Custom T-Shirt Manufacturing
A t-shirt order is decided by four documents: the spec sheet, the print sheet, the size set and the cost model.
The starting point for a t-shirt programme: what to write down before you request a quote, how the decoration method follows order size, and where the margin actually goes.
- Two detailed guides cover all 56 t-shirt articles
- Four documents decide the product, the price and the reorder
- Every route ends in something you can send to a factory
Three routes, and you only need one of them
Start from the specification, from the decoration, or from the numbers behind the order.
The spec sheet is the product
Start with the six specs that a factory needs before it can quote honestly: fabric and composition, weight in GSM, yarn count, neckline construction, fit block and print placement. Everything downstream — the sample round, the quote, the inspection — is measured against those six. A tech pack that omits any of them means the factory decides on your behalf, and it will decide in the direction that is easiest to pro…
Choose the print method by order size, not by taste
Every print method has a break-even quantity, and the break-even is set by setup cost, not by ink. Screen printing carries a per-colour setup that disappears into the unit price at volume; DTG and transfer have almost no setup and a higher per-piece cost. Choosing DTG for a 2,000-piece run, or screen for a 30-piece team order, is the single most expensive unforced error in this category. Match the method to the qu…
Fabric weight sets the price band before anything else
Weight is the cheapest lever you have for repositioning a t-shirt. Under 160 GSM reads as a promotional blank; 180 to 200 GSM is the mainstream retail band; 220 and above is where streetwear brands live. The fibre choice compounds it: combed cotton costs more than carded, and a modal or bamboo content moves the shirt into a softer, more expensive story. Decide the band first, then the print, because the print is w…
Where the t-shirt margin goes
Landed cost, minimums and print waste decide the margin long before the retail price does.
Neckline and fit are separate decisions
Buyers tend to change the neckline and the fit block at the same time, which makes the sample round impossible to read. Change one variable per round. Neck rib width, taping and the depth of a V determine whether the shirt survives a year of washing; the fit block determines whether it sells. Get the neck right first, because a neck that ripples is a quality complaint, while a fit that misses is a merchandising decision you can correct on the next order.
Minimums are set by colour, not by style
Ask every factory for the minimum per colour and per print placement, not per style. Four colours of a single style is four dye lots, four print set-ups and four chances for a shade difference between them. If your first order cannot clear the floor honestly, cut the colour count rather than the quantity: an under-filled order moves to the back of the production queue, and the delay costs more than the colour would have.
Sample and approve against measured points
The development sample proves the fabric and the print artwork. The size set proves the grading across the range, and it is where a shoulder seam that sits 1 cm wide in XL gets caught. The pre-production sample proves the actual line with the actual dye lot. Sign each one and keep the approved pieces sealed; from that point the inspection is a comparison against a reference rather than a conversation about intentions.
Landed cost decides the margin, not the unit price
Build the landed cost model before comparing quotes, because a factory quoting ex-works and one quoting DDP are not comparable. Add the same freight and duty assumption to every candidate, then add the costs buyers forget: print waste allowance, polybag and hangtag, inspection and the cost of one reprint when a colour lands wrong. The shirt with the lowest unit price is frequently not the cheapest shirt in the warehouse.
Choose the supply model you can own
Blank supply, ODM and OEM carry different minimums and a different answer on exclusivity.
Pick the supply model that matches what you own
Blank supply means you buy an existing product and decorate it, which is the right first move when you are testing a market. ODM means you choose a design from the factory’s library, which is faster than OEM but needs an exclusivity conversation. OEM means you supply the tech pack and own the pattern, which costs a development round and returns a product no competitor can order. Choose by what you bring, not by which sounds more serious.
Stock and reorder by size, not by style
Read sell-through by size before placing the repeat order, and weight the second run toward what actually moved. Keep the print set-up from the first order — the screens, the artwork file and the placement measurements — because a reorder that re-digitises the artwork is a reorder that risks a visible difference from the first batch. If you are selling through more than one channel, build the curve per channel rather than pooling them.
Read the spec sheet article before you request a quote
The articles in this cluster are arranged as a decision path rather than a reading list, and each one assumes the specification exists. A buyer who writes the six specs down before making contact gets a comparable quote in two days; a buyer who starts from a photograph gets a quotation for a different garment and discovers it at the sample round. Start with the specification, then work through the branch that matches your bottleneck, whether that is decoration, minimums or landed cost.
Four decisions decide a t-shirt programme
Everything else on this page follows from these four.
GSM before design
Under 160 reads promotional, 180 to 200 is the retail mainstream, 220 and above is a specific customer.
Print method by order size
Screen printing wins above roughly 100 pieces per design; DTG wins below it. The break-even is setup cost.
Neckline construction
Rib width, taping and attachment tension decide whether the shirt survives a year of washing.
Minimum per colour
Four colours is four dye lots and four print set-ups. Cut the colours before you cut the quantity.
Where to go from here
The guides that sit either side of a t-shirt programme.
Custom t-shirt questions
What is a good MOQ for custom t-shirts?
How long does a custom t-shirt order take?
Should I choose organic cotton for my first t-shirt range?
Is heavyweight always better?
How do I stop colour variation between orders?
Request a t-shirt quote
Send the fabric and weight, the decoration method, the size set and the quantity per colour. We will come back with a unit price, a landed cost estimate and a sampling timeline.
Send your t-shirt spec