How to Price Art Commissions and Art Pricing Mistakes

[@oops_dot_jpeg]

Dude my great grandma paid me 25 bucks when I was 7 or 8 for a sketch of an elephant on dollar tree paper and I thought I was balling. These people are so badly undervalued.

[@TheArtMentor]

Even teenagers can command respectable fees! That’s a huge issue in the commissions community. There are a ton of young artists that don’t value their skills enough to ask for fair wages, and that attitude doesn’t leave them easily. It degrades the artistic community as a whole

[@TheArtMentor]

Even teenagers can command respectable fees! That’s a huge issue in the commissions community. There are a ton of young artists that don’t value their skills enough to ask for fair wages, and that attitude doesn’t leave them easily. It degrades the artistic community as a whole

[@LeonReads]

Thank you for making this video. IMO, artists with sales skill are the most successful ones even though the artwork might not be the best

[@TheArtMentor]

You’re so dead on! That’s an extremely important set of skills for artists to develop to be more successful. Do you see artists underselling themselves often as well?

[@LeonReads]

@@TheArtMentor I believe so cos art is really difficult to price, so I just feel that way

[@TheArtMentor]

Thanks for watching!

[@shoiru3606]

Boiiiii, if my asian mother saw me selling art work that low, she would whup my ass. I can here her saying " You can get pay more ah, washing dishes in restaurant then do art. what's the point ah?" 💀💀💀

[@TheArtMentor]

So true! That’s why you need to price yourself respectably, right?

[@shoiru3606]

@@TheArtMentor ya

[@FadedDaWolfgaming]

I have changed my pricing after watching your vids. a shaded sketchy line work bust is about 15 bucks, solid linework bust with shading is around 20 and a fully rendered bust with no linework is about 30-60 bucks(depending on background). The prices(except the rendered) were way way lower since I am decent in digital but I am not much of a expert. more like a intermediate. I offered up art trades and have gotten a few in the past week to grow my portfolio ^^. Im so glad my artwork is getting more and more attention for my style.

[@TheArtMentor]

That’s doing better, but I think you could and should charge much more for rendered work! 👍 start at $50 at the bottom floor okay? And have you gotten commissions before or are you just starting out?

[@FadedDaWolfgaming]

@@TheArtMentor I am just starting out on digital commissions, i havent gotten any yet, but ive had gotten more page views and intrests on my work on deviantart than other platforms ive been on.

[@TheArtMentor]

I wish you lots of luck!

[@christianiliev3493]

Sean you are making some great points here. I have a hard time getting commissions and I'm always thinking maybe I'm charging too much, maybe they hate my style or something else? My current prices are 15 - for headshot, bust is $17, halfbody is 20 and fullbody is 25. My fullbody used to be 30 but I saw that no one wants them even for 20. How am I going to be sure that someone will want something from me if I increase my prices by $10 or more? Can you make a video about what type of artworks you should avoid putting in the examples?

[@TheArtMentor]

Thanks so much for watching and I’m glad this was helpful! Your question is a bit hard to answer on this platform, so could you reach out to me on Instagram with some examples of your pricing sheet examples? That way I can assess it better. @theartmentor on Instagram

[@Chillimango02]

Man I don’t how to feel, today I had my first ever client. I drew a full body with him on a throne with diamond chain and a bunch of sneakers around him + sneaker boxes and fancy apparel+ the background …. And I’m charging 40£. The whole art took me 3 days and a half and I spend 10hrs and 17 mins on it :(

[@TheArtMentor]

Okay so let’s talk that through. How long have you been doing commissions and how many have you done before this?

[@Chillimango02]

@@TheArtMentor my first 2 clients were terrible and they did not pay me anything. So this is my third client and I think the details of my art are bang on and the costumer is really happy about it. And he was going to charge 20£ for it at first but I told him that’s too low so I suggested 40£.

[@bubzzydraws]

My only qualm is that some of these artists may be kids who just want a little extra pocket money 😅 and to the first one you showed and said if they learned some refinement skills I’d have to 100% say that’s just based on your own opinion because for that artist it may be what they call finished. I’ve seen a lot of that recent style lately so that’s why I said it may be finished for them. As for the pricing advice it was all very useful information. Still not 100% sure where I would fall 🤣 but I’ll keep everything you said in mind when I finally do commissions 😊

[@TheArtMentor]

Can I say that those people undervaluing themselves are an issue within the community? Ever considered how it brings us all down? I made a video about that if you’re interested. And keep watching my other videos to learn more about how to price and not price yourself 👍

[@seanbianchi4517]

Never undervalue your artwork and price your work low

[@TheArtMentor]

Too many artists undersell good skills

[@MrShark-wf3xy]

I wanted to charge my paintings either 300 dollars or 600 dollars but my friends says it’s way too expensive and that nobody will buy my art so I have to make my hand made paintings cheaper because they said making it expensive will cut myself short

[@TheArtMentor]

And how much do your friends make on their artworks?

