Artsy and Artnet for Art Galleries: A Practical Guide (2026)
Written by Emile Haffmans, Founder & Digital Marketing Director, Art World Marketing
In This Article
- Artsy and Artnet: What Each Platform Is
- Which Galleries Belong on Which Platform
- Artsy Pricing: What Galleries Actually Pay
- How Artsy Actually Works: The Algorithm
- The Art Genome Project: How Artsy Discovers
- Cadence: Why Consistent Publishing Matters
- Response Times: The Conversion Factor Most Galleries
- How AWM Manages Marketplace Presence for Galleries
- A Note on Fees
- Common Mistakes to Avoid
- How Much Does It Cost to List
- What Is the Difference Between Artsy and
- Should a Gallery Be on Both Artsy
- How Long Does It Take to See
Introduction
Artsy and Artnet are the two most significant online platforms for gallery discovery and collector reach in the contemporary art world. Between them they provide access to one of the largest qualified collector audiences available to galleries online, and since 2024 both have operated under the same parent corporation, creating new practical opportunities for galleries that want to maximize their reach across both.
Most galleries underuse both platforms. Artsy is often treated as a digital brochure: artworks are uploaded, a price is added, and the gallery waits to see what happens. Artnet is frequently overlooked entirely. Neither approach makes the most of what these platforms offer.
This guide covers what each platform does, how they differ, which galleries are best suited to each, and what it actually takes to perform well on both. For galleries already on one platform and considering the other, it also covers what the 2026 merger infrastructure means in practical terms. It is part of our broader guide to art gallery advertising in 2026.
Artsy and Artnet: What Each Platform Is
Artsy
Artsy is the world's largest online gallery marketplace. It functions as a fully transactional platform: collectors can browse, follow artists and galleries, inquire about works, make offers, and in many cases purchase directly through the platform. Artsy has its own discovery algorithm, powered by the Art Genome Project, a classification system of over 1,000 genes that determines which artworks appear in which collector searches and recommendations. The platform has a large and diverse collector audience with a strong contemporary art focus, and is well suited for galleries representing emerging and mid-career artists as well as established galleries with a broad program.
Artnet
Artnet operates differently. It is a professional profile and listings platform with a large collector and industry audience, but it is not a transactional marketplace in the same sense as Artsy. Galleries and artists have detailed profile pages, exhibitions and shows are listed, and artworks are published, but inquiries and conversations happen outside the platform rather than through it. Artnet's audience and editorial positioning skew toward higher-end and blue-chip collecting, making it particularly relevant for established galleries where authority and discoverability among serious collectors is the primary goal. It functions more as a professional directory and authority signal than as an active sales channel.
The 2026 Merger: What It Means Practically
Both platforms now operate under one parent corporation. In practical terms this means galleries can subscribe to both on a single invoice rather than managing two separate commercial relationships. From 2026, artwork listing sync tools are being introduced that allow galleries to maintain a consistent presence across both platforms without duplicating the operational work of updating listings separately. Galleries already subscribed to one platform are being offered discounted entry to the other, making this a practical moment for galleries to consider running both together.
The opportunity is reach. Artsy and Artnet each have large but partially distinct collector audiences. A gallery present on both significantly extends its visibility compared to either platform alone.
Which Galleries Belong on Which Platform
The right platform, or combination of platforms, depends on the gallery's program, price point, and commercial objectives.
Artsy
Artsy suits a wide range of galleries. It is particularly strong for galleries representing emerging and mid-career artists, where the platform's transactional functionality and large contemporary collector base can drive direct inquiries and sales. The platform's collector audience is one of the largest in the online art world, with a strong concentration of collectors actively looking to discover and acquire works. For galleries with works priced up to roughly 50,000 US dollars or euros, Artsy can function as a genuine sales channel where collector relationships begin and transactions complete. Above that price point, transactions typically happen offline regardless of platform, and Artsy's value shifts toward visibility and collector discovery.
Artnet
Artnet is best suited for established and blue-chip galleries where authority and discoverability among serious collectors is the primary objective. The platform's audience and editorial context make it the right environment for galleries with significant artists and institutional credibility. For galleries at the higher end of the market, an Artnet presence communicates a level of professional standing that a marketplace listing alone does not. It is updated regularly for shows and exhibitions but functions more as a professional profile than an active daily sales channel.
Both
For galleries with the program and budget to justify both, running Artsy and Artnet together makes sense. Artsy handles the transactional and discovery side, reaching a large contemporary collector audience actively looking to buy. Artnet reinforces authority and extends reach to a different and often more established collector audience. The 2026 merger infrastructure makes running both more operationally practical than it was previously, and the combined reach across the two platforms is significantly larger than either one alone.
