What Affects the Cost of Custom Screen Printing?
What Actually Determines Screen Printing Cost
Searching for screen printing prices usually gets you one of two things: a pricing calculator that's wrong the moment your order is real, or a "starting at" number that nobody actually pays. We do it differently — we look at your actual project and give you a straight answer from a real person. But it helps to know what drives the number, so here's the honest breakdown.
1. Quantity
Screen printing has setup work baked in — screens are made per design, per color. That setup cost spreads across every shirt in the run, which is why per-shirt pricing drops meaningfully as quantity goes up. A 100-shirt order and a 12-shirt order are very different jobs.
2. Number of ink colors
Each color in your design is a separate screen and a separate pass on press. A one-color logo is the most economical; a five-color design costs more to set up and run. Sometimes we'll suggest a one-color version of your art that looks sharp and saves real money — that's the kind of thing a calculator will never tell you.
3. The garment itself
A basic cotton tee, a tri-blend fashion tee, and a performance hoodie are very different starting points. We'll recommend garments that fit your budget and your use — game-day gear takes different fabric than a fundraiser tee.
4. Print locations
Front only? Front and back? Sleeve hits? Each additional location is another pass through the press. Most team and event orders do great with one or two locations.
5. Artwork readiness
Print-ready artwork keeps things moving. If your art needs cleanup, vectorizing or a redesign, we can handle it — we'll just tell you up front what that involves. You can also upload your artwork and we'll take a look.
When Screen Printing Isn't the Right Answer
Honesty matters more to us than the sale: for very small runs or full-color photographic designs, DTF printing often makes more sense, and for polos and hats, embroidery usually looks better and lasts longer. When you request a quote, we'll recommend the method that actually fits your project — even if it's not the one you asked about.
Get a Real Number for Your Project
Share your quantity, design and deadline, and we'll follow up with real pricing and next steps — no guesswork, no pressure, no obligation.
Ordering for a whole team or group? A free online team store lets everyone order and pay individually — no cash collection, no size-chasing.