How to Price Custom 3D Printing Commissions
Quoting a one-off custom piece for a client is a different job than pricing a shop listing. Here's what to add on top of the print's true cost.
Start your quote from true cost
Run the part through the price calculator to get material, electricity, machine wear, and a failure buffer. That number is your production floor. Everything below gets added on top of it, not folded into it.
Design and modeling time
If you're creating a new model from scratch rather than printing an existing file, that's billable time separate from print production. A simple custom model might take 1–2 hours; a complex organic shape can run past 10. A reasonable range for this kind of work is $35–$60 per hour, more toward the high end for engineering-grade precision or tight tolerances.
Revision rounds
Decide upfront how many rounds of revisions are included, two or three is typical, and bill anything beyond that at your hourly rate. Say this out loud to the client before you start, not after the third round of changes.
Test prints
Custom designs, especially anything that needs to fit something specific, usually need at least one test print to check tolerances before the final piece. Fold the cost of one or two test prints (at true cost, not the client price) into the quote rather than eating it.
Rush fees
If a client needs a faster turnaround than your normal pace, charge for it, a 25–50% surcharge on the final price is a common range. Rushing bends your schedule around someone else's deadline, that has a real cost even when the print itself doesn't take any longer.
A sample quote
A custom-fit bracket: the calculator says $1.51 true cost for the print itself. Add 1.5 hours of design time at $45/hour ($67.50) and one test print at cost ($1.51), for a subtotal of $70.52. At a 50% markup, that's a $105.78 quote, or $142.80 if the client needs it rushed.
| Line item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Print true cost (from the calculator) | $1.51 |
| Design time (1.5 hrs × $45/hr) | $67.50 |
| Test print (at cost) | $1.51 |
| Subtotal | $70.52 |
| Quote at 50% markup | $105.78 |
| With a 35% rush fee | $142.80 |
Design time is almost always the largest line item on a custom quote, far bigger than the print itself. Quoting a commission based on print cost alone is the same undercharging mistake as quoting a shop listing on filament alone, just with a bigger gap.
Want your own numbers? Run your filament, print time, and labor through the 3D printing price calculator. Pricing a cosplay or prop commission specifically? The Cosplay & Prop Finishing Calculator covers the sanding, priming, and painting side, which this article's design-fee range also applies to.