I agree with egypturnash. I did two failed Patreons and currently have a successful one that barely is enough to live on (in southern Vermont, on Section 8) whi

I agree with egypturnash. I did two failed Patreons and currently have a successful one that barely is enough to live on (in southern Vermont, on Section 8) which was launched off the existence of an existing business about four times its size. I can't speak for Kickstarter: that seems more of a 'from nothing' place and it'd be a gamble. I can say that if you are running a business charging money for what you do, you can do Patreon for the same thing and make a quarter to a half as much, IF you don't find viral success of some sort. One big difference: doing the Patreon, you get to give your life work for 'free' to your community, which might desperately need that sort of support. I give tools to musicians, and I passionately believe that there are many musicians/producers/etc who cannot blow lots of money on proper tools they need. And, the ones I want to hear are not necessarily the ones who have the spending money. So, my Patreon has other than monetary value to me. I take a hit in my income so that I can get the tools out there, across a wide range of host computers that sometimes aren't supported by the commercial sphere, and I get a lot of appreciation for doing it. Even to do that, you need to already have a following, and it had better be a following that's already paying you or hiring you to do something.