You got a quote for a few hundred custom shirts, and something about the number sits wrong. You cannot say exactly why. You just have the quiet feeling that you are the least-informed person in this transaction, and the person who sent the quote knows it.
That feeling is worth listening to. Not because most promo vendors are crooks, but because the pricing is genuinely opaque, and the only people who understand it are the ones selling to you. This page is the other side of that table. We are not trying to sell you shirts on this page. We are checking the receipt.
Upload the quote and get a straight answer in under a minute
- Flags markups that run past the 40 to 60 percent decoration norm
- Spots setup and screen fees that should be one-time, not charged per unit
- Gives you a fair-range verdict you can take straight back to the vendor
The two numbers behind every quote
Custom merch pricing is really two numbers stacked together. There is the blank garment, and there is the decoration. Vendors mark up both, and both markups are normal. The trick is knowing the range.
On the blank, a 30 to 50 percent margin is standard. A shirt that costs the vendor four dollars lands somewhere around six to eight on your quote. On the decoration, the markup is higher, usually 40 to 60 percent, because that is where the labor and the equipment and the art time live. Add it up and a typical promo company runs somewhere around a 36 to 40 percent gross margin across the whole order. That is a healthy business, not a rip-off.
Where it goes sideways is the fees. Setup should be a one-time charge, usually 50 to 250 dollars depending on complexity. Screen charges run about 20 to 50 dollars per ink color, once, not per shirt. When those one-time costs get quietly baked into the per-unit price, a fair-looking line item hides an unfair total.
Estimated comparison
We can likely beat this
That is our estimated savings on equivalent products at this quantity.
Their comparable total
$1,240.00
Our estimate
$980.00
Line items compared
4 of 5
Is my promotional products quote fair or am I getting ripped off?
Look at three things in this order. First, the per-shirt total against the range above. Second, whether the setup and screen fees appear once as line items or are folded into the unit price. Third, whether the quantity break makes sense, because the per-unit price should fall as the count rises. If all three hold, you are probably fine. If the total feels high and you cannot find the one-time fees broken out, that is the moment to get a second opinion.
How much markup do promo companies usually charge?
Roughly 30 to 50 percent on the blank and 40 to 60 percent on the decoration, netting out near a 36 to 40 percent gross margin on the order. Markup itself is not the problem. Markup you cannot see is the problem.
A normal setup fee should be a one-time charge
A one-time setup fee of 50 to 250 dollars is normal, plus 20 to 50 dollars per ink color for screens. The word that matters is one-time. If your quote charges setup on every unit, or re-charges it on a reorder of the same art, ask why.
How do I compare quotes from two different vendors?
Line them up on the same quantity and the same decoration, then compare the all-in per-shirt number, not the subtotal. One quote can look cheaper on the blank and end up higher once setup, screens, and shipping land. Normalize to cost-per-finished-shirt and the real winner usually flips at least once.
Can I get a second opinion before I sign off?
Yes, and that is the whole point of the tool on this page. Upload the quote you already have. We read every line, match it against our catalog at the same quantity, and tell you whether the number is fair or worth pushing on. No sales call to get the answer.
Or just tell the Butler what you are buying and roughly what you were quoted.
Once you know where your quote stands, the next move is easy. If it is fair, sign it with confidence. If it is not, you now know exactly which line to push on, and the Butler can turn that into a real, competitive quote in the same conversation.