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3D Printing Cost and Selling Price Calculator

Estimate production cost per successful print and a margin-based selling price. Keep electricity out of the machine rate if entered separately, and treat the failure allowance as an average rather than a guaranteed result.

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Your numbers

g
W
%
%
Your figures stay on this device.

How the calculation works

Build an expected cost and selling price for a successful 3D-printing order. Material, machine time and electricity allow for repeated attempts, while finishing labour and other order costs are added afterwards.

Attempt cost = grams / 1000 × material price per kg + hours × machine rate + hours × watts / 1000 × electricity rate. Expected successful cost = attempt cost / (1 − failure probability) + finishing labour + other order cost. Price = cost / (1 − margin).

  1. Calculate one attempt

    Convert grams to kilograms for material cost. Add hours times machine rate and hours times power in kilowatts times electricity price.

  2. Allow for repeated attempts

    Divide attempt cost by one minus the failure proportion. This converts a per-attempt cost to an expected cost per successful print under the stated assumptions.

  3. Price the completed order

    Add finishing hours times labour rate and other order costs. Divide the result by one minus the target margin for a selling price before output VAT.

Worked example: No failures

Sample inputs demonstrate the method. They are not a forecast or product offer.

The attempt costs €2 material, €5 machine time and €0.30 electricity. With no failures, €15 labour and €2 other costs give €24.30. Dividing by 0.80 for a 20% margin gives €30.375 before display rounding.

Material per attempt (g)
100
Material purchase price per kg
20
Machine hours per attempt
5
Machine wear and maintenance per hour
1
Average printing power (W)
200
Electricity cost per kWh
0.3
Probability an attempt fails (%)
0
Finishing and handling hours per successful order
1
Labour cost per hour
15
Other cost per successful order
2
Target selling margin (%)
20

Expected result

Expected cost per successful order
€24.30
Selling price before output VAT
€30.38
Worked example: Repeated attempts

Sample inputs demonstrate the method. They are not a forecast or product offer.

Material per attempt (g)
1000
Material purchase price per kg
10
Machine hours per attempt
0
Machine wear and maintenance per hour
0
Average printing power (W)
0
Electricity cost per kWh
0
Probability an attempt fails (%)
20
Finishing and handling hours per successful order
0
Labour cost per hour
0
Other cost per successful order
0
Target selling margin (%)
0

Expected result

Expected cost per successful order
€12.50
Expected attempts
1.25

Understanding your result

Expected cost smooths possible failures across similar orders. It does not promise success after the displayed expected number of attempts on any individual job.

Finishing labour is charged per successful order in this model. Labour repeated on every failed attempt needs a suitable separate allowance within your costing assumptions.

Questions you might have

Can this read an STL and calculate its printing time?

No. Time and material depend on orientation, supports, layer settings and the printer. Enter estimates from the intended slicing setup.

Choosing the right inputs

Material per attempt
Use material for one attempt from the intended slicing setup, including supports where relevant. The form does not read model files or estimate geometry.
Machine wear and maintenance per hour
Supply an hourly allocation for machine wear, maintenance and included machine costs. Exclude electricity entered separately through power and electricity price.
Probability an attempt fails
Enter an expected failure percentage below 100. Repeated attempts are assumed to have the same cost and success probability.

Common mistakes to avoid

  • Do not enter kilowatts in the watts field; the calculation already divides that input by 1,000.
  • Do not count electricity in both the machine rate and the dedicated power fields.

Assumptions to check

  • Use amounts in one currency and one reporting period. Results are labelled EUR; the arithmetic also works for another consistent currency.
  • Machine rate must exclude electricity entered separately. The failure allowance is an expectation, not a guarantee about an individual print.

Sources and method

Read our calculation and testing approach.