Embroidery Pricing Calculator
- Materials
- Your time
- Overhead
- Profit
You're paid for your time at your hourly rate even before the markup; the markup is profit for the business.
How the embroidery pricing calculation works
Turn stitches into machine time
In this example, 8,000 stitches at a real 700 stitches a minute is 11.4 minutes. Add 3 minutes to hoop and trim: 14.4 minutes per piece.
Spread setup and digitizing
15 minutes of setup over 12 pieces adds 1.25 minutes each. $40 of digitizing and $10 of overhead add $4.17 a piece.
Add materials
An $8 garment and $0.75 of thread and backing, plus $6.53 of time at $25 an hour, make a cost of $19.45 a piece.
Add markup
40% markup gives $27.23 a piece, $326.75 for 12. On a repeat order without digitizing it drops to $22.56.
Worked example. Twelve pieces with an 8,000-stitch design at 700 stitches a minute, 3 minutes of hooping, 15 minutes of setup, $8 garments, $0.75 of thread and backing, $40 of digitizing and $10 of overhead cost $19.45 each at $25 an hour. With a 40% markup, charge $27.23 a piece, $326.75 for the order.
Embroidery Pricing FAQ
How much should I charge for embroidery?
Work out the machine time from the stitch count and your real speed, add hooping and setup, the garment, thread and backing, and digitizing, then your markup. The calculator shows the price per piece and per order.
How much does embroidery cost?
There is no single market price; it depends on the stitch count, the number of pieces, the garment and the shop's own costs. In the example here, an 8,000-stitch design on 12 pieces with $8 garments comes to $27.23 a piece. Enter your own job to get your number.
Should I price embroidery per 1,000 stitches?
Some shops quote that way, because stitch count drives machine time. At the example inputs of 700 stitches a minute and $25 an hour, 1,000 stitches take 1.4 minutes, or $0.60 of machine time ($0.83 with a 40% markup). That covers time only, so hooping, setup, the garment and digitizing still need to be added. Use your own speed and rate to check whether a per-1,000-stitch price covers your costs.
How do I price embroidery?
Divide the stitch count by your real stitches per minute to get machine time, add hooping and trimming, and share setup and digitizing across the order. Multiply the time by your hourly rate, add the garment, thread and backing and overhead, then add your markup.
Should I charge for digitizing?
Digitizing is a one-time cost per design. Charge it on the first order or spread it over the pieces, as here, and leave it out of repeat orders.
Why do small embroidery orders cost more per piece?
Setup and digitizing are shared by fewer pieces. With the example inputs, 3 pieces cost $46.92 each and 12 pieces cost $27.23 each.
What if the customer brings their own items?
Set the garment cost to 0. You may want a handling charge for customer-supplied items to cover the risk of damage; add it to overhead if you do.