Not sure whether Artsy, 1stDibs, or Chairish is the right fit? Our platform comparison guide breaks down the differences by gallery type.
“We recommend galleries think about Artsy and Artnet as complementary rather than competing. Artsy is where collectors discover and buy. Artnet is where serious collectors go to verify that a gallery is worth approaching. For galleries that can justify the subscription to both, the reach across the two platforms is significantly larger than either one alone.”
Artsy Pricing: What Galleries Actually Pay
Artsy offers three subscription tiers. Understanding what each includes is important for galleries evaluating whether the platform makes commercial sense for their program.
All plans include CMS and bulk upload tools, an analytics dashboard, seller protection up to 100,000 US dollars, integrated shipping through Artsy's partner ARTA, and strategy sessions with an Artsy liaison.
The right tier depends on the gallery's sales volume and program. The commission structure is the key variable: for galleries with active online sales, the lower commission at higher tiers can offset the higher monthly subscription fee. A gallery selling regularly through the platform at the Premier tier pays 5 percent commission rather than 19 percent at Essentials, which can represent a significant difference at higher price points. The Plus tier with its Viewing Rooms feature is worth considering for galleries that run regular online exhibitions, as viewing rooms are one of the stronger tools for collector engagement on the platform.
How Artsy Actually Works: The Algorithm
The single most important thing to understand about Artsy is that it is not a passive listing directory. It is a search engine with an algorithm that determines which artworks collectors see and in what order. Galleries that understand this and optimize accordingly perform dramatically better than those that treat it as a digital brochure.
Art World Marketing analyzed over 2,000 artwork listings on Artsy to identify the factors with the most significant impact on artwork visibility and rankings. Three factors stood out as having the largest and most statistically significant effect.
Enable E-Commerce: Buy Now and Make Offer
Artworks with e-commerce functionality enabled, specifically Buy Now and Make Offer, rank dramatically higher than those set to Contact Gallery only. Our analysis found that works with e-commerce enabled rank in the top two percent of an artist's page on Artsy. Works with only Contact Gallery available rank at the 34th percentile on average. That is a 32 percentile point difference, and it is the single highest-impact optimization available to galleries on the platform.
Despite this, only 49.6 percent of artworks on Artsy currently have e-commerce enabled. For galleries with works priced under 50,000 US dollars or euros, enabling Buy Now and Make Offer is the most direct step available to improve visibility. For higher-value works where a direct online transaction is not appropriate, the Plus tier's flexible pricing options allow a Price on Request approach while still maintaining listing quality.
Show Your Prices
Artworks with visible pricing significantly outperform those marked Price on Request or left without pricing information. Only 62.2 percent of artworks on Artsy currently display prices, which means showing pricing is a competitive advantage that costs nothing to implement. Transparency aligns with how collectors prefer to browse online, and Artsy's algorithm reflects that preference.
Upload Five or More Images
Works with five or more images perform meaningfully better than single-image listings, both in terms of algorithmic ranking and collector engagement. Only 14.8 percent of artworks currently meet this threshold. The recommended image set for each work includes a main frontal view, a detail shot, a signature or verso image, a scale reference, and an in-situ or installation view. This level of documentation builds collector confidence and signals listing quality to the algorithm.
The full methodology, statistical analysis, and detailed findings from AWM's Artsy research are available in our free research report.
The Art Genome Project: How Artsy Discovers Artworks
Artsy's discovery system is powered by the Art Genome Project, an open-source classification system of over 1,000 genes that categorize artworks by style, medium, technique, concept, and geographic context. When a collector searches on Artsy or browses related works and recommendations, the algorithm matches their interests against the genes applied to each artwork in the database.
Genes determine which artworks appear in search results, which works are recommended in the 'Related Artists' and 'Other works from' sections, and which galleries and artists appear when a collector creates an alert or follows a category. Galleries that apply genes strategically appear in significantly more search results and discovery pathways than those that leave artworks minimally tagged.
The recommendation is to apply the maximum number of relevant genes to every artwork, covering style, medium, technique, scale, and geographic context. The most commercially valuable genes include contemporary art, painting, abstract art, figurative art, emerging art, prints and multiples, sculpture, photography, portrait, and landscape, though the most relevant genes for any given artwork depend on that work's actual characteristics. More relevant genes means more discovery paths for collectors to find the work.
