hustle ideas successful nan past 5 years. It involves coming up pinch a creation and uploading it to a institution that will usage that creation to make and marketplace products ranging from prints to pillow cases. The print-on-demand institution usually takes attraction of everything but nan design, paying nan creator aliases designer a royalty connected each sale.

But arsenic print-on-demand has go much celebrated arsenic a semi-passive-income broadside hustle, much companies person sprung up to reside nan demand. How do you take betwixt them? We took a adjacent look astatine 2 celebrated sites — Redbubble vs. FineArtAmerica — to thief young artists determine which is nan amended print-on-demand level for their needs.

We besides explicate what print-on-demand is and whether you mightiness want to usage your imaginative talents to make money this way.

What is print-on-demand?

Print-on-demand companies make and message a wide array of products, ranging from t-shirts and coffee-mugs to tote bags and puzzles. What they don’t do is travel up pinch unsocial designs. That’s up to nan freelance artists, schematic designers and wordsmiths, who usage these sites to make their creation and imaginative ideas pay.

How it works

The creator comes up pinch a creation — aliases a stylized type of a clever building — and they upload a high-resolution image of it to a print-on-demand company. (Any clip you spot unsocial slogans aliases creator drawings connected a t-shirt, for instance, it was astir apt created by a print-on-demand company.)

Once nan artwork is uploaded, nan print-on-demand patient prompts nan creator to take nan products that they want their creation to decorate. If you were uploading an image of a painting, for example, you mightiness want it to beryllium made into creation prints, puzzles aliases java mugs. If you were uploading a catchy phrase, you mightiness want it to adorn shot caps and t-shirts.

The tract is apt to person dozens, if not hundreds, of products to take from.

Redbubble vs. FineArtAmerica

Like astir print-on-demand websites, RedBubble and FineArtAmerica stock immoderate halfway similarities. Both are nationwide platforms that let you to motion up from immoderate authorities successful nan U.S. Both platforms besides connection dozens of merchandise choices, and let you to group your ain profit margin.

Specifically, nan sites supply nan guidelines value of each merchandise and fto nan creator adhd a mark-up — nan artist’s royalty — which is added to nan guidelines value to create nan last trading price. If nan tract charges a guidelines value of $18 per t-shirt and you want to gain a 25% royalty ($4.50) connected each sale, your t-shirts would unit for $22.50, for instance.

Both of these sites are passive platforms that do nan marketing, customer service, and transportation for you. (Active platforms, specified arsenic Printful, expect nan creator to do nan trading and, sometimes, nan delivery. They complaint little for their products arsenic a result.)

That makes some FineArtAmerica and Redbubble bully places for beginners to get started.

Differences

However, nan differences betwixt RedBubble vs. FineArtAmerica are besides compelling.

Fees

Fees are among nan biggest differentiators.

FineArtAmerica’s profit separator is built into nan guidelines value of its products, frankincense you salary nary further fees to nan site, unless you take a premium account. A premium relationship costs $30 annually and gives you amended visibility and further income tools.

RedBubble utilized to travel this model, but it precocious introduced caller “account” fees. Account fees are only imposed connected earnings. So if you gain nothing, you salary nothing. But erstwhile you gain moreover a fewer bucks, nan relationship interest is imposed and it tin beryllium devastating daze to your pocketbook.

If you gain $2, for example, you’ll salary $1.30 to nan platform, stepping distant pinch conscionable 70 cents. On a $75 royalty, RedBubble’s relationship interest would expanse distant $43, leaving you pinch conscionable $32. Once you gain much than $500, nan relationship interest caps retired astatine $97 per month.

Thus, you gain nan afloat royalty complaint astatine FineArtAmerica. At RedBubble you get your royalty, minus nan relationship fee. That’s a large difference.

Monthly Traffic

However, RedBubble is besides a acold larger level pinch astir 7 times much customers than FineArtAmerica. Specifically, RedBubble pulls successful astir 20 cardinal visitors a month, compared pinch astir 3 cardinal visitors for FineArtAmerica.

Niches

These sites besides specialize successful different products.

For instance, while FineArtAmerica does waste t-shirts, it is amended known for artwork, prints, puzzles, greeting cards, and akin “Fine Arts.” In different words, nan site’s customers are much willing successful seeing POD designs successful a framework than connected a hoodie.

RedBubble, meanwhile, mostly focuses connected clothing and notions, for illustration tote bags and mugs.

Why? The reply is successful nan designer features.

Designer Features

The wide creation process is different astatine RedBubble vs. FineArtAmerica. At RedBubble everything from nan formatting and styling to nan colour palette and layout is much tailored to t-shirts and mugs. But, pinch FineArtAmerica, precision is nan sanction of nan game. The artwork and greeting paper designs travel retired sleek and polished.

Overall: RedBubble vs. FineArtAmerica

RedBubble utilized to beryllium nan go-to POD level for caller and seasoned designers. Lately, however, nan fierce interest building has alienated galore designers, who besides kick astir value issues. But, nan tract still has truthful galore customers, that it’s difficult to wantonness erstwhile you’re hoping to waste clothing, tote bags aliases mugs.

FineArtAmerica is much designer-friendly and a awesome tract to waste good art, prints and puzzles. But, you will astir apt request to do much of your ain trading to tie customers to nan tract and your artwork.

Best strategy

Our take: Use them both, but usage them differently.

A awesome characteristic of print-on-demand is that fewer companies request exclusivity. While artists often take conscionable 1 institution for simplicity’s sake, there’s thing stopping you from utilizing both. However, to support accordant quality, it’s smart to limit nan products you connection connected each site. That allows you to usage each site’s strengths to your advantage.

For instance, FineArtAmerica is wherever you’d want to waste your astir precious creation — prints and puzzles that would beryllium ruined by overlapping colors aliases imperfect registration.  However, if you simply want to waste a t-shirt that sports a catchy phrase, RedBubble is wherever you’re apt to person nan astir sales.

But besides relationship for nan differences successful interest structures erstwhile you group your royalty rates. Set your royalty complaint astatine FineArtAmerica astatine nan complaint you dream to earn. But you whitethorn want to double that complaint astatine RedBubble to relationship for those nasty relationship fees.