Since the FOSTA-SESTA bill passed over a year ago, in-person sex work in the U.S. has become even more dangerous than before. With most countries giving little to no protection to anyone in the sex trade this sadly isn’t just limited to the United States either.
Thankfully, if you come prepared, online sex work can be a pretty safe alternative to its in-person counterpart.
But you could still put yourself at tremendous risk if you don’t take the right precautions.
Plus, with self-promotion becoming more accessible than ever, online sex work is currently experiencing a huge boom. But many people are jumping blindly into this new golden age without much knowledge of the pitfalls ahead.
This is exactly why I’ve put this little guide together, for you to avoid many of the common mistakes that could put you, your career, and relationships in jeopardy.
So whether you want to know how to start an Onlyfans, sell panties, clips, or even how to be a cam person, this article is definitely for you!
Contents
Online Persona & Niche
There are two ways to go about defining an online persona:
- You could base it on yourself.
Using your own personality, kinks, and interests is a great way to keep things simple and in line with your own personal boundaries.
With this approach, it’s also much easier to stick to your persona without slipping out of character.
- You could make it all up.
There are plenty of sex workers that are one way at work and completely another way in their own lives. For example, if you’re more of a sub in real life but you want to explore being a domme at work, this could be a great way to separate your sex life from work.
Just be careful not to make an illusion you can’t keep up with. For example, if you claim to be a big geek, you better be able to show off your geek cred if need be!
This decision really depends on how much you are willing to reveal about yourself and how much of a separation you’d like to have between your day to day life and your work.
Personal Limits
Before we get into how to stay safe from the ill-intentioned folks out there, let’s first talk about how to stay safe from our own selves. While this may sound a tad dramatic, it’s always important to consider how far we’re ready to go before making the jump!
To help you figure this out, here are two questions you should ask yourself first:
What are you willing to do without stepping over your own personal boundaries?
Starting with what you already enjoy is always a good idea. From there you can expand to things you’ve always been curious about. But most importantly, you should define what you’re NOT willing to do.
Some of these things might not be clear until you actually start as they are very platform-specific. For example, cam performers have the option to see some users’ webcams (C2C) while they perform. So ask yourself: Would you be fine with that or you’d rather not see what your audience is doing?
Coming back to this first question as you go will be a great tool to make sure you don’t eventually end up compromising on your values.
What levels of risk are you ready to live with?
If done right, online sex work can be a pretty safe practice. But there are calculated risks you could take that could make you that much more popular in such a competitive world.
For example, some models/performers completely conceal their identity by posing from the neck or nose down. Others don’t censor anything at all.
If you do decide to reveal your face, you could be found out and this could affect your relationships with your family, hinder your career, and just be a general pain in the butt. On the other hand, concealing your identity could make you less popular than models that don’t.
It’s a complex balancing act, but definitely one to consider.
Once you’ve settled on your stance on these questions, make sure to take note of your answers so you can make these guidelines clear with your audience in the future.
You’re going to need a stage name
Choose wisely because it’s best to stick to it from service to service. It’ll allow you to easily cross-promote all of your services while also making yourself easy to find for your fans. So make sure it’s a name that you won’t get sick of in a month or two.
A good stage name should give your audience a glimpse of what you’re actually about and, if you plan on selling physical goods, it’s also a good idea to choose a name that will look believable enough on a return label ( may it be for a person or a business ).
Next, you need to figure out your niches
These will be defined by your own god-given looks as well as the things you’re into / willing to do. So it’s always a good idea to work with your strengths.
Let’s say you’ve got pale skin, small breasts, a big ass, and you’re into anal sex & weed. That’s already 5 niches you can heavily lean into. And that’s without counting the fact that we all have feet, which, as you will soon find out, are all the rage these days.
Speaking of looks, know that no matter who you are, there’s definitely a fetish for you.
Even if you’re not that into your own weight, penis or breast size, pilosity, skin tone, gender, and so on, know that there are thousands of folks out there that would do anything to get a piece of that sweet, sweet action.
