CNC pricing calculator: what to charge for a carving
Most first-time sellers price a carving at the cost of the board plus whatever feels polite, and lose money on every one. Put in your own board, your machine time and your hands-on time and this works out a price that pays for all of it, plus what you actually keep after the platform fee. The presets match the worked examples in our guide to pricing and selling CNC carvings.
The formula behind it
Price = (materials + machine time + your time) Γ 2, rounded up to a number that looks deliberate. Materials are the board, the finish, the hanger and the box. Machine time is charged by the hour because the machine, the electricity and the cutters are real costs. Your time is setup, sanding, finishing and photographing, and $25 an hour is a floor, not a ceiling. The Γ2 covers the failed board, the fees and the profit. Not sure how long it will carve? Will it cut? estimates the machine time for any STL.
Price calculator
Every cost of a carving, from the board to the platform fee. Change anything and the price updates. Nothing leaves your browser. Start from a typical piece:
1The batch
Board, setup and machine time are shared across the batch. Supplies and hands-on time below are per piece.
2The board
3Design file and supplies
4Machine time
5Your time
6Pricing
MultiplierCovers the failed board, the snapped bit, slow weeks and profit
Round up to$145 looks like a decision, $137 like arithmetic
Commission premiumCustom work cannot be resold if they change their mind
Rush feeJumping the queue for a deadline
7Where you sell it
About 6.5% transaction + 3% payment processing, plus $0.25 per order and $0.20 to list. Check your own Etsy fees.
Quoting a Cut Local job? The same numbers make a fair quote: work out the price here, then write the wood, the finish and the delivery date into your quote. Open your maker dashboard or join as a maker.
Questions people ask
How do I price a CNC carving?
Add up materials, machine time and your own hands-on time, multiply by 2, then round up to a number that looks deliberate. A 400 mm cherry wildlife panel works out at about $35 of materials, 4 hours of machine time at $12 and 2.5 hours of your time at $25: $146 of cost, which becomes $295.
What should I charge per hour of CNC machine time?
Small shops typically charge $10 to $15 per hour of spindle time. It covers the machine, the electricity and the cutters, which wear out.
Why multiply by two?
The multiplier pays for everything nobody writes down: the failed board, the snapped bit, the fair or platform fee, the time spent answering questions, and profit. Without it the hobby costs money.
What about commissions and custom work?
Add 25 to 50 percent for commissions, because the piece cannot be resold if the customer changes their mind, and take half as a deposit up front.
Can I sell carvings made from DigitalChiselCo files?
Yes. Every design includes commercial use: carve and sell as many finished pieces as you like. Only the file itself cannot be shared or resold.
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Before you go
5 bas-relief STL files, free
Full designs, not samples. CNC-tested and ready for your router or 3D printer (lasers work from a depth map), and you can sell what you make from them.
