OnlyFans is a subscription-based content service. OnlyFans, founded in 2016 in London by British digital entrepreneur and investor Timothy Stokely, is a marketplace that enables content producers to sell exclusive material to an audience willing to pay a premium price. Creators may place their work behind a paywall, enabling fans to access it in exchange for a monthly subscription fee or a one-time donation. OnlyFans now has over 50 million registered users and over 1 million content producers and everyone wants to know what is OnlyFans,  how does OnlyFans work, and how to make money on OnlyFans, since people are going crazy.

OnlyFans producers may publish a variety of different types of material that appeals to their intended audience. OnlyFans has few limitations, which makes it simple for content producers to upload explicit material, which is how the site became famous. When people hear about OnlyFans, they often think of explicit content shared by sex workers, models, and others. However, it is not the purpose of the site. Everybody has the ability to post anything they want to share with their OnlyFans.

How Does OnlyFans Work?

So, how does OnlyFans work? What is OnlyFans’ mission? OnlyFans aims to offer a platform for artists to produce and distribute unique, premium content. Creators may choose to make their page free or premium, and fans can then pay for access to the creator’s unique material. While artists may establish accounts for free, when they make money via the site, OnlyFans pays out 80% of their profits and retains 20% as a fee.

Due to the explicit nature of most of the material on OnlyFans, users must be at least 18 years old and have a government-issued photo ID to register. OnlyFans also protects each creator’s branded material, preventing it from being shared outside the site. Indeed, if a person attempts to screenshot the site, the information is blacked out. Users may also be banned if they are found attempting to screenshot or record what is happening.

Who Uses OnlyFans?

OnlyFans is available to everyone. OnlyFans is a community of writers, poets, inspirational speakers, authors, painters, and chefs. However, the site is most recognized as a content center for porn stars, sex workers, and others.

OnlyFans is also frequently used by amateur pornographers and sex workers who submit movies and pictures and engage with their admirers through direct messaging.

How to make money on OnlyFans?

OnlyFans establishes the minimum and maximum prices for subscriptions. The lowest monthly membership fee is $4.99, while the highest monthly subscription fee is $49.99. Additionally, creators may provide tips or charge for private messages that begin at a minimum amount of $5. Paid private messages and tips may help artists not only make more money but also engage with followers and grow a devoted following.

Despite the fact that Bella’s monthly membership fee is set at $6.50, Miss Swedish Bella is one of the highest-earning artists on OnlyFans. She earns most of her money by charging fees for commissioned work delivered through private messaging. According to Business Insider, Huldt has amassed over 1100 members and earns more than $100,000 a year with OnlyFans.

Despite the fact that Huldt had a sizable Instagram following before joining OnlyFans, she told Business Insider that she allotted seven days per week for OnlyFans material to maintain her profits. Huldt gave the following advice to authors contemplating earning money via OnlyFans: “I would never recommend it to someone who just wants to do it twice a week or anything. In your mind, this is not a part-time endeavor. You will earn insufficient money. “

This sentiment is shared by a large number of online sex workers who have created an account on OnlyFans. Many of them discuss how tough it is to make a living on the platform since a large portion of it is dependent on the ability to develop a following. Additionally, you must invest time and effort into regularly producing material for a period of time before the account generates a sufficient return.

For an extra charge, OnlyFans producers may sell customized or interactive material on the platform. Certain artists have created a tip menu that explains the materials and interactions they provide, as well as the associated fees. Again, OnlyFans retains 20% of the revenue generated by producers and provides this advice on making money on the site “”Your earning potential is completely dependent on the quality and amount of material you post. The more content you provide, the more compelling it is for your followers to subscribe. We hope this gives you a clear idea on how to make money on OnlyFans.

Get Paid for Referrals

Additionally, OnlyFans provides a referral programme via which individuals who recommend a creative to the platform may receive 5% of the referred creator’s profits for the first twelve months, up to the referred artist’s first $1 million in earnings. There are no restrictions on the number of recommended creators or the total amount earned via referrals. Monthly referral payments are made on each month’s first business day.

