After turning 18 a few months ago, I could not escape the plentiful social media content thrown at me about OnlyFans–a subscription-based social media platform where creators share exclusive, often explicit, content with fans who pay a monthly fee set by the creator. Videos showed seemingly 18-year old girls flaunting extreme wealth; stacks of cash, beautiful cars, and lavish houses. I knew the platform existed before, but the awareness that OnlyFans was now something my peers and I could legally pursue if we wanted–just because we were adults–felt mindboggling. While OnlyFans creates a plethora of problems just by being a site where anyone can create DIY porn, the main issue is the minimum age required to create content on it (18). There is also the issue of the glorification of the OnlyFans lifestyle that is showcased online. The legal age to create content on OnlyFans should be at least 21.
One teen influencer, Piper Rockelle, posts clips on YouTube and TikTok of retiring her grandma and buying her a brand new expensive car. In another video, Rockelle shows off a stack of hundred dollar bills. Since turning 18 in August, Rockelle has amassed millions of dollars from OnlyFans. According to an X post showcasing her earnings, Rockelle made $2.9 million on OnlyFans on her first day after signing up. Another influencer who had been in the spotlight since 2016–after going viral on Dr. Phil–Danielle Bregoli (Bhad Bhabie) also created an OnlyFans five days after her 18th birthday. According to Rolling Stone, she made over one million dollars in the first six hours on the site after starting in 2021. In a video stream done in March 2025, she stated, “Now, overall, the net on it is like $75 million.”
Rockelle grew up on YouTube, creating prank videos, challenges, and other skits to her audience of children. However, a portion of her fanbase consisted of adult men who consumed her content for malicious intent. The men who have been preying on her since she was 12 are the exact same people subscribed to her monthly link of ‘exclusive content’. Men who have no hesitations about sexually pursuing an underage girl are the same kind of person who would have no hesitations about consuming sexualized content of barely legal girls.
Bregoli, another prominent example, went viral at 16 for her appearance on Dr. Phil, and later her social media presence and rap music. Concerningly, 25 percent of OnlyFans creators are ages 18-24, according to StatisticsOnly.Fans. Not only is it disgusting, these statistics truly show that in order to “make it” on the app, you need to have a large following from prior content, often from when you were a minor. The more famous a child creator is, the more men will end up subscribing to their OnlyFans when they turn of age.
The glamorous and showy lifestyle displayed on social media by teen girls who have gained immense amounts of wealth by profiting off their bodies has become a new phenomenon. While this money making strategy seems enticing and seemingly easy, Rockelle and Bregoli are truly one in a million, making the millions on the site. The very thing many of these OnlyFan content creators are advertising is a glamorized dream; the reality is that very few girls “make it” on the app.
Hopping onto OnlyFans after your 18th birthday and making millions seems too good to be true, and it is. While Rockelle and Bregoli have made millions, they are in the minority. The highest earners on OnlyFans make $100,000 or more each month, but the typical creator who has 21 subscribers brings in $151 monthly, according to Influencer Marketing Hub. Additionally, only the top one percent of OnlyFans creators earn about $49,000 annually. This data proves that OnlyFans does not provide a stable income for most creators, and you only have the chance of attaining this stable income on the app if you already have an established audience.
Young impressionable girls should not have the legal option to step into the adult content sphere just days after their 18th birthday. Many are not aware of the negative aspects associated with doing OnlyFans, such as the digital footprint it creates–it will make it difficult for them to achieve regular jobs in the future. According to a 2018 CareerBuilder survey of over 1,000 hiring managers and HR professionals in the US, 70 percent of employers check social media accounts of potential employees, and 57 percent have said that they have decided not to hire a candidate based on their findings. Shockingly, 40 percent also said they have refused to hire employees that posted provocative or inappropriate photographs, videos, or information, which includes OnlyFans content. While the platform may generate an income, stepping into the adult content scene can create a difficult digital footprint to erase.
OnlyFans is a career option that is likely to be very short lived, yet creators on social media make it seem like an easily attainable dream: you just need a phone and yourself to create simple exclusive content that could make you financially set for life after even just a few years By making the legal age to create on the platform 21+, it would protect impressionable young adults from falling into the “quick money” narrative, creating a digital footprint they may regret later down the line.
