People only buy art they know exists. Most artists who are making work but not selling it have a visibility problem, and the fix is a short path from "I made this" to a page where the right person can find it and pay.

Artists who sell steadily rarely rely on one magic outlet. They keep several doors open at once: a marketplace with built-in shoppers, a shop with their own name on it, social media, a few art fairs, and wholesale when the work allows it. The ones who keep it up also keep their catalog in one place, so listing never eats the hours they need for making.

This guide walks through every step, from choosing where to sell to your first repeat buyer. Facts about each platform come from its own website, checked on October 15, 2026.¹–⁶

Brakebee is an art marketplace and selling platform for people who make their work themselves. Everything runs on one catalog, so a piece you add once can appear in your own shop, in the curated Brakebee marketplace, at your art fair booth, at the print lab, in your wholesale listings and in your marketing.¹

Your own shop. Every free account includes a shop at yourname.brakebee.com with a catalog, product pages, an about page, collections, a blog, cart, checkout and a contact form. A website plan adds your own web address, and Brakebee Custom Sites can design a private website for you.¹,²,³

A curated marketplace. Accepted artists are listed together, earn the Verified Artist badge, and sell to buyers who can check out from several artists at once.²

Marketing on the same catalog. Social Central publishes to your own social accounts, email blasts and drips reach your list, and the CRM that holds that list is included free. Managed Lines is a done-for-you program for artists who want the online side run for them.¹,⁴

Print-on-demand. The Phoenix lab prints, packs and ships a print after a collector pays, and you can order a print run for your booth.¹,⁵

Art fairs. Browse events, apply with a reusable jury packet, and take payment at the booth with Make a Sale.²

Connectors and wholesale. Square connects free, add-on connectors reach Etsy, Shopify, Faire, Walmart, Wayfair, eBay and TikTok Shop, and the Wholesale Market add-on lets stores and galleries buy your stocked work.¹,²

The account is free, there is no monthly marketplace fee, and a marketplace sale carries a 15% commission with card processing included.⁷

Each place you can sell has a different job. A marketplace brings shoppers who are already browsing. Your own shop gives you a page to hand to every collector. Social media tells people something new exists, and fairs put the work in a stranger's hands.

Saatchi Art is an online gallery with curators who review new work, and artists apply with a short sample portfolio before they sell. It handles shipping arrangements for sold originals and also offers open edition prints.⁸ Fine Art America is a print-on-demand marketplace where you upload an image, pick products and set your own markup.⁹ Etsy is the marketplace many artists try first, and its built-in traffic is a real advantage when you have never sold online.

Treat any marketplace as one door into your business. Brakebee's marketplace is curated and art-focused, with a flat commission only when you sell and no monthly listing fee.⁷ Acceptance takes a review, and acceptance also turns on the Verified Artist badge. The catalog you build for your own shop is the same one that appears on the marketplace.²

How to sell art on Etsy alongside everything else

If Etsy already earns its keep, keep it. Point your Etsy profile at your own shop, keep your descriptions consistent, and update stock the moment an original sells somewhere else. Brakebee's Etsy connector lists catalog products on Etsy from the same catalog, so you are not entering every piece twice.¹

You can start without a custom web address, but every artist needs a shop people can bookmark. A marketplace listing is rented attention. Your own shop is the page you hand to a collector, a festival customer, or the relative who keeps asking where to buy your work.

An artist selling original work usually needs a catalog, product pages, a cart, checkout, shipping, a contact form and a public address. General website builders can do all of that, often with apps and extensions added over time, so add up everything you will need before you commit. Our guide to the <a href="https://brakebee.com/articles/best-website-builder-for-artists">best website builder for artists</a> compares six of them. If you'd rather have your Shopify store run for you, see <a href="https://brakebee.com/articles/shopify-to-managed-lines">why artists are moving from Shopify to Brakebee Managed Lines</a>.

On Brakebee, the free shop at yourname.brakebee.com already includes catalog, product pages, about page, collections, blog, cart, checkout and contact form, along with search titles, meta descriptions and share cards for each page.² Shipping labels with calculated USPS, UPS and FedEx rates come with the account.¹ When you want your own web address, the website plan adds it. Brakebee Custom Sites designs a private site around your studio, usually live in about a week, and Custom Design is $500/year plus a one-time design fee quoted per project.³,¹⁰

Step 3: Photograph and describe your work

Photos do most of the selling online. Shoot in soft natural light against a neutral wall, keep the camera square to the piece, and crop tightly so the colors match the work in person. Add a detail shot for texture, a side view for depth and a photo in a room so buyers can judge the size.

