Home App Reviews Voices.com Review: What to Expect When Signing Up as a Voice Actor
July 16, 2024
Editorial GuidelinesSuzanne is a freelance writer and web designer with 10 years of experience. She previously helped to rebuild a failed digital...
In this day and age, you don’t need years of commercial experience or an agent to find legit voice over job opportunities. Platforms like Voices.com provide a unique opportunity to easily find and land gigs all on your own.
In this Voices.com review, we’ll explain how this voice over marketplace works, how much it costs, and why voice actors love and sometimes hate this service.
Voices.com is one of the world’s biggest voice over marketplaces. With a network of over 42,000 companies posting over 5,000 jobs each month, it’s hugely popular in the industry. Big-name brands and companies like the History Channel, Hulu, and Shopify use this service to hire voice actors from around the world.
The voice acting platform removes the need for a middleman (i.e., an agent), allowing new and experienced talent to book voice over gigs on their own. It also removes the need to travel—Voices.com voice over artists produce their recordings from the comfort of their home studios.
Voices.com handles the business side of things (like contracts and payments), meaning artists need only focus on nailing their auditions, creating amazing audio recordings, and generating positive reviews.
The Voices marketplace lists voice acting work in the following categories:
Companies are able to post other types of gigs as well, though these are the primary categories they choose from.
Voices.com is marketed as a free platform for voice over artists. However, this is a bit misleading. For starters, you’ll find it tough to break into the market without their paid membership plan. Additionally, Voices.com will take 20% of your earnings on every gig you book.
True enough, Voices.com offers a free membership plan as well as an optional premium membership. Without the paid membership, however, voice over artists cannot actively pursue gigs—they have to wait for companies to directly message them. Unless you’re a well-established voice actor with loads of 5-star reviews, the chances of that happening are slim.
| Guest | Premium | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual cost | $0 | $499 |
| Profile creation | Yes | Yes |
| Unlimited demos | Yes | Yes |
| Receive job invitations | Yes | Yes |
| Private chat with clients | Yes | Yes |
| Accept jobs and contracts | Yes | Yes |
| Ratings and reviews | Yes | Yes |
| SurePay payment protection | Yes | Yes |
| Priority search visibility | No | Yes |
| Invited to jobs | No | Yes |
| Customized email alerts | No | Yes |
| Featured website placement | No | Yes |
| Voices Verified eligible | No | Yes |
| Priority customer support | No | Yes |
Unless you pay that annual fee, you’re stuck waiting for companies to contact you for work. Some voice over artists find the premium membership worthwhile as it only takes a couple of high-paying gigs to earn your money back.
There are also some artists who wait until Voices.com puts their paid membership on sale or offers discount codes. Doing this may slow down your progress, but it might make the paid membership more affordable by saving you hundreds of dollars.
The membership costs will hurt you more if you’re not booking many gigs, whereas the 20% commission fee will be the biggest cost if you’re a very successful voice actor.
Whether these costs are worth it in the long run depends on you. However, what we find most disappointing is that Voices.com doesn’t actively advertise their commission fee on their website. They only disclose the full cost after you sign up and respond to a gig.
To become a voice actor on Voices.com, you must be at least 18 years old and have a PayPal account. Also, you need to have at least one demo in order for your profile to appear in search results.
Voices doesn’t seem to have restrictions with regards to location as all of this work is done online. Voice actors live in more than 160 countries around the world as well as in all 50 states in the US.
You won’t be able to see if gigs are available where you live before signing up. However, you can see if there’s talent near you by using the voice over talent search page. Click the “Show More” button next to the filters, then select your country and/or state.
Voices.com is a legitimate voice acting marketplace. The company has been in operation since 2003. According to their website, they have a community of over 4 million voice over artists who speak more than 100 languages.
While there are complaints about how the company operates, Voices does seem to genuinely care about voice actors. Here are some of the ways they aim to ensure professionals have a safe and reliable place to find work:
To get started as a voice over actor, go to the Voices.com website and click “Sign Up” in the top-right corner.
Enter your name and email address. Select “Find Work As Talent,” and then click “Sign Up Now.” On the next screen, you’ll create a password and agree to the Terms of Service and Privacy Policy to finish creating your account.
