FineArtAmerica Review | How it Works & What To Expect

What: FineArtAmerica is a print-on-demand site that allows artists to upload images and sell their art on prints, puzzles, greeting cards, pillows and other products

Expected pay: Set by you

Husl$core: $$$$$

Commissions & fees: vary by product

Where: Nationwide

Requirements: art to sell

Review

FineArtAmerica is one of the oldest and largest print-on-demand operations in the U.S. Launched in 2006, the site now represents roughly 500,000 artists, who sell their drawings, paintings and photographs on everything from prints to puzzles.

With most products, FineArtAmerica sets a base price that represents the cost for the site to produce and ship the product to the customer. The artists adds their mark-up to come up with a final price. The site suggests standard — and relatively modest — mark-ups. For instance, it suggests you set your mark up at $10 for a 36″ x 27″ print, which will sell for $208. If you, instead, want to earn $50 on that sale, the print will cost $248.

Other products

However, the site also offers a few services that don’t involve putting your art on a product, such as digital art licensing. With digital licensing, the artist sets the base price and FineArtAmerica adds a 30% commission for the use of its licensing services.

In addition, it offers artists the ability to make their art available to digital streaming. This service sends art to “digital frames” that subscribers can view much like they view movies on Netflix.

If the artists agrees to provide their art for these frames, they’ll earn royalties based on the number of minutes their art is viewed. The royalty rate is minuscule. But the only downside to clicking “yes” is if you think these digital frames might cause you to sell fewer prints. Our guess is that the opposite is true. If someone likes your art enough to view it regularly, they’ll probably buy.

Payments

Artists are paid for items that are sold after 30 days to accommodate FineArtAmerica’s 30-day return window. Payments are made on the 15th of the month for sales made prior to the 15th of the previous month.

Commissions & fees

Artists can set up on the site for free. However, if you want some premium services, such as your own artist website, the site charges a $30 annual fee.

Recommendations

There are several fine print-on-demand sites, including FineArtAmerica, Society6 and RedBubble. We see no reason to limit yourself to signing up for just one.

That said, FineArtAmerica provides a wide array of ways that you can market your art through their site, including connecting your social media accounts and helping you set up your own site with their premium membership. If art is more than a side hustle for you, we think this site’s premium membership is well worth the modest cost. This site also stands out for offering an extraordinary smart-phone app that allows customers to see your art on their walls.