How to Price Custom Printed Apparel for Profit
Whether you’re running a print-on-demand shop, screen printing in-house, or outsourcing your custom apparel, pricing your products effectively is crucial. Price too low, and you’ll struggle to stay afloat. Price too high, and customers might walk away. So how do you strike the right balance and still turn a healthy profit? Here’s how to price custom printed apparel!
Whether you’re running a print-on-demand shop, screen printing in-house, or outsourcing your custom apparel, pricing your products effectively is crucial. Price too low, and you’ll struggle to stay afloat. Price too high, and customers might walk away. So how do you strike the right balance and still turn a healthy profit? Here’s how to price custom printed apparel!
Let’s break it down step-by-step.
1. Understand Your Costs (COGS): How to Price Custom Printed Apparel
Before you can price anything, you need to know what it costs you to produce it. This is your Cost of Goods Sold (COGS), and it includes:
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Blank apparel: Wholesale t-shirts, bulk hoodies, blank hats, etc.
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Printing method costs:
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Screen printing (screens, ink, setup fees)
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DTG (direct-to-garment ink, pre-treatment)
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Heat transfers or embroidery
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Labor: Your time or employees’ time (consider time for design, printing, packing).
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Shipping supplies: Mailers, labels, etc.
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Packaging: Tags, wrapping, branded extras.
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Shipping cost: To the customer, or inbound freight for blanks.
Example:
Blank T-shirt: $4.00
DTG Print: $2.50
Packaging & Shipping Supplies: $1.00
Labor (15 minutes @ $20/hr): $5.00
Total COGS: $12.50
2. Determine Your Desired Profit Margin
Most retail businesses aim for a profit margin of 30–50% or more, depending on the market and competition. Profit margin = your net profit divided by the selling price.
💡 A 50% margin means if your shirt costs $12.50 to make, you’d charge $25.00.
Some brands go higher if they’re in a niche market, have strong branding, or offer premium quality.
3. Know Your Market
Pricing isn’t just about math, it’s also about perception. Understand your audience and competitors.
Ask yourself:
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Are your designs niche or generic?
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Do you offer premium or basic materials?
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Who is your target customer? Budget shopper, trend-seeker, or quality-focused buyer?
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What do competitors charge for similar items?
Competitive research can tell you a lot. If most indie brands in your niche charge $30+ for a tee, you don’t want to be the one selling for $18 unless you’re going for high volume.
4. Factor in Overhead
COGS is just the start. What about:
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Marketing/ads (Meta, Google, influencers)
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Equipment maintenance
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Studio rent, electricity, Wi-Fi
These aren’t always factored into per-item pricing but should be covered by your markup and your monthly sales goals.
5. Set Tiered Pricing
You may want to offer different price tiers based on order size or customization level:
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Retail Price: For direct-to-customer (higher margin)
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Bulk Pricing: For wholesale or bulk apparel orders (lower margin but higher volume)
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Custom Design Pricing: Add setup or design fees if customers want fully custom artwork
Example Pricing Strategy:
1–10 items: $28/shirt
11–50 items: $24/shirt
51–100+: $20/shirt
(Assuming lower COGS at scale due to economies of production)
6. Include a Safety Margin
Leave room for:
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Returns or reprints
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Damaged goods
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Inflation or blank apparel supplier price changes
Add a small buffer (5–10%) to your pricing formula so you’re not cutting it too close.
7. Test, Adjust, Repeat
Pricing is not a one-and-done task.
Track:
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Your profit per sale
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Conversion rates
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Customer feedback
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Ad performance vs sales
If you’re selling out too quickly, you might be underpricing. If you’re getting traffic but few orders, try tweaking price points or offering bundles, upsells, or discounts strategically.
Bonus: A Simple Pricing Formula
Here’s a quick pricing formula you can use:
Example:
Total Cost: $12.50
Desired Margin: 50%
$12.50 ÷ (1 – 0.5) = $25.00 selling price
Learning how to price custom printed apparel is the foundation of a profitable custom apparel business. Don’t just guess. Take time to crunch numbers, study your market, and build a pricing model that reflects the value you bring.
And remember, people don’t just buy custom shirts, but rather stories, identity, and style. Make sure your pricing reflects the experience your brand delivers. Hope this helped you learn how to price custom printed apparel!
