Everything you need to know before subscribing to Designjoy: reviews and alternatives in 2024
Stop us if you’ve heard this before: the world of tech solutions is changing. Yes, believe it or not, 2024 has brought with it a new array of choices for businesses and individuals alike seeking unlimited graphic design services.
Marketers, entrepreneurs, and other business leaders are grappling with the rising costs of professional design services, hoping to find novel ways to maximize their return on investment.
In the highly competitive marketing industry, gaining even the slightest edge can mean the difference between success and failure—and unlimited design services may be the answer for many marketing teams.
Recently, graphic design subscription services have emerged as a frontrunner in the industry landscape of graphic design solutions. Rather than hiring a traditional agency, building an in-house graphic design team, enlisting the work of freelancers, or—dare we even mention—doing it DIY; companies are turning to services that offer a subscription package for unlimited graphic design work.
In this article, we’ll uncover the benefits and drawbacks of the subscription model, plus evaluate several of the leading unlimited graphic design services available on the market. With this detailed analysis, you’ll be empowered to navigate the vast sea of graphic design solutions present in 2024.
Introduction to design as a subscription service
First, let’s talk a bit more about what exactly unlimited graphic design services offer for your creative process. Typically, when a business explores hiring graphic designers, they’re faced with the four traditional options:
- Hire a graphic design agency: Just like it sounds, this involves enlisting the help of a design agency. A contract is typically signed which covers the scope and cost of the project, as well as any revisions that may be needed. While the quality of work may be excellent, flexibility and cost are common drawbacks.
- Build an in-house design team: Some companies may prefer to have their own design department, so they hire designers or assign team members to an in-house team. This approach allows for greater control over the project, but comes at the expense of time, company resources, and sometimes quality (if employees in an ad-hoc design team lack the experience of professional designers.)
- Work with freelancers: A common path for those undertaking smaller endeavors and companies seeking one-off design solutions, the freelance option allows one to pick and choose a professional based on their individual work. Freelancers can offer great flexibility, but communicating with, providing feedback to, and invoicing a group of independent freelancers can be a logistical headache for clients.
- Do it yourself (Self-service tools): Lastly, and perhaps for the most desperate, is the DIY option. With the advent of self-service tools like Flipsnack and Wix aimed at solopreneurs and those seeking to create their marketing and design assets themselves, many opt to take matters into their own hands. For the great majority who aren’t naturally talented, the quality of DIY design can’t match that of the professionals, commonly having the cookie-cutter look and feel of graphic design or web design done with a cheap or free self-service tool.
As you can see, each option has its pros and cons. For many entrepreneurs and business leaders, though, none of them quite cut it. Thus—enter the subscription model for custom illustrations, web design, and graphic design!
There are similar companies that offer web development, web and app design, and other tech solutions via a subscription model, but today we’ll focus primarily on graphic design services.
Aiming to improve upon the traditional types of design solutions, the subscription model is based on a fixed monthly fee for design work. Here’s how it works:
- Subscription services: Rather than paying for design services hourly or per project, clients hire a subscription service based on a flat monthly fee.
- The customer is assigned their own dedicated graphic designer or design team, and can typically request unlimited tasks which are added to a queue (with the number of concurrent tasks based on the subscription level).
- Tasks are frequently completed within a couple of days, with some subscriptions even offering same-day turnaround.
- Collaboration often takes place within an internal CMS or communication tool like Slack or Trello
- Clients can request unlimited revisions as long as their subscription is active or until they are satisfied with the completed work
- Most services don’t involve a contract, allowing customers to cancel or pause the service at any time
Unlimited graphic design subscription services are proving to be cost-effective, adaptable, and convenient sources for professional design service. With a subscription, there isn’t the massive price tag of many design agencies, the lengthy runway involved in building an in-house team, or the headache of juggling freelancers.
So how does one decide which unlimited graphic design service is right for their needs? Let’s explore one of the prominent players in the industry, Designjoy, and evaluate its offerings.
Overview of Designjoy’s unlimited graphic design services
Designjoy entered the graphic design scene with a mission to revolutionize the graphic design industry. Established in 2017, it offers “design as a subscription”—in other words, the unlimited graphic design service we outlined previously.
Designjoy provides a full scope of graphic design for logos, websites, brochures, signage, ads, stationary, and more. Depending on the subscription package, customers can request unlimited tasks (either one or two at a time), with an average of 48-hour turnaround time.