So a career in sex work can definitely be the antidote to a crappy self-esteem.
Not your run of the mill self-help solution, but potent no less!
Safety & Privacy
Accounts & Usernames
The first step to protecting your online identity is always to create brand new accounts & usernames for absolutely every single service you are using.
You really don’t want to make the all-to-common mistake of slowly converting your semi-revealing personal accounts into your full-blown sex work accounts. That is unless you want all your friends and family to find out about your new career.
So you’ll need brand a spanking new e-mail & bank account as well as a new Twitter, Instagram, Kik, Snapchat, and Reddit accounts.
These accounts can reflect your stage name established above or not. But I suggest you stick close to it with your social media accounts, as these are going to be indispensable promotional tools.
Whatever you do, just don’t use your real name anywhere.
Hiding your IP Address
Your IP Address is a lot like your online home address. And just like a home address, it’s definitely not something you want to share with the world since it can make it easy for anyone to track you down if they really wanted to.
A common way scammers take advantage of this is by sending you links that, once clicked on, record and give them access to your IP information, leaving you open to blackmail, stalking, and all sorts of nasty stuff.
That’s why you need a good VPN.
VPNs or Virtual Private Networks allow you to cloak your IP address, dishing out phony IP addresses to anyone who’s watching.
Plus, many VPN services will allow you to seemingly browse from any country. So if you were always curious about Korean Netflix, now is your time!
The most popular VPNs right now are ExpressVPN & NordVPN but there are others, so do your research if you want more options.
If you can’t afford one just yet, just make sure you don’t click on any suspicious-looking links sent by anyone ( clients, promoters, etc. ). If the address isn’t from a trusted site like, let’s say, “amazon.com”, when you hover over the link on a computer, don’t click it. You’ll thank me later.
Phones & Addresses
You should really consider getting a new phone number to link with your new social media accounts. This will prevent anyone from your entourage from finding your content through your personal number. This could be done either by using an extra sim card or by signing up for one of the many free online phone services.
But If you want to be super extra careful, it wouldn’t be too crazy to get an entirely new phone for all your new accounts and lewd interactions.
There have been cases where social media suggestions have been linked to specific devices instead of phone numbers, exposing folks to their social circles even when they made new accounts for everything.
If you plan on shipping physical goods ( i.e.: Sell panties and other fetish items ), you should also get yourself a P.O. box so you can put a return address on packages that isn’t your own.
Of course, if that’s too much of an investment at the moment, another common practice would be to just put your customer’s address as the return address.
Showing your face
There are as many arguments for and against showing your face to your audience.
On one hand, showing your face could make you much more vulnerable to being found out. But on the other hand, this could make you even more popular as it would make it easier for your audience to relate to you on a more personal level.
Just know that this doesn’t have to be a black-and-white decision; You could just show half of your face with clever cropping, masks, and so on. You could also channel your inner spy and alter your appearance by removing or adding glasses, wearing wigs, and changing your usual makeup.
Another smart way to go about it is to only show your face in non-nude pictures while cropping it out on more compromising content.
Can you do Onlyfans without showing your face at all? Can you be successful at camming & selling without disclosing your identity? Sure! But it depends if you prefer more views or more anonymity. It’s a balancing act, my kinky friend.
Other identifying information
There’s a myriad of things that could point back to you.
Things like your favorite t-shirt, your tattoos, and your furniture could all lead the people you know to realize who you are. Less obvious items, like local newspapers, school logos, & landmarks could also be used to track you down. So make sure to remove any identifiable items from your shots beforehand.
It’s also very important to never use photos from personal accounts on any of your favorite online sex work platforms. Because a simple google reverse image search could easily link people back to your personal and work accounts.
If you’re a cam model your location can also be protected by blocking viewers from your state or country through the site you’re working with ( often referred to as Geo-Blocking ). Though VPN users could pose as any other country dweller and circumvent this completely.
