Inprnt vs. Redbubble: Which Platform is Right for Your Art Business?

INPRNT vs. Redbubble: An Expert Comparison for Artists

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For independent artists looking to sell their work online, the world of print-on-demand (POD) offers incredible opportunities. Two of the most prominent names in this space are INPRNT and Redbubble, yet they serve artists in fundamentally different ways. Choosing the right platform can significantly impact your sales, brand perception, and overall satisfaction. This guide provides a detailed, head-to-head comparison to help you decide where to invest your creative energy.

This comprehensive inprnt vs redbubble analysis will break down everything from artist onboarding and product quality to commission structures and audience, giving you the clarity needed to make the best choice for your art career.

Table of Contents

What is INPRNT? A Curated Gallery for Fine Art

Many artists searching online for terms like what is inprint or the common misspelling inpront are actually looking for INPRNT. So, what is inprnt? Unlike open marketplaces, INPRNT operates as a curated gallery. It is an artist-focused platform that prioritizes museum-quality art prints.

The core of how inprnt works is its application process. Artists must submit a portfolio of their three best pieces for review by the existing INPRNT artist community. This peer-review system ensures a high standard of work across the site, creating a more prestigious environment. If accepted, you gain access to a platform renowned for its exceptional giclée prints, canvas prints, and acrylic prints. The general consensus among professional illustrators and fine artists is that the answer to “is inprnt good for artists?” is a resounding yes, particularly for those focused on print sales.

Redbubble Platform Overview: The Open Marketplace Giant

On the other side of the spectrum is Redbubble, a titan in the print-on-demand world. The redbubble platform overview is simple: it’s an open marketplace accessible to everyone. Anyone can create an account and start uploading designs to be printed on a massive array of products, from t-shirts and stickers to mugs, phone cases, and shower curtains.

This accessibility has made the redbubble marketplace incredibly popular and vast. As a leading redbubble print on demand service, it handles all the printing, shipping, and customer service, allowing artists to focus solely on creation and promotion. It’s a volume-based game where discoverability through tags and trends plays a massive role in an artist’s success.

Key Differences: Quality, Earnings, and Audience

While both platforms empower artists, their core philosophies create stark differences in the user experience for both sellers and buyers.

Artist Curation and Onboarding

  • INPRNT: Exclusive and application-based. You must be approved by a committee of member artists to open a shop. This creates a high barrier to entry but results in a less saturated, more professional marketplace.
  • Redbubble: Completely open. You can sign up and start uploading art immediately, making it incredibly accessible for beginners or artists who want to experiment without commitment.

Product Quality and Focus

This is a critical point in the redbubble vs inprnt debate. INPRNT’s reputation is built on its superior print quality. The question “is inprnt good quality?” is almost always answered affirmatively in artist communities, with praise for its archival inks and fine art papers.

Redbubble offers a much wider variety of products. While this is a major strength, it can lead to more variability in quality. The redbubble print quality for its standard redbubble prints is generally considered good for the price point, but it’s not typically compared to the fine-art level of INPRNT. When comparing a redbubble art print vs photographic print, for example, the options and paper types on INPRNT are more aligned with professional photography standards. Similarly, while some report the redbubble shirt quality is decent, others find it inconsistent. Answering “is redbubble good quality?” depends heavily on the specific product. For decorative items and merchandise, many users are satisfied, but for high-end wall art, discerning buyers may prefer a more specialized service. The quality of a redbubble art print or poster is often a topic of discussion, with many asking “are redbubble posters good quality?”. They are generally seen as suitable for casual decor, but not for gallery-level presentation.

Artist Earnings and Commission Structure

How you get paid differs significantly between the two platforms.

  • INPRNT: Offers a straightforward and generous commission. Artists receive 50% of the sale price on art prints, 40% on canvas prints, and a fixed dollar amount on other products like acrylic and metal prints. This clear structure is highly appealing.
  • Redbubble: Uses a base price + artist margin model. Redbubble sets a base price for each product, and the artist adds their own markup (margin), which is typically defaulted to 20%. The final retail price is the base price plus your margin. This means the redbubble percentage you earn is entirely up to you, but a higher margin means a higher price for the customer, potentially impacting sales. Understanding what percentage does redbubble take is crucial; they take the base price, which covers manufacturing and their profit. Your earning is the margin you set. This also directly impacts how much do redbubble artists make, as it’s a balance between margin and sales volume. In recent years, Redbubble has also introduced account tiers and fees, which can further affect an artist’s net earnings, complicating the redbubble artist percentage.

The Artist’s Experience: How It Feels to Sell on Each Platform

Understanding the daily workflow and community feeling is just as important as the numbers.

For many, the experience of selling art on redbubble is about quantity and discoverability. The platform is heavily reliant on SEO, tagging, and trend-chasing. The guide on how to sell your art on redbubble involves a lot of keyword research and uploading designs across dozens of products. It’s a fantastic platform for artists who enjoy creating a wide variety of designs for an equally wide variety of items. It’s a great answer to “is redbubble a good place to sell art” if your goal is broad reach and product diversity. The question of how redbubble works for artists is that it’s a largely passive income stream once your shop is set up.

INPRNT, by contrast, feels more like managing a professional portfolio. Artists tend to upload only their best, most polished work. The focus is less on trends and more on building a collection of high-quality fine art. The community is smaller and more focused on illustration and fine art, creating a different, more gallery-like atmosphere for both artists and buyers.