Cadence: Why Consistent Publishing Matters
One of the most common mistakes galleries make on Artsy is bulk publishing followed by silence. Uploading fifty works at once generates a temporary spike in visibility, then the gallery effectively disappears until the next batch upload. The algorithm rewards freshness and consistent activity. Galleries that publish three to five works per week, combined with regular shows and viewing rooms, maintain significantly better visibility than those that update in irregular bursts.
The goal is to treat Artsy as an active sales channel with a publishing rhythm rather than a static archive. A consistent cadence of new work, combined with at least one show and regular viewing rooms each month, keeps the gallery present in collector alerts and search results over time. Viewing rooms in particular are one of the stronger engagement tools on the platform and are available from the Plus tier upward.
Artnet operates differently. It functions more as a professional profile than an active publishing platform. The priority on Artnet is keeping the gallery's profile, artist pages, and exhibition information current and well-presented, with updates tied to shows and significant gallery events rather than a weekly publishing cadence. The investment of time is lower, but the maintenance of quality and currency matters for the authority signal the platform provides.
“We recommend galleries think of their Artsy presence the way they think of their website's SEO: it requires consistent attention and regular publishing to stay visible. The galleries that treat it as a set-and-forget listing are the ones leaving the most visibility on the table. Our research found that 98 percent of galleries are not optimizing their Artsy presence properly, which means the opportunity for those who do is significant.”
Response Times: The Conversion Factor Most Galleries Ignore
AWM's research shows a clear and significant relationship between response time and conversion likelihood on Artsy. Responding to inquiries and offers within two hours produces four to eight times better conversion rates compared to responding after 48 hours. Responding within 24 hours produces two to five times better rates. Most galleries treat Artsy inquiries with the same rhythm as email correspondence, checking once a day or less. The galleries that perform best on the platform treat notifications with the same urgency as a collector walking through the door.
The practical steps are straightforward: enable mobile notifications for Artsy inquiries and offers, assign a team member with clear responsibility for monitoring the platform, and review the Conversations and Send Offers sections in the Artsy backend consistently throughout the day. An inquiry left unanswered for 48 hours is often an inquiry that has moved on to another gallery.
How AWM Manages Marketplace Presence for Galleries
What Art World Marketing does for gallery clients on Artsy and Artnet goes beyond getting them listed. The service is built around two things: cadence and coordination.
Cadence means consistent publishing of artworks, shows, and viewing rooms on Artsy at a rhythm that keeps the gallery visible and active on the platform. It means keeping the Artnet profile current and updated around shows and significant program moments. And it means monitoring inquiries and offers on Artsy and ensuring response times stay within the window that converts.
Coordination means aligning marketplace activity with the gallery's other channels so that every significant moment in the program, an exhibition opening, a new artist announcement, a fair participation, creates collector touchpoints across multiple channels simultaneously. When an exhibition announcement goes out through the newsletter, is published as a show on Artsy, is updated on the Artnet profile, and is supported by a paid social sprint, the combined effect on collector awareness is significantly stronger than any single channel alone.
“The galleries that get the most from Artsy and Artnet are not necessarily the ones with the most works listed. They are the ones running those platforms with consistent cadence and coordinating them with the rest of their marketing. When an exhibition announcement goes out across newsletter, social, and marketplace at the same time, it creates a far stronger collector impression than any single channel would on its own.”
A Note on Fees
Marketplace fees on both Artsy and Artnet are a real consideration and worth addressing honestly. They are not negligible. Artsy's commission structure ranges from 5 to 19 percent depending on subscription tier, on top of the monthly subscription fee. Artnet's pricing is negotiated directly with galleries.
The reason galleries pay these fees is access to an audience they could not build on their own in any reasonable timeframe. A gallery's own website requires months of SEO investment and content work to build organic visibility from scratch, though Google Ads can deliver immediate search visibility alongside a marketplace presence. Artsy and Artnet provide immediate access to large, qualified collector audiences that already exist on those platforms and are actively looking for galleries and artworks. The fee is the cost of that access.
For a broader look at how fees compare across platforms, including 1stDibs and Chairish, our 1stDibs guide for galleries covers the full cost picture for that platform specifically.
The right question is not whether the fees are high in absolute terms but whether the collector reach and inquiry volume they provide justify the investment for a specific gallery's program and price point. For galleries that optimize their presence properly and treat both platforms as active channels rather than passive listings, the answer is typically yes. For galleries that upload works and wait, the fees are harder to justify.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Treating Artsy as a Static Listing Directory
Uploading a batch of works and waiting for collectors to find them is the most common mistake galleries make on the platform. Artsy is a search engine with an algorithm that rewards active, optimized presences. Consistent publishing, proper gene application, and e-commerce functionality are what drive visibility, not the presence of listings alone.