The onboarding process will take you through the initial setup of your profile. You can finalize the details and add preferences from the dashboard.
Here’s what you’ll be asked to do:
You should also go to your account settings to add other relevant details related to your schedule, notification preferences, SurePay and PayPal payment settings, and membership type.
You get to set your own rates on Voices.com, and you can even create packages for clients to buy. This means that you have some control over your earnings on Voices.com.
Thankfully, Voices.com offers a helpful guide to typical budgets for different types of voice over projects, as detailed in the tables below. These rates help to establish reasonable expectations among clients and give you a reference for ensuring you’re charging a fair and competitive rate.
| Finished Minutes | Word Count | Typical Budget |
|---|---|---|
| 0 – 9 seconds | 0–19 | $5–$200 |
| 10 – 19 seconds | 20–39 | $15–$275 |
| 20 – 29 seconds | 40–59 | $25–$325 |
| 30 – 39 seconds | 60–79 | $35–$350 |
| 40 – 49 seconds | 80–99 | $45–$375 |
| 50 – 59 seconds | 100–119 | $50–$400 |
| 1 – 2 minutes | 120–349 | $100–$499 |
| 3 – 4 minutes | 350–749 | $250–$749 |
| 5 – 14 minutes | 750–2,249 | $400–$999 |
| 15 – 29 minutes | 2,250–4,499 | $650–$1,749 |
| 30 – 44 minutes | 4,500–6,000 | $800–$1,999 |
| 45 – 60 minutes | 6,001+ | $1,300–$2,499 |
For nonbroadcast jobs (everything but ads), typical budgets range anywhere from $5 to $2,499, depending on the final length of the audio recording. For broadcast jobs (TV, radio, and online ads), what you earn depends on the size of the market and the length of the campaign.
| Broadcast Types | 13-Week Campaign | 1-Year Campaign |
|---|---|---|
| TV: Local | $500–$900 | $750–$1,500 |
| TV: Regional | $700–$1,750 | $1,250–$2,000 |
| TV: National | $1,000–$2,500 | $2,000–$5,000 |
| Radio: Local | $250–$500 | $350–$750 |
| Radio: Regional | $400–$900 | $500–$1,000 |
| Radio: National | $750–$1,000 | $1,000–$1,500 |
| Online | $300–$1,000 | $400–$1,750 |
However, these rates don’t say a lot about how much you’ll realistically make per month or per year on Voices.com.
To give examples from anecdotal reports, one Reddit user claimed to have made $1,425 in their first year. According to a Sitejabber review, another user who booked roughly a dozen jobs made nearly $6,000 in their first year on the site.
Ultimately, how much you can earn from a voice acting job on Voices.com depends on factors like your work experience and skill level, the type and scope of the project, and the length of the vocal recording you’re doing.
Companies hiring through Voices.com are required to sign up for the SurePay system. The platform then takes payments from the company and sends them to you when you complete a job.
Here’s a summary of how payments work on Voices.com:
The most you’ll have to wait is 2 weeks to get paid for your work. All payments are delivered directly to your PayPal account on Fridays.
Voices.com reviews lend a lot of insight into what it’s really like to be a voice over actor on this platform. There’s a mix of good and bad. Here’s a breakdown of the key points to consider before you sign up.
When you’re beginning a career or side hustle in voice over work, it’s important to have someone who can guide you through the process. According to voice actors who’ve used Voices.com, this service does a lot more than help you find auditions.
For starters, the website is full of helpful resources, and the company offers free seminars and other programs to help you improve your demo reel and skills. Their account management team also seems to be supportive, providing advice on how to improve auditions to get more bookings.
User reviews:
“Voices.com are first rate. They work with you to guide you to achieving the best you have to give. They troubleshoot with care and expediency. And their videos and workshops align you with industry professionals who have your the best intentions in mind. I am learning a lot and booking gigs thanks to their care and experience.” (Trustpilot, June 2024)
“Their customer support is the best–very friendly, speedy, and they always make sure your questions get answered.
