Content creation, especially content creation, is becoming a full-time career due to the emergence and the reach of platforms like OnlyFans and Patreon.
Both are popular content creator platforms, especially for explicit content and to make money.
Both OnlyFans and Patreon are subscription platforms where users have to subscribe to their favorite performers or content creators to pay a subscription fee to unlock their content.
In this blog, we will compare OnlyFans and Patreon on different parameters to choose the better one.
What is Patreon
Patreon is a subscription website that connects content creators with their fans. The platform itself is free to sign up for all users.
It works on the old concept of patronage, where wealthy donors offer patronage to artists to fiancé their work.
Patreon works based on the same concept but in a modern way allowing anyone to support the content creators whom they love.
Patreon works on a tiered subscription-based, allowing people to support you differently.
For example, fans who aren’t willing to pay much can pay a low subscription rate of $1 to support you, whereas most loyal followers pay around $10-$20 every month.
The higher your subscriber’s tier, the more services and content they receive. The tiers are flexible and optional, meaning; you can set the limits accordingly.
Does Patreon take a cut?
Patreon takes a share of your earnings, but the percentage it deducts depends on your subscription tier.
In addition, the platform also charges creators a 2.5% currency conversion fee on all payments made in a different currency.
Patreon deducts a 5% commission where as the next version Pro deducts an 8%, and the last one is patreon Premium where the commission rate is even more higher.
Pros and Cons of using Patreon
Pros
Different subscription tier levels: You can allow people to sign up for a tier that suits their budget without setting a one-fit-size budget for all.
No upfront costs for artists: Instead of this, creators sign up” to Patreon and are charged based on the account type they have.
Easy Payouts: Payouts are available via PayPal for easy funds transfer.
Cons
- The process is complicated as you will have to stay on top of all subscription tiers, giving them the content worth they have paid for and keeping track of what each tier offers.
- Up to 5% processing fees for credit card payments.
What is OnlyFans?
OnlyFans is a subscription-based social platform where content creators can sell their content to fans and make money. Fans subscribe to creator profiles for a monthly or yearly fee to see the content.
When you post content, you can set tip goals to consider subscription as the minimum wage you would make, and then you can earn more from tips:
pay-per-view messages and more. OnlyFans takes 20% of what content creators make and can keep the rest 80%.
For example, if you have set your subscription rate at $5%, OnlyFans takes $1.00, and you get $4.00.
Content creators can set $4.99-$49.99 per month per subscription, and the price depends on many factors like the content you are posting,
how often you are posting, the quality of the content, and more. If you are selling content, you can charge higher as NSFW tends to sell higher.
Pros and cons of OnlyFans
Pros
- Signing up to OnlyFans is easy; you can post all types of content on the platform and start making money.
- The platform offers geo-blocking features where you can block off certain countries or regions. This is great if you are an NSFW creator who wants to stay private.
- OnlyFans is often associated with NSFW content, but you can choose a niche of your choice.
- OnlyFans is an easy way to make money without committing to a certain number of content posted every week or month.
- OnlyFans tipping options make it easy to sell services like..
Cons
- The minimum payout threshold is $20.00, and OnlyFans deducts 20% instead of up to 12%, like Patreon. However, Patreon has hidden fees like currency exchange, etc. which OnlyFans doesn’t have.
- Specific issues like problems with the OnlyFans support team have reported about some accounts being closed without prior notice due to bugs.
- The stigma attached to OnlyFans as it is famous for being ‘-worker friendly”.
- OnlyFans only allows people to pay and get paid through bank transfers, credit card fees, etc. The platform doesn’t accept PayPal payments or payouts.
Patreon or OnlyFans, which is better?
When it comes to Patreon Vs., OnlyFans, which is better, it really depends on what you are using it for.
If you are a content creator who wants to need your fans to support you and doesn’t mind taking time to keep track of different tiers, you can choose Patreon.
Whereas if you are someone who doesn’t want to help down to offering certain things to certain users at times, OnlyFans suits you better.
Another way is to build an OnlyFans or Patreon clone using a clonescript like Fanso which is a readymade solution to launch your fan club website quickly.
Regardless of the platform you choose, you get what you put into it. Neither OnlyFans nor Patreon is a “get rich quick” scheme. If you put in 100%, you get it back.
Creators who perform well on both OnlyFans and Patreon have worked hard to create food content and worked consistently to promote that content.
When it comes to niche, Patreon isn’t only for loggers and podcasters, and OnlyFans isn’t just for NSFW creators.
Both platforms can be useful for all types of content creators; you just need to assess the one that suits your individual needs and get started.
Conclusion
OnlyFans and Patreon help content creators make money online; the best platform depends on what you are looking for.
OnlyFans leads overall, with creators making over $2 billion compared to Patreon. If you are driven by popularity and which platform has the most users, OnlyFans will be your first choice.
Considering the commissions, Patreon deducts less, and OnlyFans charges a higher commission. Choose the platform that suits your individual needs and monetary benefits.