Cost
How much does 3D printing cost? Three bills, line by line
Three cost sheets from the dated dataset: material, electricity, machine hours and failed prints.
The three scenarios
PLA on an entry printer (125 W draw) at the US average $0.1831/kWh, 10% failures, 30% margin, hours from the site model (0.2/0.45 mm, 60 mm/s, +15%).
| Part | Material | Electricity | Machine time | Subtotal | Failures | Cost / price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Small part 20 g · a bracket, a phone stand, a replacement knob | $14.99/kg × 20 g $0.30 | 125 W × 1.0 h $0.022 | $0.0384/h × 1.0 h $0.04 | $0.36 | $0.04 at 10% | $0.40 price $0.57 |
| Medium part 100 g · a 150 mm enclosure, a lamp shade, a drone frame | $14.99/kg × 100 g $1.50 | 125 W × 4.8 h $0.109 | $0.0384/h × 4.8 h $0.18 | $1.79 | $0.20 at 10% | $1.99 price $2.84 |
| Large part 500 g · a full helmet shell, a printer part, a cosplay piece | $14.99/kg × 500 g $7.50 | 125 W × 23.9 h $0.546 | $0.0384/h × 23.9 h $0.92 | $8.96 | $1.00 at 10% | $9.95 price $14.22 |
Cost per good unit and price at 30% margin. Checked 2026-10-23.
What the bills say
Price is 90% above filament cost and electricity is 6.1% of the subtotal at every size; what does not scale is the line missing from the table. Ten minutes of handling at $20/h is $3.33 — 9.3 times the 20 g subtotal, 37% of the 500 g one — and the 500 g part holds the printer for 24 hours, a full day, for $0.60 of revenue per machine hour.
The commercial view
How to price 3D prints carries $1.99 to $2.84 at a 30% margin and $3.16 after a 10% marketplace fee; failure rates, electricity cost and the full calculator cover those.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to 3D print something?
On this site's dataset a 100 g PLA part costs about $1.99 to deliver on an entry-level printer: $1.50 of filament, $0.11 of electricity, $0.18 of machine time and $0.20 to cover a 10% failure rate. A 20 g part costs about $0.40 and a 500 g part about $9.95. Material dominates, but only on large parts.
Is electricity a significant part of the cost?
No. At the US average rate of $0.1831 per kWh an entry printer drawing 125 W costs $0.0229 per hour to run. A 100 g print is $0.11 of electricity against $1.50 of filament, or 6.1% of the subtotal. Germany, the dearest of the five countries we price, reaches 13.8%.
Why do you include failed prints in the cost?
Because you cannot sell a failed print and you still paid for it. At a 10% failure rate you must print 1.111 units to deliver one, so every other cost line is divided by 0.9. Leaving that out under-quotes by 11% before you have even added a margin.
What should I charge for a 3D print I sell?
Cost per good unit divided by (1 minus your target margin), then divided again by (1 minus the platform fee). A $1.99 unit cost at a 30% margin is $2.84, and $3.16 after a 10% marketplace fee.
Does the model's size or complexity change the cost?
Size changes cost almost linearly through material and machine time. Complexity changes it through hand work — support removal, sanding, assembly — which is the line most quotes forget entirely.