Approved Seller - Frequently Asked Questions

Welcome to Artfinder! The team is delighted that you are joining our community of artists selling on our platform, and we look forward to working with you! Joining a new platform can be daunting at first, so we have compiled a series of FAQs to help you with your first steps as a seller on Artfinder. 

If you have any questions for us, please feel free to reach out to sellers@artfinder.com and one of our lovely Customer Care Agents will be delighted to assist you.

FAQs

• How do I access my Seller Portal and dashboard?

Kindly note that your User Account also acts as your Seller Account, so in order to access your Seller Portal and Dashboard, you will need to first Login to your Artfinder User Account.

Once logged in, click on the dashboard icon on the top menu of the page. This will then take you to your Seller’s Portal and Dashboard.

• Why am I not able to upload or save my artwork images?

If you experience issues with uploading or saving your artwork images, this is likely linked to the image resolution not being high enough. At this stage, the minimum required resolution is 1200 pixels. This will allow you to display your images in high-quality, without image degradation or upscaling. Kindly note that high resolution images may take up to 6 hour to show on site once they have been uploaded.For more information please refer to our Knowledge Base article: What are the image file requirements?

• What is a full frontal image and how do I format it?

A full frontal image will be the main view of your artwork on your listing. It is important that the photo displays the full image size, with no frame or wall space behind as this will be a requirement for you to publish the listing. Kindly note that you will also need to add an image inclusive of the frame if the artwork is sold framed, but without showing any wall around it or cropping the artwork itself. For an example of a good full frontal photo, please check our article here.

• I have just sold my first artwork, when will I be paid?

You will be paid for each order you make, once the order is delivered to the customer and the 14 day return guarantee has elapsed. Your payment is then processed on the next available payment run, based on the date the order was placed. You can also access this information on your order page, as highlighted in our article here. To access our full Payment Schedule, please click here. 

• Do I need to select a paid Seller plan?

You will need to select a paid Seller Plan when you join Artfinder as a seller, as you will not be automatically subscribed to any plan on application approval. You will then be able to select if you want subscribe to our Core (£10* / €12* / US $12 / CA $18 / AU $20) or Premium (£30* / €35* / US $40 / CA $62 / AU $55) Plans instead, depending on your needs. Each plan will be tied to a commission amount taken by Artfinder and will give you access to various benefits, for which you can see the full list here. You will be able to select a Seller Plan once your shop is approved. Note a Plan price with this symbol * includes VAT for sellers based in the UK. 

• My artwork won’t save because of a website link in description but there is no link?

This is linked to spaces missing after a punctuation, which our system reads as a website link. Please ensure that every hyphen "-" and slash "/" has a space on either side, and every full stop/period "." has a space after it. Our system will then stop picking this up as a link and you will be able to save your changes.

• My artwork won’t save as the Category is not selected, how do I do it? 

Under the heading 'What are you selling' please select which type of art do you wish to sell and then sub-category need be.

• I am not receiving your emails anymore

This likely comes from one or more of our emails to you having been blacklisted by your email provider after being flagged as spam. Please make sure that all of Artfinder's email addresses below are marked as 'safe' and whitelisted in your inbox: support@artfinder.com, info@artfinder.com, sellers@artfinder.com.  Doing so will ensure you receive all emails from us, including order confirmations, cancellations and review notifications.

• Why was my order discounted?

When you join Artfinder you must agree to our terms and conditions, and by agreeing to these terms you give us the permission to offer discounts to customers in order to increase chances of securing you a sale. Since most other mainstream art selling platform include similar provisions it is wise to factor the possibility of a maximum 15% discount into your pricing on all sites (not just Artfinder). We are sorry, but we are unable to offer an opt out from this point of our terms. You can read an update from our CEO regarding the use of discount by Artfinder here.

• Will I have to ship my artworks myself? 

Artists on Artfinder are responsible for packaging their artwork themself. From December 1st, all sellers in supported countries will be automatically opted into our new managed shipping program, you can read more about this here. If you wish to opt-out, please contact sellers@artfinder.com. To find out more about restricted countries, please see here.

If you are on Managed Shipping, you will not need to liaise with the couriers yourself or worry about booking the shipments.

Artfinder and Arta will be providing you with your shipping labels, managing and monitoring all courier shipments, including courier communication and any required customs clearance. Customers will also receive frequent shipment notifications from us at every stage of delivery, be if there are any issues with the delivery address, delays or pending customs charges. If ARTA cannot manage any queries or issues, the query will be escalated to Artfinder; however, you can also reach out to us if you need any further clarification on anything. 