Broadcasting at strange times for your timezone ( e.g.: from 2 to 6 AM ) is also another great way of protecting yourself as your audience will generally be from another country around those hours.
Removing MetaData from Photos & Videos
MetaData is hidden data that can be linked to your photos & videos. The data stored on your content could point to the exact GPS location where it was taken as well as the device used, amongst many other compromising details.
Thankfully, sites like Imgur automatically remove all metadata on upload. But, if you’re planning on using anything else than Imgur to host your content, there are other ways of modifying MetaData from photos and videos
In all cases, to be extra safe, it’s always best to disable all location services on your smartphone or camera to avoid any slip-ups.
Thoughts on Watermarks
Putting watermarks with your social media, Onlyfans, or Reddit info on your photos & videos is a great way to point anyone who finds your photos back to you. It’s also a good method to deter people from stealing & reusing your content.
But if someone you know finds one of your watermarked photos, it could easily lead them to your entire collection of nudes. Wich would remove any doubts of you being the person in the content.
Like a lot of the decisions in online sex work, it’s all about the levels of risks you’re ready to deal with!
What to do if your content is stolen
Your public content is bound to be distributed all over the web, but the content you sell could still be leaked or stolen. And while it can be a bit of a nightmare if someone decides to distribute your content without your consent, there are still measures available to you.
Enter the DMCA Takedown notice.
The DMCA is a piece of legislation that comes with a few neat services and tools to protect your internet copyrights.
If you fill a takedown notice, they will do anything in their power to remove your stolen content from the web. They also offer monitoring services if you want them to actively search the web for your stolen content.
Of course, you can do your own monitoring by reverse searching your photos as well as googling your usernames & stage name. But depending on your popularity, this could be a full-time job in itself. So if you’re a big shot, definitely consider using their services.
Plus, Including a simple disclaimer or DMCA badge in listings & attachments could be enough to deter a lot of folks from infringing on your rights.
For more information on how to file a notice, I highly suggest you read this page from the /r/sellercirclestage wiki.
Protecting yourself during a DMCA takedown
Safe Online Sex Work Platforms
Now that we’ve covered how to protect ourselves, it is now time to take the plunge and actually get some work done!
Just remember that no matter which platform you decide to embrace, it’s important that you follow the rules of said platform or community. When it comes to Reddit, the wikis aren’t always easy to find on the newly redesigned site, so just add “wiki” to the end of the address or use the classic old.reddit.com to find it.
It also helps to look at how others are using the platform and take notes for yourself. Consider this your “field research”.
With that being said, here are some of the most common ways of making a living with online sex work. Just click on the names of the platforms to go to their model/performer sign up page.
For Selling
Selling Clips
This is one of the biggest & best clipsite today. And you’re really not limited to videos as this is pretty much a one-stop-shop for all things sex work. So you could easily conduct most, if not all, of your business on ManyVids if you really wanted to.
On top of selling videos ( 60% Payout ), you can also do custom vids, sexting, phone sex, camming, sell fetish items and receive funding ( 80 % payout ). You can also block specific countries and states like on most camming sites.
Content is clearly divided between “straight” ( meaning women ), “gay boys” ( meaning men ) & “trans”. So it’s definitely a good option for performers who aren’t cis women as well.
As you may already know, the “Youtube of porn” has already a huge user base. So it’s pretty easy to get a following, especially if you post free content. You still shouldn’t rule out self-promotion entirely, as there is already a ton of competition and content to compete with.
You can make money off free videos on a pay per view basis ( 0.70$ / 1k views ) on top of the usual option of selling clips ( 65% payout ) and receiving tips ( 80% payout ). Plus, if you do decide to put a price on your videos, they will automatically be added to modelhub.com.
A good approach is to have both free and paid content, as this will ensure that you get the exposure of free content while still maximizing your revenue with paid clips.
Just like most cam sites, they offer geoblocking as well. A great feature, especially when considering the popularity of the site.
