Practical guide 3 min read
How to work out what a 3D print costs
Material, electricity, printer wear, failed prints and your time: the full cost of a print, with a worked example and where to find each number.
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3D Printing Cost Calculator
Enter the grams from your slicer, the print time and your spool’s price. You get the full cost of the print, broken down into material, electricity, printer wear, failures and labour, with a suggested selling price.
Loading 3D Printing Cost Calculator…
Runs in your browser. What you enter is saved on this device only.
How to use the 3D Printing Cost Calculator
- Pick the material, then enter the weight your slicer reports, or the filament length and diameter.
- Enter the print time, your spool’s price and weight, and your electricity rate.
- Add your printer’s price and lifetime, your failure rate and the time you spend setting up and cleaning up.
- Set how many parts are on the plate and your markup, then read the cost per part and the suggested price.
How it’s calculated
Material = grams used ÷ spool grams × spool price; a filament length is turned into grams with π × (diameter ÷ 2)² × length × density. Electricity = average watts × hours ÷ 1,000 × price per kWh. Printer wear = hours × (printer price ÷ lifetime hours + upkeep per hour). Failures add your failure rate to material, electricity and wear, since a failed print uses them again. Labour is your minutes × hourly rate. The total is divided by the parts on the plate, and the suggested price is cost × (1 + markup).
Questions
How much does it cost to 3D print something?
Material is often the smaller part. A 50 g PLA part from a $20, 1 kg spool uses $1.00 of filament, and a 4 hour print at 120 W and $0.16 per kWh adds about 8 cents of electricity. Printer wear, failed prints and your time are often the bigger costs.
How much electricity does a 3D printer use?
A desktop printer typically averages 70 to 150 W once the bed is hot, more with a large bed, an enclosure or high-temperature materials like ABS and nylon. A smart plug with energy monitoring gives you the exact average for your printer.
How do I convert filament length to grams?
Weight = length × the filament’s cross-section × the material’s density. One meter of 1.75 mm PLA (1.24 g/cm³) weighs about 2.98 g, so a 1 kg spool holds about 335 m.
What markup should I use for selling prints?
Many sellers start at two to three times cost for custom work, and less for simple parts in quantity. To see what marketplace or card fees take from that price, use the Handmade Pricing Calculator, which works back from fees to your price.
Are my numbers saved?
On this device only. Each calculator remembers what you last entered, in your browser, so you can pick up where you left off; nothing is sent to our server. Reset puts the starting values back.
Do I need an account?
No. Every craft calculator is free to use without signing in, with no limits.
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