Shutterstock payment info
How does Shutterstock payout work?
A lot of questions I see asked about Shutterstock concern the payout. When does Shutterstock pay its contributors and what are the Shutterstock payout methods? What is the minimum payout amount for Shutterstock? Keep reading to find the answers to all of these questions!
How to earn money using Shutterstock
Before you get to the payout process, you need to earn some money. Firstly become a Shutterstock contributor and then start uploading material. To maximize your Shutterstock income, you need to think about what material you you want to contribute to the platform. This site focusses on photography, but the same goes for video footage or illustrations. If you need inspiration, read my 23 tips for stock photography.
When one or more of your assets get licensed, your commission will be credited to your account. You can keep an eye on how much you have earned by checking the unpaid earnings in your account and you can see the details in the earnings summary.
Shutterstock minimum payout amount
The minimum payout amount for Shutterstock is $25 (US Dollar). This means you have to earn at least a total of $25 before you can get paid. After a payout the amount will be reset and you have to earn another $25 for the next payout.
You can set the payout threshold to a higher amount in the account settings. For example, if you set the minimum payout for your account to $40, you will not get paid until you reach $40 in earnings. This is a personal preference. Some people set this to a very high amount, so they just keep collecting their earnings on the Shutterstock account until they choose it is time to collect.
Shutterstock payout options
There are several ways you can receive your money from Shutterstock. This may be variable depending on the country you live in, but I will discuss the three standard payment methods. Please consider that all three of these methods may be restricted by local laws and regulations. For exact details on these services and their fees for your own situation and region, please refer to their websites.
Please note, that if you have not selected and setup a payout option in your Shutterstock account settings, you will not receive any payouts. Even when you reach the minimum payout amount in your account.
Payoneer
Payoneer is a financial services company that provides online money transfer and digital payment services. If you have a Payoneer account, you can set this as the payout option for Shutterstock. All payments will then be made into your Payoneer account.
Payoneer charges fees for transactions. Usually receiving funds is free, but withdrawing funds will cost you. This depends on your country and currency and the method of withdrawal you use. Bank withdrawal will cost around $1,50, but might have added fees up to 2%. Currency conversion also might add up to 2% in fees.
On top of that, Payoneer might charge administration fees of $29,95/year depending on your package. Lastly, if you have an inactive account for a year, they will add a $29,95 inactivity charge.
Paypal
Paypal is one of the oldest and most widely used payment service providers on the internet used globally. It is commonly accepted by individuals as well as businesses worldwide. However, there are some countries and regions where PayPal services may be limited or unavailable due to local regulations or other factors.
The Paypal fees differ per country or region. Also, Paypal makes a difference between personal accounts and business accounts. Depending on what type of account you have, the fees may vary. Receiving payments is usually free for personal Paypal accounts, as well as transferring money from your Paypal to your linked bank account. For business accounts fees do apply.
Skrill
Skrill is a service comparable to Paypal, but it is a much smaller platform. There are also some difference in the options and fee structures between the two. Skrill is mostly adopted in Europe and operates a lot in niches like online gaming and gambling. They also have an option for users to buy, sell and manage cryptocurrency directly in their account.
Shutterstock payout
When you have met your minimum amount on Shutterstock, they will automatically payout the earnings after the end of the month. It is not possible to your request your earnings at a random moment, you have to wait until the end of month. Also, if your payment option is correctly setup, you do not have to take any further action to receive your funds in your preferred account.
When you have earned the minimum payout amount, at the first day of the next month your unpaid earnings in your Shutterstock account will automatically drop to $0,00. If you have not received payment from Shutterstock yet, don’t panic. You have to give it some time and it will come.
How long does Shutterstock payout take?
Immediately when the month ends, your unpaid earnings will drop to $0,00. As soon as you start earning new income in the new month, it will start to rise again. But it takes some time for the money to arrive in your account. First, after a couple of days you will receive an email from Shutterstock stating that your payment has been calculated and which amount you will receive. A few days after that the amount will appear in your account.
Shutterstock says they will process all payments between one and two weeks, starting from the moment the new month begins. In my personal experience for the last 10 payouts by Shutterstock, I received the email on average after 4 days and the payment itself after 5 days. This is way faster than they claim on their website, so I think they have built in some margin for themselves.
If you have still not received your payment two weeks after the month that you earned the payout minimum has ended, I advise you to contact Shutterstock contributor support.
Conclusion
If you have chosen your payment provider and set it up correctly in your Shutterstock account, just wait until you reach the minimum payout and you will be paid automatically in the next month. You just need to be a bit patient until the money shows up in your account.