IWantClips has a bit more of a focus on fetish content so it’s perfect for dommes & kinksters alike.
The features here are a bit more standard as it’s mostly for selling clips ( 60% Payout ) and receiving tips ( 80% Payout ). But it has the highest payout for custom vids ( 100% Payout ) around.
Camming
Once the underdog of the sex cam world, Chaturbate has become the leading site in the industry. It is also one of the rare camming sites that allow performers to hide their faces if they wish to. So if you’re wondering where to start when pondering how to become a cam girl or dude, this is definitely the place to start!
On top of offering the typical cam services ( 50% payout on tokens ), you can also sell videos, photos, and access to your premium Snapchat accounts.
MFC was the top site for cam performers before the arrival of Chaturbate and it’s still a pretty close competitor with a ton of traffic to its name.
You can’t hide your face like on Chaturbate and you have to maintain a good camscore at all times, so it’s definitely not the best site for beginners, but it’s still worth considering as it offers a higher payout than most other sites ( 60% Payout ).
Unless someone decides to pay for a private show, most cam sites require you to perform publicly. So if you’d rather keep all your camming work private, selling Skype sessions is definitely the way to go.
Cam Model Directory allows you to do just that ( 75 – 80% Payout ) while keeping all transactions anonymous. There’s plenty of internal traffic as well and models are easy to browse through as they are categorized by niches & age.
This platform also allows you to sell clips, custom videos, picture sets, Snapchat subscriptions, and underwear!
Just make sure to use a good VPN when performing in a Skype Session.
Subscriptions & Patrons
Onlyfans is an NSFW alternative to Patreon. And with Patreon being completely against sex workers, this truly is a godsend.
Since it’s subscription-based ( 80% payout ), make sure you stay consistent when posting videos and photos or it won’t be long before your following starts to dwindle.
But if you don’t mind the consistency, Onlyfans is a great way to earn a steady stream of income while keeping in touch with your fan base.
Just keep in mind that OF won’t be promoting your stuff, so if you’re wondering how to start an Onlyfans without followers, head on to the promotion section!
This is the place to streamline selling your premium Snapchat accounts ( 75% Payout ).
It also works as a directory for anyone using the service, so users can easily find you through the site as well.
Used Underwear & Fetish Items
This subreddit is the largest community of panty sellers & buyers around, so if you were wondering how to sell panties, this is definitely the place for you.
I also suggest posting on smaller subreddits like /r/Panties4Sale & /r/ThePantyDrawer as well to get maximum exposure since it’s easy for your posts to get buried on bigger subs.
This is the main subreddit for selling fetish items AND services.
Normally used panties & vanilla practices are not allowed here. So if you want to learn more about what qualifies as a fetish item or service, head on to their wiki.
Sexting, Phone Sex & the GFE
With Sextpanther you can set up a new work phone number that you can connect to your real number, cloaking your real information from your audience as you work.
They also offer the option of charging for every single text, call, pic or video you might exchange. Sextpanther can be used normally from your phone and you can use a computer if you prefer as well.
Sextpanther’s site also works as a directory so you don’t have to advertise your services if you don’t feel like it.
Niteflirt is an older platform with a bigger focus on phone sex. Though you can sell clips as well if you really wanted to.
Doubling as a directory, you can benefit from their internal traffic as well.
For Self-Promotion
Though it doesn’t come without a few caveats, Instagram is the mainstream way to get a large following going.
The problem is that you can’t post any graphic/uncensored nudity without getting booted out of the platform entirely. Of course, if you’re a clever marketer, you can use this limitation to point to all your selling platforms. Keep things just SFW enough and keep that link tree in your bio filled with your lewd links and you should be good to go!
Instagram can still be a little unpredictable in the way they enforce their rules, so it’s always good to have a backup account up in case they do decide to crack down on you at random.
Ahhh Twitter, if only Instagram could be a little bit more like you.
