The History of Webcomics: From 1990s Strips to the Webtoon Era
How comics found a home online, from early web strips to the vertical-scroll boom.
By Web Admin
Comics have always followed their readers, and by the mid-1990s their readers were online. What started as a handful of hobbyists posting hand-drawn strips on primitive web pages has grown into a global industry — one where a single vertical-scroll series can attract tens of millions of readers and launch a hit adaptation. The web did not just give comics a new distribution channel; it changed what comics look like, how creators earn a living, and who gets to make them.
This is a plain-English history of webcomics: where they came from, the megahits that proved the model, how creators finally cracked the problem of getting paid, and how the vertical-scroll “webtoon” format reshaped the medium for phones. We will keep audience figures in the realm of “reportedly” and ranges, since reliable numbers are scarce and easily inflated.
The 1990s: comics discover the web
The earliest webcomics arrived almost as soon as the web could display images. Doctor Fun, launched by David Farley in 1993, is frequently cited as one of the first comics created specifically for the internet — a single-panel gag strip posted to the web rather than a newspaper. Other early experiments followed, including Argon Zark! (1995), which played with animation and color in ways print never could.
The late 1990s brought the first webcomics to build real, lasting audiences. Sluggy Freelance (1997), User Friendly (1997), and others proved that a daily or near-daily strip could accumulate a devoted following without any newspaper syndicate as gatekeeper. That was the radical part: for the first time, cartoonists could reach readers directly, publish on their own schedule, and keep full control of their work. For how that independent spirit plays out today, see our indie comics hub.
Penny Arcade, xkcd, and Dinosaur Comics: the classic era
The 2000s were the format’s first golden age, defined by a cluster of strips that became genuine cultural touchstones. Penny Arcade, launched in 1998 by writer Jerry Holkins and artist Mike Krahulik, turned gaming commentary into a business empire complete with the massive PAX convention series — proof that a webcomic could anchor an entire company.
xkcd, Randall Munroe’s stick-figure strip about “romance, sarcasm, math, and language,” began in 2005 and became a fixture of internet culture, beloved by scientists and programmers. Dinosaur Comics, Ryan North’s 2003 experiment, used the exact same six panels of clip-art dinosaurs in every single installment, changing only the dialogue — a formal constraint that showcased how much webcomics could play with the medium itself. Others like Achewood, Questionable Content, and Kate Beaton’s Hark! A Vagrant rounded out an era rich with distinctive voices.
| Year | Milestone |
|---|---|
| 1993 | Doctor Fun debuts, often cited as an early web-native comic |
| 1997 | Sluggy Freelance and User Friendly build early loyal audiences |
| 1998 | Penny Arcade launches and grows into a business and convention brand |
| 2003 | Ryan North’s Dinosaur Comics begins |
| 2004 | Naver launches Webtoon in South Korea, pioneering vertical scroll |
| 2005 | xkcd debuts |
| 2009 | Andrew Hussie begins Homestuck |
| 2013 | Patreon is founded, reshaping creator income |
| 2014 | LINE Webtoon launches internationally in English |
The megahits: Homestuck and the multimedia webcomic
If the 2000s proved webcomics could build audiences, the early 2010s proved they could become phenomena. Andrew Hussie’s Homestuck, which began in 2009 as part of the MS Paint Adventures site, exploded into one of the most influential internet works of its era. It was not a traditional comic at all: it mixed static panels with animation, embedded music, chat logs, and interactive game-like sequences into a sprawling, years-long narrative that reportedly ran to thousands of pages.
Homestuck generated an enormous, intensely creative fandom, a successful crowdfunding campaign for a spin-off game, and a merchandising operation — all without any traditional publisher. It demonstrated that a webcomic could be a maximalist, multimedia epic and a self-sustaining creative business at the same time. Its scale and ambition remain a reference point for what the format can be.
Getting paid: from ad banners to Patreon
For most of webcomics’ history, the central problem was money. Early creators cobbled together income from banner ads, merchandise, printed collections, and book deals — enough for a lucky few to go full-time, but precarious for nearly everyone else. The economics of “free to read” made direct reader support difficult to organise.
That changed decisively with the founding of Patreon in 2013, co-created by musician Jack Conte. The membership model let fans pledge a few dollars per month directly to creators they loved, turning a diffuse audience into predictable recurring income. For webcomics, it was transformative:
- Recurring revenue. A modest number of paying supporters could fund a creator’s time in a way ad clicks never reliably did.
