Guide for makers · 2026
How much to charge for 3D printing
How do you work out the price of a job?
The price of a job comes from five items: material, machine time, consumables, labour and a failure buffer. On top of that cost you apply a markup, from ×1.5 if you print as a hobby to ×4 if you're a professional, and ×2.5 is the norm. The part almost everyone gets wrong is labour: on a 28 mm resin miniature it's 80% of the cost, while material is 1%. That's why you charge for the work, not by the gram.
The formula, in one line
Price = (material + machine + consumables + labour + failure buffer) × markup
What changes everything is the weight of each item. This is how the real cost of producing a 28 mm resin miniature breaks down:
| Item | Share of the cost |
|---|---|
| Labour | 80% |
| Consumables | 9% |
| Failure buffer | 9% |
| Material | 1% |
| Machine and electricity | 1% |
Look at the last two: material and electricity together are 2%. If your quote is built from grams of resin, you're pricing 1% of the problem.
The five items, one by one
1. Material
Resin at about €17/kg and filament at about €13/kg. With resin, add an extra 25% for supports: they get printed too, and they get paid for too.
For a small part this is pennies. It's the item people look at most and the one that weighs least.
2. Machine time
Electricity at about €0.20/kWh, plus printer wear: the LCD screen on resin, the nozzle and belts on FDM.
Here's the technical difference most people miss: on resin, print time is set by the height of the part, not by how many fit on the plate. A full plate of miniatures takes as long as a single miniature of the same height. FDM is the other way round: every part adds its own time.
The direct consequence: on resin, filling the plate is practically free. On FDM, it isn't.
3. Consumables per job
On resin: isopropyl alcohol, FEP film, gloves and filters. On FDM: bed adhesive or hairspray, and cleaning.
They're used up per job, not per part. Printing one miniature uses almost as much alcohol as printing ten.
4. Labour
The big item, and the one almost nobody charges properly. Count about €15 an hour and time it honestly:
- Resin: about 30 minutes per job to prepare the file, wash, cure and remove supports.
- FDM: about 15 minutes per job.
- Plus a few minutes for each extra part in the same job.
Half an hour at €15 an hour is €7.50 of labour on a job you might have planned to charge €5 for.
5. Failure buffer
Not every print comes out first time. The norm is to set aside 10% on resin and 5% on FDM. Leave it out and you end up working for free on the reprints, often enough to feel it in your pocket.
The markup: from ×1.5 to ×4
You apply a multiplier to the total cost:
| Profile | Markup | When it makes sense |
|---|---|---|
| Hobby | ×1.5 | You print for fun and want to cover material and a bit more |
| Regular | ×2.5 | It's a side income and your time counts |
| Professional | ×4 | You make a living from it, with guarantees, invoices and committed lead times |
×2.5 is the norm. Below ×1.5 you're not charging for your time: you're subsidising the job.
What it comes to in practice
These are the prices actually paid in the network. Excluding VAT and shipping, for the whole job:
| Part | Technology | Range | Typical |
|---|---|---|---|
| 28 mm miniature | Resin | €8 – €23 | — |
| Batch of 10 × 28 mm miniatures | Resin | €34 – €92 | €57 |
| 75 mm bust | Resin | €15 – €40 | €25 |
| 20 cm figure | Resin | €21 – €55 | €34 |
| Small spare part (bracket, clip) | FDM | €6 – €17 | €10 |
| Medium case or cover | FDM | €7 – €19 | €12 |
| Run of 100 small parts | FDM | €219 – €585 | €365 |
Look at the miniature: from €8 to €23, almost three times the price for the same nominal part. It isn't arbitrary. It depends on the real size, the style (a figure with lots of overhangs needs more supports and more cleaning) and the finish the customer asks for.
And look at the batch: the same miniature drops to €5.73 when ten go in the same job. Not because you use less resin, but because the half hour of preparation is shared between ten parts instead of one.
The three mistakes that leave you working for nothing
Charging by the gram
It's mistake number one, and it comes from copying how material is sold. Material is 1%. Charge by the gram and you're charging for the item that doesn't matter while ignoring the one that eats your day.
Not counting post-processing
Washing, curing, removing supports and sanding the marks is real work and takes time. If the price only covers «pressing print», you're paying for the rest.
Taking rush jobs at the normal price
A rush job makes you rearrange your queue and stop whatever you were printing. That has an opportunity cost, and you charge for it. The norm is a surcharge when the lead time drops below three days.
How to bring the price down without losing money
If the customer says it's expensive, there are three levers that lower the price without you losing out:
- Grouping. Several parts in the same job share the preparation and cleaning. It's the most powerful of the three.
- Lead time. A job with no rush can go into a gap in your queue, and that costs you nothing. Most of the real jobs that come in aren't in a hurry, so this lever is almost always there.
- Finish. The raw part, supports still on, is the cheapest thing you can offer. And it turns out most customers want it that way, because they'll paint it themselves.
Before you charge for your first job
Charging for a service means invoicing, and how you do it depends on your situation and how much you invoice. There's no general rule for it: check with your accountant before your first job, not after your tenth.
Start getting jobs
With the formula clear, what you need are projects to quote for. On Fabrishare, customers post their part with the file, measurements, quantity and deadline, and you decide which ones to send an offer for and at what price.
How it works for makersQuestions about pricing a job
How much should I charge for a 28 mm resin miniature?
Between €8 and €23, depending on the real size, the style and the finish. In a batch of 10, about €5.73 each. Excluding VAT and shipping.
Why does the same part cost three times more in one case than another?
Because what changes isn't the material, it's the work. A figure with lots of overhangs needs more supports, more cleaning and has a higher risk of failing than a compact one of the same height.
Should I charge by the gram or by the part?
By the job. Material is 1% of the cost, so a price per gram charges for the wrong item. Work out the cost of the whole job and apply your markup.
What markup should I apply?
From ×1.5 as a hobby to ×4 as a professional, and ×2.5 on the total cost is the norm. Below ×1.5 you don't cover your time.
How long does a job really take?
About 30 minutes of handling per job on resin and about 15 on FDM, plus a few minutes for each extra part. Print time is separate and doesn't need you there.
Are single-part jobs worth taking?
It depends on how fast you prepare a small job, because the real cost is your time, not the material. If each job takes you an hour of handling, it doesn't pay. If you get it done in twenty minutes, it does.
How much should I charge for painting?
Separately from the print, always. It's a different job, with its own time and its own skill, and rolling it into a single price means you end up painting for free.
What if the customer doesn't have the file?
Modelling is quoted separately from printing. Give two figures: one for creating the file and one for printing it. They're two jobs.