Here, nudity is permitted no matter how graphic. So you can probably understand why it’s embraced by sex workers all over the world.
The real issue with Twitter is that it’s much harder to build a following here than on Instagram. So using Instagram to point towards your NSFW Tweets wouldn’t be a bad idea.
Being one of the last uncensored bits of the non-dark web, Reddit is an amazing tool for sellers, models, and performers looking to self-promote.
Hell, most online sex workers who quiz their audience end up learning that most of the people found them on this platform, so definitely don’t skip it!
You can even sell your services directly on Reddit.
No middle-man is needed here so you can collect 100% of your payouts. Just make sure to stick to everything we discussed previously in the “Safety & Privacy” section as well as the “Finances” section below.
If you want to keep things super simple, you can post almost any listing for any of your services on /r/Sexsells.
Though we mentioned a few selling subreddits above there are many other subs where you can post listings as well. That’s not all of them though. Reddit is a vast place, so keep an eye out when researching your subs.
You would be doing yourself a MAJOR disservice if you only stuck to selling subreddits though.
Especially if you’re looking to know how to start an onlyfans without followers as a beginner or as a guy ( it’s always a bit harder for dudes in the sex industry ).
There are tons of NSFW subreddits spanning almost any fetish & niche imaginable. Though most of them won’t let you post listings, posting in these subs is still a great way to gather an audience that is already hungry for your niche. Just keep your listings in your profile bio for those looking for more content!
Just keep in mind that most subs that encourage self-posting ( often but not exclusively labeled as “Gone Wild / GW ” subs ) will require you to get verified. This usually means that you’ll need to post pictures of you holding a paper with your Reddit username. But rules vary from a subreddit to another, so make sure to read through the sidebar rules, pinned posts, and wikis.
Additionally, posting in SFW subs is definitely an underrated yet great way of building an audience.
You like anime? Post in anime subs. A bit of a gamer? there’s a sub for that as well! Just imagine being someone who shares your interest and finding out your bits are all over the web the second they click on your profile. That’s an instant fan right there.
I also suggest shadowing the most popular people on these subs / in your niche and seeing what their top posts are like and what other subreddits they post to as well for more information.
For more information on how to use Reddit for online sex work, read this handy post by the fine folks at /r/SellerCircleStage.
Finances
When it comes to finances, there are tons of ways you could be putting yourself at risk. So make sure to follow these guidelines if you want to avoid many of the pitfalls ahead.
The first thing you need to know is how to price your services.
Don’t undervalue yourself here as it will attract more time wasters than anything else. Undervaluing yourself also undermines other sex workers in the community. So know your worth!
Secondly, you should never deliver any services before the money is actually in the bank.
This is the best way to avoid the most common scams sketchy customers are known for.
Safe Payment methods
If you plan on selling on your own instead of using any of the major selling platforms mentioned above, you will need a safe way of processing your payments.
Payment methods like Paypal, Google Wallet, and Venmo are definitely not sex worker-friendly. Doing business through any of these common web wallets could get you banned, discovered or generously fined. So please avoid them at all costs!
Note for Canadians: You might find yourself quite limited when it comes to ways of getting your payouts, so consider opening a U.S. account. Most Canadian banks offer that option in their services, so it shouldn’t be too much trouble.
Indiebill
Meet your new best friend! Essentially a Paypal for sex workers, Indiebill is an indispensable tool for anyone looking to make a living off sex.
Buyers can pay via credit or debit card and the funds are discreetly deposited in your bank account twice a month. The only information that will be accessible to them is your e-mail address, so you don’t have to worry about your information getting leaked either.
To top it all off, since IndieBill is based overseas, they also won’t issue any 1099 forms ( more on that in the taxes section bellow ).
The only downside is that they take 15% off any transaction, so make sure to adjust your prices accordingly. And it’s definitely a small price to pay for all the protection they’ll offer.
Amazon Gift Cards
Though it has its risks, this is another common way of accepting payments.