- Direct relationships. Creators could offer bonus art, early pages, and community access without a publisher in the middle.
- Lower barriers. Newer cartoonists could build sustainable careers without needing a syndicate, a big following, or a book contract first.
Newsletter platforms later extended the same logic; our look at Substack and creator-owned comics traces how the direct-to-reader model kept evolving. The through-line from 1997 to today is the same value that also defined print’s independent scene, as our history of Vertigo shows.
The webtoon revolution: comics built for phones
The most significant shift of the last decade came from South Korea. Naver launched its Webtoon platform there in 2004, pioneering a format designed for screens rather than paper: a single continuous vertical strip you read by scrolling down, one image flowing into the next, optimised for the way people actually use phones. Rival platform Daum and later Kakao helped turn the format into a national phenomenon in Korea.
When LINE Webtoon launched in English in 2014, the vertical-scroll format went global. It changed the grammar of comics: instead of a grid of panels arranged across a page, creators think in terms of pacing down an endless canvas, using scroll timing and negative space for dramatic effect — an idea Scott McCloud had theorised years earlier as the “infinite canvas.” Our guide to the best webtoons collects standout examples, and if you are weighing the format against print comics from Japan, our webtoons vs manga comparison breaks down the differences.
Discovery platforms and the new creator economy
Alongside Webtoon, a cluster of platforms reshaped how readers find webcomics and how creators build audiences. Tapas offered another home for serialised vertical and traditional comics. Hosting sites and social platforms became discovery engines, where a single viral page could send hundreds of thousands of new readers to a creator overnight.
The modern webtoon platforms also introduced structured monetization built into the reading experience — systems where readers pay small amounts to unlock episodes early, with revenue shared back to creators, plus formal programs that pay selected series directly. This professionalised a medium that had spent its first two decades improvising income. Some breakout series, such as Lore Olympus, reportedly drew audiences in the many millions and crossed over into print collections and adaptation deals.
Webcomics and the mainstream: print, prizes, and adaptations
The line between “webcomic” and “real comic” has effectively dissolved. Web-first works now routinely win major industry awards, land print deals with traditional publishers, and get optioned for television and film. Kate Beaton, who started with the web strip Hark! A Vagrant, went on to publish the acclaimed graphic memoir Ducks. Vertical-scroll hits regularly become animated series and live-action projects.
That crossover has fed directly into the broader independent comics boom — creators who built audiences online now have leverage and reach that earlier generations could only dream of. Our piece on the indie comics renaissance puts that shift in context, and the wider manga hub shows how digital-first serialisation echoes patterns from Japanese comics too.
Where webcomics go from here
The trajectory is clear even if the specifics are not. Comics are increasingly created for screens first, discovered through algorithms and social sharing, and funded through a mix of memberships, per-episode unlocks, merchandise, and adaptation rights. The vertical-scroll format has trained a huge new audience — many of whom would never have picked up a print comic — to read comics daily on their phones.
For readers, this is a golden age of choice: more comics, in more styles, from more corners of the world, are available than at any point in history, and a great many of them are free to start. If you want to dive in, our roundup of the best webcomics is a curated place to begin.
AmazonCheck price on AmazonFrequently asked questions
What was the first webcomic?
There is no single undisputed “first,” because early experiments overlapped, but Doctor Fun (1993) by David Farley is frequently cited as one of the earliest comics created specifically for the web. Several other strips from the mid-1990s also have strong claims to being pioneers.
How do webcomic creators make money?
Income typically comes from a mix of sources: membership platforms like Patreon, per-episode unlock systems and paid programs on platforms such as Webtoon, printed collections, merchandise, advertising, and adaptation or licensing deals. The membership model, popularised after Patreon’s 2013 founding, was especially transformative.
What is a webtoon and how is it different from a regular webcomic?
“Webtoon” usually refers to comics built as a single continuous vertical strip designed to be read by scrolling on a phone, a format pioneered in South Korea from 2004. Traditional webcomics more often use page-and-panel layouts adapted from print. The vertical-scroll format changes pacing, composition, and how creators use space.
Are webcomics considered “real” comics?
Absolutely. Web-first works win major awards, land traditional print deals, and get adapted for screen. The distinction between web and print has largely dissolved, and many of the most influential comics of the past two decades started online.
Keep reading: explore the best webtoons, compare formats in webtoons vs manga, and see how the same independent spirit shaped print in our history of Vertigo.
