A Complete Guide to the Best 99designs Alternatives

99designs is an excellent choice if you’re looking for affordable, quick, and high-quality designs for your business. However, it’s wise to explore other options to make sure that what you’re getting is the perfect fit for your specific needs. Here are 99designs alternatives you can look into.

Table of Contents

• Is On-Demand Graphic Design the Best 99designs Alternative?
• Other 99designs Alternatives
• What is 99designs?
• The Problem with 99designs
• 99designs – User Reviews
• What is the Best 99designs Alternative? 
• The Penji Experience 
• Unleash Your Creative Freedom with Penji

Is On-Demand Graphic Design the Best 99designs Alternative?

It’s rare to find quality designs that are affordable. Marketplaces such as 99designs can give you excellent design for less, but that’s if you have luck on your side. If you don’t want to rely on chance, a consistent on-demand graphic design team might be for you. Here’s why.

Affordable 

An on-demand graphic design service offers monthly subscriptions that include unlimited designs and revisions. You won’t have to pay per project or hour. It’s suitable for companies that need a continuous supply of great graphics – not just one or two. 

Fast Turnaround Time 

In this fast-paced world, time is everything. On-demand service means having the graphic design you need when you need it. With a turnaround time of 24 to 48 hours, you won’t have to wait long to get that logo design or social media graphic. Unlimited design companies know how to make it snappy.

Professional and Reliable Work 

Generally, this type of service has stringent recruitment processes to hire only the best of the best graphic designers in the industry. Unlike 99designs and other freelance platforms, quality doesn’t vary and you may even work with some of the same designers repeatedly.

This team of designers will understand your brand and familiarize themselves with your expectations. They are there to answer questions and won’t disappear or miss a deadline without notice.

No More Hiring Process 

You won’t have to look around online marketplaces to find the ideal freelance graphic designer – over and over and over. You no longer have to look at portfolio after portfolio to find the perfect match. An unlimited graphic design service does both the recruiting and vetting for you.

Variety of Skills 

Whatever design style you need, an on-demand team of professionals can cater to it. Whether it’s a retro illustration or a corporate landing page, you can be sure the platform will match you with the right designer. For example, Penji’s AI matching system automatically pairs you with a designer who specializes in a particular medium.

Easy Communication 

An on-demand graphic design service typically has a dashboard where clients and designers discuss projects. This means communication is efficient and straightforward. You won’t have to send emails every time you want to request a design or revision. You can find it all there on the dashboard. 

No Contracts 

When your company experiences a low workload, opting out of the subscription is simple and easy. You won’t have to be tied down to a contract. You can just cancel the subscription and pay only when you need to. 

Signing up for Penji

While on-demand graphic design services vary from company to company, Penji can assure you of all the above, and more. We have a 30-day money-back guarantee to let you know how serious we are about giving you on-demand graphic designs. 

Let Penji awe you with high-quality designs at an affordable rate! Get a demo here to see how Penji can help you with designs and more!

Other 99designs Alternatives

Below are 99designs alternatives you may want to consider:

1. DesignContest

Aside from holding contests, DesignContest lets you hire a graphic designer directly.  They have over 200 thousand designers on their list, although not as many as DesignCrowd. But if you look at the reviews, most of them are from satisfied customers, so it’s a decent 99designs alternative.

With DesignContest, you can set a budget for your design jobs. However, they have minimums, which depend on the type of design you need. They have a 100% money-back guarantee if you’re not happy with their service.

Pricing: Starts at $195 per project

2. Crowdspring

Probably the only one to do so, Crowdspring offers design consultations for free. They are a relatively small marketplace. But sometimes, being small is advantageous as this gives them the capability of being a hands-on team. 

The Crowdspring website is easy to navigate and offers filters to help you find the most suitable designers quickly. Although they have no review or rating system in place for their designers, they have their portfolios standing by. You can browse through them to find what exactly you’re looking for.

Pricing: Offers four pricing plans that starts at $299

3. ManyPixels

With so many unlimited graphic design services to choose from, what makes ManyPixels different? This platform is only one of the few that offers web and mobile design. Its intuitive and user-friendly interface makes it a suitable partner for those without the technical know-how.

ManyPixels can provide you with all the designs you’ll need for your website, blogs, advertising, and social media campaigns. The turnaround time is 1 to 2 business days. Pricing starts at $549 per month with a 14-day money-back guarantee.

Pricing: Offers four pricing plans that starts at $549/month

4. DotYeti

One of the newest kids on the unlimited graphic design block, DotYeti, is already making waves. And if you’re looking for fast and quality visual assets, this is an excellent 99designs alternative. You can request custom images, videos, animations, and many others for as low as $399 per month.

One of the many features DotYeti offers that is gaining popularity is its customer service. Depending on your plan, they will assign a dedicated account manager to you who will make your DotYeti journey even more memorable.

Pricing: Offers three pricing options that starts at $399.

