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What Does a Fursuit Artist Make? (Wage)
13 years ago
General
Please check out my PATREON at https://www.patreon.com/Beetlecat if you are interested in seeing more of my art including regular videos and behind the scenes content.
Wrote this up as the answer to a question on LJ, but decided there's no reason not to post it here. Really, it's good for folks thinking of going in to the business to have a clear idea of what to expect. And for customers to know where their money goes.
Here is a hypothetical scenario:
If you can make one fursuit a week and sell it for $2000 (seems reasonable..), then your gross monthly income is $8000. That's almost 6 figures! For doing what you want when you want to. Sweet ^^
You still have to account for your material expenses in making those fursuits. $1500/month ought to do it on average if you are a little bit smart. And then there are your incidental expenses such as car and gas to buy supplies and studio rent space and electricity. That is another $1500/month. For this scenario we are totally ignoring start up expenses but you can expect those to be around $10K if you jump right into making fursuits full time (otherwise the 10K is added gradually over years if you go into it more slowly)
Now, you can't actually work every single day. Even if you do work weekends there's Christmas and sick times (which you do not get paid for) and doctors appointments and so forth. I think taking 8 weeks off for the whole year is reasonable for that.
That makes $50K for the year except that taxes/insurance/etc takes around 20% of that. Okay so $40K
Congratulations! You are very successfully self employed! *
* Remember that in this scenario, that gives you a week to create the whole suit AS WELL as pack it and mail it and talk to the customer about it and design the pattern and go out and research and buy the furs and EVERYTHING involved with the creation of a fursuit - not just the physical sewing time. (This is something commonly overlooked)
So of course most people can't actually make one fursuit a week unless they have employees or family working for them (which adds the cost of extra wages), but I'm sure it's possible somewhere if the fursuits are suitably simplistic and they have the process down to a streamlined science.
Still, this makes $40K a possible but likely high figure for a single person. $15-$35 000 (the low end if you are still in the first few years of starting out ** and do not have the experience and connections yet and the higher end if you are a good business person and a hard/smart worker/have no other life) are much more realistic expectations.
** Rule of thumb with any small business is to not expect to turn any profit for 3 years.
---
What this means it that your professional fursuit artist (aka does this for a living/does this as a very serious hobby) makes around $10-$20/hour.
But with no sick time/paid leave/social security/medical insurance. All of those things have to be paid out of pocket. And forget about cashing in a little extra on overtime or a Christmas bonus.
You also have to pay out of pocket for web design/advertising/office expenses such as paper and ink and pencils/etc. and all of those other things that an employee of a company does not have to worry about.
--
As an aside, something else to consider is that being freelance means you get in income very randomly and in spurts (not in a biweekly cheque but thousands one month and then nothing at all for the next 3). So you have to be good at managing and budgeting it to make sure you will have money to pay your expenses/buy supplies even when you have no income coming in.
This can be a huge issue for some people who take all these deposits right off the bat, get a bunch of gleaming dollar signs in their eyes and then spend it on living and have NOTHING when it comes time to actually make and deliver the product. So they take in more commissions to pay for the first ones (creating a pyramid scheme) and eventually (usually very quickly) crash and burn and disappear.
Here is a hypothetical scenario:
If you can make one fursuit a week and sell it for $2000 (seems reasonable..), then your gross monthly income is $8000. That's almost 6 figures! For doing what you want when you want to. Sweet ^^
You still have to account for your material expenses in making those fursuits. $1500/month ought to do it on average if you are a little bit smart. And then there are your incidental expenses such as car and gas to buy supplies and studio rent space and electricity. That is another $1500/month. For this scenario we are totally ignoring start up expenses but you can expect those to be around $10K if you jump right into making fursuits full time (otherwise the 10K is added gradually over years if you go into it more slowly)
Now, you can't actually work every single day. Even if you do work weekends there's Christmas and sick times (which you do not get paid for) and doctors appointments and so forth. I think taking 8 weeks off for the whole year is reasonable for that.
That makes $50K for the year except that taxes/insurance/etc takes around 20% of that. Okay so $40K
Congratulations! You are very successfully self employed! *
* Remember that in this scenario, that gives you a week to create the whole suit AS WELL as pack it and mail it and talk to the customer about it and design the pattern and go out and research and buy the furs and EVERYTHING involved with the creation of a fursuit - not just the physical sewing time. (This is something commonly overlooked)
So of course most people can't actually make one fursuit a week unless they have employees or family working for them (which adds the cost of extra wages), but I'm sure it's possible somewhere if the fursuits are suitably simplistic and they have the process down to a streamlined science.
