Illustrators Toolbox: Rates, Pricing Guidelines, Copyright and Contracts

Toolbox!

This is my personal selection of useful links for rates, pricing process, copyright and contracts orientated mostly for illustrators, but useful for anybody with a job in the art field.


Rates Calculators

-Freelance Hourly Rate Calculator
A simple calculator to help you find out how much to charge as a freelancer.

https://freelanceboost.com/freelance-hourly-rate-calculator/

-How Much Should I Charge?

https://thenuschool.com/how-much/#/start



About Pricing


-How much does an illustrator cost?

https://www.thumbtack.com/p/illustration-rates

-How much does it cost to hire an illustrator?
What factors determine how much this service would cost?

https://www.quora.com/How-much-does-it-cost-to-hire-an-illustrator

- The Dark Art of Pricing (Jessica Hische)

https://jessicahische.is/thinkingthoughtsaboutpricing

- How To Price Illustration for Children's Books, Editorial, etc. (Will Terry)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j6xrt5ko1uw


- A Designer’s Guide to Pricing (GoMedia)

https://gomedia.com/insights/a-designers-guide-to-pricing/

- How to Charge For Your Graphic Design Work (& Get What You Deserve) GoMedia

https://gomedia.com/insights/how-to-charge-for-what-youre-worth/

- Hiring a children’s book illustrator FAQ

https://www.hireanillustrator.com/i/blog/1033/hiring-a-childrens-book-illustrator/

- Freelance Fees Guide: Illustrations and cartoons

http://www.londonfreelance.org/feesguide/index.php?language=en&country=UK&section=Illustrations+and+cartoons&subsect=All


- How much does illustration cost? - A client guide to illustrator's fees by Carys Tait

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/how-much-does-illustration-cost-client-guide-fees-carys-tait

- Pricing Guidelines at Bibliocrunch

https://bibliocrunch.com/pricing-guidelines/

- Who Pays Illustrators (And How Much) by Marianne Litman

https://www.format.com/magazine/resources/illustration/who-pays-illustration-jobs

- Usage and Pricing of Photography in Social Media (APhotoEditor)

https://aphotoeditor.com/2014/10/13/usage-and-pricing-of-photography-in-social-media/



Copyright



- Contractors, Copyright & Licensing

https://graphicartistsguild.org/tools_resources/contractors-copyright-licensing

- The United States Copyright Office

https://www.copyright.gov/

- License It

https://graphicartistsguild.org/tools_resources/license-it

- Creative Commons

https://creativecommons.org/



Contracts



- Writing Your Own Contract: Pre-Contract Checklist by Mark Monlux

https://graphicartistsguild.org/tools_resources/pre-contract-checklist

- Proposals, Contracts & Invoices by Freelance Boost

https://freelanceboost.com/category/proposals-contracts-invoices/

- What Should Go into an Illustration Contract by Neil Swaab

https://businessofillustration.com/go-illustration-contract/

- Designers: Know Your Rights! 4 Must-Have Clauses In A Contract

https://www.hongkiat.com/blog/design-contract-clauses/

- The Letter of Agreement

https://graphicartistsguild.org/tools_resources/letter-of-agreement


- Commissioned Illustration Offer - Short/Easy by Matthew Abts

https://www.docracy.com/5843/commissioned-illustration-offer-short-easy

- A sample contract agreement between an author and a book cover designer by Derek Murphy

https://www.creativindie.com/a-sample-contract-agreement-between-an-author-and-a-book-cover-designer/

- Illustrators Agreements & Contracts by Don Arday

Part 1: Components
https://www.theinformedillustrator.com/2012/11/illustrators-agreements-contracts-part.html

Part 2: Restrictions
https://www.theinformedillustrator.com/2012/11/illustrators-agreements-contracts-part_27.html

- Contracts and Legal Forms by PACT

https://www.artpact.com/Contracts

- AIGA Standard Form of Agreement for Design Services

https://www.aiga.org/resources/business-freelance-resources

- 5 Free to Use Freelance Design Contract Templates

https://speckyboy.com/5-free-to-use-freelance-design-contract-templates/

- Illustration contract templates

http://onceuponasketch.com/2013/05/illustration-contract-templates/

- Download Our Artist Licensing Agreement. It’s Free. ArtLaw Journal

https://artlawjournal.com/download-artists-licensing-agreement-free/

- Contracts, Licenses & Business Forms for Medical Illustrators

https://ami.org/professional-resources/business-tools/contracts


Update (May 09, 2018)

Directory of tools and resources for illustrators (by @magoz_ on Twitter)

https://illustration.tools/



Update (March 29, 2023)

Commercial Illustration 101: Everything You Need to Know by Nicole Cicak

https://nicolecicak.com/blog/2021/commercial-illustration-101

Illustrator Contract Template

https://www.pandadoc.com/illustrator-contract-template/

Illustration Agreement Template at @agiledofficial

https://agiled.app/contract-templates/illustration/

Illustration Licensing 101 by Maggie Enterrios

https://www.littlepatterns.com/blog/illustration-licensing

Behind the Scenes

1.- Image: Vintage shaving kit at Fábrica Bhering by Pablo Lara H
2.- Font in use: Grand Hotel by Astigmatic One Eye