Print on demand is a hot business right now. There are several print-on-demand companies that can help you place your artwork on anything from t-shirts to dog beds. If you are looking to earn more money and are an artist or you have great ideas for text-based designs, print on demand may be the business for you. There are many companies out there for this, but for now, let’s take a look at this Redbubble seller review.

What is Print on Demand?

Print on demand allows you to earn passive income, which is income you can receive many times after creating something once. If you are an artist, that thing you create once may be a design that you drew yourself free-hand, something you created on your computer, or something you purchased from another designer with the proper commercial license. 

If you are not much of an artist or have no interest in actually coming up with designs or creating the designs, you can hire a professional to make a design that you can then use. Just be careful that you have the right to use and sell the design.

When you purchase a design you will typically be given a license to either use it for your own personal use or a commercial license to sell it to others. Be sure the commercial license permits you to use it for print on demand specifically because sometimes that costs extra. Designers on Fiverr and 99Designs can provide you with designs.

How Do I Start Print on Demand?

With print on demand, you can either create your own E-Commerce website with a web hosting site like Wix or Squarespace, or you can join a print on demand company that will take care of the heavy lifting. 

If you decide to sell on your own website you have to create listings and then connect with a company like Printify or Printful to fulfill and ship your goods. You must ultimately ensure that your customers receive the items and you must make sure returns are handled properly.

You don’t have to worry about creating the product as it doesn’t even get made until an order is made. Typically your customer will pay you when they place an order and you in turn pay the base cost (less) for the item. 

The difference between the two (minus shipping) is your profit. You have to be sure to take shipping into account so it doesn’t cut into your profit margin.

If you decide to go with a print-on-demand company instead, you can use a company like Redbubble, Spreadshirt, Zazzle, Teepublic, or many others. One such website that allows you to upload your own art is Redbubble. 

Redbubble is one of the more well-known print-on-demand companies, but how does it fare as a business partner for creators and sellers?

Is Redbubble Legal?

I often hear people asking: “Is Redbubble legit?” I have not seen or heard anything to believe it is not. Redbubble.com was created in 2006 in Melbourne, Australia. Their mission was to give artists an outlet to sell their designs. They now work with over 700,000 artists around the world.

They review designs and reject images that violate copyright laws. I cannot guarantee that none get through because I don’t work there, but they do reject the idea of copying someone else’s work improperly. 

Artists can upload designs on products in the following categories: Clothing, Stickers, Masks, Phone Cases, Wall Art, Home & Living, Kids & Babies, Accessories, and Stationery.

Redbubble Categories

These nine categories can be broken down even further as such: 

Print on Demand Clothing.

Men’s, Women’s, Hoodies & Sweatshirts, T-Shirts & Tops, Dresses, Tank Tops, Skirts, Leggings, and Scarves. 

Each of these subcategories is broken into different themes such as vintage, cool, animal, funny, music, movies, sports, and games.

Stickers

Redbubble’s stickers are segmented by themes such as sports, movies, superheroes, music, trendy, band, hobbies, summer, animals, patterns, culture, occupations, games, anime, cinema, dog, spring, legendary animals, winter, and fall.

Face masks come in different sizes for kids, teens, and adults and can be purchased with the same designs that you might find on a t-shirt, phone case, etc.

Phone cases

Redbubble phone cases are available for iPhone models 7 to 11 and SE and Samsung Galaxy models S8 to Galaxy S20. Phone cases are segmented into the same categories as the stickers.

Wall Art

On Redbubble wall art is broken into nine categories: Art prints, artboard prints, canvas prints, framed prints, metal prints, mounted prints, photographic prints, posters, and tapestries.

Home & Living

On Redbubble the home and living section carries acrylic blocks, aprons, bath mats, bedding, coasters, clocks, floor pillows, jigsaw puzzles, magnets, mugs, shower curtains, tapestries, throw pillows, throw blankets, and wall art.

Kids & Babies

The kids and babies section offers Baby T-Shirts, Kids Masks, Kids Pullover Hoodies, Kids T-Shirt, Long Sleeve Baby One-Pieces, Short Sleeve Baby One-Pieces, Toddler Pullover Hoodies.

Accessories

Redbubble’s variety of accessories include backpacks, drawstring bags, duffel bags, makeup bags, pins and buttons, scarves, socks, tech accessories, toiletry bags, tote bags, travel mugs, water bottles, and zipper pouches.