Still, this makes $40K a possible but likely high figure for a single person. $15-$35 000 (the low end if you are still in the first few years of starting out ** and do not have the experience and connections yet and the higher end if you are a good business person and a hard/smart worker/have no other life) are much more realistic expectations.
** Rule of thumb with any small business is to not expect to turn any profit for 3 years.
---
What this means it that your professional fursuit artist (aka does this for a living/does this as a very serious hobby) makes around $10-$20/hour.
But with no sick time/paid leave/social security/medical insurance. All of those things have to be paid out of pocket. And forget about cashing in a little extra on overtime or a Christmas bonus.
You also have to pay out of pocket for web design/advertising/office expenses such as paper and ink and pencils/etc. and all of those other things that an employee of a company does not have to worry about.
--
As an aside, something else to consider is that being freelance means you get in income very randomly and in spurts (not in a biweekly cheque but thousands one month and then nothing at all for the next 3). So you have to be good at managing and budgeting it to make sure you will have money to pay your expenses/buy supplies even when you have no income coming in.
This can be a huge issue for some people who take all these deposits right off the bat, get a bunch of gleaming dollar signs in their eyes and then spend it on living and have NOTHING when it comes time to actually make and deliver the product. So they take in more commissions to pay for the first ones (creating a pyramid scheme) and eventually (usually very quickly) crash and burn and disappear.
I am still a fairly new fursuit maker, and I am still making less than minimum wage. I will not lose hope though and continue doing what I enjoy!
I'm looking to go into the fursuit making business, but at a way more casual pace. Plus, since I have a family, my time is limited to 8 hrs a day. Plus taking time off when my child has school holidays and summer... etc. D= It's the reason why I'd only be doing it casually instead of a full time business. Art on the other hand, is my full time business and I find it's a bit easier to manage than fursuit making, especially since I don't have the room. Both fursuit making and doing art (digital or taditional) is very time consuming, especially when you have deadlines.
To quote FenrisWolfbane; "At a way more casual pace", so not pumping out suit after suit, day after day but maybe 1-2 a month (based on interest from potential buyers) and after a while it can increment upto a successful business.
Given everything I'm looking at I'm looking into having to rent a property + utilities, so that i would have adequate room to operate without restrictions, I've got practically everything else at hand so its not too large an obstacle to work with/around.
Hear Hear!
Luckily I grew up knowing what being self-employed entails, and so I'm slightly better prepared. Still though, it's hard getting a $200 paycheck at the beginning of one month and having to use all of it just for supplies for the next three months.
Some will still learn the hard way, some will actually take their time and figure things out.
I honestly learned the hard way on some things, but I feel happy to read this and know I am not the only one thinking these things and working it out. I am totally linking people to this journal for some insight.
Thanks for your time taken to post this.
because this so like perfectly laid out.
After expenses I made juuuuust about $20K last year... which sounds good in all cept I need to make closer to twice that to be fully dependent off my mother's fund >_0 (which pays the mortgage)
For one to make fursuits for a living it has to basically become a lifestyle, you do it nearly every day all day and you work your life around the fursuits. My daily routine is is get up, check messages, eat, work, check messages, shower, eat, work, check messages, eat, 2-4 hour break where I do chores or have some me time, sleep, repeat.... and any time I take a day off or even a few hours off I am wrought with guilt and worry about how I should be working and said guilt is even worse when I am taking a break for sickness or art block reasons, and, gahhh! *gonna stop now before I ramble
However this has been very interesting to look at - I've always wondered how the costs work out and stuff ^^
I made this change after months of budgeting, business planning and honing skills to a point where I felt I could get some commissioners on a somewhat steady basis.
I'd say I have it easy still working at my part time job at a decent wage... of which I can always return to full time by just asking.
Its a scary thing working for yourself... and work ethic. Yep, better have it.
Its my experience that most folks who make fursuits for a living work their asses off for what is made.
I always remind people that if you can find a job with benefits, its a huge unseen boost to your bottom line compared to not having or paying your own benefits. Most paid company benefits (health, dental, life insurance, 401K match, paid vacation, etc) at a company job easily can add up to $10K per year or more. Being self employed means you have to come up with all of that yourself or you have to go without.
