Understand print on demand pricing, costs, and profit margins. Learn how to set competitive prices that maximise your profits while remaining attractive to customers.
Pricing your print on demand products correctly is crucial for profitability and competitiveness. Unlike traditional retail, POD pricing involves understanding production costs, shipping fees, platform charges, and profit margins.
With Papello, pricing is transparent. You only pay when you place an order, and there are no hidden fees or setup costs. This guide explains how print on demand pricing works and how to set prices that work for your business.
Whether you're selling posters, mugs, notebooks, or art prints, understanding pricing helps you maximise profits while remaining competitive.
This is what the POD provider charges you for printing the product. With Papello, this includes:
Key Advantage: Papello prints everything we ship, which means we can offer competitive product costs because we eliminate middleman fees. With Papello Plus, you can get additional discounts on products.
Shipping costs vary based on:
With Papello, you get competitive shipping rates. You can either pass shipping costs directly to customers or include them in your product price.
If you sell on platforms like Etsy, Shopify, or WooCommerce, they may charge:
Factor these into your pricing if you're selling on third-party platforms. With Papello's direct ordering system, you can avoid platform fees entirely.
This is the difference between your selling price and all costs. A healthy profit margin ensures your business is sustainable and allows for growth, marketing, and reinvestment.
Selling Price = Product Cost + Shipping + Platform Fees + Profit Margin
Example: Selling a custom mug
In this example, you'd make £5.00 profit per mug sold, which is a 33% profit margin.
Tip: With Papello's competitive pricing and direct printing model, you can achieve healthy profit margins while remaining competitive. Our transparent pricing means you know exactly what you'll pay before setting your selling price.
Use our profit calculator to determine your profit margins and total earnings. Enter your sale price, costs, and fees to see your profit breakdown.
Up-to-date as of 15 Jan 2026
Transaction fees from your sales platform (e.g., Etsy, Shopify)
Enter your ROAS ratio (e.g., 2.0 means £2 revenue per £1 spent). Marketing cost will be calculated as: Sale Price ÷ ROAS
Enter values to calculate
Enter values to calculate
These products typically have lower production costs relative to selling price, making them highly profitable.
These products offer good profit margins while remaining affordable for customers.
Research similar products on your sales platform and price competitively. With Papello's competitive product costs, you can match or beat competitor prices while maintaining healthy margins.
Best for: New sellers, competitive markets, building initial sales volume
Position your products as premium with higher prices. This works well for unique designs, high-quality products, or niche markets. Premium pricing requires strong branding and marketing.
Best for: Established brands, unique designs, luxury markets, premium products
Price based on the value your product provides to customers, not just costs. Consider emotional value, uniqueness, and customer benefits when setting prices.
Best for: Personalised products, gift items, sentimental designs
Offer discounts when customers buy multiple products. This increases average order value and can improve overall profitability even with lower per-item margins.
Best for: Complementary products, gift sets, increasing order value
Larger products typically cost more due to increased materials and shipping costs. Consider offering multiple sizes to give customers options.
Different products have different base costs. Posters are typically cheaper than framed prints, while mugs fall somewhere in between.
UK shipping is typically faster and cheaper than international shipping. With Papello's UK-based production, UK customers benefit from lower shipping costs.
Some providers offer volume discounts. With Papello Plus, you can get discounts on products, improving your profit margins.
With Papello, you get competitive, transparent pricing with no hidden fees. Know exactly what you'll pay before you set your selling price, and maximise your profit margins with our direct printing model.