“They also offer really great and helpful webinars, and they take members’ concerns and needs into consideration.” (Trustpilot, November 2023)
“For me the ‘worth it’ aspect is often more the feedback than the money. I’ve had some nice people give audition feedback or chat to me about auditions and tell me why I didn’t get it.” (Reddit, January 2023)
“They truly make an effort to help you be successful. They offer free seminars and programs to help increase your bookings. And today, I spent about a half hour on the phone with senior Account Manager **** ***** going over my auditions one on one and getting some very good advice about how to improve them. Incredibly, there was no charge.” (BBB, December 2022)
“The whole Voices.com team has given my VO career a real boost. They are always available to help us, offering relevant advice, moral (and technical…) support and a deep understanding of the issues for each gig. Sure, nothing is perfect, but having experienced several other platforms, they are the best, by far.” (BBB, February 2022)
Although there are other voice over marketplace websites like Voices.com, many experienced voice actors who’ve used multiple services claim that Voices.com offers more opportunities (and higher-quality gigs) than any other platform out there.
According to reviewers, there’s an endless stream of auditions on Voices.com. Many say they receive between 50 and 70 job opportunities each week. The only catch is that you have to be a paying member in order to access or submit an audition for them.
User reviews:
“I have tried many different voice over sites. Some are better than others, and I have let many drop by the wayside, but I have stayed with Voices.com. The main reason is I have booked many jobs with them – it is always profitable for me to be a premium member.” (BBB, December 2022)
“I have been working with Voices.com for a handful of years now and I love the platform. I am happy to say that Voices.com has gotten me an abundance of work that pays well.” (Sitejabber, October 2021)
“An entire year of auditions (easily 70 auditions per week, every week) with actual, real auditions from major corporations is a great opportunity for someone who has had prior commercial vo training. There isn’t a free platform that will offer you that many auditions per week and not at that level of pay.” (Reddit, August 2021)
“Voices is useful to me because it gives me a place to audition with no agent as well as score jobs with large companies that look very nice on resume for the future.” (Reddit, August 2021)
“It’s the only way outside of agency work where you can get 70+ auditions per week of real, actually real commercial auditions from major corporations. […] And yes, you get that from agency work – but it’s a catch 22 because they prefer people who already have that commercial work experience.” (Reddit, August 2021)
There’s a flip side to all of this voice over work. There are even more voice over artists waiting to claim these jobs. As the website says, there are about 4 million voice actors working for Voices at the moment.
As a result, reviewers say you need to be super responsive, submitting your auditions within a matter of minutes of the job posting going online. Many estimate that there are about 50 to 100 people auditioning for every gig, so timing is essential.
User reviews:
“There are far too many actors and not enough jobs on this website. Also, if you live outside of North America you will get next to no jobs because of the time difference. By the time I got to most invites, I was already at least number 30 which just won’t get listened to.” (Trustpilot, April 2024)
“You’re up against at least 50-100 people on every single job, and it’s a safe bet that most of them are turning in good auditions.” (Reddit, January 2023)
“You have to be on the platform submitting as soon as it pops up. If youre in the booth full time its doable.” (Reddit, January 2023)
“You need to be able to audition quickly throughout the day (soon after auditions are posted). If you can audition frequently then it’s probably worth it.” (Reddit, January 2023)
“1.) Booking work on Voices.com can be quite challenging if you aren’t among the top 100 talents or don’t have rising star status, a new feature they introduced.
“2.) Timing is critical when auditioning on Voices.com; if you don’t submit your audition within the first 5 minutes of a job posting, it’s unlikely you’ll be considered. Once around 50 people have already auditioned, your chances diminish significantly.” (Sitejabber, November 2022)
Many professional voice actors believe that a 20% cut is way too much to sacrifice to an online marketplace—especially on top of a $499 yearly fee. Some point out that if you just got your own agent instead, they’d take a much smaller percentage while providing arguably more value.
It’s not just the high cost of using the app that’s the problem. Some users feel that Voices.com isn’t transparent enough about their pricing at how much they’re pocketing between what the client is paying and what actors are receiving.
