DTG Pricing Calculator
Calculate true unit costs for direct-to-garment printing including white ink underbase passes on dark shirts, pretreatment, press curing, and market profit margins.
Display only — amounts are not converted between currencies.
Print area, garment and consumables
Recommended price
$25.70
- Total production cost
- $11.18
- Recommended selling price
- $25.70
- Profit
- $12.85
- Profit margin
- 50.0%
- Ink & pretreatment cost
- $3.51
- Print area (sq in)
- 120.00
Cost breakdown
| Pretreatment | $0.75 |
|---|---|
| Ink cost | $2.76 |
| Garment blank | $5.00 |
| Labor (print + cure) | $1.35 |
| Waste allowance | $0.34 |
| Electricity | $0.08 |
| Packaging | $0.90 |
| Fees | $1.67 |
Printed · Craft Pricing Tools · CraftPricingTools.com
Recommended price
$25.70
When to use this calculator
This calculator estimates Direct-to-Garment (DTG) printing costs based on print dimensions, pretreatment, CMYK and white ink, blank garment, and heat curing.
It separates white underbase costs (for dark garments) from standard CMYK ink, ensuring accurate quotes for high-coverage graphics.
How this calculator works
How DTG cost is calculated
- Print area (sq in) = print width × print height
- Ink cost = area × (CMYK rate + white ink underbase rate)
- Labor cost = (print minutes + cure minutes) / 60 × labor rate
- Total cost = garment blank + pretreatment + ink + labor + electricity + packaging + waste
- Recommended price = total cost / (1 − target margin − platform fee %)
Example
Example: 10×12 in graphic on a black t-shirt
120 sq in print area, $0.75 pretreatment, $0.008/sq in CMYK + $0.015/sq in white underbase ($2.76 total ink), $5.00 blank tee, 4.5 min print/cure labor ($1.35), $0.90 packaging, 4% waste, 50% margin.
- Total ink and pretreatment is $3.51.
- Total production cost is $11.32.
- Recommended selling price is $26.02 after 6.5% marketplace fees.
How much should I charge?
Charge $22–$28 for custom single-print dark shirts with full-color graphics.
Charge $18–$24 for light-colored shirts without white ink underbase.
Offer 15–25% discounts for orders over 12 pieces with identical artwork.
Pricing tips
- Pretreatment application consistency is vital for dark shirts to prevent ink soaking and fading.
- Clean printheads regularly to prevent nozzle clogs and expensive ink purging.
- Use high-resolution 300 DPI transparent PNG artwork to ensure sharp detail.
Common mistakes
- Quoting dark shirts at the same price as light shirts (white ink costs more than double).
- Ignoring heat press curing time (typically 90 seconds at 320°F).
FAQ
How much does DTG printing cost per shirt?
Production cost is typically $5.50–$7.50 for white/light shirts and $8.50–$12.50 for dark shirts with white ink underbase.
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