How Much Do Real Estate Photographers Make in 2024? » Aryeo Blog (2024)

Real Estate Photographers make a wide range of income. A lot of the answer to the question ‘how much do real estate photographers make?’ will depend on the specific photographers market, skill level, and years in the business.

This article will outline the average income of real estate photographers and detail what factors contribute to the range of incomes seen across the industry.

Good news everyone! Professional Real Estate Photography is a very lucrative market and if you play your cards right you can carve out a piece of the market for yourself.

Depending on where you live and work, $50,000 might be a lot of money or very little. The best Real Estate Photographers in the U.S. can pull in six-figures pretty easily, but many of them live and work in larger cities.

It’s up to you how far you want to expand and how much time you want to dedicate to your business.

Check out our article Best Options to Scale Your Real Estate Photography Business to see how a six-figure income can be achieved in real estate photography.

Check outZipRecruiter,GlassDoor, andSalary.comto potentially find out about incomes for your specific market. You’ll probably have to do some digging, but if you live in a relatively large city, you might be able to see the average yearly income.

If you don’t live in an especially large city and you are looking for a more definite number, you can also try to find Real Estate Photographer incomes from other cities that are a similar size and demographic to your own.

A neighboring city is a good place to start looking, but generally speaking, average salary and population size should go hand-in-hand.

The final variable to consider is the state of the real estate market. If homes aren’t selling, then there won’t be a lot of new real estate photography jobs. Likewise, if homes are flying off the market, you’ll probably be making a bit more money than normal.

Also, you can use ourReal Estate Photography Pricing Calculatorto get a good idea of what you can charge based on your market and skill level.

I personally enjoy my downtime, so I don’t work more than 40 hours per week. I also currently don’t have any employees, so besides sometimes using a professional photo editor or an assistant on really large jobs, I’m the only member of my real estate photography business.

I live and work in a mid-sized U.S. city and I personally made just over $60k this past year. I absolutely could increase my income if I were to work 50 hours a week or hire another photographer, but instead I choose to pursue other interests, like writing this article for you!

You’ll figure out how much you can make pretty quickly. If you want to hustle and use a photo editor, you could easily photograph 1000 homes in a year. Obviously this can only happen when your business is up and running and you’re generating new clients.

1000 jobs in a year sounds crazy, but it’s not that uncommon. I personally choose less shoots that are of a higher quality, which allows me to charge a bit more than is normal in my market.

Real estate photographers that photograph 3-4 houses per day and use an editor can consistently photography around 1000 homes per year. It takes a lot of time and energy, but you will be rewarded with much more than the $50k average.

Now that we’ve answered “How much do real estate photographers make?” and you’ve gotten a good idea, head over to our Beginners Guide and get started! You will see tons of tips and tricks that is sure to help all beginner real estate photographers.

Also, check out our Business Resources to make sure your real estate photography business starts out on the right foot. You will find free templates to help you with contacting and landing future clients and marketing advice that will help get your business going.

Finally, check out our Gear page for reviews and recommendations of all the latest real estate photography gear on the market.