The best book illustrators for hire in the United States

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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

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

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

Talitha 5 star rating

Fort Wayne, United States

Experienced award-winning illustrator and designer. I can help with your next book concept!

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

Work experience:

  • Self-employed

Penny 5 star rating

Holbrook, United States

I have been lucky enough to work as a Children's Book Illustrator since 2007.

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

Work experience:

  • 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

Ashley 5 star rating

Portland, ME, United States

I'm an art director, graphic designer and illustrator that loves book design, typography and the interplay of graphics and text.

Genres: Romance, Fiction, Picture Books, Children's, History, Humanities & Social Sciences, Non-Fiction, Nature, Home & Garden, Middle Grade, Education & Reference, and Middle Grade Fantasy.

Work experience:

  • HarperCollins Publishers
  • Macmillan Children's Books
  • Sellers Publishing, Inc.

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Ricardo 5 star rating

Philadelphia, United States

I'm illustrator and Graphic Designer. I love the freedom children's book illustration brings. I love small details just kids can understand.

Genres: Picture Books, Children's, Fiction, Nature, Non-Fiction, Middle Grade, Life Sciences, Math & Science, Fantasy, and Action & Adventure.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed

Chris 5 star rating

Berkeley, CA, USA

A freelance illustrator skilled in digital, hand drawn and photo collage illustration, pictorial maps and diagrams, and custom lettering.

Genres: Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits, Non-Fiction, DIY & Crafts, Children’s Non-Fiction, Geography, Humanities & Social Sciences, Home & Garden, Education & Reference, Life Sciences, Math & Science, and Architecture.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed

Nazli 5 star rating

Irvine, CA, USA

Illustrator & author Nazli creates acclaimed children’s books, including wordless picture books. Based in California.

Genres: Picture Books, Children's, and Fiction.

Work experience:

  • Freelancer

I love making whimsical, magical, and nature-based illustrations that highlight the magic of ourselves and the world around us!

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

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Kent State University
  • Light the Wild

Jason 5 star rating

Clarkesville, GA, USA

Children’s book illustrator helping authors turn ideas into engaging picture books with expressive characters and story-driven art.

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

Work experience:

  • Self-employed

Katie 5 star rating

Syracuse, NY, USA

Professional illustrator, designer, and cartoonist. Creator of the Welcome to the Forest series published by Andrews McMeel.

Genres: Comics & Graphic Novels, Fiction, and Children's.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Rivet

Bailey 5 star rating

Phoenix, AZ, USA

Children's book illustrator specializing in wildly imaginative stories, touched by whimsy and adventure, set in richly crafted worlds.

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

Work experience:

  • Arizona State University Print & Imaging Lab
  • Children's Learning Adventure
  • Lehi Valley Trading Company
  • Self-employed
  • Mesa Youth Creative Agency

Illustrator for adult and YA fantasy and speculative fiction with 5 years experience working in freelance illustration and character design

Genres: Epic Fantasy, Fantasy, Fiction, Romantic Fantasy, Romance, Dystopian, Science Fiction, Post-Apocalyptic, Steampunk, New Adult, Young Adult, Young Adult Fantasy, and Action & Adventure.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed

Nikki 5 star rating

Muncie, IN, USA

I am a digital children's book illustrator with 15 years experience in children's books ranging from novelty board books to chapter books.

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

Work experience:

  • Rainstorm Publishing
  • Kidsbooks Publishing
  • Self-employed

Charles 5 star rating

Seattle, WA, USA

Illustrator - Charlie believes in a future where somehow, against all odds, we make it. Tell me a story, let’s bring it to life. 🚫No AI🚫

Genres: Epic Fantasy, Fantasy, Fiction, Gaming & LitRPG, LGBTQ Fiction, Space Opera, Science Fiction, Steampunk, Post-Apocalyptic, Young Adult Fantasy, and Young Adult.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Coyote & Crow

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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

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Step 2

Browse

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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.

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