How Much Does Screen Printing Cost? A Print Shop Owner's Real Pricing Guide

How Much Does Screen Printing Actually Cost?

Short answer: somewhere between $5 and $15 per shirt, depending on your order. We've been running a screen printing shop in Fort Lauderdale for over 20 years, and the real answer is always "it depends." But unlike most shops that leave it at that, here's exactly what it depends on — with actual dollar amounts from our shop.

What Determines Screen Printing Cost Per Shirt

When someone calls and says "I need 100 t-shirts with my logo," the first thing we ask is: can we see the logo?

Not because we're judging your design. We need to count the colors. Color count is the single biggest factor in screen printing pricing besides quantity.

Here's how the conversation goes:

• How many colors are in your design? Each color requires its own screen. More screens means more setup, more ink passes, more time. A one-color logo is the cheapest print you can do. A six-color design is a different job entirely.

• What color shirt do you want? This surprises people. Printing on dark garments — black, navy, dark green — requires an underbase. That's a layer of white ink underneath your design so the colors actually pop. It's essentially an extra color in terms of production, which bumps the price.

• How many pieces? This is where screen printing shines. Setup cost gets spread across every shirt, so 200 pieces costs way less per shirt than 24.

• How many print locations? Front only? Front and back? Left chest and full back? Each location needs its own screens and press run.

Quantity. Color count. Garment color. Print locations. Those four things determine 90% of your price.

Real Screen Printing Prices: What You'll Actually Pay

Most pricing guides give ranges so wide they're useless. Here's what a 2-color design, one print location, actually costs at our shop — garment included:

• 24 [t-shirts](/products/shirts/t-shirts): Around $12 per shirt
• 72 t-shirts: Around $8 per shirt
• 200 t-shirts: Around $5 per shirt

Look at that drop from 24 to 200 pieces. That's not us padding margins on small orders. Every screen print job requires setup regardless of quantity — screens get burned, ink gets mixed, the press gets dialed in. On 200 shirts, that setup cost adds maybe $0.50 per piece. On 24 shirts, that same setup adds $4 or more.

This is why quantity is king in screen printing. The more you order, the cheaper each piece gets. If you know you'll need shirts again in a few months, order them all at once and the savings are real.

Not sure what your specific order would cost? Tell us your quantity, colors, and garment type and we'll send exact pricing within 24 hours. No setup fees.

The Biggest Screen Printing Pricing Mistake

The number one thing we see customers get wrong: trying to print too many colors on a small order.

Someone comes in wanting 30 t-shirts with a full-color logo — five, six colors. With screen printing, that means five or six screens, multiple setup steps, and a per-shirt cost that could blow past $15.

That same job done with DTF (direct-to-film) printing? Significantly cheaper. DTF doesn't care about color count. Whether your design has 2 colors or 20, the production cost stays the same.

Our recommendation: if you want 4 or more colors and you're ordering less than 72 pieces, DTF will save you a lot of money. We tell people that upfront because we'd rather give the right recommendation than charge more for the wrong method.

We wrote a full DTF vs screen printing comparison with detailed breakdowns. But the short version: screen printing wins on large, simple orders. DTF wins on small, colorful ones.

When We Steer Customers Away from Screen Printing

Might seem odd coming from a screen printing shop, but we regularly recommend DTF when it makes more sense for the job.

Customers come in all the time with low budgets wanting high color counts and small quantities. That's a recipe for sticker shock with screen printing. Instead of forcing it and watching the quote make their eyes go wide, we suggest digital.

There's no magic price threshold. It's really about quantity and color count together:

• 4+ colors, under 72 pieces: DTF saves you money
• 1-2 colors, over 72 pieces: Screen printing is the way to go
• Everything between: That's why we ask to see the design first

If you're comparing screen printing to embroidery instead, that's a different decision — more about the look and feel you want. We covered that in our screen printing vs embroidery breakdown.

What About Setup Fees?

This is where we're different from a lot of shops. We don't charge setup fees.

Industry standard is $20-30 per screen. Four-color design? That's $80-120 tacked onto your order before a single shirt gets printed. At some shops, setup fees on small orders can add $3-5 per shirt to the real cost.

When you work with us, the price we quote is the price you pay. No screen charges, no art fees, no surprise line items.

The only additional cost we ever charge is a rush fee. That only kicks in if you need your order faster than standard turnaround — and how much depends on how fast you need it. "Can you have this by Friday?" is different from "I need this tomorrow."

No hidden fees. No setup charges. What we quote is what you pay.

Why Local Screen Printing Beats Online Every Time

Online screen printing companies have gotten popular. Low prices, ships to your door. So why go local?

Honestly? Our pricing beats online retailers pretty much every time. Sounds like a bold claim, but it makes sense — online shops have shipping, warehousing, and customer acquisition costs baked into every order. We don't.

But price aside, here's what you're actually getting:

• A guaranteed delivery date. When we say Thursday, it's Thursday. We've heard too many stories about online orders showing up late — or not showing up at all — right before events and deadlines.

• You can see it before you commit. Stop by, feel the fabric, check a test print. Try that with an online shop.

• Quality you can verify. We've heard horror stories from customers who received garbage from online retailers. Faded prints. Wrong colors. Shirts that fit like trash bags. When you work with a local shop, you can check the work before 200 pieces get run.

• Someone to talk to. Something's off? You're not submitting a support ticket and waiting three days. You're calling us directly.

The cheapest price doesn't matter if the shirts show up wrong. And when your logo's on it, "close enough" isn't good enough.

How to Get the Best Price on Your Screen Printing Order

Based on 20 years of orders, here's how to keep costs down:

• Keep colors simple. A 2-color design on 100 pieces is significantly cheaper than a 6-color design at the same quantity. If your logo works in fewer colors, you'll save real money.

• Order more at once. The per-unit savings from 100 to 200 pieces are substantial. If you'll need shirts again soon, consolidate the order.

• Pick the right method. Don't force screen printing on a job better suited for DTF. Colorful design, small quantity? DTF is cheaper. Simple design, big order? Screen printing wins. Need something more upscale? Embroidery costs more per piece but the perceived value is higher.

• Plan ahead. Rush fees are the one extra cost we charge. Give us standard turnaround and you pay exactly what we quoted.

• Just ask. Tell us your quantity, color count, and timeline. We'll tell you the most cost-effective way to get what you need. We'd rather earn repeat business with an $8/shirt recommendation than lose trust overselling a $15/shirt job.

Ready to get exact pricing? Tell us what you need — quantity, colors, garment type — and we'll have a quote back to you within 24 hours. No setup fees, no surprises.