Designjoy has two subscription levels, Standard and Pro, with Pro allowing customers to request one additional task at a time.
Standard
- $4,995/month
- One task at a time
Pro
- $7,995/month
- Two tasks at a time
Designjoy also offers a Webflow Development add-on package for improved website functionaliy, available to users already subscribed to one of the design services.
Webflow Development
- $999/month
Some additional features on offer:
- Each plan allows customers to add unlimited users from their team to the account for collaboration and request unlimited revisions.
- Fixed monthly rate with no contract – cancel anytime
- Customers retain the copyright of all design work
According to their website, work by Designjoy has been frequently featured in Dribbble, Lapa Ninja, Awwwards, and Product Hunt.
Designjoy has undeniably made an impact on the graphic design industry in the short time it has been around. The platform has set a standard for quality, prompting competitors to step up their game to compete with the subscription service model.
Reviews and testimonials
So how does Designjoy fare according to its users? Let’s take a look at some customer reviews and testimonials.
On TrustPilot, Designjoy currently has a rating of 3.3/5. However, as there are only two reviews (one 5/5 and one 1/5), it doesn’t tell us much.
Several independent reviews mention the service’s internal system for requesting, managing, and receiving tasks is efficient, and the quality of work is generally regarded as good.
However, many users take note of the relatively high price point for the service, explaining that similar design work can be found for a lower cost through freelancers or other design services.
When searching for reviews (or any other information about Designjoy), many of the results returned are posts like this one from its founder—proudly announcing the 10x price hike for Designjoy’s service he’s implemented—making him seemingly more focused on positioning himself as an entrepreneurial mastermind and growth hacking guru rather than delivering a valuable service to customers.
Customer support and satisfaction
Designjoy has an internal chat system for customers to engage with support, as well as a Trello interface for managing tasks.
A comprehensive review of Designjoy’s services mentions that the internal notification system makes communication quite easy, and the project was managed rather well.
The reviewer states that Brett, the founder, was communicative and helpful in reassuring him about details to do with his project, and the internal chatbot system also functioned effectively.
Summary
One should take note: according to their FAQ, Designjoy is a one-man team, and does not allow meetings (with all communications taking place asynchronously.) Customers should take that into consideration if their project scope might exceed the timely capabilities of one person.
For $5,000/month, it’s worth thinking about the effective rate you’re paying for design work. The founder, Brett, claims on his X (formerly Twitter) bio that Designjoy brings in $120,000/month in revenue.
Roughly speaking, that’s between 15 and 24 clients. Additionally, he claims to work about 4-5 hours per day. Assuming he works every day, that’s around 150 hours per month, or 10 hours per client at most.
Although it’s not unheard of, $500/hr for graphic design work is on the very high end of the spectrum—and one should expect some phenomenal work at that price point.
Alternatives to Designjoy
Designjoy may be a popular choice for subscription design services, but it’s not the only option. Here, we’ll explore some of the other leading services. Armed with this knowledge, you’ll be informed to choose the service best suited to your business’ unique needs.
1. REEL UNLIMITED
Similar to Designjoy, REEL UNLIMITED also offers comprehensive unlimited graphic design and webflow services through a fixed monthly fee subscription.
A relatively new entry to the unlimited graphic design services scene, it was founded in 2021 alongside its separate copywriting service. REEL offers a wide range of services from logo design, web design, webflow design, UI/UX, custom videos, and more—alongside the standard unlimited design requests and unlimited revisions policy of many subscription services.
Rather than a single in-house designer, REEL employs a large team across various service categories. Clients are assigned a dedicated account manager, and while styles may vary between designers, they are able to request a different graphic designer to work on their task if the quality isn’t up to expectations.
The service interface is a custom dashboard, which makes internal communication a bit different for those used to Trello (which Designjoy uses).
Pros:
- Significantly more affordable than Designjoy.
- Reel Unlimited employs a larger team of designers – not a one-person project.
- Clients are assigned a dedicated Project Manager to handle communication and work.
- Variety of design styles available.
- Real-time collaboration with the design team
Cons:
- Not aimed at enterprise-level customers
- Communication is mostly between PM and client, rather than directly with the designer
- Design output will vary between designers—not all may be to every client’s taste
Price:
- Light: $995/month (1 project at a time)
- Standard: $1495/month (2 projects at a time)
- Pro: $2,295/month (3 projects at a time)
2. Superside
Superside is a premium graphic design subscription service with an impressive list of clients. Offering access to a “global team of creative strategists and designers,” they provide a large scope of design services.