Stationery

Finally, Redbubble’s stationery section includes greeting cards, spiral notebooks, hardcover journals, postcards, and pencil cases. Phew. As you can clearly see, Redbubble carries a ton of blank products just waiting for your artwork.

What Are Redbubble’s Product Dimensions?

The dimensions vary depending on the item. A good rule of thumb is to create a large image with high resolution so you have the option to place the image on anything from a t-shirt or a tapestry. The image can be reduced without losing quality but a small image cannot be enlarged too much or you will see distortion.

If you want to be able to use the same image safely on any product, Redbubble suggests you create images that are 7632 x 6480. Images over 300mb or 13500×13500 in size are too large and won’t be accepted on their platform. 

There are also templates on the website to assist with designing all of the items, but particularly for products like phone cases, leggings, and duffel bags which can be tricky.

What Percentage Does Redbubble Take?

The amount you will receive for each sale depends on the base cost of the item and the price you set for the item. The base price covers Redbubble’s service fee and the cost to make the item. As the artist, you can markup the price to increase your profit margin. 

In the settings, the default profit margin is 20% but you can raise or lower it on your account details page. The key is to make sure you don’t lower it so low that you don’t make any profit and to not set it so high that nobody is willing to buy your product. $100 t-shirt anyone?

Sometimes Redbubble will feature volume discounts on a site-wide basis. In this instance, you would want to be sure to adjust your margins accordingly. See this example with stickers:

How Will I Get Paid by Redbubble?

Once you have made sales totaling at least $20.00 you will receive a payment from Redbubble. Once that threshold has been met payments will be processed on the 15th of every month. 

Paypal payments may take as long as five (5) business days to transfer and bank payments can take up to seven (7) business days. If an order is canceled before you get paid, the commission for that sale will not be included.

Where is Redbubble Shipped From? Does Redbubble Ship for You?

Yes, Redbubble shipping does ship for you, and their packaging will include the RedBubble branding. It is not possible to send your customers orders using your own custom branding. 

Certain items ship from the U.S. and others are shipped from the U.K., Netherlands, Australia, Canada, France, Czech Republic, or Germany. Because of this, customers who order multiple items may receive their order in separate packages and on different days. This also affects shipping times as well.

Do I Have to Pay Taxes on Redbubble Sales?

Taxes relative to various artists’, production, and delivery countries are listed as a cost that is already calculated into the base cost. So, yes, the sellers pay a portion of the tax, but nothing extra is deducted and artists are not responsible for any other tax. 

If you believe you would be responsible for a use or sales tax based on your jurisdiction, contact an accountant.

Can I Buy My Own Products on Redbubble?

Yes, but there is no stated discount for artists who wish to purchase their own work. If you wanted to purchase items in bulk you will likely be able to receive a discount on a large order.

What Sells Well on Redbubble?

Bestsellers can vary amongst artists. Some artists sell a tremendous amount of stickers, while some mainly sell t-shirts. You can always tell what topic is trending though by looking at the search bar. 

If you go to the search bar on the home page and type in one letter, terms with a little lightning symbol will self-populate.

These are terms that are trending at that moment. It makes sense to create items in these categories if you want to strike while the iron is hot! At the time of this Redbubble review, the holidays are approaching so without question, everything will be selling well for the next few months.

Can You Actually Make Money on Redbubble?

Yes, you can really make money on Redbubble. Like anything else, the more you put into it, the more you will get out of it. Sure, there are some people who make a ton of money on Redbubble right away. Most people make an amount commensurate with the number of designs they post. 

When you first start out try to create and list as many quality, trending designs that you can. Be sure to describe the items and tag them with relevant tags so customers can find your work. Share your work in social media posts and with pins on Pinterest. You’ll make sales, just give it time and keep adding designs.

Also, be sure to add your designs to everything. Who knows, someone may want a mini-skirt with a wild design or a clock with abstract art on the face. The truth is you never know.

Is Selling on Redbubble Worth It?

I think so, yes. The commission is small but all you have to do is list designs once and you can make sales on them far into the future. You don’t have to deal with customer service, packing, shipping, refunds, taxes, or any other issues. 

You can and should market your work but Redbubble spends a lot of money on promotion, so you have Redbubble drawing in more potential buyers who may land on your design. And the site is free to join.

If you want higher profit margins or want the feeling of owning and controlling your own store and brand, you may want to consider creating your own E-Comm store. More work, but potentially more profit and a brand you can call your own.

If you purchase anything from an affiliate named in this post I may receive a small commission at no cost to you.