What is OnlyFans referral programme policy? The referral programme formerly paid out 5% of the recommended creator’s profits for life, but due to the platform’s popularity, referrals are now restricted to the first year after registration, up to the referred creator’s first $1 million in revenues. Some artists have created and signed a petition urging OnlyFans to restore the previous method, particularly given the fact that many sex workers depend on the OnlyFans site for revenue. Considering the fact that OnlyFans already deducts 20% of author profits, this is not an unreasonable expectation.

Subscription-based social media

Such platforms are a growing revenue stream for technical and creative businesses. Users pay and subscribe to a subscription-based social media network in order to get and use a particular product or service for a specified length of time.

While subscription-based models are more prevalent and popular offline (for example, streaming your favorite programmes on Hulu and Netflix, newspaper subscriptions, and gym memberships), their popularity among many internet companies continues to increase daily.

Subscription-Based Social Media Platforms

Businesses and emerging brands may profit in a variety of ways from social media platforms that offer subscriptions:

  • Businesses may initiate online discussions regarding their goods and services: This may help foster dialogue and build a community around your company. Additionally, this approach may aid the company in differentiating itself from rivals in the eyes of current and potential customers. Businesses may generate enthusiasm about their products and increase demand by using a subscription-based social channel.
  • Businesses may offer real value to their consumers and brand supporters via subscription-based social media platforms: Due to the thrill and convenience of a social media platform membership, consumers may become brand ambassadors and unintentionally assist you in your efforts to market.
  • When a client subscribes to your company, they are making a long-term commitment to your success: A subscription is a long-term (relatively) commitment. Every month, subscribers want to see content from you. It is a recurring revenue stream.

The Internet has developed into a platform that provides a plethora of services – from social networking to e-commerce, to name a few. Social media has grown from a platform for individuals to interact with one another to a marketing tool for companies. Similarly, we are seeing the adoption of subscription-based platforms, which is a completely new economic model for internet companies. The online subscription-based sector is thriving, with the majority of firms seeing rapid development. A portion of this may be ascribed to companies’ use of social media not just for marketing purposes, but also to collect consumer information.

OnlyFans is one of a growing number of subscription-based social networking networks. MeWe, a social network that is subscription-based, has introduced a premium service that allows users to pay for features such as establishing a business page, phone and video conferencing, and cloud storage. Users may access all premium services for $4.99 per month. MeWe’s platform has already attracted millions of people seeking a substitute for Facebook.

Since the worldwide COVID-19 epidemic started in early 2020, Google searches for “onlyfans” have risen significantly, and OnlyFans claims that between March and April, OnlyFans added about 200,000 new members per day, a 75 percent increase in new users. However, we look forward to seeing if the trend continues. What is apparent is that a social platform that is subscription-based is a realistic and flourishing response to social isolation and our increasingly digital environment.

Onlyfans Statistics

  • $2 Billion Payouts to Creators

Variety stated in August 2020, when Bella Thorne was setting up OnlyFans, that OnlyFans had made payments of more than USD 1 billion to its content creators. By November 2020, according to The Information, this amount had grown to $2 billion.

  • $1 Million in 24 Hours

Bella Thorne, an actress, singer, and model, made quite an impression during her brief tenure on OnlyFans. While her time on the stage was short, it was undoubtedly dramatic.

Bella joined OnlyFans last year in August and earned over $1 million in income in her first 24 hours, establishing a platform record. She facilitated this by publicizing her intentions through an Instagram video montage (where she currently has 24.3 million followers).

Within a year, her earnings had more than quadrupled to $2 million. Bella had set her monthly membership to OnlyFans at $20. (with a 20 percent discount for 1 month of the subscription and 15 percent off if fans buy access for 3 or 6 months).

Thorn subsequently stated that she created the OnlyFans account to use it as an experiment for director Sean Baker’s documentary. Baker, however, has categorically refuted her statement.

Bella Thorne stayed on OnlyFans for a brief period of time. She sparked outrage by charging $200 for “naked” photographs that really showed her wearing lingerie. This resulted in many refund claims, prompting OnlyFans to reportedly change its payment rates and chargeback policies. On the forum, sex workers claimed that Thorn’s actions harmed their livelihood.

  • The majority of the accounts do not make more than $145 per month

The majority of performers do not profit handsomely from OnlyFans. Indeed, the overwhelming majority earn less than $145 each month.

