How embroidery pricing works
Most embroidery shops price a job from four parts. The calculator uses the same four, so the result matches the way you already quote:
- Stitch price. A rate per 1,000 stitches times the stitch count of the design. Stitches are what take machine time, so they are the fairest measure of the work.
- Minimum per piece. Small designs still need hooping, thread changes and trimming, so most shops set a minimum price for each piece.
- Quantity discount. Setup time is spread over more pieces in a big run, so the price per piece usually drops at quantity breaks such as 12, 24, 48 and 144.
- One-time fees. A digitizing or setup fee is charged once per design, not per piece. The customer's second order of the same design usually skips it.
If you also supply the garment, add its cost per piece and the calculator includes it in the price. The example values in the form are there to show how it works; they are not market rates, so replace them with your own.
How much to charge for embroidery
There is no single right price, because it depends on your costs and your market. A reliable way to set your rate per 1,000 stitches is to work out what an hour of machine time costs you, then divide it by the stitches the machine sews in an hour:
- Machine hour cost. Add your hourly labor, the share of rent, machine payments and power for an hour, and thread and backing used in an hour. Add the profit you need on top.
- Stitches per hour. A machine running at 700 stitches a minute sews 42,000 stitches in an hour of pure sewing. Real output is lower once hooping, color changes and trims are counted, so use a figure from your own jobs.
- Rate per 1,000. Divide the machine hour cost by the thousands of stitches you really sew in an hour. Check the answer against local prices before you publish it.
Multi-head machines sew several pieces at once, which lowers the cost per piece on big runs. That is one reason quantity breaks exist, and why a single piece often costs much more than a dozen.
Using the embroidery pricing calculator
- Get the stitch count. Read it from the design's stitch file (the calculator can read DST, PES, EXP, JEF, VP3 and XXX files), or estimate it from the size with the stitch estimator.
- Enter your rates. Rate per 1,000 stitches, minimum per piece, setup fee and, if you supply the garment, the item cost.
- Set your quantity breaks. Enter the discount you give at 12, 24, 48, 72 and 144 pieces. Leave a break at 0 if you do not use it.
- Read the price. The price per piece and the order total update as you type. The note under the price shows when the minimum applies.
- Copy the chart. "Copy price chart" copies the quantity table as plain text, ready to paste into an email or a quote.
Building an embroidery pricing chart
A pricing chart shows customers how the price drops as the quantity grows, which answers most quote questions before they are asked. Shops usually publish charts for their common stitch ranges, for example up to 5,000, 8,000 and 12,000 stitches. To build one, enter the top of each range as the stitch count and copy the chart. Many shops also list extra charges beside the chart:
| Extra | Why shops charge it |
|---|---|
| Additional location | Each position is a separate hooping and design, priced by its own stitch count |
| Customer-supplied items | Covers the risk of damaging an item the shop cannot replace |
| 3D puff | Extra foam, denser stitching and slower production |
| Names or numbers | Each piece is different, so each needs its own setup |
| Rush orders | Moves the job ahead of others in the queue |
Common pricing mistakes
| Mistake | What it costs you | What to do instead |
|---|---|---|
| No minimum per piece | Small designs sell below the cost of hooping and trimming | Set a minimum that covers handling for one piece |
| Guessing the stitch count | A design with twice the stitches you expected doubles the machine time | Quote from the real file, or estimate on the high side |
| Free setup on every order | The cost of the stitch file is never recovered | Charge setup once per design and waive it on repeats |
| The same discount at every quantity | Big runs are underpriced or small runs overpriced | Give bigger breaks only where the setup is spread over more pieces |
| Forgetting extra locations | A second position is a second hooping and design | Price each location from its own stitch count |
Review your rates every few months against your real machine time. If jobs keep running longer than the stitch count suggests, your stitches per hour figure is too high, and your rate per 1,000 stitches should go up.
Where digitizing fits in the price
The setup fee in the calculator is where the cost of the stitch file goes. If you buy files from a digitizing service, that cost is known before you quote. Our flat prices start at $14 for a design up to 4.5 in, with every machine format included, and our embroidery digitizing cost guide explains how digitizing prices compare. A clean file also keeps your stitch count honest: a badly digitized design can carry thousands of stitches it does not need, which costs you machine time on every piece.
Quoting a new logo? Get the file first so the stitch count is real. New accounts get their first design free up to $24 of design value.