How much should you sell a shirt design for?
Consider the following pricing tips:
Most creators go for a 20% profit margin while retailers go for 50%. Check the prices in your niche to find the average t-shirt price. The recommended retail price ranges from $24.99 to $30.99 per shirt (some successful sellers set their prices at $3-5 above the typical range).
Design Costs For A T-Shirt Business
Because this will take some of your valuable time, you should include a cost to pay yourself for your time. Pay yourself $10-15 per design for a very simple text design created in Canva. For more advanced or unique designs created with Photoshop, pay yourself at least $50 per design.
Merch Design
Hourly: Pay anywhere from $25 per hour up to $300 for the more experienced designer, taking one to two hours for one design. Project-based: Merch design can go as cheap as $5 per design and reach up to $200.
If you're selling t-shirts, you probably already know how to figure out your profit margins. It's the simplest thing you can calculate, you just subtract the cost of the shirts from the selling price. Boom, there's your profit.
Custom heat pressed vinyl shirts start at $30 each:
One location, with one color vinyl. Two locations, add $5 for one color vinyl. This includes one t-shirt or tank (hoodies or long sleeves have additional costs) Designs with more than one color will be quoted/priced as needed.
The T-shirt business is lucrative because the industry continues to grow in value. The global custom T-shirt printing market was valued at $3.64 billion in 2020.
According to Upwork's own internal data, the median hourly rate for a freelance graphic designer on their platform falls between $15 – $35 per hour, with an average of $25 per hour. Within that, there's a wide range of anywhere from $15–$150 per hour.
When pricing vinyl t-shirts for retail, the easy answer is you add 40-50% to the total cost of production. Always price your shirts to make good margins. If your margins are too low, there may be ways to get your production cost down or increase your retail price to make sure you have a good ROI.
The main reason why custom t shirts are so expensive, is because it takes a lot of time to create them and they have to be ordered in large amounts. When you order a large quantity of them, you pay more for them.
Here are a few good rates to start off with: Beginner freelance designer (<1 year - 3 years): $20 - $35 / hour. Intermediate freelance designer (3 years - 5 years): $35 - $50 / hour. Advanced freelancer (5+ years): $50 - $150 / hour.
How much should I charge to design a logo?
Beginners can set a price of $200-800 on average, while the work of experienced professionals can cost $800-2000. The time spent on the project is important (ask about the rate, i.e. hourly or per project) as well as the number of iterations.
Brands remain luxurious and we remain devoted to them because they are exclusive. Brands don't mass-produce. They'll make 100 garments instead of 1,000, which drives both the cost and the retail prices up. Printing small runs of items is more expensive than if you were to bulk manufacture.

What's a good profit margin for t-shirts? Profit margin is the percentage of profits earned compared to the total costs incurred in selling a product. And in case of custom t-shirts, a gross profit margin of 40-60% is considered good.
Apparel markups are somewhat above the standard retail markup of two times cost, which is known as keystone in the retail industry. Typical markup on designer fashions ranges from 55 to 62 percent. If the wholesale price of a silk dress is $50, the retail price might range from around $110 to $130.
Profit Margins in the Clothing Industry
Profit margins for retail clothes are generally within a range of 4 percent to 13 percent according to industry analysts. Markups often seem high as compared to cost of goods sold, another term for variable costs.
Vinyl can cost anywhere from $2 and $7 per square foot on average, but some options cost as low as $1 and as high as $14 per square foot.
If you are using vinyl sheets 12×24 inches, you require approximately 3-4 sheets of vinyl for twenty shirts. You may prefer using the rolls instead of sheets, in which case you will require 1-2 rolls of vinyl.
What does it cost to make your own shirt with a Cricut? Once you own a Cricut machine, the only cost for making shirts is the cost of your shirt plus iron-on material. Most of the 12” x 24” rolls of iron-on material are less than $10.
There is always a huge demand for T-shirts, making T-shirts a surprisingly hot side hustle. Learn how to carve out your niche in The Create Your Own T-Shirt Side Business Bundle.
While ZipRecruiter is seeing annual salaries as high as $79,500 and as low as $19,000, the majority of T Shirt Graphic Designer salaries currently range between $26,500 (25th percentile) to $42,500 (75th percentile) with top earners (90th percentile) making $64,000 annually across the United States.
Can I make a living selling T-shirts?
Selling T-shirts with your art, words or anything else printed on them is a great way to exercise your creativity and make money. A T-shirt business can make you a small profit on every unit you sell, which can add up to a great source of extra income.
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Average Interior Designer Rates.
Type of Cost | Amount |
---|---|
Average Cost | $100 per hour |
Highest Cost | $500 per hour |
Lowest Cost | $50 per hour |
Some designers charge as little as fifteen dollars an hour and others charge hundreds. The average is around USD forty-five dollars an hour for graphic designers. Consider this hourly rate as labor costs for a plumbing job. This is what the client is paying you for the time you spend working.
Rates charged by graphic designers on Upwork vary from $15 to $150 an hour, with an average rate of around $25 per hour. However, designers don't always bill hourly; it's also common for a designer or creative director to set a fixed price for the work, based on their understanding of your project requirements.
It also depends how you are using the quote — as per the copyright rules. So if the quote is being used for parody, critique or review, it might be allowed. But again, if you're using the material on products for commercial use it is best to avoid it or seek professional advice.
no that is actually relatively cheap! I would say that on average hoodies are usually about $50 and above ( also depending on what store you go to) and shirts can range from in the teens to $25. If its a nicer quality shirt with either a brand name or higher quality fabric then it may range from 30 and above.
You should own 5-6 casual tops, t-shirts, tees, as well as 2-4 workout tops or tanks. One t-shirt or top for each day of the week is a good rule of thumb to build a conscious wardrobe focused on simplicity and versatility. For most people, one t-shirt for each day of the week is plenty enough to meet everyday needs.