Each description should tell the story behind the piece, then give the facts a buyer needs to decide: size, medium, surface, framing, care, and whether it is an original or an edition. On Brakebee, Leo, the built-in AI helper, drafts descriptions from your catalog so you can edit instead of starting from a blank page.¹

Pick a pricing method you can explain and repeat. Many artists price by size, so a larger piece in the same series costs more, and they offer several price levels with originals, limited editions, open prints and small items. Keep your prices the same everywhere you sell, so a collector never finds the same piece cheaper on another site.

Brakebee's Luca helps with costing and pricing as you build your catalog.²

You do not need to become a marketing professional. Early marketing comes down to three habits: keep a public shop current, tell the people who already like your work that the shop exists and ask them to pass the link on, and show up in one or two places where strangers already browse.

Fifty serious fans who might buy are worth more than a million followers who never will. Exposure still matters, because it is how the next few people who would love your work find you, and the goal of this step is to reach beyond friends and family.

Social media is where people hear that something new exists. Post the work, talk like a person, and point every bio and caption at your shop or a specific product page. A steady posting rhythm you can keep beats bursts of activity.

Instagram, Pinterest and TikTok all suit visual work. To sell art on Instagram, keep your shop link in your bio, show pieces in progress and in real rooms, and tell followers when new work is listed.

Brakebee Social Central connects your own social accounts so you can publish from the Brakebee dashboard. A free amount of posting is included, and the add-on covers more. Leo and Luca work out when to post and create original content, and you choose what goes out.¹

Your email list is the audience you keep. Invite booth visitors, past buyers and website visitors to join, and write when you have new work, a show coming up or a story behind a piece.

Brakebee includes the full email suite on the same catalog. An email blast sends one email to your list, written in the dashboard and sent when you choose. An email drip sends a series on a schedule you set, which works well for welcoming a new collector or following up after a show. Your contacts live in the CRM, which is included free with every account.¹

Give every product page a clear title, a real description and alt text on each photo, and write the occasional blog post about your process or a new series. Brakebee shops include search titles, meta descriptions and share cards for each page.²

Managed Lines is Brakebee's done-for-you program. Brakebee builds your catalog, runs a hosted website, schedules posts through Social Central, lists your work across the Brakebee marketplace, Etsy, Faire, Wayfair, Walmart, eBay and TikTok Shop where it fits, sends regular emails and turns artwork into print-on-demand products when it makes sense.⁴ Marketing in the program is organic, Brakebee is plain that it cannot promise sales, and you keep the copyright to your work. Pricing and terms are shared when you apply.⁴

Prints let one original earn more than once and give buyers a lower price point. Print-on-demand means nothing is printed until it sells. Our guide on <a href="https://brakebee.com/articles/sell-prints-online">how to sell prints of your art</a> covers this step in depth.

Brakebee's print-on-demand is built into the same catalog. You upload a file, set your price and sell prints on the marketplace and your own shop, and the Phoenix lab prints, packs and ships each order.⁵ Finishes include gloss, satin and matte aluminum metal prints, photo prints, gallery-wrap canvas and giclée, and custom products such as notecards, coasters and calendars.⁵ When you need stock for a show, you can order a print run from the same lab.¹

Art fairs and festivals are still where many artists meet the people who become repeat buyers, and those buyers often come back online later. Bring cards with your shop link, collect emails at the booth, and keep your online inventory in step with what you sell in person.

On Brakebee, you can browse events at <a href="https://brakebee.com/events">brakebee.com/events</a>, apply from the dashboard with a reusable jury packet and artist personas, and take payment at the booth with Make a Sale, which accepts card, cash and other payments such as Venmo, Zelle or check. Booth sales come from the same catalog as your online listings.²

Step 8: Add wholesale when the work allows it

Wholesale makes sense once the same piece can leave the studio more than once, through editions, prints or a design you can make again. Set a wholesale price that leaves you a margin, decide on minimums, and keep enough stock to fill a reorder.

The Brakebee Wholesale Market add-on lets stores and galleries buy work you already have in stock, with your own wholesale prices, volume tiers and minimums. Buyers apply at <a href="https://brakebee.com/buy-wholesale-art">brakebee.com/buy-wholesale-art</a>.²,⁶

Selling in several places usually means entering each piece in each place. On Brakebee, one catalog feeds your shop, the marketplace, fairs, prints and wholesale.

Listing your work

A marketplace brings shoppers, and your own site holds your brand. Brakebee gives you both, with the curated marketplace and your own shop on the same account.

Getting found

Separate social, email and contact tools each need their own setup. Brakebee runs Social Central, email blasts and drips and the included CRM from one dashboard.

