Money Busking Street Performing

The amount of money that I make from street performing is irregular. It’s hard to predict what a day will be like. Yet it’s not that irregular. I usually make between $5 and $10 an hour, yet I can make more or less. An hour could pass and you might not make a thing or close to it and those are the lame days, not just because of the money, but also because it’s not any fun without an audience.

That’s  boring, the days when I am making more money are usually the fun days, because they’re active and you connect with people. Usually picking a place that’s busier helps, but it’s not the only ingredient in my book. I have had days that were busy – lots of people out and about, but I didn’t make much.

All of this is coming from my experience as a performer – mime, story teller, mannequin, beatboxer, etc. So it probably won’t be yours. I did meet one trumpet player who made it sound like he made a similar amount.

Should I change the location?

Sometimes changing your location is a good thing. I find it breaks up the energy, so if things aren’t going well then I might try moving to a new spot. You don’t want your energy to go down and get negative. You want to stay positive. So if you think moving may help then do it. Also take a break if you need it. Sometimes I go home to meditate or eat something.

However. sometimes it is not going to make a difference. Like I said before it’s irregular and there are high moments and low ones. So sometimes changing your location isn’t going to help. Sometimes it’s better to sit still and wait because things will improve.

How much do people give street performers and buskers?

In my experience most people will give you a dollar, yet some people will give you their change and every week I get around 5 or 6 $5 bills in tips. On a couple of occasions I was tipped more than $20 by one person. But the average tip for me is over a dollar.

Should you show how much money you have made?

Most of the time that won’t matter. I use a can that people can’t see through. People usually decide how much they are going to tip without looking to see what other people have tipped. A few people though have tipped me just because other people have. Some people have asked how much should they tip. I don’t say anything and usually they’ll tip more because of it.

I have seen people look in my can and say “wow, that’s a lot of money” and then they pull out their wallet and tip. So if you are wondering whether you should leave some bills in your can I’d say it doesn’t matter. It won’t make a big difference. When I take a break I usually take all the cash out of my can and put it in my pocket. It’s probably safer that way too. You don’t want some thief to take your money.