Introduction

Have you ever wondered if your skills as a 3D artist can bring in money?
Are you wondering what you can do to make money with your passion for 3D?
In this article we will answer these questions and analyze eight ways to make money as a 3D artist.

3D artists are skilled professionals who create 3D models and renderings for various purposes. They work with computer graphics software to produce high-quality models, images, animations, and video games.

This short guide should not be considered as exhaustive, certainly there are many other ways to earn money as a 3D artist, but the ones we will see are among the most widespread and profitable.

Make Money Selling 3D Models

Selling 3D models online is easy with one of the many sites that are available today. You can upload your 3D files and sell them in minutes. There are many payment options available as well, so that you can choose the method that works best for you and your business.

Turbosquid, CG Trader and Sketchfab are three of the most popular places to sell 3D models online.

Turbosquid is a marketplace mainly for 3D artists and designers to sell their digital designs. You can upload your own 3D models or find other people’s models that are available for sale on this marketplace.

CG Trader is another marketplace where you can sell your 3D models. They have a huge selection of cool 3D models available for sale in their catalog.

Sketchfab is a place where you can buy and sell 3D models online. This is also a great place to showcase your 3D Models, because Sketchfab has the best online 3D viewer.

It cannot be hidden that on websites like these, competition is fierce. In order to be successful it is almost essential to focus on a specific niche of models or a very particular style and try to become a reference point in that small sector.
If you are thinking of making an initial effort to be able to obtain passive incomes, know that this is very hard. The market on these websites is so saturated that there will almost always be someone who can create products similar to yours at a more competitive price. It is therefore essential to publish constantly and always stay up to date.
On the other hand there are also particular cases in which the competition is very low for various reasons. An example of this are the architectural models of luxury interiors, which are made by studios that can count on a fair number of artists. Obviously, the better the quality of the published products, the fewer artists will be able to compete.

Make Money Selling 3D Renderings

Selling 3D renderings online is a great way to make money from your design skills.

ArtStation is one of the largest 3D rendering websites in the world. It has thousands of users and they buy millions of dollars worth of 3D renders every year. So if you have good renders, they will be able to find them through their search engine. This means that your work will get exposure from people who are interested in buying it!

Isotockphoto and Getty Images allow anyone who uploads their work to post free images for sale. You can also pay for premium accounts so that your renders can be seen by more people (and get more sales).

Selling 3D Services On A Marketplace

We have already talked about how it is possible for a 3D artist to earn money by selling models or renderings.

Marketplaces for services have a completely different and in many ways winning approach. When an artist publishes a 3D model or rendering he has to hope to find a buyer who needs that specific product, this often translates into little money and time wasted making products that no one will ever buy. In the service Marketplaces, on the other hand, the 3D artist offers his skills for the creation of a commissioned product. This allows the freelancer to only work on projects that are truly profitable.
There are many marketplaces that publish all kinds of services and among the most famous we can mention Fiverr, Upwork, Toptal, PeoplePerHour and many others.

If you are interested in a marketplace specifically dedicated to 3D, Meshaffair is the best choise for you.

If you want to know more about the best marketplaces for 3D services we recommend you to read our article 10 Best Online Marketplaces for 3D Freelance Job in 2022.

Sell 3D Printed Models

There are many different ways to make money with 3D printing models:
1. sell pre-printed 3D models
2. sell specific 3D printable models
3. sell 3D printable models on demand by offering your 3D printing modeling services.

In the first case you can simply put your models on sale in one of the many marketplaces such as Etsy, eBay or Amazon. Obviously, before establishing the sale price, you will have to take into account all the cost items you are incurring: the printer, the energy consumed for printing, the printing material, your time. If you don’t want to use one of the marketplaces mentioned above, you can always sell the models on a site that you run yourself.

Whether you have a 3D printer or not, you can still sell your 3D printable models in some dedicated marketplaces such as Thingiverse or MyMiniFactory or in non-dedicated marketplaces such as Turbosquid or CGTrader.

If, on the other hand, you want to sell a modeling service for 3D printing, you can use one of the previously mentioned marketplaces such as Fiverr, Upwork or Meshaffair.

Whichever solution you choose, remember to take copyright into consideration. Selling 3D printable models inspired by movies, comics or games is not legal unless you have received consent from the copyright owner.

Make Money With Material Packs

If you are wondering if the amazing materials you have created can have a market, the answer is yes. Also in this case there are numerous marketplaces where you can sell your creations, it’s up to you to choose which one is right for your products.

For example, if you have created materials for game assets, you can sell them in the assets stores of the main game engines such as Unity or Unreal Engine.

There are also some marketplaces where you can sell your materials regardless of their intended use such as Artstation and Turbosquid.

If you intend to sell your material packs, however, keep in mind that you will have to stand out for their originality and quality. The web in fact offers many free assets.

Sell Tools And Plugins For 3D Software

There are 3D artists who also have coding skills. If you are among them you have the opportunity to earn by sharing your scripts.

If you are experienced in using a 3D modeling software and you use it very often, for example, you may have had to create scripts that will facilitate your work.
Simplifying workflows, automating some tasks, adding additional features, are just some of the features that tools or plugins can have.

All this can be very useful for other users and you can take this opportunity by selling your tools, by asking for an offer or you could create a free version with limited functionality or for a trial period.

Blender Market and Unity Asset Store are just two of the many websites where you can sell your Scripts and Plugins.

Make Money Offering 3D Tutorials

If you have a lot of experience and believe that your knowledge can be useful to other artists you can create 3D modeling courses and publish them on sites like Udemy, Teachable or Coursera.

You can publish courses dedicated to the use of a specific software such as Blender, ZBrush or 3ds Max covering all the features by making a series of videos.
Alternatively, you can publish courses dedicated to a general topic, such as hard surface modeling or digital sculpture.

In these platforms you can easily find students interested in the topics you cover and publishing a free course can help you attract a larger audience.
If you can create good courses, publish them consistently, you can get really considerable profits.

Make Money With A YouTube Channel

Many 3D artists have their own YouTube channel. When published videos manage to attract large audiences, these channels can become really profitable.

Also in this case your videos can be tutorials that teach the audience how to best use a software or how to become experts in a certain type of modeling.
Some successful channels offer a series of videos in which the author simply shows the steps of creating models that are exceptional in quality or style.

To understand how to monetize your YouTube channel, read this guide: https://www.youtube.com/creators/how-things-work/video-monetization/.
There are some minimum eligibility requirements, but if your channel is successful you can easily meet them.

Conclusion

There are many ways to make money as a 3D artist, but the most important thing is to keep learning and follow your passion.

The post 8 Best Ways to Make Money as a 3D Artist appeared first on Meshaffair.