Its good to also note that any required documentation for compliance with General Product Safety Regulations known as GPSR should also be sent with your shipment, where it applies, is in force since 13 December 2024, introducing updated EU safety requirements for all consumer products sold in the EU and Northern Ireland, including artwork. Under the new rules, every seller must have an EU/NI-based Responsible Person; artists outside these regions must appoint an Authorised Representative (AR). To see more details on this, please review our GPSR guide for further information here.

If it's an international shipment, eg. US to Europe or UK to US etc, artists will receive an electronic customs declaration form via email, which will need to be completed (this includes regular information about artwork title, medium, your address, phone number etc) as Arta will require this information in order to manage the shipment. After this has been received by Arta, they will then be able to send through the labels for your shipment.

For managed shipments arranged through Arta, delivery will be made on a Delivered at Place (DAP) basis. This means Arta will manage transportation and delivery to the specified destination; however, any applicable import duties, taxes, or customs clearance fees will remain the responsibility of the recipient. Arta does not currently offer a Delivery Duty Paid (DDP) solution but will be a solution we will be exploring in the future. 

If you wish to Opt out of the Managed Shipping program, you will have to contact our Support team on sellers@artfinder.com and you will be provided with a short survey to complete to remove you from the managed-shipping program. 

For artworks being shipped internationally by artists who have either chosen to Opt out of the Managed Shipping program or are located in a country not supported by Arta, we advise that, when possible, you select a service which supports sending packages Delivery Duty Paid, and this option should be selected to ensure that all duty and import tax is billed back to the sender. We also recommend you use tracked and signed options for shipping whenever possible for peace of mind on both sides of the transaction. If you are unsure about how to set up a shipping table or which courier to chose, we have created a handy step-by-step guide which you can find here.

• A customer requested a return for my order, do I have to accept?

Artfinder offers a FREE 14 day returns policy to all customers who are not 100% satisfied with their purchase. This can be requested for the following reasons: The customer changed their mind, The artwork is not as per represented in the listing, The artwork arrived damaged or much later than originally estimated. Kindly note that you must honour return requests for all your customers, however some artworks will not be subject to return, such as commissioned artworks. Returns are booked and organised at Artfinder's cost, and you can read more about the topic on our Knowledge Base Articles here. Kindly note that you will not receive payment for an artwork until the 14 day return guarantee has elapsed.

• My order is lost in transit, what do I do? 

If your shipment has been lost in transit, and part of the Managed Shipping program, shipping Protection is included in all of the shipments, as ARTA is designed specifically for transporting unique and high-value artworks with Arta. It’s available across all supported service types and protects your item from the moment Arta collects it until final delivery, including any on-site handling. This “all risks” coverage includes restoration and repair, not just total loss, helping to safeguard one-of-a-kind pieces.

All shipments are insured, and any compensation claims can be submitted directly to Artfinder through the ARTA portal, or via email support@artfinder.com where we will thoroughly review the claim and action accordingly. 

Shipping Protection is built for the transportation of unique and high value objects moved with Arta and is available across all of our service types, for all of the objects we support. Shipping Protection covers the object from the moment Arta takes possession through delivery, including any on site services. An “all risks” policy covers restoration and repair, not just claims for total loss, intending to preserve these one-of-a-kind items.

For insurance purposes, you must keep accurate order records and take clear photos of both the artwork and its packaging, as these may be required if a claim is made. Unfortunately, if these can not be provided during the claim process, it is likely that this shipment will not be eligble for compensation.

If you are not part of the managed shipping program, any unexpected occurrences during transit must be reported to Artfinder for our records. However, any issues will then need to be disputed directly with your selected courier, as we cannot discuss these matters with the courier on your behalf since we are neither the sender nor the recipient.

• Including Shipping Protection

Shipping Protection coverage for artists on the Managed Shipping program covers the sum of the object values provided by the artist on the artwork listing, which should reflect the total sum paid for the objects. Shipping Protection does not include coverage for duties and taxes paid to customs.

• Condition Inspections

Objects may be inspected at collection and/or delivery. Conditions may be photographed and/or noted on shipment documents (such as a Bill of Lading or Proof of Delivery). This service may require unpacking and handling objects at either location. Costs for these services are included in Arta’s shipping cost.

Arta can decline or cancel insurance based on our terms, conditions, and exclusions.