The Most Popular Photo-selling Website, Ranked

Voting rules: Choose the photo-selling website you think is the most popular!

Updated on May 8, 2024 06:47

For photographers seeking to monetize their work, choosing the right marketplace can be a daunting task. With numerous websites available, each claiming to offer the best features and audience, it's difficult to discern which truly aligns with a photographer's needs. A ranked list based on real user experiences and votes provides a clear, crowd-sourced insight into the top-performing sites. By participating in this live ranking, users contribute their unique perspectives and experiences, assisting both new and seasoned photographers in making informed decisions. This democratic approach not only reflects current trends and preferences but also empowers users to influence the marketplace by highlighting the best platforms for selling photos.

What Is the Most Popular Photo-selling Website?

1

55
votes
Shutterstock

Shutterstock is one of the largest and most popular stock photography websites, with over 300 million images available for licensing. It offers a variety of subscription plans for both individuals and businesses, as well as a pay-as-you-go option.
Shutterstock is a popular photo-selling website that provides a platform for photographers and content creators to sell their images and videos to a wide audience. It offers an extensive collection of stock photos, illustrations, vectors, and footage across various categories. With a user-friendly interface and powerful search tools, users can easily find high-quality visual content for their creative projects.

Founded: 2003

Headquarters: New York City, United States

Stock Assets: Over 300 million

Licensing Options: Royalty-free and rights-managed

Image Formats: JPEG and some in RAW format
2

37
votes
Oxyman · CC BY-SA 2.0

Getty Images

Getty Images, Inc.

Getty Images is a well-known and reputable stock photography website that offers a wide range of high-quality images, videos, and music for licensing. It has a vast collection of over 200 million assets, including exclusive content from top photographers and videographers.
Getty Images is a renowned and widely used platform for selling and licensing high-quality photographs, illustrations, videos, and other visual content. It was created with the aim of providing a vast collection of professional and creative imagery to individuals and businesses in need of visually appealing content for various purposes.

Year of establishment: 1995

Location of headquarters: Seattle, Washington, United States

Number of assets in collection: over 400 million

Licensing options: rights-managed and royalty-free

International presence: operates in over 100 countries
3

18
votes
Adobe Stock

Adobe Systems

Adobe Stock is a popular stock photography website that offers a vast collection of high-quality images, videos, and templates for licensing. It is integrated with Adobe Creative Cloud, making it easy for designers and creatives to access and use the assets in their projects.
Adobe Stock is a well-known photo-selling website that offers a vast collection of high-quality stock photos, illustrations, vectors, and videos. It is a platform where photographers and artists can showcase and sell their work to potential buyers. With its seamless integration into Adobe Creative Cloud applications, users can easily access and license images directly from their preferred editing software.

Image Library Size: Over 200 million assets

Pricing Models: Subscription and on-demand options

License Type: Royalty-free

Content Categories: Photography, Illustrations, Vectors, Videos, 3D assets

Image Resolution: Up to 100 megapixels
4

11
votes
iStock

iStock iStock is iStock is a popular stock photography website that offers millions of high-quality images, videos, and illustrations for licensing. It offers flexible subscription plans and pay-as-you-go options, making it accessible to a wide range of users.
iStock is a leading online marketplace for selling and buying stock photos, illustrations, videos, and audio clips. It offers a vast collection of high-quality visual content created by talented artists from around the world. iStock provides a platform for photographers and artists to showcase and monetize their work, while offering businesses, designers, and individuals a convenient way to access and license professional imagery for various creative projects.

Launch Date: 2000

Content Types: Photos, illustrations, videos, audio clips

Pricing Model: Subscription plans, credit packs

Collection Size: Millions of files

License Types: Standard and Extended
5

14
votes
Alamy

Alamy is a stock photography website that offers a vast collection of over 200 million images, videos, and illustrations for licensing. It is known for its diverse and unique content, including editorial images and exclusive content from top photographers.
Alamy is a well-known photo-selling website that allows photographers and stock image agencies to sell their images to a wide range of clients. With a vast collection of diverse images, Alamy caters to various industries and creative professionals seeking high-quality visuals for their projects. Offering a user-friendly platform and extensive licensing options, Alamy connects buyers with an extensive library of images for commercial and editorial use.

Founded: 1999

Headquarters: Abingdon, United Kingdom

Collection Size: Over 235 million images

Types of Licenses: Royalty-Free, Rights-Managed

Image Categories: Various categories including travel, lifestyle, business, nature, and more
6

8
votes
Dreamstime

Dreamstime is a popular stock photography website that offers over 100 million images, videos, and illustrations for licensing. It offers flexible subscription plans and pay-as-you-go options, making it accessible to a wide range of users.
Dreamstime is a popular photo-selling website that caters to both photographers and buyers. It provides a platform for photographers to showcase their work and sell high-quality stock photos to businesses, bloggers, publishers, and other individuals. With a vast collection of royalty-free images, Dreamstime offers a diverse range of photos covering various subjects and themes.

Founded: 2004

Number of Photos: Over 154 million

Royalty-Free License: Yes

Categories: Extensive range including nature, people, travel, animals, business, and more

Pricing: Flexible subscription plans and on-demand credits
7

7
votes
500px

500px is a photography community and marketplace that offers a wide range of high-quality images, videos, and prints for licensing. It is known for its curated collection of images from top photographers and its focus on high-quality and artistic content.
500px is a popular online platform for photographers to showcase, share, and sell their photographs. It is considered one of the leading photo-selling websites, known for its high-quality and artistic images from photographers worldwide.

