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I was looking around for fun today for pricing on commission to see if its viable to make a buck off it on down time.

What im coming across is a range of 7-9$ per infantry, 30-40$ for HQ 15-20$ for Bike 40-100 for Vehicle and 60-90$ for Monstrous Creature.

What ive seen is these models are a little above table top quality with Basing Highlighting layering and little conversions for posing and such.

I guess my question is whether this price is fair, over priced or even under priced??

Thanks,
Who

My experience is less than expansive, minor research, it seems on the low end to about average for TT quality that isn't just dipped.

I have found out that painting services are mostly underpriced (at least in Finland, where average prices are lower than the ones you listed) if you compare it to the time it takes to paint a mini. I understand that if someone is looking to get a few bucks from his hobby, then underpricing is not a problem.

Therefore, the higher spectrum of the prices you list seem to be high for tabletop quality, but I wouldnt consider it to be high when compared to potential input of hours.

A general rule of thumb I've come across is that pricing from a reputable commission painter is generally around the cost of the model. Meening that the commission on a Land Raider will run you about $60. Just note that this can vary based upon the level of quality.

That can be held as a decent rule of thumb. Although, I do consider it to be a bit low in many cases if the painters goal is to reach hourly wages

So as I see it 1 person is saying its average and 2 people are saying its high.

Catyrpelius - That rule seems rather low for Infantry models for marines. that would only be 3.7 a model, but while looking at it and breaking it down into hr wage on on average you a person can do five marines in 2 hrs (a Little overTable top Quality) that would mean possibly 9.25 an hr. That really doesnt seem bad to me, but is that price still a little to low??

Ive taking the prices i've given above off respectable commission sites from the America and Europe and there marine is $8.50 a model so $85. for 10. Is that just way to much for what it is?? the painting quality of the models that I seen if i have to rate it on a 1-10, 1 being base primed 4 being TT and 10 being golden demon, They are about a 6.

As someone who has commissioned several painters, that is a little high for me. A lot of this depends on how well you paint.
I've seen painters wanting X amount and seeing other painters that actually paint better asking less.

If what you're looking for is a good paying job, then I'd look elsewhere. My assumption is that (you can ask other commission painters on this) you're going to have a lot of expenses, ranging from paints, etc to people backing out of commissions to who the hell knows what.

I wouldn't step into this looking to see how much money you're going to make, but rather how much you'll enjoy both the painting challenge of it as well as the customer service aspect (which for me is very important, especially with these online commissions). If you're going to be sitting down in front of a bunch of marines and thinking "oh God, not this again" or if Jack Be Nimble is throwing you lots of pm's you find annoying, then maybe look for a job at a local golf course for the time being.

If you are serious though, to start off you should ask for less money and start a P&M blog here on Dakka and elsewhere to gain interest. Plus, it's the perfect way to keep your client up to date as well as keep yourself in check. After a few commissions you'll have gained some trust and then you can also raise your prices, even letting the community help decide what your painting is worth.

im not trying to start anything honestly i was just trying to see if its worth going with some companies or not. I was trying to find out what is to much or what is a good deal and in the end could you make a lil money off it if you started something up. Money is a really fickle thing. to me 2.50$ a infantry model sounds low on a money making stand point for hrs and materials put into it. That is 5 models per 2 hrs you'll get 6.25$ an hr.
Lets make a scenario and use the Cat rule of thumb and see if its fair:
say you do around 1000pt marine army
2x10 tactical
2 rhinos
libby HQ
5x termies
landraider
i think this might be a little over but still.
The Libby HQ 30$ you will take your time on it and do a 4-5 highlight and good layering 2Hrs.
2x10 tactical squad $3.7 a model. Like i said before 2 hrs 5 models 3 layers and highlights 8hrs in total for both squads.
2x Rhino 33.$ normally 3 hrs for 2 this is layering blending OSL and weathering.
5 Termies 10.$ per model this should be and hr and a half but we will bump it to 2 hrs.
Land Raider 60$ this should take 2 hrs maybe 3 depending on the weathering blending OSL and layering.

total $280 Total hrs = 18 $/hr is 15.56

My question is this fair for the customer??
For the customer I dont know because i don't pay for people to paint my stuff.
Is this Fair for the person Painting??
The painter wont make a living off of this but will cover his materials spent and have a few bucks in his pocket in the end. if he loves to paint this itll also be good for him.

I have been doing commission work now for about a year, and I think my prices are very reasonable for the level ofwork i produce, my minimum for a rank and file is $5.00 a fig. I am also a fast painter and can get a 10 man squad done in about 2-3 hours. I have also kept very detailed records of my costs, time and charges, now almost a year later I am still about $200.00 in the red....It is a labor of love and chance to practice and increase my skills, there is no money to be made.

Ashton

LOL. I do commissions for infinitely cheaper, unless I'm missing something. 7-9$ for a SINGLE model, or an entire unit?

I usually charge no more than 20$ for a ten man unit (space marines, necrons, dark eldar, etc) I'm a slow painter though, as my customers would tell you. I'm still working on a commission I started in September. I don't really feel like it needs to be expensive. I'm more than happy to simply have a chance to paint interesting models I'd never want to buy.

This is free advertising,by the way. PM me if you need something done

(Edit: this includes me cleaning the model and priming it myself... I do tend to charge more if I have to strip the model, and then clean it... but it's only a couple bucks)

I do $2.50, with basic basing, basic no frills painting, 3 colors. minimum of 10 characters

5$ each if you want a bit of detail on model with some depth to your bases minimum of 5 characters

10$ for tabletop quality, no minimum

25$ for that special character, depth, high lights, low lights, glow, maybe a small tie-in bit on the base, etc... (it'll look like it could be cabinet quality).

40-50 for a tank at tabletop quality.

100-120 for tank at special character quality.

***double prices if you want hand writing only people with very good vision can see, scroll work, special bases, massive scenic stuff going on, etc... essentially, the works.***

The prices then can be modified for discounts on group rates, especially when I can use my airbrush to crank out jobs.

These prices, honestly, keep you from getting flooded with small small jobs... and I keep busy at the same time.

Some customers (e.g. the girlfriend's brother) gets special deals, but I tell him while not around any other customers.

Also, on single models/low model count, I usually deal in cash up front... larger things, I usually deal with a down payment.

And this has worked well for me, for the last year or so.

(so this will give you an idea of what to expect when you look for commissions... I keep getting told I'm on the 'low end of pricing', but I only ever accept 2-3 things in my queue at a time)