The best book illustrators for hire in the United States

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Kelly 5 star rating

Wilmington, DE, United States

I love how good design can complete a writer's vision and make it engaging. Fantasy, thrillers, historical and fiction really get me going.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Biographies & Memoirs, Non-Fiction, Fantasy, Poetry, Self-Help & Self-Improvement, Thriller & Suspense, Young Adult Fantasy, Young Adult, and New Adult.

Work experience:

  • Four Dog Creative
  • Delaware Today
  • Delaware Bride
  • Self-employed

Annemieke 5 star rating

Seattle, WA, United States

Hi! I'm a cover designer with 10 years of experience, specializing in YA fiction. Clients include HarperCollins and Galison/Mudpuppy.

Genres: Young Adult, Fiction, Architecture, Non-Fiction, Art, Humanities & Social Sciences, Design, Literary Fiction, Women's Fiction, and Self-Help & Self-Improvement.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed

Hokyoung 5 star rating

New York, United States

I am an illustrator interested in making images with strong moods and narratives.

Genres: Action & Adventure, Fiction, Classics, Mystery & Crime, Dystopian, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Historical Fiction, LGBTQ Fiction, Literary Fiction, and Short Story.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed

Jake 5 star rating

Blacksburg, SC, United States

Versatile, easy-going and ready to work for you!

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Science Fiction, and Thriller & Suspense.

Work experience:

  • Print Depot
  • Self-employed

Dana 5 star rating

Kansas City, Missouri, United States

I have illustrated children's books for Scholastic, Random House, Penguin, Grosset & Dunlap, HarperCollins and Simon & Schuster.

Genres: Picture Books, Children's, Fiction, Children’s Non-Fiction, and Non-Fiction.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Hallmark Cards

Caroline Teagle 5 star rating

Brooklyn, NY, United States

I am not accepting any new requests to collaborate at this time.

Genres: Biographies & Memoirs, Non-Fiction, Historical Fiction, Fiction, Women's Fiction, Entertainment, Mystery & Crime, True Crime, and Thriller & Suspense.

Work experience:

  • Penguin Random House
  • Random House
  • Penguin Publishing Group
  • HarperCollins

Mary Ann 5 star rating

New York, United States

With 20+ yrs experience in fiction, rom-com, wellness and career guides, my clients include Simon and Schuster and PenguinRandomHouse.

Genres: Career Guides, Non-Fiction, Health & Wellbeing, Contemporary Romance, Romance, Fiction, Chick Lit, Women's Fiction, and Self-Help & Self-Improvement.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Penguin Random House

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Samantha 5 star rating

California, United States

Children's Illustrator and designer specialized in colorful, whimsical illustrations with experience from Disney.

Genres: Children’s Non-Fiction, Non-Fiction, Picture Books, Children's, and Fiction.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Jam City
  • RockYou Inc.
  • Walt Disney Interactive
  • Book Buddy Media

Candice 5 star rating

Iowa City, IA, United States

Award-winning fantasy illustrator. 100% hand-made with no generative AI. Providing cover design, typography, marketing assets, and more!

Genres: Magical Realism, Literary Fiction, Fiction, Young Adult Fantasy, Young Adult, Middle Grade, Children's, and Middle Grade Fantasy.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Bovard Studio, Inc.

Digital illustrator specializing in hand lettering, patterns, and bright, bold, colorful designs

Genres: Middle Grade, Children's, Fiction, LGBTQ Fiction, Romantic Comedy, Romance, Chick Lit, Women's Fiction, Young Adult, Home & Garden, Non-Fiction, and Nature.

Taylor 5 star rating

Seattle, WA, USA

Always open to hearing about new projects! I illustrate children's books and design covers, and I love to work in all genres.

Genres: Picture Books, Children's, Fiction, Middle Grade, Design, and Non-Fiction.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • House Special

Michael 5 star rating

Hartford, CT, USA

Illustrator drawing comics and designing covers for Oxford University Press for 12+ years. New York Book Award for Best Cover Design 2018.

Genres: Comics & Graphic Novels, Fiction, Comics Non-Fiction, Non-Fiction, and True Crime.

Work experience:

  • Oxford University Press
  • N/A

Creative book designer with proven ability to craft visual stories—Previous clients include Red Hen Press, Not a Cult, Los Angeles Magazine

Genres: Poetry, Fiction, Cultural & Ethnic, Anthologies, Women's Fiction, Biographies & Memoirs, Non-Fiction, Short Story, LGBTQ Fiction, and Literary Fiction.

Work experience:

  • Red Hen Press
  • Not A Cult Media
  • Los Angeles Magazine
  • Whole Foods Market
  • Self-employed

Kate 5 star rating

Vancouver, WA, USA

I specialize in narrative artwork with a focus on lifestyle, travel and food illustration with bold colors and clever attention to detail

Genres: Middle Grade, Children's, Fiction, Travel, Non-Fiction, Short Story, Architecture, Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits, Home & Garden, Nature, and Biographies & Memoirs.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed

jon 5 star rating

Cleveland, OH, USA

Freelance illustrator based in the Mid West. I've been creating imagery for all sorts of projects and industries for over a decade.

Genres: Contemporary Fiction, Fiction, Biographies & Memoirs, Non-Fiction, History, Humanities & Social Sciences, Psychology, Classics, Literary Fiction, and Poetry.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed

Judith 5 star rating

Chicago, IL, United States

Lettering artist and illustrator for 25 years. Bold, clean, graphic style—bright color palettes—contemporary look.

Genres: Literary Fiction, Fiction, Design, Non-Fiction, Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits, Art, Humanities & Social Sciences, Themes & Motifs, and Plays & Screenplays.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed

Beverly 5 star rating

Pasadena, CA, USA

I'm an California-based illustrator specializing in character design of humans, animals, and magical creatures.

Genres: Action & Adventure, Fiction, Middle Grade, Children's, Picture Books, Comics & Graphic Novels, Fantasy, LGBTQ Fiction, Romance, and Young Adult.

Work experience:

  • Houghton-Mifflin Harcourt Publishing
  • Self-employed
  • Hachette Publishing

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Hire the best book illustrators in the United States

Whether you’ve written a picture book, chapter book, or technical book, you’ll need a stellar illustrator to bring your project to life. Of course, one of the great things about illustration is that there are so many different styles to choose from — but that can also make the process of selecting an illustrator rather difficult. From cartoon-like illustrations to more realistic drawings to simple line art, how can you decide which illustrator’s style is right for your book?

You may already know how you want your illustrations to look, especially if you’ve flipped through other books in your genre and can envision similar art alongside your story. However, if you have no idea what kind of illustrations you want, looking through professional illustrators’ sample galleries is the perfect place to start. You’ll be amazed how your ideas begin to take shape once you’ve glanced over just a few artists’ work.

That’s why, if you’re seeking a book illustrator for hire in the United States, you can’t go wrong signing up for Reedsy. Not only do we have tons of experienced professionals all over the USA, but you can start looking through their portfolios today — for free. You can even request quotes from the illustrators you love, so the two of you can begin creating a beautiful book together as soon as possible.

How it works

Browse profiles, request quotes, then collaborate.

Step 1

Apply filters

Reedsy is home to thousands of professionals. Select the specific services you need and narrow your search based on your book’s genre and requirements.

Step 2

Browse

Then, browse professional profiles to find out more about their personalities and past projects.

Step 3

Request quotes

Request quotes from up to five freelancers at any time. They’ll look at your sample pages to give you a tailored quote as well as a sense of how they work.

Step 4

Collaborate

Once you agree on terms and a timeline, you’ll start collaborating using the many communication and editing tools available on Reedsy.