However, it should be noted that one factor contributing to this disparity is the fact that a huge proportion of OnlyFans accounts do not have any fans at all. They are not equipped to handle serious broadcasting.

  • 33% of the money is made by the top 1% of accounts

As XSRUS points out, however, the income generated by content producers follows typical power-law distribution. The best achievers receive much more than the rest. The richest 1% of accounts earn 33% of all money, while the top 10% earn 73% of all money.

Naturally, influencers and celebrities have an inherent edge in terms of earning money on OnlyFans. They arrive with a pre-assembled crowd. It’s probably not difficult to convert a part of an already large Instagram following to OnlyFans and earn money from them.

  • $180/month is the average earnings at OnlyFans

XSRUS has crunched the statistics to determine the anticipated profits of the developers of OnlyFans. They estimate that the typical account earns about $180 per month. They do note, however, that their estimates omit tipping since no information regarding money collected as tips is accessible on OnlyFans.

  • 20% is cut by OnlyFans on user transactions

OnlyFans’ business strategy is simple. They act as a conduit for paywalled content. Creators create and distribute exclusive material that their members pay for. OnlyFans receive a percentage of these fees.

Indeed, OnlyFans retains a very healthy 20% of all payments made by subscribers. The more money OnlyFans earns, as you charge more and the number of subscribers you have increases. And this is true for all transactions on OnlyFans, not just those involving sexual material.

As XSRUS points out, OnlyFans’ business model is superior to that of Uber or Airbnb. The proprietor of an Uber vehicle or an Airbnb home is limited to serving a single group of clients at a time. However, the OnlyFans channel does not have this restriction. You may add more members at any time, and all subscribers can view material concurrently, with OnlyFans getting a 20% profit on all purchases. “On OnlyFans, it’s multiplicative – a single selfie may satisfy ten or a thousand devoted admirers.”

  • 15 Million New Users/ Month

Tim Stockley, the creator of OnlyFans, was cited in 2019 in The West Australian as claiming that the site was enrolling 1,000 new members per hour.

That certainly sounded like a lot at the time. However, the platform’s user base has continued to grow. As previously stated, Mashable cites an OnlyFans official as stating that the number of new members and content producers almost doubled in March 2020 alone.

According to several sources, as of December 2020, Tim Stokely estimates that OnlyFans adds an average of 500,000 new members each day.

  • 8000 New Content Creators Each Day

Tim Stockley, the founder of OnlyFans, was cited in The West Australian in early 2019 as stating, “We are now onboarding around 3000 new video producers each week.” Of course, this was long before COVID stranded everyone at home with nothing to do. Since then, OnlyFans has attracted an increasing number of content producers.

Currently, the site welcomes 8000 new content producers each day, according to Thomas Stokely, the site’s chief operations officer.

  • Over 50 Million OnlyFans Registered Users

We ran into the same issue as we did with content producers about a lack of official statistics for the number of users. We may simply extrapolate from previously published papers. OnlyFans reportedly surpassed 7 million registered users in 2019. According to a January 2020 Economist story on British OnlyFans celebrity Lucy-Anne Brooks, OnlyFans claims that it has 12 million registered members at this time.

Mashable claimed in March 2020 that 26 million members have registered themselves on OnlyFans.

However, Variety claimed in late August 2020 that OnlyFans had grown to over 50 million registered members. Clearly, a large number of individuals have resorted to OnlyFans to pass the time while under COVID-imposed confinement.

Top Earners on OnlyFans

Because the majority of the highest earners were already famous before joining OnlyFans, it’s not surprising that they had massive fan bases eager to pay high money for their exclusive material. Consider the platform’s top earners as an asset, not a competitor. Rather than that, utilize their tails as inspiration and guidance on how you may also make money with OnlyFans.

As an OnlyFans content producer, you get to establish your own prices and select what kind of material to publish and when. In contrast to the other social media platforms, OnlyFans enables artists to pursue their passions without being constrained by a particular brand’s definition of success. OnlyFans empowers content producers to be what they want to be.

Latest Updates

After banning explicit content because of the ever-rising pressure from the companies offering financial services, OnlyFans has recently issued a statement that they have suspended the planned policy and will continue to serve as a home to all sorts of content creators.