5. Delesign

Offering a wide array of services, Delesign gives you access to its pool of talented designers for a monthly subscription fee. Aside from graphic designs, they can provide you with illustrations, animation, photography editing, and many others. Their unlimited graphic design service includes unlimited revisions, too. Delesign offers a 15-day money-back guarantee. This means you will get a full refund if you’re not 100% satisfied with the work they provide.

Pricing: Offers three pricing plans, starting at $599 per month.

6. UnicornGo

Going above and beyond unlimited graphic design is UnicornGo. It offers unlimited content writing and unlimited video editing. With this service, you will have a whole team of creatives working for your business. 

UnicornGo offers a 14-day risk-free guarantee without signing any contract. You can cancel anytime you want. They will assign you a dedicated project manager and design team for consistent designs each time.

Pricing: Offers three pricing plans that starts at $499/month

7. DesignHill

With several AI-powered tools, DesignHill is an excellent alternative to 99designs. Its logo, t-shirt, and business card maker allow quick, customizable design solutions without hiring a designer. Its built-in PrintShop lets you create custom merchandise like mugs, tote bags, and t-shirts and sell them directly through the platform.

In addition, DesignHill has a unique feature that’s more cost-effective and tailored than 99designs’. This is its design consultation services, which let you hire a designer for customized consultation and revisions.

Pricing: Offers four pricing plans, starting at $249

8. DesignEvo

Unlike 99designs, which relies on contests and professional designers, DesignEvo gives you the power to craft your own logo via an intuitive and easy-to-use platform. It offers thousands of pre-designed logo templates across various industries, you’re sure to find a template that will fit your brand. And since you’re doing the designing yourself, getting a logo can be done in minutes instead of days with 99designs.

Moreover, DesignEvo is incredibly cost-effective. You can download your creation for free or pay a one-time payment for a high-resolution file of your design. This makes this 99designs alternative ideal for startups and small businesses.

Pricing: Offers Basic and Plus plans valued at $24.99 and $49.99, respectively. Also offers a Free option.

9. Fiverr

A strong 99designs alternative, Fiverr is an excellent option for those looking for a flexible and cost-effective design marketplace. Its gig-based model lets you hire designers at various price points, starting with projects for as low as $5. Its direct-hiring approach eliminates the hassles and uncertainty of crowdsourcing, where you’ll be dependent on the contest outcome.

Furthermore, Fiverr’s platform offers a wide range of creative services. This lets you find the designers for all your visual asset needs. You can browse profiles, portfolios, and reviews and contact your preferred designer directly.

Pricing: Fiverr Pro offers per-project or hourly rates

10. Tailor Brands

Another 99design alternative that does not rely on contests is Tailor Brands. It uses advanced AI to generate customized logos and branding materials for you. If you’re seeking quick designs even without the expertise of a designer, this is the option you need.

Additionally, Tailor Brands offers more than branding designs. It also provides tools to let you craft business card designs, social media assets, and web designs, to name a few. It operates on a subscription-based model, ensuring a steady supply of design assets and updates.

Pricing: Starts at $199/year.

What is 99designs? 

Based in Melbourne, Australia, 99designs is an online creative platform that connects freelance graphic designers with clients worldwide. It offers a vibrant marketplace for designers to take on clients from the comforts of their homes. For businesses, it gives them access to talents across the globe, whatever budget they have. 

Founded in 2008 by Matt Mickiewicz and Mark Harbottle, the company has now grown to include offices in Oakland, California, and Berlin, Germany. 99designs has more than a million designers from 192 countries as of 2016. In 2017, it became a profitable company with reported revenue of about $60 million in 2018. 

How 99designs Works

There are two ways you can get a design on 99designs. The first one is through its Design Search tool, and the other one is through starting a contest. Let’s take a closer look at each of them: 

Hire a Designer 

The platform can directly connect you to designers with over 90 skill sets. You can choose from different levels of expertise, styles, asking prices, or availability. You will then be given the option to select a prospective designer for your project. 

Then, you’ll explain what your project is about and then negotiate the price for it. Prices will vary depending on the designer and the complexity of your project. The platform also allows you to request quotes from different designers to make your options more diverse. 

Start a Contest 

To get the interest of the best designers in the company’s global community, you can start a contest. You’ll be asked for a creative brief on which the contestants will base their submissions. The platform has different contest packages depending on how much you’re willing to spend on the design. 

This process allows you to choose from a variety of styles and ideas. The higher your price offering is, the more concepts you’ll get. This is the best option if you’re looking for logo design and other similar assets. 

The Problem with 99designs

Although many people are quite satisfied with 99designs, there are also those who aren’t happy with them. Thus, the need to know about another 99designs alternative. Here are some reasons people would want to get away from the platform: 

Communication Issues 

Clients look for a 99designs alternative because of communication issues. The platform has what they call a design brief, a document where you’ll write what you want to have in a design. This is where you’ll describe what colors you want, what meaning you want to convey with the design, and many others. 

This usually becomes a problem once you’re unable to write it concisely and transparently. The platform has templates and guidelines to help you write a good brief, but there is still a chance potential designers will misunderstand you. And this results in not getting the design you want. 

