How profitable would a Patreon be for a TF artist?

[Galyo]

That's kind of my point though: what unique thing can someone offer in an already niche fandom? The honest answer would be "probably not a whole lot". Add to that the fact that being a 2D artist is already a severely underpaid position, and you can see why something like a Patreon wouldn't do much to create any sort of sustainable income.

[SketchyKnight]

To be honest, for an artist who's new and not established in the community *and* draws well compared to other artists, you can probably only expect $50-$75 a month for TF content. Even the best TF artists (and artists in general) only make enough to cover basic expenses and nothing comparable to a working salary. I think only a handful of TF artists make more than $20,000 on Patreon a year, which seems like a lot compared to everyone else but is like minimum wage.

[EduartBoudewijn]

I feel like this entire thread pretty much misses the point. If you want to make money, go to Wall Street. It has always been rather difficult to make a lot of money from art, especially when starting out. If you're saying already that you've lost your passion and would only do it for the income, then I'd tell you to just get a regular job; which will probably get you more money for less hassle and time invested. And even more so when you're talking about a niche community, such as the TF community.

On a side note; maybe as a bit of a discussion topic, I find it interesting that you say that you find commissions to be too competitive, while I think that Patreon is even more competitive. Basicly with Patreon you're asking people to 'subscribe' to you as an artist, without them even knowing what's exactly coming. With commissions at least your customers will have in mind what they'd like to see from you and probably have sought you out specifically for their project. Of course there's the deal of image and reputation along with that, but I feel like for Patreon that's even more important. I personally don't have a Patreon, so most of this is speculation, but I can more easily imagine a person taking a gamble with an artist they don't know for a commission, that a person just subscribing to a random patreon. Again, mostly speculation, but I'd like to know what other people think about this topic.

[Jimbo]

any job is fine long as your not living pay check to pay check, its just one of those things you have build up.

[SketchyKnight]

Originally Posted by EduartBoudewijn

On a side note; maybe as a bit of a discussion topic, I find it interesting that you say that you find commissions to be too competitive, while I think that Patreon is even more competitive. Basicly with Patreon you're asking people to 'subscribe' to you as an artist, without them even knowing what's exactly coming.

What you said is pretty much on point. The way I see it, the only reason to even attempt to setup a Patreon is if you're so popular that you can't handle the amount of commission requests you're getting, i.e. "I'm popular enough people will just throw money at me to stay active". It's pretty damn hard to get to this level, and I know the most successful Patreon artists only go that route once taking commissions isn't worth their time in comparison anymore.

[Jimbo]

its a pain if you have bills to pay and do a main job an do this art thing too, where are you meant to find time for your hobbies(other than drawing and art)

[Anahki]

Originally Posted by Jimbo

its a pain if you have bills to pay and do a main job an do this art thing too, where are you meant to find time for your hobbies(other than drawing and art)

This is how life works. You are not going to find an answer for that from other than yourself... in time, you will get the experience to find the balance in your life between work, everyday duties and free time/hobbies, simply because each life is different, we have different background, different skills and talents, and different situations in our lives.

[slayer1]

It must be very profitable if you already have a fan base. I used to subscribe but stopped recently because I only wanted to pay for certain projects and was getting charged for many concept peices the artist was posting so it wasn't worth it supporting. By the end of it I supported $30+ for this sequence, more than I've ever spent on any TF clip or comic before

[odysseusut]

If your drawing skills are good enough to attract an audience, limiting yourself to TF would greatly diminish your appeal to potential patrons. Drawing fan art etc probably generates the most interest on patreon. If you haven't already, check out the top earners on patreon at https://graphtreon.com/

You can get an idea of the sorts of work (games, videos, art, etc) that people are willing to pay money for. Sakimichan is probably the best example of an artist doing really well on Patreon

If you insist on servicing a small sub-section of the market, your offering would have to be appealing by providing content that people don't just want to see, but would be prepared to pay for, and being one of the best at providing that content. I can't think of many TF patreons that are earning more than a few hundred a month, but these spring to mind:
https://www.patreon.com/Solone
https://www.patreon.com/arania

In my niche, I can't compete in the commission space at all. I've had a couple of people who still commission me because they like my particular style, but it's not something I actively promote when there are plenty of photomanipulators out there prepared to do requests for free. I only make photomanip as a hobby, so money on the side is a bonus for something I would have done anyway. Having a Patreon would probably remove a bit of the hobby aspect of it as I would have to focus on constant output to keep my patrons happy.

[Ironhorse]

Originally Posted by Jimbo

its a pain if you have bills to pay and do a main job an do this art thing too, where are you meant to find time for your hobbies(other than drawing and art)

That's just the thing. The great majority of people don't get rich off hobbies. Now and again, someone might, but this is a fluke, a black swan and you would be better off buying lottery tickets then trying to force it.

If work was fun, by and large you would not get paid to do it. Even professional athletes see their job, which is a game to most of us, as work. A buddy of mine was an amazing soccer player and had college scholarships and everything but gave it up because at that point it was a huge amount of effort to stay on top.

If you like niche art (TF or not), you are not going to be rich. Heck, even porn stars don't make that much money and that's probably the broadest (and oldest) category in the world.

Get a job that pays the bills and doesn't consume your life. Then you can work on your hobbies.

[Galyo]

(This is just a general reply; I read all of the new comments just now)

I've always loved TF art ever since I was a kid. When I first saw The Hulk animated series on TV I knew I loved that kind of stuff. I remember drawing a really crappy raptor TF sequence with the mouse, and stitching it together in some sort of really crappy slide-show program in order to "animate" it when I was just twelve years old.

When it comes to getting a job, people always say "follow your dreams" but I've been doing so for years and I've been mostly without a job and with very little to scrape by each month. It's depressing and it makes me kind of afraid of what the future will have in store for me... I'd get a 9 to 5 job, but being disabled makes this impossible, and if I do go hunt for such a job I risk losing a large chunk of what little income I have.

Since TF related art commissions are mostly out of the question, I've been looking for other means to get working again, but the only skills I have are art and graphic related so I'm back to square one. I also opened up for regular furry commissions, which I did for a while, but good luck making anything other than just a few bucks a piece.

I'm also a relatively experienced DJ and videographer, having worked for over four years for a local radio-station, and doing freelance jobs recording and editing interviews for the Salvation Army. I've been thinking about trying my hand at TF videos of some sort, but without any crew who are as much into TF as I am, it would probably result in something really awkward and god knows I'm not looking to embarrass myself online (or anywhere else for that matter).

I'm sorry about my venting. It's more and more difficult for me to enjoy living without having any sense of reward or anything.

[BillPratt]

Originally Posted by Shadow_Dragon

Not an artist, but just to give you a general idea of what TF can get for you

https://www.patreon.com/user?u=121401

25k/mo is more than probably 80% of America and for about 1/4 of the work req. Which makes you sort of re-think your career :P

25K per month puts you quite firmly in the 1%, tovarich.

From my own side, the porning I do from time to time has, over the past 5 years or so, insured Rachel's car a couple times, replaced the kitchen appliances during a black Friday sale, and mostly paid for a trip to Disneyland. Not getting rich off of it, but as a self-supporting hobby it's an over-achiever.