A process for preparing (meth)acrylic esters (F) of N-hydroxyalkylated imidazoles, wherein N-hydroxyalkylated imidazoles (I), in which R1 and R2 may each independently be hydrogen or C1-C20-alkyl, R3, R4 and R5 are each independently hydrogen or C1-C20-alkyl, C1-C20-alkylcarbonyl, C2-C20-alkenyl, C2-C20-alkenylcarbonyl, C2-C20-alkynyl, C2-C20-alkynylcarbonyl, C3-C15-cycloalkyl, C3-C15-cycloalkylcarbonyl, aryl, arylcarbonyl, a heterocycle or a halogen atom, and m and n are each integers in the range of in each case from 0 to 20, where m and n cannot simultaneously be 0, and in which the particular units bracketed by the variables m and n are present in any sequence, and in which, in the case that m≧2, the R1 and R2 radicals are in each case independent in the particular units, in the presence of at least one catalyst (K), are esterified with (meth)acrylic acid (S) or transesterified with at least one (meth)acrylic ester (D).