Marketing

Many artists add a print service through an app or a separate account. Brakebee prints, packs and ships from its own lab in Phoenix.

Prints

Applications, booth payments and online stock often live in different places. Brakebee keeps events, jury packets and Make a Sale next to your catalog.

Art fairs

Some artists hire marketing help as they grow. Brakebee offers Managed Lines to run the online side for you.

Help

The second step is the one artists skip, because it feels like learning a whole new skill. On Brakebee, most of that step starts with adding the piece to your catalog, and the marketplace, Social Central, email and your event calendar carry it from there. No one can promise that listing a piece will sell it, but a piece no one sees will never sell.

Every step here works on its own, and they work best together. If you want one catalog behind your shop, a curated art marketplace, marketing, print-on-demand, art fairs and wholesale, Brakebee brings them together, and you can start with a free account today.

¹ Brakebee, Makers page: one catalog, shop, website plan, Social Central, email blasts and drips, CRM included, Leo, shipping labels, print-on-demand and print runs, connectors, Wholesale Market. brakebee.com/makers, confirmed Oct 15, 2026.

² Brakebee, Features page: shop contents and SEO fields, curated marketplace and Verified Artist badge, Luca pricing help, art fair tools and Make a Sale, Wholesale Market. brakebee.com/makers/features, confirmed Oct 15, 2026.

³ Brakebee, Custom Sites page: private design, timeline. brakebee.com/custom-sites, confirmed Oct 15, 2026.

⁴ Brakebee, Managed Lines page: program scope, marketplaces, organic marketing, no sales guarantee, ownership, pricing at application. brakebee.com/managed-lines, confirmed Oct 15, 2026.

⁵ Brakebee, Print-on-demand page: Phoenix lab, finishes, custom products. brakebee.com/print-on-demand, confirmed Oct 15, 2026.

⁶ Brakebee, Buy Wholesale Art page. brakebee.com/buy-wholesale-art, confirmed Oct 15, 2026.

⁷ <a href="https://brakebee.com/makers">Source: Website published prices as of 10/15/2026</a>

⁸ Saatchi Art, Why Sell page: application with sample portfolio, curators, shipping, open edition prints. saatchiart.com/whysell, accessed Oct 15, 2026.

⁹ Fine Art America, Sell Art Online page: print-on-demand products, artist-set markup. fineartamerica.com/sell-art-online, accessed Oct 15, 2026.

¹⁰ <a href="https://brakebee.com/custom-sites">Source: Website published prices as of 10/15/2026</a>

Facts about other platforms reflect their websites on the date accessed and may change.

Artist photographing a finished painting in a sunlit studio for an online shop

How to sell art online in 2026: where to sell, setting up your shop, photos, pricing, marketing, prints, art fairs and wholesale, step by step for artists.

How to Sell Art Online in 2026: A Step-by-Step Guide for Artists

Selling prints is one of the most reliable ways for an artist to earn from a single piece more than once. A well-made print of a painting can hang in many homes, at a price more people can say yes to. If you have ever wondered how to sell prints of your art online, the good news is that the path is clearer than it looks, and most of it comes down to a series of practical decisions you can make one at a time.

This guide walks through ten steps, from choosing which pieces to print all the way to tracking what sells and growing from there. It focuses on print-on-demand, since that is the simplest way for most artists to start selling art prints online without buying inventory first. If you want a quick overview of how Brakebee's version works, our <a href="/print-on-demand">print-on-demand for artists</a> page covers the basics, and this article goes deeper into the whole process.

Step 1: Pick which artworks to offer as prints

Start with the pieces people already respond to. Look at the work that gets the most comments, questions and shares, and the originals that sold quickly or drew interest after they were gone. Those are your strongest candidates, because buyers have already told you they care about them.

Think about how each piece will read on a wall at print size. Bold compositions, strong color and clear subjects tend to hold up well across many sizes, while very fine detail may need a larger print to shine. Work with a lot of texture, such as heavy impasto, can still make a lovely print, though the print shows a flat image of that texture, so describe it honestly in your listing.

It helps to launch with a small, cohesive group of pieces. A handful of related pieces makes your shop feel curated, gives buyers an easy way to pick a pair or a set, and lets you learn what sells before you add more.

Your print can only be as good as the file behind it. For flat work such as drawings, watercolors and small paintings, a flatbed scan usually captures the most accurate color and detail. Larger or textured pieces are often better photographed with even, diffused light from both sides, the camera square to the artwork, and a color reference card in the frame so you can correct color afterward.

Edit gently. Crop to the edge of the art, straighten any tilt, and adjust color so the file matches the original when you view them side by side. Save a full-resolution master file and keep it safe, since every print you sell will come from it.

