Cost of Portrait Painting in the United States: A Comprehensive Guide

Cost of Portrait Painting in the United States | If there is one gift idea that has historically been most popular, it is portrait painting. Whether its wedding related photos, a family photo, or your own photo.  Custom painting has always been viewed as a legacy investment.

Custom portrait painting has a remarkable place in the history of the United States. However, in this article we will not discuss about this history or other issues.

But we will understand particularly about prices of portrait painting in the United States.

We will explore the factors that affect the cost of portrait painting. You will also get information about availability of custom portrait etc.  Which will also serve as a general pricing guide to help you to make an informed decision.

If you are thinking of ordering a portrait painting, and wish to get quality work done at the right price, then you must study this article carefully.

 Because there is neither any direct market in the field of art and painting nor any particular pricing system. The value of an art piece depends on a variety of factors. It is important for you to have a general understanding of these factors.

I believe that after studying this article thoroughly, you will surely be able to develop a general understanding on the topic “how to order a high-quality portrait painting at the right price”.

Factors Affecting Portrait Painting Cost

Size and complexity of the work – Generally artists decide the price of portrait painting on the basis of size and number of subjects.

But a portrait artist can also set a price based on the time and labor required to complete the painting by considering the complexity of the work such as details, background on the portrait you want etc.

Experience and efficiency the artist – You might have often experienced that when you share the same reference picture with different artists, they all quote different prices depending on their experience and efficiency.

Established artists with a good portfolio and a history of several successful portrait commissions usually charge more than newer and less established artists.

Medium of portrait– The price of portrait painting also depends to a great extent on what kind of portraits you like and in which medium you want them done.

For example, oil painting portraits are more expensive than other painting mediums due to their better quality, longer preparation process and longer drying time.

Framing and shipping cost factor – While ordering a portrait painting, you should be careful about the framing and shipping costs. You should find out if the cost of shipping and framing is included. The larger the size of the painting, the higher will be the cost of the frame. The cost of shipping also increases accordingly.

Here I would like to point out that most portrait artists do not have the option of framing because the price becomes very high for a customer.

For this reason, portrait artists now a day are shipping the canvas rolled and packed in a protective tube (which is usually a very strong PVC pipe). This is a standard protocol for shipping paintings and is quite safe and cost effective.

The portrait painting received in this way can be easily framed by the customer in any normal frame shop nearby.

Portrait Painting Price With Sizes in United States America

Even in the United States, the price of a portrait painting is often determined by medium and size. According to a research, the price of a single subject oil canvas painting of A3 size can be around 150 UDS  to 500 USD, the price of A2 size can be around 300 UDS to 1000 USD and for A1 size the price ranges from 500 USD to 1500 USD.  But as we have said earlier, this price depends on many different factors.

However, depending on different mediums like charcoal, water color, acrylic color, the price of the portrait painting can be more or less.

How to get a portrait done cost effectively

Most of the customers from the United States for any kind of painting and custom portrait prefer to get work done by artists outside United States.

Because portrait painting artists from other countries like India, Ukraine etc. deliver good quality work at comparatively lower prices and deliver it to the doorstep in the United States.

Additionally, art appreciators based in the United States often hire cheap artists through freelancing platforms like Etsy and Fiverr.

 However, due to this sometime customers have to face problems.

Moreover, the platform fees of these freelancing platforms are also very high; hence this additional expense also goes from the customer’s pocket.

Here you can read a detailed guide on ordering portrait painting through freelancing platforms like Fiverr “Ordering A Portrait Painting On Fiverr“

In this age of internet and social, many eminent and experienced artists from emerging countries like India, China are also reaching out to clients across the world through their independent platforms like portfolio websites, social media accounts etc. That is why nowadays most of the customers from the United States have started placing orders on platforms of these independent portrait artists directly.

When ordering portrait painting from independent artists, it is very important to thoroughly research their work, past customer reviews, portfolio, etc.