User reviews:
“My biggest complaint with Voices is there lack of transparency when it comes to money. I wish that I could see how much the client is paying.” (Reddit, August 2023)
“They charge you to simply apply for jobs. […] At no point is this made clear in their ads or on their website that you must pay in order to apply for the jobs.” (Sitejabber, June 2023)
“Some platforms charge you a flat one-time annual fee. Others charge you a fee only when they get you a job. Voices dot com does both, plus they handle all invoicing and charge a processing fee to the clients. […] I don’t know of any other platforms that impose so many different fees on the talent budget. Talent already have a tough enough time making a living and this seems excessive, especially for those trying to start in the business.” (Sitejabber, January 2023)
“There seems to be a 20% deduction for professional services without clarity on what those services entail. Voices’ management can be elusive when asked about it.” (Sitejabber, November 2022)
“The rate Voices.com originally posted on this job was $440. Deducting their 10% escrow fee, that would have left me $396. That means Voices.com was intending to keep $254 of the client’s voice-over talent budget of $650, or a staggering 39%. […] The truth is that Voices.com could be pocketing even more than 40% of our talent fees, and we would never know. When one of their Professional Services team posts a job in the $100-$250 budget range, for example, we have no idea what the client has actually budgeted for voice talent.” (Andrew Randall)
Several recent Voices.com reviews from early to mid 2024 on Trustpilot.com suggest that the platform has begun to offer a new type of video project. However, it may not be as good an offer as it seems.
Complaints indicate that the timeline for these gigs is much longer than advertised, taking weeks to review submissions and process payouts. What’s more, it seems that customer support is far from helpful in addressing delayed payments.
User reviews:
“I was contacted by Dylan for a video job that i completed. I’ve heard nothing since despite emailing him directly several times and the customer services email.” (Trustpilot, June 2024)
“I worked on a video project for this company. I sent my part on time. They said in their email that my videos are approved and I will receive communication about payments in 10 days. Well… 10 days passed… and even longer time has passed… there was NO communication. I emailed the person who sent me that email THREE TIMES. No response! Absolutely none!” (Trustpilot, June 2024)
“Offered a paid video recording job opportunity and rejected my submission despite it meeting the guidelines. They also took four weeks to review the files when they stated it would only take one week.” (Trustpilot, May 2024)
From the general sentiment across hundreds of online reviews of Voices.com, the consensus seems to be that while the platform does have a lot to offer, the bottom line is that it’s going to be much more useful to trained, professional voice actors than people who are just dabbling in the field.
User reviews:
“If you’re not sure, then no, it’s not worth it. If you can get it on the $100 deal they have sometimes, then maybe.
“You have to be able to audition quickly and frequently, and you have to have pretty good chops already.” (Reddit, January 2023)
“Only worth it if your skills are competitive and it’s a numbers game.” (Reddit, January 2023)
“Voices is super competitive for most jobs so as a beginner you may not get any work for the 500 something dollars you have to pay for a membership.” (Reddit, August 2021)
“Voices is not a place beginners can go and be successful and it is not designed to be. If you don’t feel confident in competing with established veteran voice actors you should try something else.” (Reddit, August 2021)
Voices.com is most worth it for people who are serious about developing their voice acting career. For experienced voice over artists, it’s a great place to find high-paying gigs with major brands. If you’re new to voice acting, you’ll get access to a wealth of valuable resources that will help you grow your skills.
There are not many other platforms where you can get access to dozens of top-tier voice over job opportunities every week and tons of support to build your career. The downside, however, is that these professional services come at a professional price point—the steep $499 yearly membership fee is just too much for many people to pay, especially those who aren’t absolutely sure about this career path.
For Voices.com to be worth it for you, you need to be willing to invest a good amount of time into this platform. You’ll face a lot of competition for each job, and you’ll be competing with incredibly skilled actors who are ready to immediately respond with their auditions.
You can’t afford to hop onto the platform every now and again or take your time considering a gig if you want to land steady work. But if you’re ready for a serious commitment to becoming a voice actor, then Voices.com is one of the best places to start your journey.
Before you decide whether Voices.com is worth it for the fees, take a look at all the main advantages and disadvantages according to real voice actors on the platform.
If you’re not fully committed to working as a voice actor and you want a cheaper way to test the waters of voice acting, there may be better platforms for you to try first. Below are some other popular sites like Voices.com:
One of the reasons why voice actors flock to Voices.com is because of how many high-quality, high-paying auditions they can get every week. It’s not something you’ll find with other sites. That said, if the high cost of entry to Voices scares you, one of these other platforms might be a better option.
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