How Much Printing Really Costs for a Small Business (No Guessing)

Printing costs are surprisingly hard to find online. Most shops make you request a quote before you see a single number. That's frustrating when you're trying to plan a budget. Here are real starting prices for the things small businesses actually order.

Business Cards

A standard run of 250 business cards on 400gsm stock with a matte or gloss laminate starts around $85 to $120. Double-sided, full colour. That's a proper card on proper stock - not the budget option that feels like a bookmark.

Going higher - thicker stock, spot UV, metallic foil, round corners - pushes it to $150 to $250 for the same quantity. These are nice touches but they're not essential. The stock weight and laminate do most of the heavy lifting.

Stickers

Die-cut stickers on vinyl with a matte or gloss laminate start around $80 for a small run of 50 to 100 units at standard sizes. Price per unit drops quickly with quantity - 250 stickers might be $120 to $160 depending on size and shape.

Kiss-cut sticker sheets are slightly more per unit but give you a peel-and-stick presentation that works well for retail and gifting. Sheet stickers with multiple designs per sheet are another option for variety at lower quantities.

Apparel

A printed tee (DTF, full colour, one location) on a quality blank like AS Colour starts around $30 to $40 per unit for small runs (5 to 10 shirts). That includes the garment and the print. Per-unit cost drops at higher quantities - 25 shirts might land around $25 to $30 each.

Hoodies run $50 to $70 per unit for small batches. Polos and hi-vis are similar. The blank garment is the biggest variable - a premium blank costs more than a budget one, and you can feel the difference immediately.

Signs and Banners

Corflute signs (the lightweight board you see at open homes and events) start from around $30 for small sizes. Larger boards - 1200mm x 900mm - run $50 to $80 depending on quantity.

Vinyl banners start around $180. A standard 3m x 1m banner with eyelets is typically $180 to $250 depending on material and finishing. Larger banners scale by the square metre.

Window graphics depend on size and coverage. A simple door decal might be $60 to $100. A full window shopfront graphic can run $200 to $500 depending on the area and complexity.

Workwear

Branded workwear for a small team - say 5 polos with a one-colour logo - typically costs $35 to $50 per shirt including print. Hi-vis options run slightly more due to garment cost. Embroidery adds a setup fee for the first run (logo digitisation) but per-unit costs are competitive for simple logos.

What Affects the Price

Four things drive most of the cost variation: material quality, quantity, number of colours or complexity, and turnaround time. Of these, quantity has the biggest impact. Setup costs (design, file prep, machine calibration) are fixed whether you order 10 or 1,000 units, so they hit harder at low volumes.

Rush jobs cost more. Planning ahead is the single easiest way to keep printing affordable. Read our guide on realistic printing timelines so you know when to order.

Want exact numbers for your job? Get a quote - we'll come back with a breakdown, not a ballpark.