Hiding Prices or Disabling E-Commerce
Both pricing transparency and e-commerce functionality have a direct and significant impact on artwork rankings on Artsy. Galleries that hide prices or leave works on Contact Gallery only are actively reducing their own visibility. For works where a direct transaction is not appropriate, the Plus tier's flexible pricing options provide a middle ground.
Bulk Publishing Followed by Silence
The algorithm rewards freshness. A gallery that publishes fifty works at once and then goes quiet for three months will see its visibility decline steadily over that period. A consistent cadence of new works, shows, and viewing rooms maintains presence and keeps the gallery in collector alerts over time.
Slow Response Times
Collectors who make inquiries or offers on Artsy are often considering multiple galleries simultaneously. A response that arrives 48 hours later frequently finds the collector has already moved on. Mobile notifications and a clear internal process for monitoring and responding to platform activity are not optional for galleries that want to convert Artsy visibility into actual sales.
Ignoring Artnet
For established galleries, overlooking Artnet means missing an audience that is specifically relevant to their program. The platform's authority positioning and its collector demographic are distinct from Artsy's, and for blue-chip and higher-end galleries the Artnet profile is often where serious collectors go first when researching a gallery's credentials.
How Much Does It Cost to List a Gallery on Artsy?
Artsy offers three subscription tiers. The Essentials plan is 385 US dollars per month with a 19 percent commission on sales and a 400 dollar setup fee. It includes unlimited marketplace listings with required visible pricing and Buy Now and Make Offer functionality. The Plus plan is 600 dollars per month with a 10 percent commission and a 600 dollar setup fee, adding Viewing Rooms, flexible pricing display including Price on Request, and the Folio presentation tool. The Premier plan is 1,000 dollars per month with a 5 percent commission and an 800 dollar setup fee, adding concierge listing support, featured artist representation, and promotional slots. All plans include CMS tools, an analytics dashboard, seller protection up to 100,000 dollars, integrated shipping through ARTA, and strategy sessions with an Artsy liaison.
What Is the Difference Between Artsy and Artnet?
Both are major online platforms for gallery discovery and collector reach, but they function differently. Artsy is a fully transactional marketplace where collectors can browse, inquire, make offers, and in some cases purchase directly through the platform. It has its own discovery algorithm and a large, diverse collector audience with a strong contemporary art focus. Artnet operates more as a professional profile and listings platform: galleries and artists have detailed pages and exhibitions are listed, but inquiries and conversations happen outside the platform rather than through it. Artnet's audience skews toward higher-end and blue-chip collecting, making it particularly relevant for established galleries where authority and discoverability among serious collectors is the primary goal.
Should a Gallery Be on Both Artsy and Artnet?
For many galleries, yes. The two platforms reach overlapping but distinct collector audiences, and the combination provides significantly broader reach than either one alone. Artsy handles the transactional and discovery side. Artnet reinforces authority and extends reach to a more established collector audience, particularly relevant for galleries with significant artists or a blue-chip program. The practical case for running both has strengthened in 2026: combined subscriptions are available on a single invoice and artwork listing sync tools are being introduced. Whether both make sense for a specific gallery depends on its program, price point, and budget.
How Long Does It Take to See Results from Artsy?
Results on Artsy are closely tied to how actively a gallery manages its presence. Galleries that publish consistently, optimize artwork listings with e-commerce enabled and pricing visible, and respond to inquiries promptly tend to see meaningful collector engagement within the first few months. Galleries that upload a batch of works and go quiet often see limited results, regardless of how long they have been on the platform — the most successful treat Artsy as part of a broader digital exhibition strategy, often complementing their listings with online viewing rooms that give each show a dedicated digital presence. Based on AWM's research and experience managing gallery presences on Artsy, the galleries that treat it as an active sales channel with a consistent publishing cadence significantly outperform those that treat it as a static listing directory. The full data behind this is available in our free research report.
Discuss Your Gallery's Marketplace Presence
If you want to talk through whether Artsy, Artnet, or both make sense for your gallery's program and budget, we are happy to have that conversation. Art World Marketing manages gallery presences on both platforms and works exclusively with galleries, artists, and art businesses.
We also offer a free Artsy audit for galleries that want to understand where their current presence can be improved. Get in touch to request one.
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