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11 Authentic Ways To Make Money Using Photoshop [2024 Hacks]

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In this article, we are going to learn about ways for making money with photoshop. Learning Photoshop, however, is not easy. The software is expensive and the learning curve is quite steep. You really need to dedicate yourself to learning the ins and outs of the software. More than technical proficiency, you need to be creative if you want to excel with Photoshop.

So you’ve got Photoshop skills. Now what?

You are aware of its marketability. But what if you could use Photoshop to earn money each month without having to finish your clients’ assignments on time?

It sounds too good to be true, doesn’t it?

But it’s not. It’s called passive income.

And Graphic Designers can also make their ways to earn this type of money.

making money with photoshop

Now if we want to earn passive income. Before going to the ways to learn to earn through photoshop we should know what passive income actually is and what active income is:

Active income:

The client gives you a task and you get paid for completing a certain task. It’s a hands-on task that requires you to be actively involved in producing the output that the customer has purchased.

For Example, you can make a logo design for a client.

Passive income:

When your clients are able to pay you for a product that does not require your active involvement. Means you made it once and different clients are just buying from you. You set it up once, and money comes rolling in, without having to do anything.

For Example: your clients are able to buy your photo editing presets, that is available 24/7 online, with an automated buying process

Now you know what is an active way of earning money and what is a passive way of earning money. Now we are going to learn 5 ways of making money through active way and 5 ways for making money through passive way:

Ways For Making Money With Photoshop Actively:

Method # 1: Online Freelancing

One way you can use for making money with photoshop is to use your skills to make things that clients need such as a company needs a logo for itself so design that logo and get paid. This is called online freelancing.

There are different freelancing websites on which we can sell our skills there to different clients and companies worldwide. Some of famous websites are Upwork, Fiverr, Freelancer, and Guru.

But freelancing on these sites, like Upwork, Fiverr, Freelancer, and Guru can be difficult at first because they have high competition for jobs, and you need to build some reputation across the platform to be a competitive applicant for a client’s assignments.

But no need to worry because when you first start there are ways to build a reputation whilst avoiding these high levels of competition.

For instance, begin with applying to jobs with smaller pay, such as from 5$ to 50$. After about 10-15 jobs of this level, you should have still earned a considerable amount of money and will have a portfolio to start applying to bigger jobs with.

For the sites in which you decide on the price, start by offering your skills for lower prices and gradually increase them as you become more reputable. 

You have to make in view that it is a good idea to pick a specific skill to focus on, For example, Logo Design or Banners Design.

As you will be up against smaller competition levels, it will be clearer to potential clients what your skillset is. It is important to choose a field you’re comfortable with to have the best results over a smaller amount of time.

Method # 2: Social Media Freelancing

Another way you can use for making money with photoshop is to use your skills to make things for clients you find on social media or in your area like in your city design them that item and get paid. This is called offline(physical) or social media freelancing.

There are different social media platforms from where you can get clients who want to design images for them. You can work on Facebook by joining any freelancing group on Facebook and find clients that need that work which you can do. Now there’s a question of why they believe in us.

Why does someone trust a random person on social media and contact that person for work? But no need to worry because you can build your portfolio on different websites like Behance. Build your portfolio, add all of your paste work in your portfolio so that your client should trust you.

Method # 3: Joining A Graphics Designer Job

Another way of making money with photoshop is selling your skills to a company nearby. Just find some company and software house nearby and apply for a job to them as a Graphics Designer.

This is an obvious way after learning any skill. You can make a good portfolio on different websites and then apply for the job.

Ways For Making Money With Photoshop Passively:

making money with photoshop 2

Method # 1: Selling Photoshop Courses

When you’re a master at any skill, the obvious option to provide a product of value that people will pay for is to pass that skill on.

And you can also do this with Photoshop.

You can teach others by recording your tutorials or courses and uploading them to existing course markets.

For Example : Skillshare and Udemy are great places to start.

If you have a devoted audience and brand, consider selling your courses on your own platform, directly to your audience.

Method # 2: Selling Fonts Online

Another great way to generate passive income is to create and sell your own fonts.

Places you can sell fonts:

Sellfy ($29/month + 2% transaction fee)

Myfonts.com (50% commission)

Creative Market (30% commission)

Very few sources disclose the amount they’ve made through creating and selling fonts. The majority of sources say that font selling can make money, though unless you sell a font to a major company, it’s very likely you won’t be making astronomical amounts. However, it is possible to make a living.

Method # 3: Sell your Photoshop Presets and LUTs

Sell your presets online to help amateur photographers attain the same effects that your professional eye has created because if you’ve mastered the art of color grading and you’ve got your tried and true presets and LUTs, you’ve essentially got a new by-product that can add value to other people’s lives.

