VGen — how an artist can take on commissions on a marketplace for VTubers and streamers

VGen is a commissions site for artists who draw for streamers and virtual hosts (known as VTubers): characters, chat emotes, animated models. Its strength is a lively storefront and its own community, where clients find you themselves. Let’s break down how it all works, what VGen charges, and who can really use it.

What this platform is
VGen (vgen.co) is a commissions site that connects streamers, virtual hosts (VTubers) and bloggers with artists. It is run by an independent small Canadian team; the project started around 2022 and is still in testing (they call it a beta).
Its positioning is emphatically human: VGen has a manifesto against neural networks — AI art is not welcome here. This is not a general marketplace like Fiverr but a service built specifically for commissions, with a strong storefront; its closest competitor is Artistree.
What people order most often here: character art, Twitch emotes and badges, animated VTuber models, character reference sheets, chibis and ready-made made-to-order templates (YCH).

How to get started
Anyone can create an account, but to sell you need an invite code: the site is still in testing and this is how it guards against bots, AI and scammers. You get a code through a monthly contest, a portfolio post, or a vouch — an already-verified artist gives it to someone they are willing to vouch for.
Next comes your profile, a mandatory onboarding quest (without it you do not appear in the marketplace), setting up your services, your own terms of work, a portfolio and payouts.
There is also a separate Verified Artist status (checked manually and for free) with five conditions: 10 followers, $100 earned in 30 days, 3 reviews, a 4.6+ rating and at least 80% of orders delivered on time. An application takes up to 2–3 months to review.

How orders come in
The deal is direct — “artist ↔ client” — and VGen is only the platform. There are two paths. First, the storefront and search: a completed profile shows up on the homepage and clients find you themselves (a tip at the end of an order even boosts your visibility). Second, client requests: a client sends a request and you reply with an offer stating the scope, deadline and payment — the full sum up front or in stages.
You can order in two ways: discuss first and agree a price, or buy a service outright. Every deal generates an invoice, and reviews go both ways. There is payment protection: orders are covered by a refund within 150 days of payment, and you set the cancellation terms before the delivery date in your own rules.

What VGen charges
The service fee is just 5% from the artist plus the payment processor’s fee; there is no upfront charge and no subscription, and VGen takes nothing for the payout itself.
After that it depends on the method: through built-in payments (powered by Stripe) it is the standard 2.9% plus $0.30, and outside the US there is also an international payout fee of 1.5–2.5%; through PayPal it is VGen’s 5% plus PayPal’s usual fees, which in practice adds up to around 10%. The client pays for currency conversion, so build these percentages into your price in advance.

Who the site is available to
You can order from an artist in any country, but you can only withdraw money in supported ones (about 149 of them). What matters is your actual country of residence and a local PayPal or bank account: payouts can only be set up to those.
For someone who has relocated this is quite doable: payouts are supported in, for example, Georgia and Kazakhstan (via PayPal), as well as Armenia, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan and Turkey (via Stripe Express, which works even where regular Stripe does not) — not to mention EU countries. With a legal residence permit and a local account, payouts will most likely go through.
It is worth checking your country in advance: if there is no working payout method there, a seller account makes no sense — there would be nowhere to receive the money.

How to work more effectively
What helps: keep your service statuses honest (open, waitlist, closed) and turn on the automatic queue so you don’t overload yourself. Reply quickly — letting your on-time delivery rate drop below 80% wrecks your verification. Write detailed terms of work, take a deposit or split payment into stages, and drive traffic from social media: the VGen community lives on Twitter/X, and taking part really does bring both invites and orders.
What to keep in mind: the barrier to entry is high — you can’t sell without an invite code, and codes are scarce; money arrives with a delay (the first payout takes 7–14 days, and the withdrawal minimum is $50); verification drags on for months. Competition is fierce and the niche is oversaturated with anime and VTuber styles — without a strong portfolio the storefront won’t carry you. And the AI policy is strict: an accusation of AI art or using someone else’s assets leads to rejection and the risk of a ban.
Compared with Artistree: there the 6.5% fee is paid by the client and the artist keeps the full 100% (essentially free), but the storefront is weaker. VGen takes 5% from the artist, but its storefront and community are noticeably stronger. If you don’t have your own audience and need a flow of orders, choose VGen; if you already have an audience and a zero commission matters, choose Artistree.