DTF Transfer Cost per Print Calculator

How it works

film = roll metres per design × price/m (designs across = ⌊roll width ÷ (design width + gap)⌋) · ink = area ÷ 1,000 cm² × mL per 1,000 × coverage × price/L · cost = (film + ink + powder + power + labour) × (1 + waste) · price = cost × (1 + markup)

A DTF transfer is printed onto a PET film in colour with a white underbase, dusted with hot-melt powder, cured, and later pressed onto the garment, so its cost is the sum of those consumables plus the minutes of handling. Film is consumed by the length of roll a design occupies, which depends on how many fit across the width — nesting and rotating designs on a gang sheet is the single biggest saving. Ink scales with the printed area and its coverage, since white is laid under every coloured pixel, and powder sticks only where ink is wet, so both drop for sparse logos. Labour does not shrink with design size, which is why small transfers have a high cost per square centimetre and why shops price by size bands rather than area alone.

Worked example

A 25 × 30 cm full-colour design at 60% coverage on a 60 cm roll: two fit across, so each uses 15.5 cm of roll ($0.25 of film); 750 cm² needs about 5.4 mL of ink ($0.32) and 4.3 g of powder ($0.08); with $0.02 of power, 1.5 minutes of labour ($0.45) and 8% waste the transfer costs about $1.21 and sells for $3.03 at a 150% markup.

Frequently asked questions