As a high-end operation, Superside’s unlimited graphic design services have some features not available from other companies, like ultra-fast turnaround. On their website, they advertise the ability to complete some projects in as little as 12 hours.
While the price may be high, customers can roll their unused hours over into the next month, meaning none of their subscription fee goes to waste.
Superside boasts some impressive numbers on their homepage, too, claiming $250k savings on creative production and a 65% increase in social media advertising click-through rate in two separate case studies.
Pros:
- Extensive range of services including AR and 3D design, AI-enhanced design, as well as marketing consulting.
- 12-, 24-, and 48-hour turnaround available on some tasks
Cons:
- More expensive than other services like Designjoy and Reel Unlimited.
Price:
- Design Essentials: $5,000/month
- For teams in need of traditional design work including illustration, web, and print design.
- Digital Advertising: $7,500/month
- For teams focused on ad creative and marketing consulting
- End-to-End Creative: $9,000/month
- Includes full range of marketing and design services.
3. Design Pickle
Design Pickle uses an AI-powered platform to deliver design solutions from a global workforce, aimed at marketers and agencies.
Reviews searchable online seem to reflect a common trait of unlimited graphic design services that employ a large team, which is that quality can vary based on the individual designer assigned to your task.
However, with a relatively low price point and the ability for clients to request a different designer in the event of lacking quality of work, Design Pickle seems to provide reasonable value.
Pros:
- Design Pickle offers affordable pricing and unlimited requests (with the number of concurrent requests based on the subscription)
Cons:
- Limited communication with dedicated designer, as not all subscription tiers offer active project communication.
- Quality varies depending on the team assigned to you
Price:
- Graphics: $649/month
- For graphic design and custom illustrations only
- Pro: $1,249/month
- Includes presentation design and additional support features
- Premium: $1,949/month
- Includes motion graphics and premium support
- Power: Call for pricing.
- Includes video editing, active project communication with designers, and the full suite of support features.
4. The Design Project
Offering “highly-optimized design processes to let us work fast and deliver incredible results,” The Design Project is aimed at users seeking a range of UI and UX solutions.
Pros:
- High-quality designs and personalized service (with custom plans available).
- Transparent operations: subscription tiers mention the number of designers assigned to each client, as well as each designer’s workload.
Cons:
- Similar price range of Designjoy, which may not be feasible for smaller businesses.
- Focus on UX design services. Those primarily seeking other services might be better served elsewhere
Price:
- Essential: $2,600/month
- Includes UI execution from one designer working with 4-5 other customers at the same time.
- Pro: $3,595/month
- Full UI and UX design services from one design lead and one graphic designer working on 2-3 other customers at the same time.
- Turbo: $5,200/month
- Includes full range of services, custom workflows, and work from one designer with only one other simultaneous client.
5. Teamtown
Teamtown is another similar flat-rate design subscription option. Each client is assigned a small design team for all their tasks, an approach designed to enhance the quality of work as the design team becomes familiar with your brand.
Their website emphasizes the collaboration aspect of the process, with a Slack workspace provided for communication on design requests between clients and designers in real-time.
Pros:
- Affordable pricing and quick turnaround on projects (typically 24-48 hours.)
- Dedicated Creative Lead, Project Manager, and QA team.
Cons:
- Limited range of design categories/services compared to companies like Superside and Reel Unlimited.
Price:
- Starter: $1,995/month
- 1 active design request at a time.
- Super: $2,995/month
- 3 active design requests at a time
- Includes video editing and UI/UX design
- Studio: $4,995/month
- 4 active design requests at a time
- Includes motion graphics and animation
6. Awesomic
Awesomic is a design service that matches clients with designers instantly, guaranteeing “first results” in 24 hours.
Their website places heavy emphasis on the “matching” process between clients and talent, even drawing comparison to the two founders having met on the dating app Tinder.
They state that Awesomic uses an AI algorithm to match you with the talent that best fits your business needs and goals. While the idea is appealing, it seems like window dressing for a process most subscription unlimited graphic design services necessarily already perform (without all the rhetoric).
One comprehensive review (of unknown bias), however, claims Awesomic provided top-notch work.
Pros:
- Affordable pricing plans that can be customized based on the number of active tasks per day required.
- Fast turnaround time and easy-to-use platform
Cons:
- Limited customization options.