It’s also common practice to charge an extra fee for Amazon gift cards since these can’t be redeemed for cash.
Just make sure to only accept gift cards sent directly through Amazon’s website. Don’t accept any loose copy-pasted serials or screenshots of gift card codes. Only codes coming from the official amazon e-mail are safe to use as these act as a proof of payment. Even if the code is sent to your work e-mail. You can still redeem it in your own personal account.
Like many sites, Amazon isn’t really adult-friendly, so tell your buyers to avoid any lewd remarks in the notes.
Gyft
If you don’t care much about Amazon but still like the idea of receiving gift cards, you’ll probably like Gyft. It’s also the only safe way for buyers to pay you via Paypal.
Gyft allows you to receive gift cards from almost any major store chains in the U.S. You can choose to receive a “generic Gyft card” that allows you to buy other specific gift cards on your own. This is definitely a better option as it is usually safer to spend the card’s balance as quickly as possible to avoid any cancelations from ill-intentioned buyers.
Like with Amazon, you should tell your buyers to avoid writing any explicit messages along with the cards.
GiftRocket
GiftRocket is a lot like the gift cards mentioned above, but they allow you to redeem the cards directly into your bank account.
These take 2 to 4 business days to clear though. So to be safe, don’t start any service before the cash is actually in your account.
As usual, all kinky messages should be avoided.
Filing Taxes
Even if you make a living swinging your bits around, you still got to pay your taxes! When you’re trying to stay safe, it’s usually a good idea to stay on the good side of the IRS.
The best advice I could ever give you is to straight-up just get an accountant, but until then, here are a few things to consider:
Keep receipts for everything
You’ll be able to deduct all kinds of stuff from your earnings, so really try to keep as many work-related receipts as possible.
Any gear you acquire, internet plans, rent (if you work from home), phone bills, lingerie, shipping costs, and cosmetics are deductible. Just as long as it’s a work-related expense, you can probably get a deduction.
Just keep in mind that you won’t be able to deduct 100% of your rent and other bills if you use them for anything else than work. For example, if you live in a 3 1/2 and use one room exclusively for your work, you’ll only be able to deduct about 25 to 30% of your rent.
Get that tax fund going
When you’re self-employed, since your taxes aren’t directly deducted from your paychecks, it’s quite easy to let yourself go and spend all that sweet sweet tax money away. Something that really could come back to bite you in the ass by the end of the tax year.
As a self-employed person, always save more than what is required from you. For example, where I’m from, I’m taxed about 30% of my revenue (R.I.P.). But, to stay safe, I save around 40% of my income every month. And while that might sound a bit like overkill, it’s saved my ass more than once.
Plus, at the end of the year, if there’s anything left from your tax fund, those green stacks go straight back to your pocket, baby! You also won’t have to feel so glum about not receiving any tax returns that year as well.
Watch out for that 1099
This is closely related to the levels of risks mentioned at the beginning of the article.
You see, most legit platforms will issue a 1099 form to U.S. citizens. And while it might be helpful when you file your taxes, these can come with a nasty side effect.
Future employers will have access to your past employment and tax records. So if they decide to dig, they could find out about your undercover operation and decide not to hire you. Definitely consider this before taking your business to a legit site.
Tools of the Trade
Webcams
If you’re seriously looking into how to become a cam girl or guy, your first purchase should definitely be a webcam. You really don’t want to use your laptop or phone front cameras as these are rarely up to snuff with the quality that is expected from sex cam performers.
The Logitech C922 Pro Stream is very popular amongst cam performers. It has beautiful 1080p quality, works great in low light situations, and offers a variety of extra features like background removal/replacement ( something like a green screen effect ) and 60 fps playback at 720p.
If it’s too expensive for you at the moment, the older C920 is also still a classic!
The Razer Kiyois another popular choice amongst performers and streamers.
Like the C922, it comes with great 1080p quality, but what really makes it stand out is its integrated ring light. So you probably won’t have to worry about bad lighting with this one.
