PROS
- 100 million images
- 35 free images trial
- Large variety of subscription plans
- One of the lowest stock photo prices
CONS
- Premium images are expensive
- Non-responsive support team
Recently, I noticed that there were no decent reviews of Bigstock available online. Therefore, I decided to share:
- My view of BigStock
- Pricing
- Licensing
- How to get free trial
- Contributor program
- and a lot more
There’s a lot to cover in this Bigstock review, so let’s get right into it!
Bigtock review: Summary
Let’s clear the air first. Bigstock used to be named Bigstockphoto but was renamed a couple of years ago. Therefore, the URL of the site still contains “bigstockphoto.com”, although the site tag says Bigstock.
It was founded in 2004 and acquired by Shutterstock in 2009. Since then, its library has grown tremendously, and now features more than 100 million stock photos.
Bigstock sells images using subscription plans, which offer the best prices ($0.16/image to $2.76/image) and on-demand with credits. These are significantly more expensive ($0.99/download to $3.00/download), but allow for a lot more flexibility and the Extended license.
Reasons to choose Bigstock:
- Owned by Shutterstock
- More than 100 million images
- Affordable subscriptions plans and flexible on-demand packs
- Price per image starting at $0.16
Bigstock deals
Pricing: starting at 0.16/image
Bigstock sells photos with subscriptions and on-demand with credits. The subscription plans come with the best price per photo and are the best for you if you have consistent image needs.
On the other hand, on-demand packs offer a lot of flexibility but are as a tradeoff more expensive.
Subscription plans: Cheaper, but less flexible
Bigstock sells photos with subscription plans of various sizes and length of commitments.
These plans can be divided into daily and monthly image subscription plans, and a couple of videos plans.
I’ll take you over each group of plans separately, so you don’t get lost.
Daily subscriptions (from $0.16/image)
Daily image subscription consists of plans of 5, 10, 20, and 50 images per day that can last 1 month, 3 months, or 12 months.
The larger the plan and the longer it lasts, the lower cost per image gets. Therefore, if you choose 50 images/day for 12 months, you can get images for as low as $0.16/image.
| Downloads | Plan duration | Total images | Cost/image | Total cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 images/day | 1 month | 150 | $0.53 | $79 |
| 3 months | 450 | $0.44 | $199 | |
| 12 months | 1,825 | $0.35 | $639 | |
| 10 images/day | 1 month | 300 | $0.33 | $99 |
| 3 months | 900 | $0.30 | $269 | |
| 12 months | 3,650 | $0.27 | $969 | |
| 20 images/day | 1 month | 600 | $0.28 | $169 |
| 3 months | 1,800 | $0.26 | $459 | |
| 12 months | 7,300 | $0.22 | $1,589 | |
| 50 images/day | 1 month | 1,500 | $0.22 | $329 |
| 3 months | 4,500 | $0.21 | $929 | |
| 12 months | 18,250 | $0.16 | $2,879 |
When you’re choosing the right plan for yourself, always consider your image needs and don’t just rush for the lowest price/image.
If I were you, I’d ask myself:
- How long will I need images?
- How many images do I need?
- Am I willing to pay the price/image or can I find a cheaper option?
Monthly subscriptions (from $0.94/image)
An alternative to daily plans is more standard monthly subscription plans.
In total, you can choose between 4 monthly plans of 25, 50, 100, and 200 images per month.
In comparison to daily plans, the pricing of monthly plans is significantly higher. The prices range from $0.94 per image to $2.76 per image.
| Downloads | Plan duration | Total images | Cost/image | Total cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 images/mo | 1 month | 25 | $2.76 | $69 |
| 50 images/mo | 1 month | 50 | $1.58 | $79 |
| 100 images/mo | 1 month | 100 | $0.99 | $99 |
| 200 images/mo | 1 month | 200 | $0.94 | $189 |
Video plans
In the end, there are also video plans, of 5, 10, and 50 daily downloads.
While some stock photo sites offer images and videos under a joint plan, Bigstock keeps them separated.
With these plans, you can download videos from Bigstock from $0.33 to $1.53 per video
| Downloads | Plan duration | Total videos | Cost/video | Total cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 videos/day | 1 month | 150 | $0.53 | $79 |
| 10 videos/day | 1 month | 300 | $0.33 | $99 |
| 50 videos/mo | 1 month | 50 | $1.58 | $79 |
In conclusion, subscription plans are a good option for you if you have predictable and consistent image needs, as these come with the best prices per image.
However, subscription plans bind you with a contract of 1, 3, or 12 months.