Weighing the Pros and Cons for Your Art Business

To simplify your decision, here is a direct comparison of the advantages and disadvantages of each platform.

Pros and Cons of INPRNT

  • Pros: Exceptional print quality, high prestige, higher profit margin per print, less market saturation, and a dedicated audience of serious art buyers.
  • Cons: High barrier to entry (application required), much smaller product catalog, and less brand recognition among the general public compared to Redbubble.

Pros and Cons of Redbubble

  • Pros: Extremely easy to get started, massive global audience, enormous product variety, and strong organic traffic potential. It’s excellent for artists wanting to sell merchandise beyond just prints.
  • Cons: Highly saturated market, lower perceived quality on some items, artist earnings can be lower per sale, and recent changes to artist fees and account tiers have caused frustration in the community.

Addressing Common Concerns and Debates

Several recurring questions and debates surround these platforms, particularly Redbubble.

One major concern is art theft. The question “does redbubble steal art?” is common, but it’s a misunderstanding of the issue. Redbubble as a company does not steal art; however, its open nature makes it a target for third parties who illegally upload art they don’t own. Redbubble has a reporting system to combat this, but the onus is often on the original artist to find and report infringement.

Regarding legitimacy, both platforms are well-established businesses. The question “is inprnt legit?” is easily answered: yes, it is a highly respected platform within the professional art community. Likewise, “is redbubble legit?” is also a yes; it’s a publicly-traded company that has paid out hundreds of millions of dollars to artists over the years.

A more current debate is profitability. With new account fees, many artists ask, “is redbubble still profitable?”. For established artists with strong sales, yes. But for new or low-selling artists, the new fees can eat into profits, making the platform less attractive than it once was. This has led many to question, “is redbubble worth it” today.

Finally, there’s the nuanced topic of what are the key debates on redbubble limited stock? This question touches on the core value proposition of print-on-demand. The “unlimited” nature of POD products on Redbubble can devalue the art in the eyes of some collectors who prefer limited edition, scarce prints. The debate centers on whether the mass accessibility of redbubble wall art helps or hurts an artist’s brand compared to the more exclusive, curated feel of platforms like INPRNT.

Exploring INPRNT Alternatives and the Broader Market

Of course, the choice isn’t just between these two. There are many inprnt alternatives and sites like redbubble. Society6 is a major competitor that blends Redbubble’s vast product catalog with a slightly more design-forward aesthetic, making the inprnt vs society6 vs redbubble comparison a very common one. Other companies like redbubble include TeePublic (owned by Redbubble), Zazzle, and Threadless.

For those wondering what is better than redbubble, the answer depends on your goals. If your priority is fine art print quality, INPRNT is arguably better. If you want to build your own brand and have more control, a platform like Shopify with a POD integration (like Printful or Printify) might be the superior choice.

The Final Verdict: Which Platform Is Right for You?

After this detailed inprnt review and comparison, the choice comes down to your artistic goals and style. There is no single “best” platform, only the best platform for you.

Choose INPRNT if:

  • You are a professional illustrator, photographer, or fine artist.
  • Your primary goal is to sell high-quality, archival art prints.
  • You value prestige and being part of a curated community.
  • You have a strong, consistent portfolio and are confident in the application process.

Choose Redbubble if:

  • You are just starting out or want to experiment with print-on-demand with no upfront risk.
  • Your art is well-suited for a wide range of merchandise (t-shirts, stickers, mugs).
  • You want to reach the largest possible audience and are willing to learn about tagging and SEO.
  • You are looking for a more passive income stream and understand the competitive nature of the platform.

Ultimately, many artists find success by using both. They use redbubble for artists who want to sell fun merchandise and INPRNT for their premium, gallery-worthy redbubble art prints. This hybrid approach allows you to capture the best of both worlds.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is INPRNT or Redbubble better for artists?
Neither is definitively “better”; they serve different purposes. INPRNT is better for artists focused on selling premium-quality fine art prints in a curated environment. Redbubble is better for artists who want to sell their designs on a vast range of merchandise to a massive audience with no barrier to entry.

What percentage does Redbubble take from artists?
Redbubble doesn’t take a percentage in the traditional sense. They set a base price for each product to cover manufacturing and their profit. The artist then adds their margin (markup) on top of that base price. Your earning is the margin you set. For example, if a shirt’s base price is $20 and you set a 20% margin ($4), the customer pays $24, and you earn $4.

Are Redbubble art prints good?
The general consensus is that are redbubble art prints good enough for casual home decor. They offer a variety of print types, and many customers are happy with the quality for the price. However, they are not typically considered “gallery” or “archival” quality like those from a specialized service like INPRNT.

Is it worth selling on Redbubble anymore?
For many artists, the answer is still yes. While new account fees have made it more challenging for those with very low sales, artists with established shops or a knack for creating popular designs can still find it a valuable source of income. Answering “is redbubble worth it” depends on your sales volume and ability to navigate a competitive marketplace.

What is INPRNT and how does it work?
INPRNT is a curated online marketplace that specializes in gallery-quality art prints. To sell on INPRNT, artists must submit a portfolio and be approved by a committee of their peers. Once approved, artists can upload their work, and INPRNT handles the printing, framing, and shipping directly to the customer, giving the artist a high commission on each sale.