I had some high schooler tell me the other day we must all live like kings and be rich, if only she knew! o.<
You mentioned in another journal about quotes, and how much effort and time goes into a quote. Absolutely hit it on the head. By the time you break down the material costs, your overhead (rent/mortgage, electricity, heating, etc) delivery, driving to get materials, website, stationery, and if i want to open a table at rainfurrest, state taxes(being canadian and all). Not only that, I have to cut into my labour rate, to provide a more attractive price, being a new builder. I can't exactly charge as much as someone who has been making suits for years and years. So even on my lower spot on the totem pole, I do get some people that go.. "Are you crazy? That's so expensive!"
Thank you again Beetle! Super post!
No boss, nobody telling you when to get up, or what parts of the week to use. Flexibility! If you make fursuits part time and work part time, it helps to juggle various forms of income for most efficient time use.
If you can do all your work at home... no need for commuting or the overhead of an office. If most things you need are in close distance, no need to even own a vehicle! (If you mail to customers, the US Post will pick up free from your house.) This is a huge cost you can avoid. I do all of my travel by bike, public transit, or renting cars by the hour or by the day. Living in a big city makes that possible.
If you live in a lucky country where health care is taken care of, cross that off the list. (Grr... I wish the US followed Canada in this respect). If you can get a part time job that has some benefits... that would be lucky too.
If you can build some passive income into the business, that helps a lot! For furries, it could be a replicable product that gets assembled, shirts, merch, or prints. Over time, after you put in startup cost, that's the stuff that makes things easier.
Going to cons can be deducted from your taxable income as a business expense! And the cost of sewing machine and art supplies... anything you use for creativity. Meeting clients for dinner to discuss commissions counts. You can probably count any fur meet as business activity, since you will be promoting yourself and scouting for future clients just by talking to people there (get business cards to document it)! Even going to see a movie counts as a deduction for anyone in a related creative profession. A furry can legitimately count any movie as research to study costume and character design.
Excellent information! Thank you for posting!
And I do agree that there are other, intangible benefits that you don't really think of, that you get when working from home. Being able to work on your own schedule is nice, but you have to be able to structure your own day and actually get your work done. (Many people find it hard to manage their time if left to their own devices.) Sure, you can take three hours out of your morning to go to that doctor's visit without having to clear it with your 'boss,' but you have to make sure you make up those three hours in the evening.
One of the other things I found surprising is how much money you save just on gas, when you get to work out of your home. I recently picked up an additional part-time job (2 days a week) at the shipping store I send things from, and even the 6-mile round-trip costs more in gas than I realized it would. Being able to work out of your house and save on gas (and wear/tear on your car) is more valuable than you'd originally think.
When it comes down to it, working for yourself (whether in fursuits, accessories, artwork, or anything else really) you have to have a superb work ethic and have a plan in place for what you will be doing. Without that plan, you'll find yourself falling behind. It's a rewarding job, to be sure, but going full-time requires a LOT of work and a lot of sacrifice.
A lot of people, not just furries, tend to miss these 'hidden' costs of freelancers.
Cheers,
Pegla
It's funny because I never wanted to be a professional artist because I knew how hard it was to be successful, but then kind of lost my mind when people actually started paying me and took it for granted that I'd make a certain amount and get stressed out when I didn't.
It's really embarrassing how bad I was, and I know I wasn't even one of the worst. It's so hard to watch others go through that stage. Inevitably when you give them the advice "No, I mean, really, fursuiting is really, really hard and expensive." they'll start to insist you're just trying to discourage them to put them down and compete for your own sake.
And then the crash of realizing how wrong you are is soul shattering.
So yeah my original stat of 'one suit a week' means '7 normal work days' whether that be over seven days or extra hours per day over less days.
I HAVE A REALLY IMPORTANT QUESTION HERE.Okay so I started making fursuits on the side of my "art business", but I would like to start paying taxes so as not to get in trouble and have my life ruined. How do I go about this? Do I need to be making a certain amount in order to file for it or something? I know for a fact I make less than minimum wage in a month... Not sure if I'd be okay with the government taking more money off that but if I get it all back at the end of the year in a T4 or something like my old jobs I was at, it would help me prove to the people that would be giving me free birth control that I am indeed low income, amongst other things regarding the red tape.
I know pretty much nothing about the "real world" and being an adult and taxes and shit. I'm going to be 19 in September and I would really appreciate some advice on how to go about this stuff since I'm getting older and would like to feel more "like an adult" since I'm "of age" and what not.
Thanks so much! x3
I always used Ufile.ca to fill out the tax form and then Netfile.ca to send it off to the government. I believe if you are low income then ufile is free.