If you’re a designer who works a lot with photomanipulation, I think you’ll agree that a designer’s greatest ally is good stock image. And not just for book covers, but for artwork in general — from social media post design to photographs for a blog post!
Today I’m going to list my favorite and most-used stock sites in my work as a book cover designer!
Depositphotos
Depositphotos is my go-to stock site for everything. I use its images for both book covers and other general design work. The Standard License is excellent for various types of projects, allowing unlimited views and copies for digital products like ebooks, and up to 500,000 copies for printed books.
Currently, it offers a monthly plan for $25/month, and an annual plan for $22/month which includes unlimited images under the Standard License for commercial use.
And if you use my coupon GRBOOK, you’ll get an extra 20% off in your On-Demand or Subscription purchase!
Shutterstock
Shutterstock is one of the most widely used stock sites among designers, thanks to its superior search tools and higher-quality photographs compared to other stocks. It also currently offers rendered 3D models in PNG format. The Standard License currently covers unlimited digital distribution for ebooks and up to 500,000 printed copies.
Currently, it offers plans with varying image quantities, starting at 10 images for $29/month on an annual contract, or $49/month on a month-to-month contract.
Adobe Stock
Linked to Adobe, Adobe Stock also offers a great variety of assets, including several exclusives to the platform, as well as PNG images with transparent backgrounds — which is a lifesaver for many designers who don’t want to have to cut out every single image! The Standard License currently also includes unlimited views and distribution for ebooks and up to 500,000 printed copies.
Currently, it offers a Standard plan starting at 10 images for $29.99, with the price varying depending on the number of images contracted and whether an AI image generation plan is included.
iStock
iStock is an excellent stock site, and it has been going in the opposite direction from other traditional stock sites: while other platforms are increasingly embracing AI and incorporating it into their search systems or even allowing image generation for clients within their plans, iStock has decided that it will not accept AI-generated images in its catalog, making it an excellent and trustworthy resource for those seeking 100% human-made content. iStock’s Standard License also covers unlimited views and distribution for ebooks, and up to 500,000 printed copies.
However, it divides images into two categories: Essentials and Premium. This directly affects the pricing of subscriptions or On-Demand purchases, where images can cost 1 or 3 credits depending on which category they fall into. But believe me: the extra cost is worth it, as the images offered are of excellent quality and are often exclusive to the platform! Subscription prices start at $29/month depending on the category and the number of images you select.
Period Images
Period Images is a niche stock site perfect for romance novel covers across various genres! What sets this stock apart is that it offers excellent images for historical romances, which are exclusive to the platform and not available on any other stock site. This stock is also exclusively for book covers, meaning its images cannot be used in any other artwork not related to books.
This stock offers individual image purchases, with no subscription available at the moment. Prices vary depending on the format and intended use for each image, as well as distribution limitations, starting at $8.95 for digital use and from $11.95 for both digital and print use, with unlimited views for ebooks and a limit of up to 20,000 printed copies — with the print copy limit subject to variation depending on the purchase plan chosen, with options going up to 250,000 copies or unlimited. Images can also only be used once, for a single project.
