Rex says
Money math without the spreadsheet headache. Plug in your numbers and I'll show you exactly where the dollars land.
Try a scenario
Click to load — tweak from there.Inputs
Result
Sell price
$55.00
Total unit cost
$25.00
Machine cost allocated to this print
$12.00
Gross margin %
54.5%
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One click, a permanent link with your numbers baked in.
How to use this
- 1Enter media cost for this print ($).
- 2Enter ink cost for this print ($).
- 3Enter annual machine cost (lease/depreciation) ($).
- 4Enter expected annual print jobs at this size.
- 5Enter labor for print/trim/finish ($).
- 6Enter markup multiple.
- 7Read your sell price on the right — it updates as you type.
- 8Hit Share to keep the scenario or send it to someone.
About this calculator
Large format print shops need a markup strategy that accounts for machine depreciation and ink consumables, not just the raw media roll cost, since a $200,000 flatbed or roll printer with a five-year useful life adds meaningful per-print overhead that's easy to forget when eyeballing a quote. This calculator takes media cost, ink cost, a per-print machine depreciation allocation (annual machine cost divided by expected annual print volume), labor for print/trim/finish, and applies your markup to land on a price, then shows the effective margin. It's built for output like posters, foam board, coroplast yard signs, and rigid PVC signage rather than sewn or grommeted banners, which the square-foot calculator in this collection covers more directly for flexible material pricing. A common mistake is pricing off media cost alone and ignoring machine depreciation, which on a moderate-volume shop printing 20,000 sq ft a year off a $150,000 printer works out to $7.50 per square foot in depreciation alone before touching ink or labor.
Worked example
Using the values the calculator loads with:
Inputs
- Media cost for this print: 6 $
- Ink cost for this print: 3 $
- Annual machine cost (lease/depreciation): 24000 $
- Expected annual print jobs at this size: 2000
- Labor for print/trim/finish: 4 $
- Markup multiple: 2.2
Results
- Sell price: $55.00
- Total unit cost: $25.00
- Machine cost allocated to this print: $12.00
- Gross margin %: 54.5%
What each field means
Inputs
- Media cost for this print ($)
- The media cost for this print used in the calculation, measured in $. Starts at 6 $ so you have a working example on load.
- Ink cost for this print ($)
- The ink cost for this print used in the calculation, measured in $. Starts at 3 $ so you have a working example on load.
- Annual machine cost (lease/depreciation) ($)
- The annual machine cost (lease/depreciation) used in the calculation, measured in $. Starts at 24000 $ so you have a working example on load.
- Expected annual print jobs at this size
- The expected annual print jobs at this size used in the calculation. Starts at 2000 so you have a working example on load.
- Labor for print/trim/finish ($)
- The labor for print/trim/finish used in the calculation, measured in $. Starts at 4 $ so you have a working example on load.
- Markup multiple
- The markup multiple used in the calculation. Starts at 2.2 so you have a working example on load. Accepted range: 1–6.
Results
- Sell price
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars and shown as the headline result. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Total unit cost
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Machine cost allocated to this print
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Gross margin %
- Returned as a percentage. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
FAQ
Why include machine depreciation in per-print cost?
A large format printer is a major capital asset that wears out and needs eventual replacement. Spreading its annual cost across expected print volume turns a lump capital expense into a per-job number you can actually price against, the same way you'd account for any equipment cost.
How do I estimate expected annual print volume?
Use your prior year's job count or square footage at a similar size if you have records, or a conservative estimate based on planned shop capacity. Underestimating volume overstates per-print depreciation cost and can push prices artificially high.
What markup multiple is standard for rigid signage?
1.8x-2.5x over full unit cost (including depreciation and labor) is typical for standard yard signs, foam board, and posters. Lower-volume specialty substrates like acrylic or metal signage can support higher multiples, sometimes 2.5x-3.5x, due to lower competition and higher perceived value.
Does this replace the square-foot pricing calculator?
No — this one builds in machine depreciation explicitly for rigid/flatbed output, while the square-foot calculator is a quicker field tool for flexible material like banners and vinyl where the media cost dominates and depreciation matters less per job.
Accuracy and limitations
- Results are estimates before tax, fees, and inflation unless an input explicitly covers them.
- Rates are treated as fixed for the whole period — variable-rate products will drift from this projection.
- This is educational maths, not financial advice. Check anything contractual with the lender or your accountant.
Related tools
Vinyl & Wide-Format Square-Foot Pricing Calculator
Price banners, decals, and wraps by square foot with material and labor.
Sign Shop Hourly Rate Calculator
Back into the hourly rate your shop needs to charge to hit targets.
Wide-Format Media Roll Yield Calculator
How many prints and jobs you can get from a roll of media.
Cite this calculator
Writing about this topic? Grab a citation — every link helps keep these tools free.
RevenueLab. (2026). Large Format Print Markup Calculator. Retrieved from https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/large-format-print-markup
<p>Source: <a href="https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/large-format-print-markup" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Large Format Print Markup Calculator — RevenueLab</a> (2026).</p>
Source: [Large Format Print Markup Calculator — RevenueLab](https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/large-format-print-markup) (2026).