On-demand plans: Flexible, but more expensive
An alternative to subscription plans is credits packs, which are significantly more expensive but offer a lot more flexibility because you’re not bound to any contract.
You can choose between 5 different credit packs that differ in sizes. In general, the larger the pack, the more cost-efficient it is.
With the largest plan, you get 500 image credits at $0.99 per credit. However, this price steeply rises with smaller plans, up to $3.50 per credit.
| Number of credits | Price | Price/credit |
|---|---|---|
| 10 | $35.00 | $3.50 |
| 25 | $49.00 | $1.96 |
| 100 | $169.00 | $1.69 |
| 250 | $339.00 | $1.36 |
| 500 | $495.00 | $0.99 |
Using credits, you can then purchase images, which differ in price based on size and license.
| Size | Resolution | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Small | 900×600 px | 1 |
| Medium | 1600×1066 px | 2 |
| Large | 2800×1866 px | 4 |
| X-Large | Highest available | 6 |
| Extended license | Highest available | 50 |
License
Bigstock sells images with a royalty-free and Extended license.
Permitted uses for a Bigstock’s royalty-free license are quite standard, but I’ll list them anyway.
- Each license is a single-user license. If you need a license for multiple users, you have to use a Team Account.
- Copying and reproduction are limited to 250,000 copies.
- You can use it for printing: prints, posters, postcards, part of advertising design, magazines, business cards, packaging, etc.
- You can use it for web and electronic purposes: social media posts, part of videos and films, eBooks, in software, etc.
Click here to find the full usage agreement.
On the other hand, Bigstock Extended license offers a lot more freedom, but it also costs more.
With an Extended license, you don’t have to worry about reproduction limit, but you’re limited geographically, with time, and by use.
Free trial
Bigstock runs a 7-day free trial during which you can 35 download images for free.
In comparison to other free trials, such as Shutterstock or Adobe Stock, that offer 10 free images, Bigstock’s trial is surprisingly generous.
To start a free trial, click here and enter your email address.
You will be redirected to a new page, where you need to choose between Image free trial or Video free trial.
Upon selection, you will receive an email prompting you to confirm your account. After you successfully do that, you can start your free trial.
Bigstock contributor
While Bigstock is not the most profitable stock photo agency, it can represent a significant part of your stock photo earnings.
Read more about how much you can make selling stock photos.
To become a Bigstock contributor, you need to create an account, first.
Enter all your details and confirm.
Bigstock contributor earnings
I suppose this is the most important part of this Bigstock review.
Your earnings at Bigstock depend on the customer’s payment plan and the size of the file.
If a customer uses credits, you get paid a flat $0.50/credit spent. However, different sizes of images don’t cost the same.
While you’ll earn as low as $0.50/small image, the commissions can get up to $3.00/X-Large image.
- Small: $0.50
- Medium: $1.00
- Large: $2.00
- X-Large: $3.00
- Vector: $3.00
- Extended license: $25.00
On the other hand, when you sell an image to a subscription plan, you will earn a royalty based on your previous sales.
Any Bigstock download counts towards your success level, and the more you sale, the higher your commissions.
You can check the commissions based on download in the following table.
| Level | Downloads | Royalties |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1-199 | $0.25 |
| 2 | 200-999 | $0.27 |
| 3 | 1,000-1,999 | $0.29 |
| 4 | 2,000-9,999 | $0.31 |
| 5 | 10,000-19,999 | $0.33 |
| 6 | 20,000-49,999 | $0.35 |
| 7 | 50,000+ | $0.38 |
Bigstock earnings off subscription plans
Additional information
- The number of downloads (and consequently your level) are based on the last 12 months and are calculated on the last day of each month.
- Once you reach a specific royalty tier, you keep it.
When will I get paid?
You can request payment anytime, once your commissions reach $30.00.
How will I get paid?
Under Commissions in your account, you can find Payment Preferences.
Once you earn more than $30 in commissions, you will see options that allow you to request payout of commissions via PayPal, MoneyBookers, or Skrill.
FAQ: Bigstock review
Is Bigstock worth it?
With more than 100 million images in the library and one of the lowest prices ($0.16/photo) among stock photo agencies, Bigstock is an excellent choice for anyone who needs high volume of stock photos.
How does Bigstock work?
To purchase Bigstock photos, you need to create an account first. Then, you can choose between subscription plans of 1, 3, and 12 months or credit packs, each with its own advantages and disadvantages. Once you decide on purchase plan, you can start downloading images.
