Two in three feminine college students within the UK say they might contemplate becoming a member of OnlyFans in the event that they have been brief on money, a brand new survey revealed.
In keeping with a ballot carried out by OnlyGuider, 66 per cent of feminine college students can be open to launching an OnlyFans account for monetary causes. The survey, which consulted 1,000 UK undergraduates aged 18+, additionally discovered that 39 per cent of contributors mentioned they might reasonably promote “saucy pics” for £500 in a month, than stacking cabinets or pouring pints.
The findings come amidst the first increase in tuition fees in practically a decade, up from £9,250 to £9,535 for normal full-time programs, following cuts within the Upkeep Mortgage within the early 2020s.
College students throughout the UK are struggling to maintain afloat financially, with many unable to cowl the price of day by day necessities. Practically 1 in 3 (59%) skip meals at the very least generally to be able to get monetary savings, in response to the Nationwide Pupil Cash Survey 2025, and 10 per cent used a food bank within the 2024/25 tutorial yr.
41 per cent have thought-about dropping out altogether because of monetary troubles.
The survey additionally revealed that 2 per cent of scholars surveyed made cash by sex work, whereas different much less standard or riskier sources of money included utilizing bank cards (15 per cent), gambling (6 per cent), drug trials (6 per cent), shares and shares (4 per cent), cryptocurrencies (2 per cent) and personal loans (1 per cent).
“I’ve typically thought of turning to [sex work] solely so I might survive,” one participant of the Nationwide Pupil Cash Survey 2025 mentioned.
“I’ve dad and mom I want I used to be estranged from, nonetheless I am unable to reduce contact and endure verbal abuse as a result of it is higher than being homeless. If I reduce them off, such a work will be the solely factor I [could] do to maintain a roof over my very own head.”
Nevertheless, not all college students launching OnlyFans are motivated by monetary necessity, and lots of creators really feel liberated and empowered by intercourse work.
“Was for enjoyable largely,” one other participant mentioned.
“What older generations would possibly sneer at as scandal, college students are more and more viewing as technique,” says Sam Pierce, CEO of OnlyGuider.
“For them, OnlyFans isn’t taboo – it’s simply one other hustle. A couple of thousand paying subscribers can really feel like a greater security internet than competing for an entry stage nine-to-five that AI is quickly erasing.”
What else did OnlyGuider’s survey discover?
The survey revealed that 42 per cent of girls and 34 per cent of males mentioned they might reasonably 10,000 OnlyFans subscribers than a assured graduate job.
It additionally illuminated important gender disparities in the case of attitudes across the website. Whereas 55 per cent of males mentioned they might fortunately date a woman with OnlyFans, 36 per cent would label males with an account “unhappy and determined”.
Piece mentioned: “The hypocrisy isn’t refined: guys are high quality with relationship feminine creators, however when males put themselves on the market they’re branded determined.”
As compared, simply 39 per cent of girls mentioned they’d date a person with an OnlyFans account, and but they have been much less more likely to converse disparagingly about creators, with 22 per cent utilizing phrases like “unhappy” and “determined”.
“Girls stay cautious about relationship male creators in any respect. That’s a cultural double normal enjoying out in actual time,” Pierce mentioned.
“For a lot of college students, OnlyFans sits alongside bar work and gig apps as simply one other solution to earn. That doesn’t imply they’re blind to stigma – however the narrative of empowerment and hustle is clearly successful. Universities, dad and mom and employers must grapple with that shift.”
