--- title: Why do people buy NFTs? - The Hustle description: NFT sales may be down, but some are still holding out hope for becoming wealthy off digital art. image: https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/2117651270-HS-News-Brief_2022-07-07T043926.149Z.webp --- # Why do people buy NFTs? ![Juliet Bennett Rylah](https://53.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/53/assets/hubspot.com/web-team/WBZ/HubSpot%20Media/Blog%202021/Images/Nav/Optimized/TheHustle_Icon_Dark.svg) [Juliet Bennett Rylah](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/author/juliet-bennett-rylah) [Juliet Bennett Rylah Twitter profile ](https://twitter.com/JBRylah) Published: July 07, 2022 Updated: October 11, 2023 The NFT market has seen some serious ups and downs. ![Why do people buy NFTs?](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hs-fs/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/2117651270-HS-News-Brief_2022-07-07T043926.149Z.webp?width=595&height=400&name=2117651270-HS-News-Brief_2022-07-07T043926.149Z.webp) DEXterlab, a digital asset discovery platform, recently [polled](https://twitter.com/Dexterlabdata/status/1535530070093312000?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) its Twitter followers on why those who bought NFTs participated in such a volatile market. Some bought NFTs to collect digital art, while others did it for various perks. NFTs with benefits (AKA “utility NFTs”) can score you: - Access to communities with virtual and IRL meetups, like Gary Vee’s [VeeFriends](https://veefriends.com/) - Access to games. For example, Axie Infinity [players](https://decrypt.co/resources/what-is-axie-infinity-the-play-to-earn-nft-game-taking-crypto-by-storm) must buy three Axie NFTs to start - Real-life perks. [Crypto Baristas](https://cryptobaristas.com/info/) is a coffee project that promises its NFT holders discounts at future cafes But **64%**, an overwhelming majority… #### **… are hoping to make money** While the NFT market has made some creators and traders a pretty penny — artist Pak sold his piece “The Merge” for [$91.8m](https://www.barrons.com/articles/paks-nft-artwork-the-merge-sells-for-91-8-million-01638918205) — it’s far from a sure bet. Fine artist Takashi Murakami, whose physical works appear in art museums around the world, recently [apologized](https://news.artnet.com/market/takashi-murakami-nft-collapse-2131025) to investors after the value of his NFT collection plummeted due to market conditions beyond his control. Meanwhile, the median NFT price has dropped to [~$412](https://futurism.com/the-byte/new-numbers-nft-market-trouble) from ~$1.7k in April. Still, interest in the space [remains high](https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2022/06/14/crypto-crash-digital-assets-interest-rising/7614256001/), with players like [Meta](https://thehustle.co/05112022-instagram-nfts/) and [eBay](https://www.theverge.com/2022/6/22/23178699/ebay-acquires-knownorigin-nft-marketplace) getting into the game — meaning many are still apt to take the risk. 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