DTF vs Screen Printing: Which Method Is Right for Your Order?
Trying to decide between DTF and screen printing for your custom apparel? We run both methods in-house at our Oakland Park shop and make this call for customers every day. Here's how we actually decide — with real pricing, honest trade-offs, and none of the sales pitch.
How We Decide: The Two Questions That Matter
When someone walks in or calls with a project, we ask two things: how many pieces do you need, and how many colors are in your design?
That's it. Those two answers tell us which method to recommend about 90% of the time.
If you need fewer than 24 pieces, we're going to suggest DTF (direct-to-film) printing. No screens to set up, no color limitations, and we can have it done fast.
If you need more than 72 pieces with three colors or fewer, screen printing is the move. The per-unit cost drops significantly at that volume, and the setup overhead gets spread across enough shirts to make it worthwhile.
The gray area is 24 to 72 pieces. That's where color count becomes the deciding factor. A one-color design at 36 pieces? Screen printing wins. A full-color photo print at 36 pieces? DTF every time.
The Real Cost Difference (With Actual Numbers)
Most "DTF vs screen printing" articles give you vague advice about cost. Here's what it actually looks like in our shop.
Screen printing starts getting competitive with DTF at around 24 pieces — that's our screen print minimum. But you really start seeing the savings when you keep the color count under three.
At 72 pieces of a one-color design, you're looking at roughly $4 per print with screen printing compared to $6 per print with DTF. That's a 33% savings that adds up fast on a big order.
But flip it around: if you need 12 t-shirts with a full-color design, screen printing doesn't even make sense. You'd be paying for screen setup on each color, and the per-unit cost would be way higher than DTF. For small, colorful runs, DTF is the clear winner on price.
Here's the simple breakdown:
- Under 24 pieces, any color count: DTF
- 24-72 pieces, 3+ colors: DTF
- 24-72 pieces, 1-2 colors: Either works, screen printing has a slight edge
- 72+ pieces, 1-3 colors: Screen printing wins on cost
- 72+ pieces, 4+ colors: Talk to us — depends on the job
The Durability Question (Honest Answer)
This is where we're going to be straight with you: screen printing is still slightly superior on durability. We've been doing this for 20+ years and we'll stand by that.
But here's what most people don't know — DTF has come a long way. The technology today is not what it was even a few years ago. We have customers who've been wearing DTF-printed company shirts for over a year with no complaints. No cracking, no fading, no peeling.
Industry testing backs this up. Properly cured DTF prints hold up through 50+ wash cycles without visible degradation. That's longer than most people keep a work shirt in rotation.
So is screen printing technically more durable? Yes, slightly. Does it matter for most orders? Honestly, no. Unless you're printing something that needs to survive industrial washing or years of daily wear, DTF durability is more than good enough.
The Biggest Misconception About DTF
People come in assuming DTF prints just aren't going to last. It's the number one thing we hear.
And five years ago, they might have been right. Early DTF technology had issues. But today's DTF prints have held up just as long as screen prints in many cases — sometimes even longer.
The DTF printing market has grown to over $700 million for a reason. The technology works. Major brands and small businesses alike are using it for production runs. If it fell apart after a few washes, that wouldn't be happening.
We wouldn't offer it as a service if we didn't trust it. Every DTF order that comes back looking bad reflects on us, and that's not something we're willing to risk after building our reputation for two decades.
Which Products Work Best for Each Method
Not every garment is the same, and the print method should match the product.
DTF is the only way to go for foam trucker hats. You're not going to want to screen print on those — the surface doesn't work well with traditional screens. And since hat designs tend to be full-color with detailed logos, DTF's unlimited color capability is a huge advantage. We print a lot of trucker hats, and DTF handles them perfectly.
Screen printing dominates on high-volume basics. If you need 200 t-shirts with a two-color logo, screen printing is going to beat DTF any day of the week. The speed alone makes it the right call — we can push 300 to 400 shirts through screen printing in an hour.
[Hoodies](/products/hoodies) go either way. For a small batch of hoodies with a complex design, DTF. For a large order with a simple logo, screen printing. The fabric handles both methods well.
Performance wear and polyester blends are where DTF really shines. DTF adheres beautifully to synthetic fabrics, while screen printing on polyester can sometimes require special inks and extra attention.
When DTF Saves the Day: A Real Example
We had someone come in recently who needed shirts for their yacht heading out. Twelve shirts, multi-color design, front and back printing. And they needed them fast.
Screen printing that job would have been impractical. Setting up screens for multiple colors on 12 shirts — the math doesn't work. The setup cost alone would have been more than the shirts.
We printed them DTF. Full-color front and back. They had their shirts in under 48 hours and loved them.
That's the sweet spot for DTF: small quantities, complex designs, fast turnaround. Before DTF existed, a job like that would have either been prohibitively expensive or the customer would have had to compromise on their design.
Where DTF Is Headed (And Why Screen Printing Isn't Going Anywhere)
We get asked this a lot: is DTF going to replace screen printing?
Honest take? No. Not anytime soon, and maybe not ever.
They serve different purposes. DTF is great for small runs, one-off jobs, detailed multi-color work. Screen printing is ideal for large quantities — printing 300 to 400 shirts an hour with consistent quality that DTF can't match at that speed.
The way we see it: DTF fills the gaps that screen printing couldn't. Before DTF, if someone needed 10 shirts with a photo-quality design, the options were bad and expensive. Now there's a real solution for those jobs.
Both methods have their place. That's why we run both in our shop. The right answer depends on your project, not on which technology is newer.
Not Sure Which Method You Need?
Tell us about your project — how many pieces, how many colors, what products — and we'll recommend the best method with pricing for both. No guesswork, no upselling. Just the method that makes the most sense for what you're doing.
If you're local to Fort Lauderdale, Pembroke Pines, Hollywood, or anywhere in South Florida, you can stop by our Oakland Park shop to see samples of both print methods in person. Nothing beats seeing and feeling the difference yourself.
