For those who want to get into the market for non-fungible tokens, there are a growing number of marketplaces available that cater to every different preference. Artists and investors on these platforms can buy and sell digital assets of all kinds, including GIF images, virtual worlds, music, and much more. To choose the right NFT marketplace for your goals, you’ll want to understand a few key differences between some of the biggest platforms today.
Here are five of the most popular marketplaces for digital art and their specific features that make them ideal for investors.
1. OpenSea
OpenSea is arguably the most popular digital art marketplace out there today. Using OpenSea, you can purchase and sell a wide variety of NFTs, including JPG and GIF images, games, music, domain names, and other types of collectibles. OpenSea includes ERC-1155 and ERC-721 tokens.
OpenSea is decentralized, meaning that smart contracts govern trades without any central governing authority. The type of currency most commonly used on this platform is Ether (ETH). As a result, transactions are slightly more expensive compared to those in other marketplaces because of the popularity of ETH and the steep gas fees associated with it.
Smart contracts on this platform keep transactions consistently safe and secure between buyers and sellers. Authors can use it to release new digital artwork, users can freely exchange assets, and developers can even put together virtual worlds that enable users to share collectibles and other assets.
OpenSea also allows you to view the top NFTs on the market by volume.
2. SuperRare
SuperRare is another NFT marketplace that allows collectors and investors to purchase art, 3D images, and videos using the Ethereum network. However, unlike OpenSea, music, domain names, and other collectibles aren’t available on this platform.
SuperRare boasts a top-end marketplace that only features work from artists who have been thoroughly vetted. This means that you’ll find high-quality art as opposed to large amounts of low-quality artwork, i.e. quality over quantity. Additionally, this platform is heavily moderated, akin to a social network, which means that investors won’t see unrelated or spammy content they might come across on other platforms.
It’s worth keeping in mind that investors pay more for the higher, vetted quality on SuperRare. The platform charges a 3% commission to buyers for both primary and secondary sales, and artists receive 10% as royalty.
3. Rarible
Rarible is a great platform for exploring new categories of NFTs. This platform is also on Ethereum, and it’s entirely community-owned as a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO). This gives the platform’s users complete control over governance, enabling them to develop and vote on upgrades to the marketplace. As a result, Rarible serves as much more than a mere NFT marketplace, instead functioning as a public infrastructure that users can directly influence.
Similar to OpenSea and SuperRare, users can purchase and sell many types of artwork on Rarible. Sellers can also develop multiple pieces and sell them more than once.
One of the key advantages of Rarible is its easy-to-use interface, which makes it ideal for novice investors and artists. It also features an easy learning curve for people familiar with OpenSea and other marketplaces. Individuals don’t need any coding or technical knowledge to get started, making it among the most accessible platforms. Uses can also develop communities including a combination of collectors and creators who share the same interests.
However, while the platform is easy to use and highly accessible, it comes at a certain cost. For one, the customer support isn’t as responsive as that of other platforms. It’s also more expensive and comes with a steep gas fee, making it less ideal for casual investors.
4. Nifty Gateway
One of the most notable things about Nifty Gateway is that it’s the platform where famous NFT artist Beeple continues to sell his artwork, showing that even the biggest artists out there trust Nifty Gateway as a reliable marketplace for purchasing and selling digital art. In addition to key industry players like Beeple, this platform collaborates with other leading content creators, artists, athletes, and top brands to make it extremely popular.
While this platform is safe and secure to use for all transactions, there are certain features that could deter some investors. Most notably, the fact that Nifty Gateway stores NFTs directly on the platform instead of in users’ wallets may make some potential users wary. On the flip side, however, this structure does make the platform more convenient to use, as users don’t have to connect their wallets the way that most other marketplaces require.
One major benefit of Nifty Gateway is the fact that users can purchase NFTs using U.S. dollars in lieu of cryptocurrency. This makes it a popular option for novices in digital art investing who aren’t ready to rely solely on crypto transactions.
5. KnownOrigin
Investors who consider themselves art connoisseurs will likely find the most value in KnownOrigin. This platform primarily focuses on digital art, excluding all other types of NFTs such as games, domain names, and avatars.
Although the trading volume is generally lower for this platform compared to others, this is due to the quality of artwork found on KnownOrigin. You’re likely to find some of the best artists and artwork on this marketplace, making it suitable for more serious collectors and investors. Like SuperRare, artists on KnownOrigin undergo a vetting process to make sure they’re qualified to sell their art on the platform.
Due to the exclusiveness of KnownOrigin, you can expect steeper prices for your NFTs. In fact, the secondary sales commission for artists on KnownOrigin is 12.5% higher than on other similar platforms like Rarible or SuperRare.
Choose the Right Platform for Your Next Investment Opportunity
Whether you’re new to the world of digital art investing or a veteran looking for a new platform to investigate, these are some of the most popular and reliable options on the web today. Each marketplace has its pros and cons, so test them out to learn how they work for you and discover which platform has the digital art that’s truly worth your investment.
