Cosplay is an enjoyable hobby that requires a lot of work. Cosplayers have to put effort into creating amazing and unique costumes. With all these endeavours, you might be wondering if there is any financial gain in this hobby, and if so, how do cosplayers make money?
There are different ways through which you can earn from cosplay. This varies from merchandise sales, construction of commissioned costumes, and becoming a digital content creator. Complete this article to gain in-depth knowledge about how cosplayers make money from their hobby.
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How Do Cosplaying ers Make Money?
There is a considerably larger range of activities you can employ to make money from cosplay, despite the fact that most people instantly associate professional cosplayers with being attendees at conventions or models at merchandise booths.
Listed below are a few of the major ways in which cosplayers make money.
- Social Media Content Creators
Social media is arguably the biggest avenue where cosplayers make their money thanks to the digital dominance of platforms such as Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok.
Through these platforms, cosplayers can easily build followers while they interact with their subscribers. The more followers you have, the more influential you become on these digital platforms, which can also be a financial advantage.
You can make money on these social media platforms through sponsorships, affiliate marketing, and sales of merchandise.
You can also make money on YouTube once you have up to a thousand subscribers, which will make you eligible to start earning from ads that appear on your video when viewed by your subscribers.
- Patreon
You can create a Patreon for your fans once you’ve managed to attract a few subscribers to your work. One of the best ways to get a consistent monthly income is by using this method. Your income, however, is based on your fan base and how many people desire to support you.
Patreon is structured to allow fans to assist independent artists. With this method, you might start earning up to $5 to $10 or more every month from your fans to make sure you don’t stop making costumes and showing up at events.
However, you will be required to provide premier content to these top supporters in return for their kind gesture. This could be done by providing exclusive photos of the latest costumes or by providing tutorials.
- Photo Prints, And Merchandise
This used to be one of the biggest ways cosplayers made their money, but it is not as popular as it used to be. There are numerous people with the hobby of hanging wall art or posters of people cosplaying their most popular personalities. Through these posters and wall art, you can earn some income as a cosplayer.
You can also venture into merchandise such as calendars, folders, notebooks, T-shirt designs, and mugs for additional income.
- Commission On Other Costumes
Having a thousand followers on social media platforms is not the only means of generating income as a cosplayer. You can also earn money by making costumes for other cosplayers. The demand for costume commissions will increase as the popularity of cosplay grows.
If you have the time and talent, cosplay commissions can undoubtedly earn you some good money. The drawback is that this kind of work requires a lot of labour and takes a while. To avoid overcommitting yourself, pick and choose which cosplay commissions you want to take on.
- Selling Patterns
It’s challenging to locate patterns that fit particular characters because cosplay costumes frequently need to be built in unique shapes that don’t match regular, everyday clothing. If you’ve taken the time to design your patterns for the characters you cosplay, you can make money by selling digital copies to other cosplayers who want to dress up as the same character.
- Selling Old Cosplay
Your cosplay closet will eventually run out of space when trying to create all of your favourite costumes. You can sell your old outfits online instead of throwing them away. Your old costumes can be sold for a lot of money if they are well-constructed and you are a popular cosplayer.
In my experience, this might not be the best tactic for someone who is not a professional cosplayer. The costumes for popular characters can be easily sold, but if you’re not yet a professional, you might want to wait out on this until you have enough followers.
- Build A Cosplay Website
If you have the talent and capacity to write about your cosplay experience, you can make money by owning a cosplay website. This website can also be used to give cosplay tutorials to an audience who would like to know more about the hobby.
Through this website, you will also be able to make money through ads anytime someone visits your page. Product recommendations will also generate income on your website.
All you have to do is to provide the recommended product affiliate link in your article and you will be eligible to receive a commission when people buy the recommended products.
Building a website is not an easy task. However, you tend to earn more from it if you can be dedicated and patient.
- Sponsorship
When you have enough content, followers, and impressions on your social media pages, you can take your means of earning as a cosplayer to another level. Companies might reach out to you when they see your massive social media following to promote their products to your wide audience.
You might start making a little money from sponsorship due to the number of your followers. However, the amount earned from sponsorship will keep on increasing as your followers increase as well.
Is Cosplay A Feasible Profession?
If all you aspire to do is visit conventions and create costumes, the idea of becoming a professional cosplayer may seem farfetched. A professional cosplayer will be tasked to do more than create unique costumes and exhibit them at conventions, you will have to build an audience and relate with them, you will also have to learn marketing and promotion which are essential in having a career with cosplay.
When Can I Be Considered A Professional Cosplayer?
While there are no standard criteria for becoming a professional cosplayer, many people believe you are worthy of being called a professional cosplayer once you start earning from it.
You are also not required to be a full-time cosplayer before you will be regarded as a professional cosplayer. As long as the hobby is making you some income, you might just be a professional already.
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Conclusion
You do not need to be full-time or professional before you can start making money from cosplay. There are numerous ways through which you can earn as a cosplayer, but you will be required to have the necessary talent and capacity to start earning with your hobby.
