While some porn performers are out there making six figures a year — or month — many don’t. In 2024, it was revealed that the average OnlyFans creator pocketed just $1,300 a year. But that sum was a calculation based on OnlyFans’ numbers. What do actual 18+ creators say they earn?
The average creator earns about $58,700 a year from adult work, or about $5,000 per month, according to a survey from adult industry research firm SWR Data.
SWR Data conducted the State of the Creator survey in fall 2025, which included over 550 adult creators. It found that just 35 percent of creators said they were entirely dependent on their adult work for their survival, while 51 percent said they earn income outside the adult industry.
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Newer creators earn around $16,000 annually on average, while that number shoots up to $74,000 for those who’ve been in the industry for five years or more. And for creators who’ve both been in the industry for 5+ years and only work in adult, the average income is more than $111,000, according to SWR Data.
“While many factors influence who earns how much…one factor correlates with higher incomes more than anything else: the amount of time spent in the industry,” SWR Data wrote in a Substack post.
More research is to be done about the earnings of adult stars — but SWR Data’s Substack stressed that the top one percent certainly doesn’t speak for everyone.
