Free calculator
Fill in the material, part weight and print time to see the cost.
The price of the spool or bottle becomes a price per gram, multiplied by the weight your slicer reported. The waste figure covers supports, purge and the print that fails.
Printer wattage × print hours = kWh, multiplied by your state's rate. When we have it on file we use the average draw while printing, not the nameplate rating — the nameplate is the peak and overstates the bill.
The printer's price divided by its lifespan in hours. Every print pays its share of the next machine.
Prepping the file, removing supports, curing, sanding and painting is work. It goes in at your hourly rate.
Electricity prices come from the U.S. Energy Information Administration's Electric Power Monthly, table 5.6.B — the average residential price by state, which already includes taxes and fees. Data pulled on 20/08/2026. Rates vary by utility and by season, so for an exact figure use the per-kWh price on your own bill.
Common questions
Add up four things. Material: the price of the spool or bottle turned into a price per gram, multiplied by the weight your slicer reported. Electricity: printer wattage × print hours × your state's rate. Depreciation: the machine's price divided by its lifespan in hours. And labor: your own time prepping and finishing. Your profit margin goes on top of that total — pricing off filament alone is how people end up working for free.
Far less than the nameplate suggests. A 350 W FDM printer typically draws 100 to 150 W once the bed is up to temperature — the nameplate rating is the heat-up peak, not the steady draw. Over a 10-hour print that's about 1.2 kWh, roughly 14¢ to 54¢ depending on where you live. Resin printers use even less, 45 to 70 W, since they only power an LCD and an LED array.
Generation mix, fuel costs and transmission distance. Hydro-heavy states like Washington and Idaho sit near 12–14¢ per kWh, while Hawaii burns imported oil and pays over 44¢ — more than three times as much for the identical print. The figures in this calculator come from the EIA's average residential price by state, which already includes taxes and delivery charges.
Neither alone works. Charging by gram ignores that a 20-hour print ties up your machine and your electricity far longer than a 2-hour one of the same weight. Charging by hour ignores that a solid part burns through filament a hollow one doesn't. Cost both — material by weight, machine time by hour — then apply your margin to the total. That's what this calculator does.
For made-to-order parts, 30% to 100% over cost is the common range, with custom or design-heavy work going higher. Watch the wording, though: "30% profit" can mean adding 30% on top of cost (markup) or making 30% of the sale price profit (margin). On a $100 cost that's $130 versus $142.86. This calculator lets you pick which one you mean.
In most states, yes — a printed part is tangible personal property, and selling it is a taxable retail sale. Rules vary by state, and some treat a design service differently from the physical object. This calculator gives you the cost and the pre-tax price; sales tax is collected on top of that. Check your state's department of revenue, or ask an accountant if you're selling at volume.
Longer than people expect, if you replace the wear parts. Nozzles, belts, bearings and the hotend are consumables; the frame and motors outlive them by years. Five thousand printing hours is a conservative planning figure for a consumer FDM machine. On a $500 printer that's 10¢ per hour — small per print, but over a year of steady use it's the difference between buying the next machine out of the business or out of your pocket.
Usually, once you count everything. Resin costs more per gram and the post-processing is real work: washing in IPA, curing under UV, cutting supports. It also brings consumables filament doesn't — gloves, alcohol, FEP film. Electricity is lower, but that's the smallest line either way. Resin earns a higher price per part because of the detail it delivers; the gap only shows up honestly when you put your labor in the calculation.
Electricity by state
A 10-hour print at 120 W average draws 1.20 kWh. What changes from state to state is what that kWh costs — and the gap between the cheapest and the priciest is over 274%.
Cheapest
North Dakota (ND)
$0.12/kWh — $0.14 for the reference print
Priciest
Hawaii (HI)
$0.45/kWh — $0.54 for the reference print
| State | $/kWh | Cost per print |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama (AL) | $0.17 | $0.20 |
| Alaska (AK) | $0.27 | $0.32 |
| Arizona (AZ) | $0.16 | $0.19 |
| Arkansas (AR) | $0.13 | $0.16 |
| California (CA) | $0.33 | $0.39 |
| Colorado (CO) | $0.17 | $0.20 |
| Connecticut (CT) | $0.30 | $0.36 |
| Delaware (DE) | $0.17 | $0.21 |
| District of Columbia (DC) | $0.25 | $0.29 |
| Florida (FL) | $0.15 | $0.19 |
| Georgia (GA) | $0.15 | $0.18 |
| Hawaii (HI) | $0.45 | $0.54 |
| Idaho (ID) | $0.13 | $0.15 |
| Illinois (IL) | $0.19 | $0.23 |
| Indiana (IN) | $0.17 | $0.20 |
| Iowa (IA) | $0.13 | $0.16 |
| Kansas (KS) | $0.15 | $0.18 |
| Kentucky (KY) | $0.14 | $0.17 |
| Louisiana (LA) | $0.14 | $0.16 |
| Maine (ME) | $0.30 | $0.36 |
| Maryland (MD) | $0.21 | $0.25 |
| Massachusetts (MA) | $0.30 | $0.36 |
| Michigan (MI) | $0.21 | $0.25 |
| Minnesota (MN) | $0.16 | $0.19 |
| Mississippi (MS) | $0.15 | $0.19 |
| Missouri (MO) | $0.13 | $0.15 |
| Montana (MT) | $0.14 | $0.16 |
| Nebraska (NE) | $0.13 | $0.15 |
| Nevada (NV) | $0.14 | $0.17 |
| New Hampshire (NH) | $0.27 | $0.32 |
| New Jersey (NJ) | $0.23 | $0.28 |
| New Mexico (NM) | $0.15 | $0.18 |
| New York (NY) | $0.29 | $0.35 |
| North Carolina (NC) | $0.15 | $0.18 |
| North Dakota (ND) | $0.12 | $0.14 |
| Ohio (OH) | $0.18 | $0.22 |
| Oklahoma (OK) | $0.13 | $0.16 |
| Oregon (OR) | $0.15 | $0.18 |
| Pennsylvania (PA) | $0.21 | $0.25 |
| Rhode Island (RI) | $0.29 | $0.35 |
| South Carolina (SC) | $0.16 | $0.19 |
| South Dakota (SD) | $0.14 | $0.17 |
| Tennessee (TN) | $0.14 | $0.17 |
| Texas (TX) | $0.16 | $0.19 |
| Utah (UT) | $0.13 | $0.16 |
| Vermont (VT) | $0.24 | $0.29 |
| Virginia (VA) | $0.17 | $0.20 |
| Washington (WA) | $0.14 | $0.17 |
| West Virginia (WV) | $0.15 | $0.18 |
| Wisconsin (WI) | $0.19 | $0.23 |
| Wyoming (WY) | $0.14 | $0.16 |
Average residential price by state, U.S. Energy Information Administration, pulled 20/08/2026.