Shane J.

Shutterstock is a very unethical company. I bought some images in 2016, and I did not agree to let them automatically charge my card. Nonetheless, they charged my card every year since without my knowledge, provided absolutely no service (I did not download any images in 2017 or 2018), yet when I complain about it, they refuse to refund me any money. Apparently, a big part of their business is to charge people money without providing anything. That's why they will charge you for a period of time, and if you don't download any images, you don't get anything at all for the money you paid. This is quite deliberate, and should be illegal.

The company also makes it impossible to remove your credit card information when logged into your account. You have to actually communicate with someone to cancel the account. What other companies do this nowadays? They apparently don't want you to remove your card or cancel your account so they can continue to charge you even when you're getting absolutely nothing for it.

There is a lot of art out there that is not provided by Shutterstock. But be careful, because they will buy ads that pop up even if you search for free images and icons. That's another lie, because they aren't free, and they make it difficult to tell until you click on the link.

I would suggest to anyone who is considering Shutterstock, find your art somewhere else. They will deliberately rip you off and then refuse to do anything about it, just like a scam artist.