T-Shirt Pricing Calculator
Understanding Your T-Shirt Selling Price
Setting the right price for your custom T-shirts is crucial for profitability and market competitiveness. This T-Shirt Pricing Calculator helps you break down all the costs involved and apply your desired profit margin to arrive at an optimal selling price.
Key Components of T-Shirt Pricing:
- Cost of Blank T-Shirt: This is the fundamental cost of the plain garment before any customization. Prices vary significantly based on material, brand, quality, and bulk purchasing.
- Printing Cost per Unit: This covers the expense of applying your design to the T-shirt. It can include screen printing, direct-to-garment (DTG), heat transfer, embroidery, etc. Factors like number of colors, print size, and order quantity influence this cost.
- Total Design Cost (One-Time): If you paid a designer or spent time creating a unique design, this is a one-time cost. To accurately reflect it in your per-unit price, it needs to be amortized over the number of units you expect to sell or produce.
- Units to Amortize Design Over: This input determines how much of your one-time design cost is allocated to each T-shirt. A higher number of units will result in a lower per-unit design cost.
- Packaging Cost per Unit: Don't forget the cost of poly bags, tissue paper, hang tags, labels, and any other materials used to package each individual T-shirt.
- Shipping Cost per Unit (to customer): If you're shipping directly to customers, factor in the average shipping cost per item. This might include postage, shipping labels, and any handling fees.
- Marketing Cost per Unit: Allocate a portion of your marketing and advertising budget to each T-shirt. This could include social media ads, influencer collaborations, or promotional materials.
- Overhead Percentage: This accounts for indirect business expenses that aren't tied directly to a single product but are necessary for your business to operate. Examples include rent, utilities, website hosting, software subscriptions, and administrative salaries. It's often calculated as a percentage of your total direct costs.
- Desired Profit Margin (%): This is the percentage of profit you want to make on each T-shirt after all costs are covered. It's essential for business growth, reinvestment, and paying yourself.
How to Use the Calculator:
Simply input your estimated costs for each category and your desired profit margin. The calculator will then provide you with a recommended selling price per T-shirt. Remember to regularly review and adjust your pricing as your costs or market conditions change.
Example Calculation:
Let's say you have the following costs:
- Blank T-Shirt Cost: $6.50
- Printing Cost per Unit: $4.00
- Total Design Cost: $150.00 (amortized over 100 units)
- Packaging Cost per Unit: $0.75
- Shipping Cost per Unit: $4.50
- Marketing Cost per Unit: $1.20
- Overhead Percentage: 15%
- Desired Profit Margin: 35%
First, calculate the amortized design cost: $150.00 / 100 units = $1.50 per unit.
Next, sum up all direct costs: $6.50 + $4.00 + $1.50 + $0.75 + $4.50 + $1.20 = $18.45.
Apply the overhead: $18.45 * (1 + 0.15) = $18.45 * 1.15 = $21.2175 (Total Cost including overhead).
Finally, add the profit margin: $21.2175 * (1 + 0.35) = $21.2175 * 1.35 = $28.643625.
Your recommended selling price would be approximately $28.64.