Patreon is a subscription crowdfunding website that you can use to get funding on a recurring basis.
I’m talking about on a monthly or per-creation basis. A lot of podcasters, YouTubers, illustrators, and creative types use this website to monetize their fanbase.
If you’re familiar with Drip, they are kind of similar to that, only they’ve been around longer and thus have a larger user base.
In this blog post, I want to go through some of the statistics, demographics, and average Patreon earnings when it comes to this website. I hope it gives you a clearer idea of the user-base.
I have another great article on how to put together a good campaign and a killer YouTube video if you’d like a bit more info on this website.
Patreon is Growing Rapidly
If you take a look at the statistics down below (thank you Graphtreon), you can see the monthly growth of Patreon over time.
Jan 2017: $7.8 million in monthly payouts
Jan 2018: $12.4 million in monthly payouts
That’s more than a 50% growth in monthly payouts in the course of a year. Wow!
You can also take a look at the number of creators on Patreon and how that’s growing in the chart below.
Jan 2017: ~45,000 creators
Jan 2018: ~92,000 creators
The number of creators have doubled in the span of a year, bringing more backers to the website and more great work into the world.
If Patreon keeps at this pace, then it’s set to pay out more than $100 million to creators given their current average $12 million per month monthly payout. According to Patreon itself, this is actually closer to $150 million in 2017.
Popular Patreon Categories
Let’s take a look a some of the more popular Patreon categories that are making up the bulk of the monthly payments to creators. This will help you get a clear idea of who the site is for.
You can easily see that projects related to video, podcasts, writing, and music make up the bulk of the monthly payments to creators.
Naturally, that video content is coming from YouTubers, like Philip Defranco, who are using Patreon as a way to monetize their fanbase.
There is also a significant bulk of the monthly payouts coming from adult-related content in the form of video, cosplay, and animation.
Keep in mind that these statistics are coming from Graphtreon. Patreon’s actual statistics may vary. You can learn about what they say about their growth here.
Average Patreon Earnings and Pledge
On average, Patrons or backers pay an average of $12 per month to their creators and 55% are new to the website when they give money. The average amount patrons contribute per pledge is about $6.
Looking at the statistics on Graphtreon for the top creators, many of these creators experience monthly giving rates of $2 – $6 per month. Keep in mind that not every campaign reveals the amount the creator makes.
This tells me a few things. Mainly that:
- Patreon is a good fit for entertainment-related creators
- You need a big fanbase in order to create significant income
- You can create significant recurring earnings each month
You’re going to need a fanbase before going on the website and basically you’re using the functionality to monetize the fanbase.
It probably isn’t going to be a good fit if you’re trying to sell high-ticket membership access to a course or something like that. Most of the backers are supporting projects for low amounts.
The Future of Patreon
According to the website, “When we surveyed creators back in November and asked how you heard about Patreon, 45% of you responded that another creator’s mention of Patreon on social media influenced your decision to launch, while 10% of you responded that another creator reached out to you directly.”
This means that as the actual brand of Patreon spreads, more and more creators are getting interested in the website and giving it a go. This is helping the site to spread through word of mouth marketing.
If you’d like to get in on the action, you can use this special link to join Patreon.
Personally, given these statistics, I think that we’re going to see Patreon becoming a major force in the YouTuber community over the next several years. It also seems to be a good fit for entertainment-style podcasts that garner lots of listeners.
I think more adult-entertainment creators will flock to the platform – as those types of businesses struggle to monetize in traditional marketplaces. This will only serve to increase the backer community.
From what I’ve seen, it doesn’t seem yet like there is a super strong community of super patrons on the website, in the way that there is on Kickstarter. However, as more patrons back multiple creators, I could see this happening.
I think that Patreon would need to work on its discovery functionality so that not only do Patrons get to see some of the trending projects, but also sample what it is that these creators are making.
Actually, I discovered a ton of tricks that can help you earn recurring income from Patreon using subscription crowdfunding. This is dependable, repeat income to fuel your craft. You can really turn your passion into profit. You can learn more about the Patreon tricks I’ve discovered here.
