Forums » Art & Creativity » Commission Price Check

Oh, would you look at that? Lucree is finally asking about proper commission pricing. Well, in times of crisis, things get bad enough that you have to buckle down and get stuff done. In order to do so, I kinda need a price check on my commissions so I'm making profit but not asking for too much. I do have a prototype price list written up below, but I'm not sure I can do much better than what I'm asking for...

So that's why I'm asking my fellow artists! Do you guys think that I could ask for a little more based on my current skill? Do you think the prices I've set are fine as is (with a tweak here or there, maybe)? Or do you think I should go lower instead?

For reference, here's my DeviantArt profile: click here!

And my very tentative price list is as follows:

Bust Shots (One Character)
$2 Sketches
$4 Lined and Colored

Waist Ups (One Character)
$5 Sketches
$7 Waist Ups

Full Body (One Character)
$8 Sketches
$10 Lined and Colored

Extras/Add-Ons
No Background/Transparent Background: Free
Simple Background: +$1
Complex Background: +$3
Add a Character (Up to 3): +$2 per character

Why yes, I am most likely lowballing myself because I have no faith in my skills, thank you for asking. OTL

You absolutely should not go lower.

If you are comfortable with those prices - go ahead. But keep in mind that $10 for a lined and full body picture is ridiculously cheap!

At the very least - raise the price for 'additional characters' to about 75-80% of the full price.

Agreeing with Claine. I don't think you'd even be making minimum wage in the states with those prices. If someone is going to commission you, they at least need to pay min. at the, well, bare minimum. like your skill doesn't even matter here. you shouldn't ever be working for less than minimum wage. if you feel that as your skill progresses you should raise your prices (you should), go for that, but please start with at least the minimum - the minimum is already criminally low, don't go even lower.

and, well, the cheaper you are, generally the more volatile clientele you'll be dealing with. trust me on that one. I know that's not something folks usually consider when pricing their stuff, but they should.

@Tate: I actually didn't think about that last part! I really do need to take that into consideration as well. I'll admit to being a timid thing right off the bat, out of sheer honesty.

However, I would say that I don't spend too much time on my bust sketches, which is why I don't price them too high. I do spend at most 2 to three hours on a waist-up, give or take. Full bodies are more variable, given the detail someone may ask of me, so...

*nods* I'll definitely have to rework these some more. I can't really ask for more than 25 dollars on a full body unless it's extremely detailed. I may well be lowballing myself extremely on that, but that's my estimate on how much time I put into these pieces. Bust shots will definitely be around the minimum wage area, if not a little bit less since I do work fast given the incentive.

I'll be posting an updated list later in the day, but please, I would love more suggestions from others! I do want to provide affordable work, but I don't want to shortchange myself too badly unless I have no choice, you know?

Just keep in mind, regardless of your skill level, art is a luxury and not a need. You're not witholding food, shelter, healthcare from someone. You're selling your time, your labor. You're also not a mass produced object from a factory.

I know you're timid about it as you say, but don't let yourself be walked on, and certainly don't become the 99 cent store. I'm really glad to hear you'll be taking into serious consideration re: your pricing.

Update: After a bit of reconsideration, and checking the minimum wage in my area, I think I've finally pinned down a decent price list for my work. I think this is a good range to start, but I'm basically going by how much I work on average for one piece times minimum wage in my state, give or take a few dollars off.

I think what I have is overall reasonable without being too extreme, but I'm more than willing to raise the pricing or lower them if it's a bit too much to ask for. (I'm also thinking of raising the lined and colored full body pricing up to $30, but I'm not quite sure yet.)

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Bust Shots (One Character)
$8 Sketches
$10 Lined and Colored

Waist Ups (One Character)
$15 Sketches
$20 Lined and Colored

Full Body (One Character)
$22 Sketches
$28 Lined and Colored

More detailed characters will cost up to $5 extra.

Extras/Add-Ons
No Background/Transparent Background: Free
Simple Background: +$3
Complex Background: +$7
Add a Character (Up to 3): +50% of the base price