One of the most common problems an artist encounters after getting an overseas gig for the first time is determining his page rate. There’s the danger of the artist getting underpaid for his work so some idea of the general range of what a penciller, inker, colorist, and a letterer gets as a page rate would definitely be helpful especially for someone who’s just starting out.
Take note however, that the rates I’m citing here are based on the rates I got from the independent publishers and studios I worked for. If you get the chance to work with the big two (Marvel and DC Comics) you’ll find that their rates are significantly higher.
Pencillers US$ 30.00-US$ 80.00 per page
Inkers US$ 20.00-US$ 70.00 per page
Colorists US$ 15.00-US$ 60.00 per page
Letterers US$ 5.00-US$ 40.00 per page
Some of the more high-end independent publishers will pay more than the rates given here or sweeten the deal by giving out royalties or free copies of the book you’re going to be working on. You can usually negotiate for a higher page rate especially if you’re a relatively known artist and/or you have a solid body of work behind you.
In the case of a penciller who also inks his own work, it’s rare for a studio to pay you for both jobs (but it doesn’t hurt to ask, right?). They usually just add a bit more on top of your penciller’s fee.
Remember that the artwork you’ll be making, unless you signed a contract saying otherwise, is your property. The publisher is only paying for the image and it’s use but the physical artwork itself is yours so be careful when singing anything. Read your contracts and working agreements carefully lest you sign away all the rights to your work without even knowing it. Insist on a 25-50% downpayment for every assignment.
This way if the project doesn’t pull through you are at least compensated for you troubles and cost.
6 Responses to “Page Rates for Independent Publishers and Studios”
Just out of curiosity, Jonas, how can one become a letterer?
Kat: You start by asking for unlettered comic book pages (either yours or artist friends) and basically lettering them. This now becomes your portfolio which you shop around in conventions or online submissions.
Other letterers I know also include fonts that they created themselves as part of their portfolio piece.
Hope that helped.
I’m an artist looking to expand my abilities. I work mainly with ink and thought I could transfer those skills over to inking. I don’t have any comic book work in my portfolio but I do have some great ink work in my portfolio. Would this be exceptable or should I work on getting more comic book art? I would like to hear what you think on this.
thank you in advance
-Gorf
Gorf: You should try and get more comic book related stuff for show in your portfolio. Most comic book editors prefer to see comic stuff since they are in the comic book biz after all.
I checked your site and your art stuff. You should still include some of those when you show your portfolio around just to show you have well-rounded skills and all.
Thanks for visiting!
Thanks for putting this up! Do you have any guess as to what the average rates would be for scripting a comic? (writing out each frame in words for the illustrator to work from)
Hi, Erin. Not really (nothing specific anyway). One rule of thumb I’ve seen used is that the writer gets 60-80% of what the penciller is getting.
If you know what your penciller is getting, it will give you a pretty good idea of what you should be getting.
Unless of course you’re at Alan Moore or Neil Gaiman’s salary grade in which case your guess is as good as mine but one thing’s for sure: it’s going to be a lot.
Thanks for dropping by.
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