3D Print Cost Calculator

Slicers tell you grams. They don't tell you the print cost you $0.00. This adds the power, the failures, and your hours.

Filament used (g)

Spool price ($ per kg) PLA commodity ≈ $16–22/kg, PETG ≈ $20–28, ASA/ABS ≈ $25–35, TPU ≈ $30–45, nylon ≈ $40–60, carbon fiber ≈ $60–90

Print time (hours)

Printer average power (W) Ender-class ≈ 100–150 W avg; Bambu X1/P1 ≈ 120–200; Enclosed + heated chamber ≈ 250–400; average, not peak (hotend cycle duty)

Electricity ($/kWh)

Failure rate (%)

Your time per print, incl. prep/post ($/hr)

Labor hours per print

The failure term multiplies material + power: a 15% failure rate means every successful print carries 15% of a failed one's cost with it.

—filament

—electricity

—all-in machine cost (incl. failures)

—labor

—true cost per print

—suggested price (2.5× = shop margin)

How the math works

Filament = grams ÷ 1000 × spool price. Add ~15–25% purge/prime/tower/brim waste on text-only prints; the slicer's "material used" on a build plate usually includes tower, not always supports.
Power = W × hours ÷ 1000 × $/kWh, a 9-h print at 130 W is 1.17 kWh ≈ $0.20 at $0.17/kWh. Electricity is rarely the villain; time is, because it's the printer's rental fee on your capital.
Failure loading = costs ÷ (1 − fail%). At 15%, machine costs get a 1.18× multiplier, failures on long prints are a tax, and multi-color/text failures concentrate at the 2–12 h range.
Pricing convention: material × 3–4 (Etsy's 2–3× floor), or all-in × 2.5 for print shops (absorbs printer depreciation ≈ $0.01–0.03/hr, electricity, failed queues, and post-processing). If labor > material, it's a service business, not a material business, price the hours.

Slicer grams vary ±20% by infill/speed profile; power draw varies with bed temp and chamber. Failure % is personal: measure your last 20 prints, don't guess it. Pricing guidance is market convention, not a promise of sales.

Frequently asked

How much does it cost to 3D print something?

Material is trivial ($0.10–$1.50 on typical prints); the hidden costs are failures, electricity, and your post-processing hours. A 120 g, 9-hr PLA print at $20/kg and $0.17/kWh costs ~$2.90 all-in before labor, and ~$7 with 30 min of labor.

How do I price 3D printed items for sale?

Floor = material × 3. Shop price = (material + power + failure share) × 2.5 + labor at your rate. Under $5 prints die on shipping, bundle them.

How much electricity does a 3D printer use?

Average 100–200 W on PLA, about $0.15–0.35 per 10-hour print at US average rates. A year of 8-hour daily printing ≈ $100–150 in electricity.