Are you considering starting a custom t-shirt printing business to earn extra money? That’s a fantastic idea. The global t-shirt market was valued at $45.42 billion in 2024 and is expected to keep growing as people continually stock their wardrobe with this ever-popular clothing item.
The overall numbers speak for themselves, but you’re here to find out how much money can custom t-shirts make.
When selling shirts online, several costs will affect your t-shirt revenue. For example, production and shipping costs, taxes, and online sales fees.
The good news? With Printify, you get to set the retail prices and adjust the profit margins as you want, with no upfront investments.
Let’s look closely at t-shirt prices and average industry profit margins to get a better idea of how much money you could be making.
What to consider when pricing t-shirts
How much you make depends on your costs, the profit margin you’ve set, sales volume, customer demand, the design quality, and your store’s reach.
When it comes to expenses, one of the factors that will play a key role in your profits is the price for every shirt, including printing the t-shirt.
To get a better understanding of t-shirt pricing, let’s inspect some of the best-selling custom t-shirts available at Printify.
T-shirt prices
Printify’s product Catalog holds a range of customizable t-shirts made of various materials. And, you can pick between multiple printing options.
When you select a t-shirt from the Catalog, you’ll see several Print Providers to choose from, each offering a slightly different price.
T-shirt size and color are also two important factors to consider. The larger the custom t-shirt, the more it will cost to print There may also be slight price differences between different colors.
Let’s have a closer look.
This t-shirt is a huge hit, and more than 20 different Print Providers offer it on our platform. Let’s use one produced by Monster Digital as an example.
Let’s say we want to sell a custom white t-shirt. Here are the prices:
| Size | Regular price | Price with Printify Premium |
|---|---|---|
| S-XL | $10.30 | $10.30 |
| 2XL | $12.57 | $10.98 |
| 3XL | $14.61 | $12.76 |
Printify is and will always be free to use, but there’s also an option to subscribe to Printify Premium for $24.99 per month and enjoy discounts of up to 20% on all products. Once your t-shirt sales start racking up, this will be a no-brainer.
Another best-seller offered by almost 30 Print Providers worldwide. All colors cost the same, but there’s a price difference between sizes:
| Size | Regular price | Price with Printify Premium |
|---|---|---|
| S-XL | $9.33 | $7.18 |
| 2XL | $11.04 | $8.51 |
| 3XL-5XL | $12.16 | $9.37 |
A classic tee that’s available in a wide variety of colors and sizes.
Look at the prices offered by OPT OnDemand, a Print Provider located in Europe:
| Size | Regular price | Price with Printify Premium |
|---|---|---|
| S-2XL | $9.22 | $7.10 |
| 3XL-5XL | $10.64 | $8.20 |
Use our order routing feature to take your t-shirt company global. You won’t have to worry about reduced profit margins due to higher shipping costs. All t-shirt orders are routed to the Print Providers nearest the delivery destination.
Speaking of profit margins, let’s look at the industry averages to see your options.
Average t-shirt profit margins
Your profit margins may vary based on several factors, like the niche and customers you’re targeting, as well as t-shirt printing and shipping costs.
High-quality designs let you get away with higher profit margins, while focusing on a very saturated niche might require lowering them.
There is no specific baseline for the perfect t-shirt business profit margin. Average custom t-shirt industry markups tend to fall between 30% to 50%.
For example, if your total printing and shipping costs add up to $20 and you decide on a 30% profit margin, the retail price will be $20 + ($20 x 30%) = $26. Making your profit $6.
Whatever margin you decide on, make sure it covers all of the costs and transaction fees.
Make it happen today!
How to price t-shirts for online retail
Get your t-shirt price right and bring in more sales. Get it wrong and turn potential buyers away.
Here are four common and effective pricing strategies to consider for your t-shirt company:
- Cost-plus pricing
This method provides the most straightforward price calculations, and it will cover all the costs. All you need to do is take your production and shipping expenses and add a percentage for the profit margin.
- Value-based pricing
Prices are based on how much the customers believe your products are worth. You need to identify specific buyer personas, analyze the prices for alternatives, and retrieve feedback from your buyers.
- Competitor-based pricing
This strategy focuses on your competition, using their prices as a benchmark.
Start by identifying competitors that sell similar products and analyze their pricing. Gather enough information to determine the average prices of the competition and price your t-shirts accordingly. Go for higher, matching, or lower prices, depending on your situation.
- Psychological pricing
Emotions play a big part in online retail, and this pricing strategy focuses them.
Psychological pricing tactics include pricing your t-shirts just below a full dollar (e.g., $24.99 instead of $25), creating a sense of urgency with limited-time offers, and offering deals such as “buy one, get one free.”
Decide which pricing strategy best fits your business, and try it out. Get more detailed information in our article on how to price a product for ultimate success.
So, how much money can you make selling t-shirts?
Let’s pick one of the t-shirts available at Printify and calculate the profit possibilities. We’ll add production and shipping costs, set a profit margin, and deduct any possible fees.
As an example, we’re using Printify Premium, and in this particular case we’ve sold a size L black Gildan 5000 t-shirt from Monster Digital on Etsy.
| Costs | $ |
|---|---|
| Production | $7.18 |
| Shipping (domestic) | $4.35 |
| Sales tax + shipping tax | $1.13 |
| Total costs | $12.66 |
Our total costs amount to $12.66. If we use the cost-plus pricing strategy and apply a profit margin of 50%, our retail price is $18.99.
All we need to do now is calculate and deduct Etsy fees for using the marketplace.
- Etsy transaction fee: $18.99 x 6.5% = $1.23
- Etsy payment processing fee: $18.99 x 3% + $0.25 = $0.82
Our profit for the sale of one t-shirt: $18.99 – $12.66 – $1.23 – $0.82 = $4.28.
Here, we’ve used the simplest pricing method without taking into account product value or competitor prices. But even with this example, selling 100 shirts can bring you $428.
When starting a t-shirt business, you’ll need to put in some effort to succeed. Analyze your niche market and target audience, assess your costs, decide on a pricing strategy, evaluate the results and be ready to adjust.
Start a t-shirt business with Printify
Starting a custom t-shirt printing business with Printify is a breeze.
It doesn’t matter if you have a small budget – there are no upfront costs. You are charged for the products only when someone makes a purchase in your online store.
Our user-friendly Product Creator (formerly known as Mockup Generator) with free design tools and graphics makes it easy to create designs. Though, if you feel your design skills are not up to par – use our built-in Shutterstock integration, which offers a variety of quality premade designs.
When your shirts are ready – it’s time to learn how to make money on Etsy or the best tips for selling on eBay. You can also connect to sales channels like Shopify, WooCommerce, Walmart, and more.
The best part? You decide how much you make from every t-shirt.
Create and sell custom tees with Printify and start making money today!
Ready to benefit from that profit margin?
T-shirt printing doesn’t require any upfront investments, and many people have found success in the print-on-demand industry.
The amount you’ll earn depends on several factors:
- Production costs
- Shipping costs
- Taxes
- Marketplace fees
- Profit margin
Printify offers a wide range of customizable shirts at different prices. Select the option that suits you best and assess all of its costs. Evaluate production and shipping costs, any possible taxes, as well as fees for using online marketplaces and sales platforms.
Start your own business with Printify today.
