Medium
Oil, acrylic, watercolor, gouache, tempera, or mixed media. The materials and technique affect both identification and the comparable market.
Painting-specific online appraisal
Get a painting appraised online from photos
Standard $59 signed PDF — not a 60-second calculator. Submit the front, back, signature, labels, dimensions, condition, and provenance. Delivery is usually under one day once photos are in; that is not a guaranteed deadline.
This page is painting-specific. See online art appraisal for paintings, prints, and sculpture.
A $9 first read is preliminary triage. An auction estimate supports a possible sale. A signed appraisal documents an object-specific value conclusion, intended use, evidence, effective date, assumptions, and limitations.
Standard appraisal $59 · Timing: confirmed after intake · Photo-based work has assignment-specific limits.
Start with the object
What kind of painting do you have?
You do not need to identify the artist, medium, or object type before you begin. Capture the physical clues first; the appraisal explains what the evidence can support.
Support
Canvas, panel, paper, board, or another support. Photograph edges and the reverse so construction clues are visible.
Object type
Original work, edition, print, reproduction, or uncertain category. You do not need to settle this before submitting evidence.
Painting photo checklist
Photograph evidence before cleaning, repair, or reframing.
Good photographs let the appraiser compare construction, inscriptions, labels, surface, condition, and scale. Preserve the current state before anything changes.
- 1The full front, photographed square-on in even light
- 2The full back, including stretcher, panel, paper, labels, and hanging hardware
- 3Signature, monogram, inscriptions, dates, stamps, and inventory numbers
- 4Gallery, framer, exhibition, collection, and shipping labels
- 5Image dimensions and the overall framed dimensions
- 6Raking-light or close detail views when texture or condition needs explanation
- 7Damage, repairs, relining, craquelure, staining, abrasion, or surface loss
Valuation method
What affects a painting's value
No signature, image match, price guide, or isolated auction result settles value by itself. The conclusion comes from the relationship between the object evidence, assignment, and comparable market.
Artist attribution and the confidence the submitted evidence supports
Medium, support, technique, date, subject, period, and dimensions
Provenance, ownership records, and exhibition or publication history
Condition, restoration history, and changes to the original surface or support
Comparable-market evidence for genuinely similar works and current market timing
The intended use of the report and the value basis the assignment requires
Choose by intended use
Estimate, auction opinion, or signed appraisal?
The same painting can require a different answer depending on who will use it and why.
Personal research
Use the $9 first read or artist and market pages when you are still deciding whether deeper work is worthwhile.
Get a $9 first readSale or consignment
An auction estimate can fit a sale conversation. A signed appraisal fits when you need an independent documented conclusion.
Review broad art appraisalInsurance or claims
Use the insurance owner for replacement-value context and confirm the receiving insurer's requirements before ordering.
Review insurance appraisalDonation or tax
Use the qualified-appraisal owner for case review, signer fit, intended use, and filing-documentation boundaries.
Review donation requirementsSigned deliverable
What the painting appraisal report can include
The exact scope follows the intended use and the evidence available. Inspect the public painting sample to see how object evidence and comparable sales are organized in a finished report.
- Object description and the evidence reviewed
- Identification or attribution conclusion at the confidence supported by the file
- Comparable-market evidence selected for relevance
- A value conclusion for the stated use and effective date
- Assumptions, limiting conditions, and any reason more evidence or onsite work is needed
- A signed PDF report when the assignment can be completed remotely
A sample proves the report format, not another painting's identity or value. Appraisily does not promise that every institution will accept every remote report.
Inherited painting
Inherited a painting?
Photograph it before you clean, reframe, or ship it. One painting for records, sale, or division is the $59 signed report. If your insurer asked, use the $99 insurance lane. If a CPA asked about donation or estate tax, use $399 case review.
Frequently asked questions
What a photo-based painting appraisal can—and cannot—settle
These boundaries help you prepare the right evidence and choose another specialist when the assignment needs one.
How to appraise a painting online for free?
Use Instant Screener for a $9 first read (3 screens). It is unsigned and not a formal appraisal, so it is not for insurance, tax, or court. A signed PDF is $59. Auction-house “free appraisals” are usually consignment evaluations, not independent reports.
How can I find out what my painting is worth?
Start with Instant Screener if you only want a curiosity range. Order the $59 signed report when you need a document for records, resale, or one inherited painting. Insurance replacement is $99 after you ask the carrier. Donation or tax files start at $399 as case review.
Can you appraise a painting from a photo?
Yes — that is how the $59 path works when the photos are enough. Send the front, verso, signature, labels, size, and damage. One JPEG is not a certificate of authenticity or Old Master authentication. If we cannot deliver a reasonably supported appraisal, we refund.
How do I get artwork appraised?
Photograph the painting (front, back, signature, labels, size, damage), choose the intended use, and start a $59 signed record. If an insurer asked, use $99. If a CPA asked about donation or tax, use $399 case review. Curious only? Instant Screener is a $9 unsigned first read.
How much does a painting appraisal cost here?
A standard signed painting report is $59. If an insurer asked for replacement value, use the $99 insurance lane — not the $59 record. Donation or tax files start at $399 as case review. There is no published rush fee. See /services for the full table.
Where to appraise and sell art?
Get an independent signed report first if you need a document you control. A free auction-house evaluation is usually a consignment conversation, not an insurance or tax file, and an auction estimate is not the same as an appraisal. We do not sell your painting and we do not guarantee a sale price.
Original vs print or lithograph — how do you tell from photos?
Photos of the surface, edges, verso, plate marks, and edition inscriptions can support an attribution opinion. That opinion is not a certificate of authenticity, a foundation certificate, or a committee authentication. Some prints, reproductions, and unread signatures still need in-person or specialist review.
I inherited a painting. Which report do I order?
One inherited painting for records, sale, or family division is $59. If an insurer asked, use $99 after you ask the carrier. If a CPA asked about donation or a tax file, that is $399 case review. A whole house is a quote. Insurance detail lives on /insurance.
What photos should I send?
Send the full front and back, signature or monogram, every label and inscription, frame and edge details, dimensions, and close photographs of condition issues. Do not clean, repair, remove, or reframe the painting before documenting it.
When is an in-person inspection required?
It may be required when the receiving party says so, when material testing or close surface examination matters, when condition cannot be understood remotely, or when attribution and value risk are too high for a photo-only conclusion. Appraisily does not send staff for house calls.
Related evidence and next steps
Continue with the one page that owns your next question.
Use evidence pages for research and the intended-use owner for a formal assignment. These links are selected for painting decisions rather than added as a sitewide link block.
Broad online art appraisal
Compare the standard art-appraisal path, pricing, proof, and signed-report workflow.
Open pageOil from photos
Raking light, stretcher, lining, craquelure, and varnish. One signed oil report is $59. Not the watercolor photo list.
Open pageWatercolor on paper
Mat burn, foxing, cockling, and glass glare. One signed watercolor report is $59. No watercolor sample yet.
Open pageSculpture from photos
Foundry marks and editions. One signed sculpture report is $59. This is not the painting photo list.
Open pageCondition and provenance evidence
Prepare the object record and understand what remote evidence can support.
Open pageAuction market signals
See how reported sold prices can inform research without becoming an appraisal of your painting.
Open pageSeveral paintings or a collection
Scope item counts, evidence preparation, grouping, and coordinated review.
Open pageStart with the painting as it is.
Upload the photographs and records you have. The appraisal will state what the evidence supports, what remains uncertain, and whether another inspection or specialist is needed.