Website: https://500px.com/

Founded: October 31, 2009

Headquarters: Toronto, Canada

Photographer Community: Over 15 million members

Image Upload Limit: 20 uploads per week
8

6
votes
EyeEm

EyeEm is a photography community and marketplace that offers a wide range of high-quality images, videos, and editorial content for licensing. It is known for its unique and diverse content, including exclusive content from top photographers and creators.
EyeEm is a popular photo-selling website that allows photographers to showcase and sell their images to a global audience. It provides a platform for photographers of all levels to connect, share their work, and monetize their talent. EyeEm offers a unique and diverse collection of high-quality images, ranging from professional photography to creative and artistic shots.

Image Licensing: Offers licenses for commercial use of images

Community: Provides a community of photographers to connect and share

Marketplace: Sells images to a global audience

Mobile App: Has a mobile app for easy photo uploading and browsing

Curated Collections: Features hand-picked collections of images for inspiration
9

8
votes
Stocksy

Stocksy is a stock photography website that offers a curated collection of high-quality images and videos from top photographers and videographers. It is known for its unique and artistic content and its commitment to fair compensation for its contributors.
Stocksy is a popular photo-selling website that offers high-quality stock photos, illustrations, and videos. It is known for its curated collection and emphasis on creative and authentic visuals. Stocksy was created by Bruce Livingstone, a renowned entrepreneur in the stock photography industry.

Collection Size: Millions of hand-selected images and videos

Curated Collection: High-quality visual content selected by experts

Authentic Visuals: Focus on creative and genuine imagery

Exclusive Content: Many images and videos are exclusive to Stocksy

Artist-Owned Co-op: Operated by a cooperative of artists
10

9
votes
Canva

Canva is a popular design platform that offers a wide range of templates, graphics, and images for licensing. It is known for its easy-to-use interface and its focus on empowering users to create high-quality designs without extensive design skills.
Canva is a graphic design platform that allows users to create stunning visuals for both personal and professional use. With its user-friendly interface and extensive library of templates, fonts, images, and other design elements, Canva empowers individuals and teams to create beautiful designs without any design experience. From social media graphics to presentations, posters, logos, and more, Canva offers a wide range of tools and features to bring creativity to life.

Operating System: Web-based, also available on iOS and Android

Collaboration: Real-time collaboration with multiple users

Templates: Thousands of pre-designed templates for various purposes

Customization: Full control over design elements, colors, and fonts

Stock Library: Millions of images, illustrations, icons, and more

Missing your favorite photo-selling website?

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Discussion

Ranking factors for popular photo-selling website

Selection and diversity of images

A popular photo-selling website should have a vast selection of high-quality images, catering to various subjects, styles, and themes.
Ease of use and navigation

The website should be user-friendly, allowing customers to easily browse, search, and filter their image preferences. The layout should be simple and visually appealing.
Licensing options and pricing

An outstanding website should offer flexible licensing options, catering to different customers' needs, such as personal, commercial, or editorial use. Pricing should be fair and competitive, considering market standards.
Image quality

The website should offer high-resolution images, suitable for various applications such as print, digital, and social media.
Customer support and service

A great site should provide excellent customer support, and provide help and assistance swiftly and efficiently when needed.
Reputation and credibility

The website should have a solid reputation, ideally featuring reviews and testimonials from satisfied customers. It should also adhere to copyright and intellectual property regulations.
Payment options and security

The website should offer various payment methods and ensure a secure purchasing process, guaranteeing user privacy and safety.
Contributor support and opportunities

A popular website should attract high-quality contributors by offering them fair payment, exposure, and support.
Up-to-date content

A great photo-selling website should keep its content fresh and up-to-date, reflecting current trends, news, and seasons.
Additional features and resources

Some websites may offer extra features like design tools, customized solutions, or educational resources. These can be valuable assets that can further attract customers and enhance user experience.

About this ranking

This is a community-based ranking of the most popular photo-selling website. We do our best to provide fair voting, but it is not intended to be exhaustive. So if you notice something or photo-selling site is missing, feel free to help improve the ranking!

Statistics

1555 views
172 votes
10 ranked items

Voting Rules

A participant may cast an up or down vote for each photo-selling site once every 24 hours. The rank of each photo-selling site is then calculated from the weighted sum of all up and down votes.

More information on most popular photo-selling website

Background Information: What is the Most Popular Photo-Selling Website? In today's digital age, photography has become an increasingly popular hobby and profession. As a result, many aspiring photographers are looking for a platform to sell their work and showcase their talent. This has led to the emergence of numerous photo-selling websites, each offering various features and benefits to their users. However, when it comes to popularity, one website stands out from the rest. Shutterstock is currently the most popular photo-selling website, with over 300 million images and videos available for purchase. It has a vast network of contributors from all over the world and offers affordable pricing options for both customers and photographers. Other notable photo-selling websites include Getty Images, which is known for its high-quality images and exclusive licensing options, and Adobe Stock, which is popular among creatives who use Adobe software for their work. Whether you are a professional photographer or an amateur looking to sell your work, it is crucial to choose a platform that suits your needs and goals. With the variety of options available, it is essential to do your research and choose a reputable and reliable photo-selling website that can help you achieve your goals.

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