[@pigeonpiupiu]

Great video! It makes me understand how much I actually worth as an artist. But I have a question. How do you price your commission from a third world country? USD converted to MYR (my country's currency) is way too high for the locals. Because third world country's money is more weaker than the US, a $300 commission is equivalent to a month worth of salary in my country so I feel like it's overpriced for the locals. Would love to ask for your opinion.

[@TheArtMentor]

Wow I love that question! Can I simply this for you: Charge it anyways! Don't worry about what people in your country will pay, since it sounds like you're going to be targeting international clients who can afford that. Don't get boxed in by your borders. How's that sound?

[@TheArtMentor]

What is your FAVORITE type of commission to make, or what is it you’d love to make for clients? Mine is fantasy illustrations!

[@anansistricksart8785]

My favourite is the ones are when I get payed what I'm worth.

[@TheArtMentor]

Amen to that!

[@rafaoliveira6292]

i love drawing faces with lots of shadows, usually dnd characters

[@TheArtMentor]

Awesome! Same here 😁

[@Clownie_P]

What is your opinion on artists who price way too high for art that is mediocre (mostly traced, they can’t draw at all, they are a beginner, they don’t give art examples ect).

[@TheArtMentor]

I'd say they may make it sometimes, but if there is a market demand for it or a niche they address, even they could make it. Do you see this or know of someone in particular?

[@WedgyBlue]

Is there art price formula or calculator that you can provide for us if available? From my browsing in google, I found some art price chart I am not sure with, blogs contains art price formula but mostly for real paintings what about digital art I just wanted simple formula to compute the price.

[@TheArtMentor]

Yeah that’s pretty simple: charge what you believe your worth is. Have you seen some of my newer content on the dangers of cheap art or those? Basically, we artists need to break free from the hourly wage worker mentality. Charge respectable amounts, not cheap or per hour. You’re paid for your expertise, not time, as an artist. That being said, you should pick a decent price to start with that is respectable and aligns to about what you think you deserve, and then with each following commission price up until you reach your wish price. How does all that sound?

[@WedgyBlue]

@@TheArtMentor Yes I did, I am still calculating the best price for art. I do aware of cheap price, that should not do. Also I've watch many video about artists giving different advice for pricing, which give me an idea on how to price my art. Currently developing a new art price formula suitable for my art.

[@TheArtMentor]

Overall, consider your value and what you’d feel comfortable sacrificing your time for. Okay?

[@WedgyBlue]

@@TheArtMentor I don't mind as long I am preparing for it. I invented my own formula for pricing right now.

[@TheArtMentor]

That’s great to hear! How did you configure that?

[@cedb3360]

eerhh... How dumb I am... Thank you

[@TheArtMentor]

Oh no! Why do you feel dumb?

[@alastorhm239]

But how do you know if you're overcharging or not?

[@TheArtMentor]

So there’s an important topic: who says you’re overcharging? Someone not buying your work? Your pricing reflects your value. Now if no one is buying your services, try working up your fundamentals and try again in a month, then do that over and over until you get clients. How does that sound?

[@alastorhm239]

@@TheArtMentor I mean no one has really told me that I haven’t started just yet but I feel as if my work is lesser value

[@TheArtMentor]

I think many artists feel like you do. So, how about trying the price you want, see how it goes, and if no one buys then try it again in a month. Okay? It’s okay to not be perfect when you start, but you do have to start to be perfect some day. Sound good?

[@alastorhm239]

@@TheArtMentor Thank you so much this is really helpful

[@TheArtMentor]

My pleasure! Just remember that even if you don’t get clients right away, or even after a while, don’t let that be an excuse for not making art. Keep up that hustle, improve your skills regardless, and that will attract more clients to you and your new skills

[@littleravendesigns5587]

What advice do you have to market your work and where to post? I been on Etsy, Instagram and Facebook and honestly no make more $$ on Facebook and word of mouth.

[@TheArtMentor]

Check out some of my other guides on where and how to post here on my channel. There’s a whole playlist just for this, so let me know what you think. Thanks for watching!