The Razer Kiyo Pro is probably the best most premium webcam for cam shows.
It has higher quality, framerate, and mic sound than the base Kiyo version. While they removed the integrated ring light, it actually does much better in low light situations now so there’s not really much of a need for it and the auto exposure is pretty seamless as well.
I also love that this cam also allows for wide-angles with 3 adjustable FOVs to pick from!
The Logitech BCC950 also definitely deserves a mention. What makes this webcam different is that it is an affordable PTZ ( Pan-Tilt-Zoom ) camera, which is a rare thing.
PTZ means that you can control the direction the webcam is pointing at with the help of a handy little wireless controller. This way you don’t have to get up and adjust your camera each time your bits are out of frame. Of course, the BCC950 comes with a pretty decent 1080p quality as well.
You should also head on over to our in-depth camming toys & tools guide if you’d like to learn more about the subject.
Phones with great cameras
If you’re just starting out, you don’t need to get a professional camera to capture high-quality photos and videos. That’s especially true if you invest in a simple lighting set up ( more on that below ). Just know that with good lighting, almost any modern phone camera will do.
But there are still phone cameras that are a step above the competition that can perform well even in low light situations, no extra lights needed.
The three best phone brands for that purpose right now are the Google Pixel phones, iPhones, and Samsung Galaxy Phones.
No matter if you pick their budget options or premium options, most of these phones always come with great cameras ( especially on Pixel & iPhones ). So going for an older model is not a bad idea either if even their budget options are too expensive for you.
Professional cameras for photos & videos
Nothing beats a real camera, so if you’re looking to get some professional-quality photos and videos with amazing resolution and low-light performance, you should definitely look into these DSLRs & mirrorless cameras.
Now, these are absolutely not necessary if you’re just starting out as they aren’t exactly cheap. But if you ever want to elevate your content to the next level, they’re definitely worth the investment.
The Nikon D3300 & Canon EOS Rebel T7i are both great budget DSLRs that are still going to be cheaper than a brand new iPhone or Google Pixel.
But if you want the best and only the best, the Canon EOS R & the Sony A7III are both pretty hard to beat. And if that says anything about the video quality, it’s also pretty common to see these guys on indie film sets as well.
Lighting
Good lighting can make a shit phone camera, webcam, or digital camera look like it’s twice it’s worth. So imagine what it can do to a decent one!
These might require a bit of fiddling around to get the perfect lighting angles, but there are plenty of photography guides online to help you figure this out.
You can get a pretty decent umbrella kit starting at around 50$.
So if you can’t afford any of the top cameras mentioned above or the better lights below, this could be exactly what you need.
Now if you want a more modern, customizable, low-heat lighting setup most streamers & cam performers swear by the Elgato Key Lights.
You can customize the brightness & temperature straight from your phone, PC, or Stream Deck. The lighting will also bother your eyes less and won’t cook you alive during especially long sessions. It also helps that these lights come with stands, so you won’t have to buy a separate tripod for them.
For those looking to save a bit of money Elgato also makes the cheaper Key Light Air as well.
Performers also love ring lights for the beautifying & professional effects they have on facial features.
Most ring lights are affordable, come with warm to cool color temperatures and a tripod to hold phones and other cameras at the center of it. It’s a cheap investment that should make most phone and cam content pop!
It’s not as customizable as a multi-light setup, but if you need a quick & affordable solution that makes you look great, this is definitely the way to go.
Now moving away from lighting you to lighting your room, the GLW RGB floodlights are an affordable & easy way to bathe your room in color.
Setting up a mood can really positively influence your content.
So if you want to make your set look all purple, pink, or even red-light district red, just point these lights at your back walls to completely change the mood of your room!
RGB LED lights are a staple for most streamers ( SFW or not ) for a reason.
They’re like the seasoning on top of a good set. They can even make an unremarkable room look at least 10 times better.
