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Head to head

Fansly vs LoyalFans — a platform that finds you fans, or one that pays on referrals for life?

Our pick and runner-up for live and audio creators, and they win on different things. One sends you subscribers you did not bring; the other pays you on the creators you bring for as long as they earn.

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Published 21 October 2026 Last verified 21 October 2026

Some links here are referral links: if you sign up we may earn a commission from the platform, at no extra cost to you. It does not change the ranking — here is how we rank.

Why these two

These are our pick and runner-up for live streaming and audio creators: LoyalFans first, Fansly second. If you have read that page, you are probably choosing between exactly these two.

On fees they are level, so the fee split will not decide this. What decides it is the question the two answer differently: do you need the platform to find you fans, or will you bring your own, and other creators too?

Platform Best for You keep Minimum payout Referral window Discovery
Fansly Best for getting discovered 80% Reported Varies by method — $20 to $50 Disputed 12 months Disputed Strongest of the four Visit
LoyalFans Best for referral income 80% Reported $50 US bank (ACH), $100 SEPA, $150 international wire Official Lifetime Reported Limited but real Visit

Fees: level

Both keep 80% for the creator on subscriptions, tips and pay-per-view, and neither runs a promotional rate for new creators. On $3,000 a month gross you keep $2,400 on either.

Fans: Fansly, decisively

Fansly has the strongest discovery of the four platforms we cover. Its tag-based browsing means a well-tagged profile picks up subscribers you did not send there yourself: small numbers at first, but more than any of the others will give you in month one. That is why it is our pick for creators starting from zero.

LoyalFans has a browsable creator surface, which is more than Fanvue offers, but it has the smallest fan base of the four, and its brand is less known, so some fans hesitate before entering card details. It is the hardest platform here to earn a first $1,000 on. Assume most of your subscribers there will be people you sent.

If you have no audience, this one difference outweighs everything below.

Structure: Fansly

Fansly supports multiple subscription tiers on one profile, and free profiles with paid unlocks. Together they let you sell at $5 and $50 on one page, build a follower count before you ask anyone to pay, and fix a mispriced subscription in an afternoon rather than with a new account.

Referrals: LoyalFans, if its promise holds

Platform Rate Pays for Cap Paid out of
Fansly 5% Disputed 12 months Disputed No published cap Disputed Sources contradict each other Disputed
LoyalFans 5% Reported Lifetime Reported No published cap Reported The platform's cut Reported

LoyalFans reportedly pays 5% of a referred creator’s earnings for as long as they earn there, with no published cap, funded from its own cut, so the creator you refer still keeps their full 80%. It also pays a share of what fans you refer spend across the platform, not only on your page.

Fansly does not publish its referral terms on any public page. Third-party sources put the rate at 5% and split between 12 months and lifetime on the duration; nobody we found says who funds it or whether there is a cap. We show 12 months, the conservative figure, and mark every Fansly referral figure unclear.

Take a creator you refer who settles at $4,000 a month. Your 5% is $200 a month. If Fansly’s term is 12 months, that is $2,400 in total, and then it stops. On LoyalFans it is $2,400 a year for as long as they keep earning there: $7,200 after three years, if they stay and the terms do.

If you plan to refer on Fansly, open your creator dashboard, read the terms shown there, and treat them as the authoritative version.

Lifetime is a promise, not a contract

LoyalFans’ terms sit in its help centre rather than in binding public terms, which is why we mark them reported. OnlyFans advertised its referral commission as LIFETIME for four years, then cut it to 12 months and capped it, retroactively, in 2020. Screenshot LoyalFans’ terms on the day you sign up. See creator referral programs compared.

Payouts: quicker on Fansly, more predictable on LoyalFans

Fansly pays on request once earnings clear a 7-day pending period. The minimum depends on the method: usually quoted as $20, but $50 for an instant SEPA transfer, and smaller requests are sent after 14 days. Check the threshold for your method in the dashboard.

LoyalFans pays twice a month, sent within 7 working days of the 15th and of month-end, once you reach your method’s minimum: $50 by US bank transfer, $100 by SEPA, $150 by international wire. Balances below it roll over. Those minimums are high outside the US, but they are published, on a schedule you can plan cash flow around.

Both offer bank transfer, Paxum and crypto. Check which your country can use before you commit.

Chargebacks and other deductions

Both take a refunded or charged-back payment back out of your earnings. Fansly’s creator FAQ promises “chargeback protection”, but its terms of service (last updated 21 July 2026) let it deduct money earned on payments that were charged back. The terms are what bind. LoyalFans’ creator statements list chargebacks, refunds and penalties as deductions; we found no chargeback fee or rolling reserve there, though we could not read the governing clause in its terms.

One fee only Fansly has: a $5 monthly charge on balances after 12 months without a login. Log in once a year and it never applies.

AI content: no difference

Fansly bans photorealistic AI-generated content, and says labelling it does not make it allowed. It also bars AI that talks to fans without human oversight. LoyalFans reportedly has the same bans. If your account is AI-made, neither is the place for it. Details and sources are in AI content rules by platform.

Live and audio: LoyalFans, unless you need viewers

LoyalFans has invested more in live and voice features than its size suggests, including audio-native content types larger platforms treat as an afterthought. Its twice-monthly payouts also suit the lumpier income that live work produces.

Fansly’s live and tipping tools are solid, if less audio-focused, and it has the one thing LoyalFans lacks: discovery that will bring viewers to a stream. Whichever you choose, run a test stream at your real bitrate before you announce a schedule.

The decision

Fansly if you are starting without an audience, you want tiers or a free profile to build a funnel, or you are leaving OnlyFans and want the closest like-for-like swap.

LoyalFans if you already bring your own fans, you refer other creators and want a commission that keeps paying, or live and audio are a big part of what you sell.

Both if you can keep two accounts genuinely live: Fansly to find new fans, LoyalFans for referrals and live work. A ban or a terms change on one then costs you weeks, not everything.

Common questions

Fansly or LoyalFans — which should I choose?

It depends on whether you need the platform to find you fans. Fansly's tag-based discovery is the strongest of the four platforms we cover, so it is the better start if you have no audience. LoyalFans has the smallest fan base, but reportedly pays a lifetime, uncapped referral commission and has more live and voice features than its size suggests. Both keep 80% for the creator.

Which has better referral terms, Fansly or LoyalFans?

LoyalFans, as far as anyone can tell. It reportedly pays 5% of a referred creator's earnings for as long as they earn, with no published cap, from its own cut, and also pays on fans you refer. Fansly does not publish its referral terms on any public page, and sources split between 12 months and lifetime. We show Fansly's as 12 months, the conservative figure, and mark it unclear.

Which pays out faster, Fansly or LoyalFans?

Fansly can be faster: earnings clear a 7-day pending period and you can then request a payout, though the minimum depends on the method ($50 for an instant SEPA transfer) and smaller requests wait 14 days. LoyalFans pays twice a month, within 7 working days of the 15th and of month-end, once you reach your method's minimum ($50 by US bank transfer, $100 by SEPA, $150 by wire). Fansly is quicker on request; LoyalFans is easier to plan around.

Is Fansly or LoyalFans better for live streaming?

LoyalFans is our pick for live and audio creators: it has invested more in live and voice features than its size suggests, and its twice-monthly payouts suit lumpy live income. Fansly is the runner-up, and the better choice if you need viewers as well as the features, because its discovery will find you some and LoyalFans' largely will not.

Can I run both Fansly and LoyalFans?

Yes. They suit different jobs: Fansly to find new subscribers, LoyalFans for referral income and live or audio work. Give each account something the other does not have, or fans will pick one and you will do twice the work for the same money.