Language Barrier 

Another concern is the language barrier. Designers on 99designs come from different parts of the world. English may be required to get work through the platform, but not all of them will be native speakers. This can make writing a design brief even more complicated. 

Communicating your ideas can also be daunting when you consider the cultural barrier. It can sometimes get in the way when the designers don’t have a good understanding of Western culture. Expect some misspelled words or confusion in using imagery. 

No Client-Designer Relationship 

Having an excellent professional relationship with a graphic designer is one of the best ways to get good graphic design. When you understand how each other works, you’ll both be communicating your ideas effortlessly. And the result is a logo that visualizes your brand identity well. 

Your designer will know your brand well enough to create graphic design that has a harmonious look. This involves graphic design that your audience understands and gets them to take action. A design that came from a contest will lack the benefits you get from having a solid connection with your designer. Consider the pros and cons of hiring a freelance designer.

Lack of Originality 

The 99 designs contest process usually involves the contest holder rating the submitted entries. This gives other designers a chance to see what you’re likely to lean on. They create designs that look similar to what you’ve given a high rating to, and what you get are ideas lacking in originality. 

Another disadvantage of the rating system is that once designers see you’ve rated some designs, they will tend to keep away from your contest. They are thinking that you already found your winner and will lose interest in joining. Overall, clients prefer customized and unique designs, hence, they are looking for a 99designs alternative.

99designs – User Reviews

99Designs is a good option to get your graphics. But what did actual 99Designs customers say when they used the site?

• Limited number of designs submitted: 99designs is well known for its contest model. The graphic design site promises you could get at least 30 designs even on the affordable package. However, some users have reported that the designs were less than 30. This poses an issue because the customer expected that number, and it would not be value for money.
• Quality of designs: The quality of designs varies in 99designs. The mixed reviews indicate the quality you might receive when using that site. Some have even reported that only a handful were high-quality out of the 50 to 100 submissions. With Penji, you won’t have to worry about that. We ensure that you’ll be matched with the best designer for the project, and you’ll get high-quality variations for designs!
• Great starting point: Even if there are not-so-great reviews for 99designs, many consider 99designs a starting point in getting design work. This is ideal for business owners who don’t have design experience and don’t want to use DIY graphic design services. 

What is the Best 99designs Alternative? 

Now you can see why people are clamoring for some 99designs alternatives. Holding a contest is an affordable way to get a design, but it doesn’t always pan out. Here are a few of the best alternatives to 99designs’ business model.

In-House Designers 

As mentioned earlier, in-house designers benefit a company by knowing it as a whole. An in-house designer will understand goals and objectives, which will translate to all the graphic design they create. You’ll get consistent and effective designs. 

In addition, you’ll have full control of the outcomes, as opposed to starting a contest in which you’ll only get what the designers submit. The bottom line is that the in-house designer’s knowledge of your brand identity will show in the quality and turnaround time of a project—high quality in no time. 

Finding in-house designers can be a tedious process, considering that you need to look through various job sites to choose the BEST designers for the job. Plus, you need to peruse their portfolio and interview them before selecting the right fit. However, in-house designers can be costly in the long run since they’re regular employees. Additionally, there would be months when the design volume isn’t as high as the others.

Agencies 

One of the best advantages of hiring a design agency is having access to a limitless pool of fresh talent. If you want innovation, fresh perspectives, and dynamic designs, an agency is a good option. Design agencies are ideal breeding grounds for new talents that can bring in something unique for your brand. 

Although more costly than starting a contest on 99designs, an agency has a team of people who’ll work their heads together to give you the best. Plus, most of the units are composed of designers themselves that create an environment of creativity, competition, and professionalism. 

On-Demand Graphic Design 

The two options above are great channels for graphic designs, however, they don’t come cheap. As we discussed earlier, subscription design services attempt to combine affordability and quality.

With a subscription, you pay a flat monthly fee and submit design requests on a rolling basis. This allows you to plan out your content calendar, including marketing campaigns, sales, website changes, rebrands, and more.

The Penji Experience 

Get your design fast with Penji’s simple process. On the dashboard, you’ll be asked to do the following: 

• Submit your design request
• Fill in the details of your project
• You may add links or attachments as references
• Choose your colors
• Choose the file format
• Create the project 

Wait 24 to 48 hours for your design. Once the design is finished, you’ll get a notification on your dashboard and in your email account. You can submit revisions, or if you are satisfied with the work, you can mark it as complete. You can now move on to your next design request! 

Unleash Your Creative Freedom with Penji

Are you looking for a 99designs alternative that delivers exceptional graphic design without the hassle? Look no further! More than 1000+ businesses trust Penji for their design work.

As mentioned above, the flexibility of a no-contract makes it perfect for businesses of all sizes. Entrusting your design needs with us will allow you to focus on your core business while Penji handles your design needs efficiently. Watch a quick demo now to see why many businesses trust Penji!

Or you can click here to send in your first design request!