How to Build an Embroidery Price Chart (Stitch Count by Quantity)

By the creator who built EMBquote

Short answer: an embroidery price chart is a grid. Rows are stitch-count bands, columns are quantity breaks, and each cell is your rate per 1,000 stitches. Price per piece is the stitch count divided by 1,000, times the rate in the matching cell, never below your per-piece minimum. Add each extra location as its own line, then add a one-time setup or digitizing fee.

Why one flat rate is not enough

A single price per 1,000 stitches underquotes high-stitch jobs and overquotes small ones. A small left-chest logo on 12 shirts and a full jacket back on 200 jackets need different rates to earn the right margin. A chart that tiers two things at once, stitch count and order quantity, fixes that.

Step 1: Find your floor rate per 1,000 stitches

Start from your real cost: machine run-time at your hourly shop rate, plus thread, backing and labor. Add your target margin on top. The EMBquote FAQ gives a common range of $0.50 to $1.25 per 1,000 stitches before minimums. Treat that as a starting point, not a rule. Your number should come from your own costs.

Step 2: Pick your stitch-count bands

Group designs by size so similar jobs share a rate. Three bands are enough for most shops to start: up to 5,000 stitches, 5,001 to 10,000, and over 10,000. Higher bands get a lower rate per 1,000, because the machine runs longer on each hooping.

Step 3: Pick your quantity breaks

Set the order sizes where your rate drops. Common break points are by the dozen and by the case, for example 12, 24, 48 and 144 pieces. Bigger runs spread setup and hooping time across more pieces, so the rate per 1,000 can come down.

Step 4: Fill in the chart

Here is the illustrative chart from the EMBquote FAQ. It is an example, not anyone's real price list. Calibrate it to your own machine rate.

Illustrative numbers. Calibrate to your own machine rate.

Step 5: Read the chart for a quote

Example only, using the chart above: an 8,400-stitch left-chest logo on 24 shirts falls in the 5,001–10,000 band and the 24–47 column, so the rate is $0.85 per 1,000. That is 8.4 × $0.85 = $7.14 per piece for that location. If the result is under your per-piece minimum, charge the minimum instead.

Step 6: Add locations, setup and minimums

• Each location is its own line. A sleeve or back gets its own stitch count and its own chart lookup, plus a per-position hooping or handling fee if you charge one.
• Setup or digitizing is a one-time line. Show it separately from the per-piece price, since the file is made once and reused on reorders.
• Use a per-piece minimum and, if you want, an order minimum so small runs still cover your setup time.

Estimating stitches before the logo is digitized

You can price from the chart before you have a file. Multiply the design width by height to get square inches, then multiply by a stitches-per-square-inch density that fits the art. The free embroidery pricing calculator walks through this with editable example densities. Only the digitized file gives the true stitch count, so check it before the job runs.

Keeping the chart out of a spreadsheet

A chart in a spreadsheet works until someone uses the wrong cell. In EMBquote you set the matrix once and the quote wizard applies your price-per-1,000 matrix automatically as stitch count and quantity change, so a 13,000-stitch back is not quoted at a 4,000-stitch left-chest rate. It also applies piece, dozen and case break pricing across a multi-size order, and each decoration location is its own wizard line. The finished quote can be saved as an estimate in QuickBooks Online.

Want to try your numbers first? Use the free embroidery calculator. To use the chart on real quotes, EMBquote Pro is free for 14 days (credit card required up front), then $149/month early-bird ($299/month regular). See pricing. Questions: hello@embquote.com.

FAQ

What is an embroidery price chart?

It is a grid of rates per 1,000 stitches, with stitch-count bands as rows and quantity breaks as columns. You find the cell that matches the design size and order quantity and use that rate.

How much should I charge per 1,000 stitches?

Build it from your own costs: machine run-time at your hourly shop rate, plus thread, backing and labor, then your target margin. The EMBquote FAQ gives a common range of $0.50 to $1.25 per 1,000 stitches before minimums.

How do I price a second location on the chart?

Treat it as its own line with its own stitch count and chart lookup, plus a per-position hooping or handling fee if you charge one.

Should setup or digitizing be in the chart?

No. Show it as a separate one-time line item, since the file is created once and reused on reorders.

Can EMBquote use my price chart automatically?

Yes. You set your matrix once and the quote wizard applies it as stitch count and quantity change, including piece, dozen and case breaks.