- The stilted English copy on the website homepage does not speak well for their level of attention to detail.
Price:
- Light: $699/month
- Part-time design team
- Includes marketing and content creation solutions like social media assets, brochures, and photo editing
- Pro: $1995/month
- Part-time design team
- Includes services from the Light tier, as well as design solutions like logo creation, UI/UX design, motion graphics, and custom illustrations
- 1-to-1 Talent: Price on request
- Full-time design team
- Aimed at businesses looking for an in-house designer.
- Offers a dedicated designer, unlimited tasks, product design and brand identity design services
7. OffMenu
OffMenu provides a flat-rate service with some great-looking work featured on their website. Tasks are delivered within 48 hours.
One shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, but going by the unique and very cool web design of its homepage, it appears they have some great design talent on their team.
While the price point is very high, OffMenu appears to be aimed at larger operations, employing “exclusively senior-level talent” for their design services.
For those seeking a smaller scope of work, OffMenu has a separate design service called Bitesized.
Pros:
- High-quality designs and dedicated account managers
- Offers brand strategy, webflow, UX, research services, and more.
- Top-tier design talent
Cons:
- More expensive than Designjoy
- No instant cancellation: cancellation requires either 21- or 30-day notice
Price:
- Single Course: $15,000/month
- One workstream at a time
- Prix Fixe: $25,000/month
- Two workstreams at a time
- Expert strategist and project manager included
8. Call Bruno Membership
Bruno Membership is a design service that offers a “retainer-style” relationship with their design team.
Offering a standard range of professional design services, they employ a team of art directors, web and product designers, brand designers, and creative developers to work on client projects.
Pros:
- Offers interactive design collaboration tools
- Unlimited requests and dedicated Project Manager
Cons:
- Only one pricing tier
- Subscription is similar cost to Designjoy
Price:
- Bruno’s subscription plan is $4,999/month (paid annually), $5,499/month (paid quarterly), or $5,999/month (paid monthly).
- When paid monthly, users can cancel anytime
9. Craftemo
Craftemo offers flat rate design services for agencies and startups. Similar to some of the other services available, they allow for anytime cancellation and advertise a 48-hour turnaround on most requests.
Pros:
- Customizable pricing plans
- Cheaper than Designjoy
Cons:
- Craftemo is a team of one—so if you aren’t a fan of their style of work, it likely isn’t the right option
- Limited range of services
Price:
- Like Bruno, Craftemo has one subscription tier at either $1,999/month if paid quarterly, or $2,499/month if paid monthly.
- Paid-monthly subscription customers can pause or cancel anytime
10. Halaska Studio
Halaska is a subscription-based design service offering a range of work for web3, finance, and tech. They provide not only graphic design, but app development, web design, and strategy consulting.
Pros:
- Halaska Studios offers a diverse range of design styles
- Clients can access a wide scope of service offerings
Cons:
- More expensive than Designjoy
- Aimed at those seeking startup design and may not be suitable for other purposes
Price:
- Product Design Core: $15,000/month
- Includes a part-time dedicated designer and 1:1 communication.
- Product Design Immersive: $24,000/month
- Includes a full-time dedicated designer.
- Product Design Full-Service: Price on request.
- Includes custom resource allocation and multiple streams of work.
REEL UNLIMITED, a leading solution for custom illustrations, graphic design, and more
While Designjoy has established itself as a legitimate service provider in the subscription-model graphic design industry, it’s important to explore all the alternative options before making a decision on which of the many unlimited graphic design companies to choose.
REEL UNLIMITED offers a greater range of services—including full Webflow development, animation, video, presentation design, and motion graphics in the standard subscription—all at a significantly lower price point than Designjoy.
For only $5, customers can choose a 5-day trial of the service, and with unlimited revisions, your design team will work with you to ensure you are fully satisfied.
Furthermore, REEL UNLIMITED employs a large team, meaning not only can clients access different design styles, but they are not limited by the capabilities of a one-person team (like Designjoy and some other services).
Whether you’re a startup, small business, or part of a large agency, REEL UNLIMITED is committed to providing top-notch graphic design solutions through a seamless, easy-to-use, end-to-end platform.
Ultimately, REEL UNLIMITED provides unmatched value through its affordable pricing, high-quality design, and dedicated support.
With REEL UNLIMITED, get a full design team for less than the cost of one in-house designer. Cancel anytime, and try it risk-free for 5 days, start $5 trial today.