Of course, this depends on the activity of your community, the attractiveness of your images, and how they are generally marketed.

Method # 4: Selling stock images

If you have a ton of images that are just taking up space in a hard drive, why not put them to work and offer them up as stock images?

Though these days stock photography sites, like Shutterstock and 500px, have developed higher standards and don’t just take anything, rejecting about as many images as they accept.

Pro tip: because of the high volume of stock photos being uploaded, it’s suggested to keep uploading regularly to ensure that your percentage of the market doesn’t decrease with time.

Photographer James Wheeler earns approx. $500 per month with 350 stock photos (out of 750 he submitted). 

Though not enough to make a living, it certainly has the potential to be a lucrative additional income stream to support your lifestyle and diversify your income.

Method # 5: Selling Website Themes

Website design is also in demand. With a growing amount of non-technical or design-skill-oriented individuals trying their hands at creating their own website, an entirely new industry came to be the industry of website themes.

Website themes let you create the design for a website, and use that theme over and over again.

You’ll be able to create the website layout in Photoshop, however, to create a usable theme, you’ll need to turn the design into code. If you’re not skilled at coding, consider hiring a freelancer for the job.

You can sell them at a variety of locations:

Themeforest (for WordPress themes) – 12.5%-55% commission

Creative Market (Magento and other platform themes) – 30% commission

Sellfy (for any platform themes) – $29 /month + 2% transaction fee

As with any digital goods sales, the results are varied and depend on a wide variety of factors.

Method # 6: Selling Graphics

A great way to set up an additional stream of passive income is to sell Photoshop art – create graphics that are ready-made and sold online to anyone who may need visual elements because Photoshop can be used to create all manner of graphics, not only photographs.

Graphics can range widely:

  • Icons
  • Decorative images
  • Stock illustrations
  • Desktop/mobile wallpapers
  • Textures, shapes, stamps

For example, the creative collective “Offset” offers a variety of stamps, textures, shapes, image masks, and even retro diagrams that buyers can use to enhance their digital images. In this article, they describe how they market their products and get the word out.

Method # 7: Print-On-Demand Services

Print on demand sites, such as Redbubble, Society6, and Zazzle, are becoming increasingly popular and involve you, as the designer, uploading a piece of work, which can then be printed onto products such as t-shirts, hoodies, mugs and more.

The concept is this:

You upload images of your designs to either a print-on-demand site or your own website.

The image is displayed for sale on products of your choice that the POD platform offers (common products include posters, mugs, pillows, etc.).

Visitors purchase the design on a product that they would like.

The POD provider prints and ships the product to the customer.

There are different print-on-demand sites that you can make use of, many of which are very similar.

Some popular sites include:

  • Society6
  • RedBubble
  • Inktale

On POD sites, you’ll be earning royalties on sold items. Most sites let you set your own profit margin that you’d like to receive, on top of the POD provider’s base price.

So your profit margin depends on you.

Method # 8: Selling Document Templates

When in the business of designing with Photoshop, the sky’s the limit as to what you can do.

So why not expand to creating different document templates? People often look to ready-made templates to kick their performance up a notch and look a tad more professional, put together, or thoughtful.

Some ideas of document templates that you can sell online to create passive income:

  • Resume/CV templates
  • Ebook templates
  • Email templates
  • Magazine layouts
  • Wedding, baby shower, bridal shower invitations

As with any digital product, your potential earnings have much to do with how many copies of products you sell, and what the product’s price is. A moderate example is that of Janna Hagan’s, who had sold $5,000 worth of resumes. You can get inspired by her experience and story here.

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Final Thoughts: How to Make Money with Photoshop?

In that world of technology skills of photoshop helps a lot in making your pocket. There are some incredible and proven ways for making money from photoshop like freelancing, print-on-demand, selling courses, YouTube tutorials, and more. Every method make you billionaire if you expert in your field and consistently work on your skills.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you make money off Photoshop?

Absolutely, anyone can use Photoshop to earn money by doing graphic design work, altering photos, or producing digital art. Skilled Photoshop users are frequently hired by corporations, photographers, and freelancers for a variety of assignments, which increases revenue prospects.

Are Photoshop skills in demand?

Yes, Photoshop expertise is highly valued in a variety of fields, including digital media, graphic design, marketing, and photography. Employers and clients highly value having the ability to use Photoshop with ease.

How much money do Photoshoppers make?

Professionals using Photoshop typically earn $24 per hour, or $49,920 annually. The total salary in the industry varies depending on expertise, region, and particular tasks like graphic design or photo editing.

How to earn money with Adobe?

With Adobe software, you can use it to create and market digital content, provide design services, impart Adobe knowledge online, or work as a freelance graphic designer on a variety of projects.


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