🔥 Burn Rate / Per-Shirt Cost Calculator
Two calculators that work together: figure out what an hour of your shop actually costs, then use it to price any job down to the shirt.
Every tool is free forever, funded by our sponsors. Create a free account (30 seconds, no card) or log in and this tool unlocks.
How it works
- Burn rate first. Add up a month of fixed costs, variable costs, and labor (pay yourself!), divide by the hours the shop actually works, and you get your hourly burn rate: what one hour of your shop costs whether or not the press is moving.
- Then price the job. Hourly burn rate × production hours gives real labor cost. Add materials, divide by quantity, and you have your true cost per shirt. Markup goes on top of that, so your quoted price protects your margin.
- Chain them. After calculating your burn rate, one click carries it into the per-shirt calculator.
If your per-shirt price feels high, that's the point: this is what the job actually costs you. Shops that skip burn rate quietly pay their customers for the privilege of printing.
Frequently asked questions
What is a burn rate?
What one hour of your shop costs whether or not the press is moving: monthly fixed costs, variable costs, and labor divided by real working hours.
Why does my per-shirt cost look high?
Because it includes the overhead most shops forget to charge for. Check the minutes-per-shirt sanity line under production hours; if the hours are right, that number is your true cost.
Is the final number a cost or a price?
The last line is a quote-ready price: your true cost per shirt with your markup applied on top, so your margin is protected.