Pottery Pricing Calculator (Cost per Piece, Kiln Share, Labour, Loss Rate, Wholesale & Retail)
Price handmade ceramics properly: clay and glaze per piece, the share of each bisque and glaze firing, your labour at a real hourly rate, studio overhead and a loss allowance for cracks and glaze faults, then wholesale and retail prices and what you actually earn per hour at each.
How it works
materials = clay × 1.1 + glaze + (bisque + glaze firing) ÷ pieces per load · labour = minutes ÷ 60 × rate · overhead = % × (materials + labour) · cost = (materials + labour + overhead) ÷ (1 − loss rate) · wholesale = cost × markup; retail = wholesale × multiple · earnings/h = (price − fees − non-labour cost) ÷ hours per sold piece
Most handmade pottery is under-priced because the maker counts only clay and glaze and forgets that a tenth of the work never sells, that the kiln costs money to run and replace, and that the hours have to be paid. Building the price from the bottom — materials, a real share of each firing, your time at a real rate, overhead, then a loss allowance — gives a cost per sold piece. Wholesale sits above that with a margin, and retail at double wholesale so stockists and your own stall sell at the same price. The two "earns per hour" figures show what your time actually makes at each channel once fees are paid.
Worked example
A 450 g mug: clay $0.99 (with trimmings), 60 g of glaze $0.48 and a $34 pair of firings shared by 40 pieces ($0.85) make $2.32 of materials; 25 minutes at $30/h is $12.50 of labour, 25% overhead adds $3.71, and a 10% loss rate lifts the full cost to $20.58 per sold mug. Wholesale at 1.6× is about $33 and retail $66; selling direct with 12% fees you keep about $58, so your time earns roughly $111 an hour — while at wholesale it earns about $57.
Frequently asked questions
Why include a loss rate?
Because the pieces that crack in drying, warp, pinhole or come out of the kiln as seconds still cost clay, glaze, kiln space and your hours. If one in ten fails, every sold piece must carry 11% extra to pay for it. Track your real rate — it is the cheapest number to improve.
How do I work out my firing cost?
Electricity per firing (kW × hours × duty × price — see the kiln amps calculator) plus element and shelf wear: a set of elements every 100–150 firings and shelves every few years, divided per firing. A 7 cu ft kiln typically costs $8–15 in electricity per glaze firing plus $3–6 of wear.
Is 2× wholesale the right retail price?
It is the standard keystone that shops and galleries expect. If you only sell direct you can price between wholesale and retail, but pricing below what a stockist would charge makes wholesale impossible later and undervalues the field.
Related calculators
Pricing guidance only — market, reputation and the buyer decide what a piece is worth. Costs are estimates from your inputs.