Right now, Govee is definitely my favorite brand right now ( as well as countless streamers and performers ) as they are affordable, beautiful, and come with tons of creative options that can all be controlled from your phone! Heck, I use their stuff just to make my house look better.
Tripods & Remotes
If you’re sick of MacGyvering stands for your cameras, you’ll eventually want to invest in a good tripod and a phone mount.
You also don’t want to rely only on timers to give you enough time to get yourself in position. So a BlueTooth phone camera remote can really be a lifesaver.
If you own a DSLR or Mirrorless camera, they also make remotes for that purpose as well, but you’ll need to find a controller that works with your specific model. Most modern cameras will allow you to use your phone as a remote as well.
Editing software
Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom are the standards for photo editing today. But GIMP is a good free open source alternative if you can’t afford them.
When it comes to video editing, it doesn’t get much better than Adobe Premiere Pro. But again, if your funds are low, DaVinci Resolve is worth looking into as well.
Bulk panties
If you sell panties and want to maximize your profits, keeping your used underwear expenses low is always a good idea.
The good news is that you can actually get panties in bulk or packs directly from Amazon for pretty damned cheap. It’s almost like some of the products sold here were specifically made for the business. That image on the left? That’s actually a product picture…
Otherwise, if you’re patient, you can get them for even cheaper directly from china off Aliexpress. Just expect them to take at least a month to arrive.
Sex toys
Once everything is said and done, it’s rather easy to cheap out on sex toys. But for the sake of your own health, you really don’t want to do that.
This is because half of the stuff out there is made out of porous, unsafe & straight-up toxic materials.
To keep things simple, you should stick to silicone, glass & stainless steel toys only as they are body-safe, non-porous, and fully sanitizable.
There still is plenty of false information on materials out there, especially on sites like Amazon & from unknown ( often China-based ) companies.
If you want to stay safe, you should definitely go through our sex toy lists. Most of them are written by me, Jim the Dildo Dealer ( if the pen name doesn’t reassure you, I don’t know what will ), the resident sex toy expert, and I make sure to include budget body-safe options in every list.
You really don’t have to break the bank to get a decent body-safe toy, so there’s really no excuse to take a gamble on your health anymore.
If you’re a cam performer, there’s a range of toys made specifically for cam sites as well.
These can be triggered by the tips of your audience, becoming a great incentive for them to throw more of their hard-earned cash at you.
If you’re just starting to learn how to become a cam girl or boy, know that almost every cam performer owns one of these bad boys, so you should definitely not skip on this one. This should be your second purchase after the webcam.
The standard right now is Lovense’s Lush but any of their other toys are compatible as well. And if you’re feeling fancy, the Shockspot sex machines are also now compatible with Chaturbate as well!
If you want more information on camming toys, whether it’s for skype sessions or through a dedicated site, we also have an in-depth article about the sex toys & tools for cam performers. And you can get real personal with some of these bad-boys!
Additional Resources
But don’t just take my word for it! There are plenty of indispensable online resources out there. And, in all honesty, this guide wouldn’t be half as good if it wasn’t for all the great folks out there, willing to help fellow sex workers on their journey.
/r/SellerCircleStage & /r/SellerCircle
These two subreddits are fully dedicated to helping out aspiring sellers and performers. While /r/SellerCircleStage is open to the public, /r/SellerCircle is private and reserved for verified workers only.
Getting verified as soon as possible would be a good plan, as you’ll avoid the occasional snakes lurking in the public sub.
In any case, reading through their wiki is definitely a great place to start!
We mentioned /r/Sexsells before, as it is one of the best places to post your listings. But their wiki is another tremendous resource for anyone looking to sell online.
There’s also plenty of information for buyers here. So if you ever meet someone who seems a bit confused about the process, feel free to direct them here as well.
Another great resource for cam performers. Some of the information here can be a bit dated at times but the bulk of it still holds up. Miss Faith Rae also has a great series of videos about the industry. Just like TeenyGinger, she also offers consulting services for anyone looking to step up their game.
