Sell Stock Photos - Business Ideas

Updated: September 15th, 2022
A Sell Stock Photos

Please note that the data provided in this article are estimates and may vary depending on various factors, and should not be considered as perfect or definitive.

Stock photography is the supply of licensed photographs for specific uses. If you have a camera and love traveling or taking photos, you can start your own stock photo business.

Create a stock photography website and upload the best shots to start your stock photography business. To ensure professional images, you can hire freelance photographers and photo editors. Alternatively, you can invest in a professional camera and learn the art of photography before launching your business.

Running a stock photo website allows you to create unlimited earning potential. Besides, stock photographers enjoy flexible working hours and have the potential for passive income.

Ing a sell stock photos requires a great deal of effort, dedication, and most importantly passion.

If you're interested in how to sell stock photo, or selling stock photo online, you can use this page as a guide for everything you'll need to know.

Key Stats

market size
$4.43B
starting costs
$13.7K
gross margin
40%
time to build
210 days

Startup Costs

Min Startup Costs Max Startup Costs

Office Space Expenses

$0

$7,000

Inventory Expenses

$350

$14,750

Software Expenses

$150

$2,794

Website Costs

$13

$215

Advertising & Marketing Costs

$0

$2,450

Total Startup Costs

$513

$27,209

Successful Businesses

Business URL Rank

Freepik

freepik.com

110

VectorStock

vectorstock.com

1,282

BrandCrowd

brandcrowd.com

4,288

Videezy

videezy.com

6,131

twenty20.com

twenty20.com

10,427

Imagesbazaar : Largest Collection of Indian Images and Videos

imagesbazaar.com

19,511

picjumbo

picjumbo.com

25,247

Gratisography

gratisography.com

31,025

Getty Images

gettyimages.ca

34,540

Morguefile.com

morguefile.com

34,692

Royalty Free Stock Photos

gettyimages.com.au

38,653

Pros & Cons

Pros Description

Flexibility

You can put as much time into the business as you'd like. If you like the work and have some initial experience, you can start small and manage all aspects of the business on your own.

Ability to start your business from home

It's not necessary to have a physical storefront or office space to get your business started. You can do everything from the comfort of your own home, at least in the beginning!

Little startup costs required

The cost to start a sell stock photos costs significantly less money than most businesses, ranging anywhere from 12 to 27,209.

Rewarding work

Starting a sell stock photos can be really rewarding work. After all, you are solving an immediate issue for your customer and you're working on something you truly care about.

Scalable

With businesses and processes changing daily, there will always be demand for new features, products and services for your business. Additionally, there are several different business models and pricing tiers you can implement that will allow you to reach all types of customers.

Traffic to your website

A sell stock photos gives people a reason to visit your website and to keep coming back to you!

Cons Description

Crowded Space

Competition is high when it comes to your sell stock photos, so it's important that you spend a good amount of time analyzing the market and understanding where the demand lies.

Finding The Right Supplier

Most businesses in this space go the supplier/manufacturer route, which isn't a bad thing! However, finding the right supplier can take a lot of time, energy and trial/error. If done properly, this process can save you months (if not years) of time and energy. More on this below in the "finding a supplier" section.

Security Issues

With any Saas business, data loss and security issues may arise throughout your process of building your product. It's critical that you understand exactly what you're responsible for and how to avoid potential issues down the road.

Lack of benefits

With a sell stock photos, you are typically self-employed and responsible for finding your own insurance, which can be quite costly and time-consuming.

Isolation

Often times, as a sell stock photos, you typically work alone and do not have much face-to-face interaction with other team members.

Taxes

As a sell stock photos, you typically pay self-employment taxes which can be quite high. It's important to understand what you will be paying in taxes each year so you can determine if the work you're taking on is worth it.