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Minimum Order and best pricing for T-shirt Printing

Minimum Order and best pricing for T-shirt Printing

'How many t-shirts do I have to order?' and 'How do I get the best price per shirt?' are two of the most common questions we get asked when it comes to t-shirt printing. This depends on the printing method you choose and once you understand how that works you can order exactly what you need knowing you're getting the best price for your order.

The graph below shows the minimum order for custom t-shirt printing and how the printing price per shirt changes with quantity and method. On the graph is the cost per print for DTG / DTF, Embroidery and Screen Printing at each price break point of an order size of 1, 20, 50, 100, 200, 500 and 1000.

The downward curves on the graph indicate only the difference between each price break point i.e the cost per print for a 1 colour screen print is £4.86 for an order size of between 20 and 49 units and then drops to £2.58 for an order size between 50 to 99 units.

If you would rather talk it through with a person, you can get in touch for a quote at any time.

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Cost per print by order quantity (all methods compared)

DTG/DTF Embroidery Screen printing — number of colours 1 colour 2 colour 3 colour 4 colour 5 colour 6 colour
Screen print starting prices at 20 garments: 1 colour £4.86, 2 colour £7.40, 3 colour £9.94, 4 colour £12.48, 5 colour £15.02, 6 colour £17.56. By 1000 garments these fall to between £0.87 and £2.22. DTG/DTF is £4.50 to £4.00 and embroidery £4.50 down to £3.50.

(all prices shown on the graph above are subject to vat at 20%)

Is there a minimum order for custom t-shirt printing?

The good news is there is no MOQ (minimum order quantity) for DTG / DTF or embroidery and a very low MOQ of 20 for screen printing.

  • DTG / DTF:  You can order a single printed t-shirt with no minimum at all with an MOQ of 1
  • Embroidery: A single embroidered garment is no problem with an MOQ of 1 although each new design for embroidery needs to be digitised first which has a one off fee of £12.50 + vat
  • Screen printing: This involves a setup process for each design so has an MOQ of 20

Usually if you only need a few t-shirts then DTG, DTF or embroidery will be your best route. If you are ordering anything over 20 units screen printing becomes an option and can really comes into its own with larger quantities. 

Where the crossover is between DTG / DTF and Screen Printing prices.

As you can see from the graph the price for Screen Printing varies over a wide range depending on how many garments are ordered where as DTG or DTF price per print remains almost constant. So what are the cross over points 

For a 1 or 2 colour screen print DTG / DTF is cheaper up to 50 units.

For a 3 or 4 colour screen print DTG / DTF is cheaper up to 100 units

For a 5 or 6 colour screen print DTG / DTF is cheaper up to 200 units

What is the difference between DTG / DTF and screen printing

DTG and DTF are both digital processes whereas ink is pushed through a mesh screen onto the fabric one colour at a time for screen printing requiring a separate screen prepared for every colour in the design. Once a screen print is set up it becomes more cost-effective as quantities rise and it is the only way to acheieve specialist finishes like discharge, metallic and neon inks, with colours mixed precisely to Pantone references.

With digital methods your artwork goes from file to garment with no setup charges and no minimum order and because the design prints in full colour in a single pass, photographs, gradients and complex multi-colour artwork cost no more to produce than a simple logo.

Where DTG and DTF differ from each other is in how the ink meets the fabric. DTG prints water-based inks directly onto the garment fibres giving a soft hand feel closer to a water-based screen print. It does need natural fibres to bond properly so it is best on garments that are at least 80% cotton.

DTF prints the design onto a film first, which is then heat-pressed onto the garment with an adhesive  so the print sits on top of the fabric rather than in it. That gives DTF much wider fabric compatibility  including polyester and synthetic blends but the trade-off is a thicker less breathable finish closer to an old-fashioned plastisol print and the plastic-based film it is released from makes it the least sustainable of the three.

Ultimately screen printing will give you a more durable print with pantone matched colours including neon and metallic and is much cheaper at volume. DTG / DTF are great at lower order volumes or for very intricate designs as there is no limit to the number of colours in the design and in fact the more complex the design the better the print. 

For further information read more about DTG vs Screen print, DTF vs Screen Print and Embroidery vs Screen Print.

Embroidery and the digitising fee

Embroidery is a brilliant, premium finish, especially for logos on polo shirts, sweatshirts and outerwear. The print price per garment price stays flat like DTG and DTF but there is one extra to factor in.

Every new embroidery design needs to be digitised first, which is the process of turning your artwork into a stitch file the machines can read. This is a one off fee of £15 including VAT per design. You only pay it once for each design so there is nothing more to pay on repeat orders of the same design even if the colour of the design changes. If you are deciding between stitch and print, our guide on screen printing vs embroidery is a helpful read.

Ready to work out your best price?

The right choice comes down to how many you need. For a handful of t-shirts, DTG, DTF or embroidery give you a low minimum and a flat price per shirt. For larger runs, screen printing rewards you with a lower price the more you order.

Tell us your design and how many you need and we will help you find the best price per shirt for your order. Get in touch for a quote or create a free account to get started.

Frequently Asked Questions

There is no minimum order quantity for DTG, DTF or embroidery – you can order a single garment with an MOQ of 1. Screen printing involves a setup process for each design so has a low MOQ of 20. If you only need a few t-shirts, DTG, DTF or embroidery will usually be your best route.
Screen printing has a minimum order of 20 garments because a separate screen needs to be prepared for every colour in the design. Once set up, screen printing becomes more cost-effective as quantities rise and really comes into its own on larger runs.
At 20 garments, screen printing starts at £4.86 per print for a 1 colour design, rising to £17.56 for a 6 colour design. By 1000 garments these prices fall to between £0.87 and £2.22 per print. All prices are subject to VAT at 20%.
DTG and DTF stay at an almost constant price per print, while screen printing gets cheaper with quantity. For a 1 or 2 colour design, DTG / DTF is cheaper up to 50 units. For a 3 or 4 colour design, DTG / DTF is cheaper up to 100 units. For a 5 or 6 colour design, DTG / DTF is cheaper up to 200 units. Above those quantities screen printing wins on price.
Screen printing pushes ink through a mesh screen one colour at a time, becomes more cost-effective at volume and is the only way to achieve specialist finishes like discharge, metallic and neon inks with Pantone-matched colours. DTG prints water-based inks directly onto the garment fibres for a soft hand feel and works best on garments that are at least 80% cotton. DTF prints onto a film that is heat-pressed onto the garment, giving wider fabric compatibility including polyester, but with a thicker, less breathable finish. Digital methods have no setup charges and no minimum order, so full-colour and photographic artwork costs no more than a simple logo.
Every new embroidery design needs to be digitised first – the process of turning your artwork into a stitch file the machines can read. This is a one-off fee of £12.50 + VAT (£15 including VAT) per design. You only pay it once, so there is nothing more to pay on repeat orders of the same design, even if the colour of the design changes.
For a handful of t-shirts, DTG, DTF or embroidery give you a low minimum and a flat price per shirt – DTG / DTF runs from £4.50 down to £4.00 per print and embroidery from £4.50 down to £3.50. For larger runs, screen printing rewards you with a lower price the more you order.
Barely. Unlike screen printing, which drops sharply in price as quantity increases, DTG and DTF stay almost constant at £4.50 to £4.00 per print regardless of order size. This is because there are no screens or setup involved – your artwork goes from file to garment in a single full-colour pass.
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