The typical standard turnaround time for shirts to be printed is 2 weeks (10 business days). That's right, you give us the green light to print your tees and we are off to the races! Sometimes, your apparel can get done sooner, but always plan out for 10 business days if you aren't paying for a rush order.
If the owner of a copyright strikes a claim on your T-shirt's design, you could get a takedown notice, and might have to pay the penalties. But that's not all. Your brand new T-shirt business could also face the following consequences: Loss of business and customers.
To set project-based fees, many creatives estimate the time that they will spend. They look at the scope of a project, estimate the number of hours, and then multiply the hours by their hourly rate. They add a few extra hours for buffer and send over a quote.
How do you price a design?
Most freelancers use the hourly model when estimating the cost of a design project. Beginners typically charge $15 to $50 an hour. Mid-level freelance designers will usually charge $50 to $150 an hour. And highly experienced freelancers usually charge $150+ an hour.
- Don't suggest an hourly rate. ...
- Dealing with the “we don't have a big budget,” pickle. ...
- Compare and contrast, but don't undersell yourself based on the market. ...
- Quote yourself confidently. ...
- Offer your services in tiers. ...
- Asking point-blank if there is a budget.
The cost of a logo design is anywhere from $0 to tens of thousands of dollars, but if you're a small business or startup looking for quality design, a good logo design should cost between $300-$1300. Logo design prices can vary, for instance, the price of a logo design depends on the quality and who created it.
One should expect a simple logo design to cost approximately $100. A simple design is typically a logo with a well-defined company name and mark. Intricate patterns and complex lettering may increase the price of the logo. The finished design should be clear, unique and professional.
When calculating your T-shirt printing cost, factoring in quantity is key. If you're purchasing a small number, you can expect to pay retail prices – think $20-$30 per shirt.
- Don't say: “We haven't finished writing the copy, but can you design a draft?” ...
- Don't say: “Can I get you to do something really quick?” ...
- Don't say: “Can you put it in a format that we can edit?” ...
- Don't say: “Can you do lots of different versions?
What is the going rate for Instagram post design? The going rate for Instagram post design can vary depending on your experience, portfolio, and location. In general, you can expect to charge anywhere from $50-$200 per post.
A good margin will vary considerably by industry and size of business, but as a general rule of thumb, a 10% net profit margin is considered average, a 20% margin is considered high (or “good”), and a 5% margin is low.
An NYU report on U.S. margins revealed the average net profit margin is 7.71% across different industries. But that doesn't mean your ideal profit margin will align with this number. As a rule of thumb, 5% is a low margin, 10% is a healthy margin, and 20% is a high margin.
For example, if the gross margin on your primary product is only two percent, you may need to find a way to raise prices or reduce the expense of sourcing or production, but if you're seeing margins around 60 percent, you're in a good position to drive substantial earnings.
What is a 40 markup on $100?
As an example, a markup of 40% for a product that costs $100 to produce would sell for $140. The Markup is different from gross margin because markup uses the cost of production as the basis for determining the selling price, while gross margin is simply the difference between total revenue and the cost of goods sold.
For example, if an item costs a business $5 to produce and it sells it for $8, the extra $3 — its gross profit — represents a 60% markup percentage.
If a chair costs you $60 to make and you want to achieve a markup of 75 percent on your furniture, multiply $60 by 0.75 or 75 percent to obtain a markup in dollars, equivalent to the gross profit, of $45. Add this to the cost of the chair to arrive at the selling price of $105.
The Hallman Company, a consultant for retailers, recommends markups of at least 56 percent for clothing and shoes. Accessory and jewelry items require as much as 50 to 67 percent increases.
The most common way of pricing fashion items is using the keystone markup method. This means that you multiply a price by 2 (sometimes up to 2.5) in order to get a price for the next level. For example, you start with a cost price of the garment which is the sum of all of your manufacturing costs.
What is a Good Profit Margin? You may be asking yourself, “what is a good profit margin?” A good margin will vary considerably by industry, but as a general rule of thumb, a 10% net profit margin is considered average, a 20% margin is considered high (or “good”), and a 5% margin is low.
no that is actually relatively cheap! I would say that on average hoodies are usually about $50 and above ( also depending on what store you go to) and shirts can range from in the teens to $25. If its a nicer quality shirt with either a brand name or higher quality fabric then it may range from 30 and above.
The best way to figure out what price your merch should be is to figure out what kind of return on investment (ROI) you want. In short, you're deciding how much profit you want to make from each item sold and adding that to the cost to purchase it.
T-Shirt Printing Cost Depends on Order Quantity
When calculating your T-shirt printing cost, factoring in quantity is key. If you're purchasing a small number, you can expect to pay retail prices – think $20-$30 per shirt. Now, this price point may be just fine if you're looking to make a T-shirt for yourself.
A good markup price varies from 30% to 40%. Remember that your profit margin may differ from another merchant selling identical clothing. After subtracting your expenditures, a 30-40% gross profit margin will offer you a net profit of 12-15 percent on average.
Can you make a lot of money selling T-shirts?
Selling T-shirts with your art, words or anything else printed on them is a great way to exercise your creativity and make money. A T-shirt business can make you a small profit on every unit you sell, which can add up to a great source of extra income.
- Keyword-oriented.
- Low-competition + high quality.
- Easy to find.
- Relevant.
- Relatable.
- Funny.
- Simple.
- Dark shirt base color.
Generally, it's not illegal to resell an item that you have legitimately purchased. Once you have purchased something at retail it is yours to do with as you choose. Manufacturers tend to have little or no control over a product past the first customer they sell to.
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