Check your aspect ratio early. Standard print sizes come in a few common proportions, and a piece that does not match one of them will need either a crop or a border. Deciding this now saves surprises when you set up products later. If you are unsure whether your file is sharp enough for larger sizes, order a sample at the biggest size you plan to sell and look at it closely.

Step 3: Choose how your prints get made and shipped

You have two broad ways to fulfill orders. You can order a batch of prints from a lab, store them and ship each sale yourself, or you can use print-on-demand, where each print is made only after a customer orders it and ships straight to them.

Each print is made after a sale and shipped directly to your buyer, so you can offer every size and finish without holding stock.

Print-on-demand

You buy a batch up front, keep it on hand and pack every order yourself, which suits art fairs, wholesale and hands-on quality checks.

Bulk lab order

For most artists selling online, print-on-demand removes the two biggest headaches of selling prints, which are paying for stock before anyone buys it and spending evenings at the packing table. We compare the two models in detail in <a href="/articles/print-lab-vs-print-on-demand">print lab vs print-on-demand</a>, including when a mix of both makes sense.

Step 4: Choose sizes, finishes and products

Offering a few thoughtful choices helps buyers find the version that fits their space. Give them a small, medium and large option of each piece to start, and add more sizes once you see where demand is.

The finish changes how a piece looks and feels on the wall, so match each artwork to the surfaces that flatter it.

Beyond wall art, many artists add smaller products that let fans buy in at a lower commitment. Notecards, coasters, calendars and keychains featuring your work make easy gifts and can introduce new people to your art.

Buyers need a place to find and purchase your prints. Most artists combine a shop they control with a few marketplaces where shoppers already browse. Your own shop gives you a home base to tell your story and keep your branding consistent, and marketplaces put your work in front of people who are actively looking for art and gifts.

When comparing print-on-demand platforms, look at who sets your retail price, how and when you get paid, which finishes are available and which sales channels you can connect. Our guide to the <a href="/articles/best-print-on-demand-for-artists">best print-on-demand for artists</a> lines up seven options side by side so you can compare them on the points that matter to you.

If you would like a fully branded artist website as your home base, Brakebee also builds <a href="/custom-sites">custom artist sites</a> for $500/year, with a one-time setup quoted before work starts.

Pricing feels personal, but a simple method keeps it grounded. Start with what each print costs you to produce and ship, add any platform or payment fees, then add the profit you want to earn on every sale. That total is your floor, and you should never sell below it.

From there, look at artists whose style, experience and audience are similar to yours, and see where their prints sit. Pricing in the same neighborhood helps buyers feel confident, and your own sales will tell you over time whether to move up.

See how print-on-demand works for artists

After your first few weeks of sales, patterns start to appear. Note which images, sizes and finishes sell most often, which channels bring the most orders, and which listings get views without converting. Double down on what works by adding sizes or finishes to your best sellers, and refresh or retire what does not move.

Growth from here is usually a matter of steady additions. Add a few new pieces at a time, connect another sales channel when you are ready, and keep listening to what your buyers tell you through their orders.

Brakebee's print-on-demand is built for artists selling their own work. You can offer dozens of print sizes in gloss, satin and matte aluminum, gloss or matte photo prints, gallery wrap canvas and giclée, and archival inks are used for artist prints. You can also turn your designs into custom products such as keychains, notecards, printed decor, coasters, calendars and coloring books.

Orders usually turn around in hours to a day, and you are paid after products ship. Along with your Brakebee shop, you can connect marketplaces including Etsy, Shopify, TikTok Shop, Wayfair, Walmart, Amazon, eBay and Faire, with more coming soon. Learn more on the <a href="/print-on-demand">Brakebee print-on-demand</a> page.

You do not have to finish every step perfectly before you begin. Pick a few strong pieces, prepare good files, choose your finishes and get your first prints listed, then let your buyers guide what comes next.

Sources: Custom Sites "$500/year" with one-time setup quoted: brakebee.com/custom-sites, verified Oct 13, 2026. Brakebee print sizes, finishes, custom products, marketplace connectors, payout timing, turnaround, archival inks for artist prints and limited edition runs: Brakebee, confirmed Oct 13, 2026. No competitor or third-party claims are made in this article.

Sell Prints Online guide banner showing an artist browsing an art print storefront

Turn your artwork into prints that sell: pick the right pieces, prepare files, choose sizes and finishes, price with confidence and reach buyers online.

#Online Business

How to Sell Art Online in 2026: A Step-by-Step Guide for Artists

How to Sell Prints of Your Art Online: A Step-by-Step Guide