01
One-time setup
Artwork cleanup, digitizing, sample sew-out, machine setup and approval work happen before the production run.
- Artwork review
- Digitizing or edit
- Test sew-out
- Machine setup
Business essentials · Beginner
Price Your First Embroidery Job
The method for pricing an embroidery job — stitch count, thread changes, garment cost and your time — so your first quote is a real number, not a guess. Teaches the method only; it never states DigitEMB's own prices.
Educational method only. The examples are not DigitEMB prices, market recommendations, or earnings forecasts.
7 inputsScope, setup, materials, labor, overhead, risk and delivery
4 decisionsDefine, measure, calculate and review
1 feedback loopCompare your estimate with the finished job
The pricing logic
Build one documented cost basis
A useful quote starts with a precise job specification, then combines preparation, per-item work, overhead and a deliberate pricing method. Keep the source beside every number so assumptions can be checked later.
1DefineWhat exactly is being delivered?
+2MeasureWhat materials and time are required?
+3RecoverWhat operating costs must the work support?
=4QuoteA clear price with stated assumptions
Cost map
Capture the whole job before choosing a price
Separate work that happens once from work that repeats for every item. This prevents a small order from hiding setup time and a large order from multiplying the wrong cost.
02
Per-item materials
Count every physical input that changes with quantity, not only the blank garment.
- Blank product
- Thread
- Backing or topping
- Packing materials
03
Production time
Machine runtime is only one part. Include hooping, loading, color changes, trimming, inspection and packing.
- Hooping
- Machine runtime
- Finishing
- Quality check
04
Risk and overhead
Decide how the job contributes to operating costs and how you will handle reasonable spoilage or rework.
- Workspace
- Equipment
- Admin time
- Rework allowance
Machine time
Rated speed is not finished-job time
Start with a stitch-time estimate, then add the real handling around it. Use a sample to replace assumptions with measured time.
Illustrative timing exercise
7,500 stitches ÷ 650 effective stitches per minute ≈ 11.5 minutes of sewing. Add 7 minutes for hooping, loading and color changes, plus 3 minutes for trimming, inspection and packing: about 21.5 minutes total handling and production time.
These figures teach the method. Your design, machine, operator and garment will differ.Artwork & setupOne time
Hoop & loadPer item
Machine runtimePer item
Trim & inspectPer item
Pack & recordPer item
Time the complete cycle from the first handling step to the finished, checked item.
Markup and margin
Same profit, different percentage
Both calculations begin with selling price minus cost, but they divide by different numbers. Always name the method you are using.
Markup
(Price − Cost) ÷ CostMeasures profit against the cost basis.Margin
(Price − Cost) ÷ PriceMeasures profit as a share of selling price.Arithmetic check
Cost 10 · Price 15 · Difference 5Markup is 50%. Margin is 33.3%. The units are illustrative—not a recommended price.Quote anatomy
Make the customer’s decision easy to understand
A quote is not only a number. It records what is included, what still needs approval, and what would change the estimate.
- 01
Scope
Quantity, finished size, placement, garment, artwork and thread-color requirements.
- 02
Approval
Who approves the proof and sample, how many revisions are included, and when production begins.
- 03
Charges
Setup and production shown clearly, with shipping and applicable tax handled separately.
- 04
Timing
Quote validity, customer response deadline, production assumptions and delivery method.
- 05
Changes
What happens when quantity, garment, size, placement, artwork or due date changes.
Practical worksheet
A simple structure for your first estimate
Write the source beside each input: supplier quote, timed sample, invoice, payroll record or documented allocation. Mark every untested figure as an assumption.
| Line | What to record | Calculation or evidence |
|---|---|---|
| A | One-time preparation | Artwork + digitizing + testing + setup |
| B | Per-item materials | Blank + thread + backing + packaging |
| C | Per-item labor | Handling minutes ÷ 60 × labor rate |
| D | Production run | Quantity × (B + C) |
| E | Cost basis | A + D + chosen overhead + risk allowance |
| F | Selling price | Apply your chosen method to the same cost basis |
Before sending
- Confirm quantity, size, placement and garment.
- Verify supplier costs and delivery assumptions.
- Check that setup is recovered only once.
- State what changes require a revised quote.
After delivery
- Record actual material use and total time.
- Note spoilage, rework and extra communication.
- Compare estimate and actual cost by line.
- Save one improvement for the next quote.
Common misses
Six ways first quotes lose accuracy
1
Quoting before confirming size, placement, garment and artwork quality.
2
Using rated machine speed as if every stitch runs at that speed.
3
Forgetting hooping, thread changes, trims, inspection and packing.
4
Counting overhead twice, or leaving it out of the cost basis entirely.
5
Treating markup and margin as the same percentage.
6
Skipping the after-job review, so the same estimating error repeats.
Guided practice
Turn the method into a completed estimate
Open the structured module for checklists, knowledge checks and browser-saved progress.
Module 1
Price your first embroidery job
0 of 4 steps doneYour ticks are saved in this browser only.
Questions to check
Before you call the quote finished
Should I price from stitch count alone?
No. Stitch count can help estimate machine runtime, but it does not capture setup, hooping, color changes, stops, trimming, inspection, packing, materials, overhead or rework.
Where does digitizing belong?
Treat new digitizing or substantial artwork preparation as one-time job preparation. If a reorder uses the same approved file at the same size and material, review what setup work is actually repeated.
How should I handle spoilage?
Use your own measured history when available. Until then, identify any allowance as an assumption and review it after production instead of hiding it inside another line.
What changes should trigger a new quote?
Changes to quantity, garment, size, placement, artwork, thread requirements, packaging, shipping or due date can affect cost and timing. State this before approval.
How do I know whether the estimate worked?
Compare the planned and actual material use, labor, machine time, rework and other included costs. Keep that review with the approved specification for the next order.