The answer may surprise you on how much should you pay to have your army painted. Commissioning a miniature painting studio has its pros and cons.
There’s been a growing interest in hiring studios for commission work in the hobby recently. With that said, we think it’s important to cover what you’re getting in to.
Commission work isn’t a bad thing at all. In fact, it’s one hobbyist supporting a bunch of other hobbyists. But there’s some important background information that you may need to consider before signing your army over to a studio.
Top Feature Image: Great Unclean One By Dark Bunny Creatives
Why Are You Signing Them On For Commission Work
There could be a few reasons for signing on a studio for commission work. One may be the simple fact that you want a good-looking army but aren’t able to paint to the quality you’re wanting. There are some crazy talented groups out there that can blend colors like you wouldn’t believe. With that said though, be prepared to spend a pretty penny.
On the flip side of things, you could have all the painting skills necessary to get your army above tabletop quality. However, you might lack the time. If you lack time, you can sign your models over to a commission company and they’ll be able to paint your models to varying degrees. They usually have bronze, silver, gold, platinum/ or tier 1-5 painting qualities. Obviously, the cheapest would be the least amount of work done (usually a simple base coat and maybe 1-3 colors).
This was a recent commission we did for $10 a model for over 100 models that included basecoating, wash, and painted bases. At $10 a model we considered this “cheap”, however, you may not. These are things you may want to consider when going forward with a painting commission. Where does your time versus money scale slide from here, higher or lower?
Sure you can always go with the cheapest route just to have some color on your models. Then, slowly go back over them finishing up some details here and there. If you want the whole model to be shaded, highlighted, etc. be prepared to see the price only go up.
Other factors that can fluctuate cost is:
- GW plastic/Forge World Resin
- Character models
- Assembly
- Detailed basing
Commission Painting Studios Are A Business
We all want the best deal, but it helps remember that these commission studios are a business. They’ve got the overhead of keeping the studio space required to do the work as well as pay employees by the hour. You could be expected to pay anywhere from $12-$40+ per model depending on the size and level of the painting you go with. Bottom line, a business can’t survive off of hobbyists paying them below minimum wage to pump out armies. It is expensive, but it is also a work of art which can last a lifetime.
Minimum wage is a measure of minimum skill. A skilled laborer such as an experienced commission artist should earn more than someone who does not possess such talent.
As Commission Companies Grow, Their Time Decreases
As commission companies grow in popularity, they get more orders, the more orders they get, their time depletes. Companies will begin to charge more for their time because they have so much work to complete and not enough time to get it all done. In doing so, the people who don’t mind paying more money will get their work completed. If you’re new to the hobby, don’t be surprised when you see the estimated bill after you go to a well know and established studio looking for them to paint everything for you. The truth of the matter is that it may not bet a far-out price when you start to look around at other businesses.
That being said there may be some smaller newer studios who will be happy to “paint for less” but that is a risk versus reward decision you will have to make for yourself when and if the time comes.
A Rule of Thumb For Those Who Don’t Paint
If you’re a player that doesn’t trust yourself with a brush, there’s no shame in that. However, that means that you need to be prepared to set aside an appropriate amount of money for someone to paint your models for you. If you drop $500 on the start of a new army and only have $150 left over for someone to paint everything, the reality is that you MIGHT be able to cover the cost of painting one of those boxed sets you may have just gotten. And that’s a big MIGHT.
At the end of the day, painting studios are as much of a business as any other store you might see passing by in your car down the road. They all have clientele and need to charge the appropriate amount to stay afloat. If you aren’t comfortable paying their prices because you think it’s too high, you can always try to find someone else who will do it for your prices. However, with anything in life, buyer beware.
Here at Spikey Bits we have a list of commission studios that we have worked with in the past and that we recommend. If you chose to commission any one of them and have a bad experience do let us know about it as they are “Spikey Approved”.
- White Metal Games
- Dark Bunny Creatives
- Den of Imagination
- Top Miniature Studio
- Stiff Neck Studio
- Table Flip Studio
- The Wobbly Modelers
- Hellfire Hobbies
- Elrik’s Painting
- GMM
One studio actually did a comparison article a few years ago on the other studios out there at the time, comparing and contrasting them based on a certain set of criteria. It’s a good read for sure and goes over some of the same points we do above.
Cheap is Not Enough! Painting Studio Study
Let us know what you think about commission work in the comments of our Facebook Hobby Group.
About the Author: Rob Baer
Rob Baer
Job Title: Managing Editor
Founded Spikey Bits in 2009
Socials: Rob Baer on Facebook and @catdaddymbg on X
About Rob Baer: Founder, Publisher, & Managing Editor of Spikey Bits, the leading tabletop gaming news website focused on the hobby side of wargaming and miniatures.
Rob also co-founded and currently hosts the Long War Podcast, which has over 350 episodes and focuses on tabletop miniatures gaming, specializing in Warhammer 40k. and spent six years writing for Bell of Lost Souls.
Every year, along with his co-hosts, he helps host the Long War 40k Doubles Tournament at Adepticon and the Long War 40k Doubles at Las Vegas Open, which attracts over 350 players from around the world.
Rob has won many Warhammer 40k Tournaments over the years, including multiple first-place finishes in Warhammer 40k Grand Tournaments over the years and even winning 1st place at the Adepticon 40k Team Tournament.
With over 30 years of experience in retail and distribution, Rob knows all the products and exactly which ones are the best. As a member of GAMA (Game Manufacturers Association), he advocates for gaming stores and manufacturers in these difficult times, always looking for the next big thing to feature for the miniatures hobby, helping everyone to provide the value consumers want.
While he’s played every edition of Warhammer 40k and Warhammer Fantasy (since 5th Edition) and has been hobbying on miniatures since the 1980s, Titans of all sizes will always be his favorite! It’s even rumored that his hobby vault rivals the Solemnance Galleries, containing rulebooks filled with lore from editions long past, ancient packs of black-bordered Magic Cards, and models made of both pewter and resin.
