I Tested and Reviewd Threadless vs Printful: My Verdict for 2025

Printful gives you higher profit margins, full pricing control, and branding options, making it the better choice for serious sellers. Meanwhile,

Threadless is easier for beginners, but you’ll earn less per sale since Threadless controls the pricing and profit margins.

If you want passive income with no setup hassle, go with Threadless. If you want to build a brand and maximize profits, go with Printful.

Threadless vs Printful: Pricing Comparison Table

Feature	Threadless	Printful
Upfront Costs	$0 (No monthly fees)	$0 (Free Plan) or $24.99/month (Growth Plan)
Profit Margins	10-20% per sale (Threadless sets prices)	You set your own prices (Can make 30-50% profit)
Customization	No branding options	Custom labels, packaging, branding
Product Base Costs	Lower, but limited quality & options	Higher, but more premium products
Shipping Costs	Higher in some cases ($5.99+ per item)	Lower in some cases ($4.69 for a T-shirt)
Best For	Artists who want passive income	Entrepreneurs who want higher profits & brand control

What is Threadless?

Threadless is a marketplace-based print-on-demand (POD) platform. Artists upload designs, and customers buy them on T-shirts, hoodies, accessories and more.

Unlike other POD services, Threadless operates more like Redbubble or TeePublic, where the platform itself manages printing, fulfillment and customer service. This means sellers don’t have to worry about logistics or customer issues, making it an easy way to sell designs online.

One of the biggest draw of Threadless is its built-in audience. Since it’s a marketplace, people visit Threadless looking for unique designs.

This means you can generate sales without paid ads or personal marketing efforts. But the downside is your designs are competing against thousands of others, so you need to create something truly unique or go viral.

Another important thing is the pricing structure.

Threadless sets retail prices for products, so you don’t have full control over your profit margins. While this makes it easy to start selling right away, it also limits how much you can make per sale compared to a fully independent store.

Pros of Threadless:

✅ No upfront costs – You don’t pay for inventory.
✅ Built-in marketplace – Customers can find your designs.
✅ Easy setup – Just upload designs and start selling.

Cons of Threadless:

❌ Lower profit margins – You don’t set the price. Threadless decides how much you earn.
❌ Limited store customization – You can’t brand your own store.
❌ Marketplace competition – You’re competing with thousands of other artists.

If you want hands-off approach and don’t care about setting your own prices, Threadless is okay. But if you want more control, keep reading.

What is Printful?

Printful is a print-on-demand dropshipping service that integrates with Shopify, Etsy, WooCommerce and other e-commerce platforms.

Unlike Threadless, you control your store, pricing and branding—Printful just prints and ships your products. This makes it a better option for business owners who want to build a unique brand rather than just selling on a shared marketplace.

One of Printful’s biggest advantages is flexibility. You’re not limited to a single marketplace—you can sell through your own website, on Etsy, Amazon, eBay or anywhere else you choose.

This means more opportunities to scale, but it also requires more work since you need to drive your own traffic through SEO, social media or paid ads.

Another major plus is branding control. Printful lets you customize your store, add custom labels, include branded packaging and even print custom packing slips.

This makes it feel more like your own business rather than selling through a third-party platform. If you’re serious about branding, this is a huge advantage over Threadless.

How it works:

You create a store (Shopify, Etsy, WooCommerce etc.)
Upload designs and add them to your store
Printful prints and ships orders as they come in

Pros of Printful:

Higher profit margins – You set your own prices.
Full brand control – Your own store, not a marketplace.
More products – Printful offers a wider variety of custom items.

Cons of Printful:

Requires a store – You need Shopify, Etsy or another platform.
Marketing is on you – No built-in audience like Threadless.
Upfront costs – Some products can be expensive to produce.

If you want control over pricing, branding and marketing, Printful is the better option. But it requires more work.

Product Quality: Threadless vs Printful

Threadless Product Quality

Threadless uses direct-to-garment (DTG) printing, a method that sprays ink directly onto fabric like an inkjet printer.

This means detailed and colorful designs, but the print may not be as durable as screen printing. Since Threadless prints all products in-house, the quality is generally consistent but not always the best compared to high-end POD services.

One of the biggest drawbacks of Threadless is limited customization options.

You’re limited to their default printing methods and can’t choose premium brands like Bella+Canvas or Next Level Apparel. This means your products won’t have the same premium feel that Printful can offer.

Threadless is great if you’re targeting casual buyers who want unique designs. But if you’re building a premium brand, the product quality might not be high enough.

Printful Product Quality

Printful offers multiple printing methods – DTG, embroidery and sublimation printing. This means you can sell higher-end apparel, embroidered hats and all-over print designs – features Threadless doesn’t offer.

Another big plus of Printful is you can choose your own blank products. You’re not stuck with generic T-shirts – you can offer premium brands like Bella+Canvas, American Apparel or Champion. This gives you more control over product quality and allows you to position your brand as high-end.

Winner: Printful (more options, better control over quality).

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Pricing & Profit Margins: Threadless vs Printful

Pricing is a huge factor when choosing between Threadless vs Printful. At the end of the day, your profit margins determine how much money you actually take home.

Threadless follows a fixed pricing model, meaning they set the prices, and you earn a small percentage per sale. Printful, on the other hand, lets you set your own prices, giving you full control over your profit margins.

With Printful’s updated 2025 pricing structure, there are even more ways to cut costs and increase profits—especially with their new Growth Plan discounts.

Let’s break it all down.

Threadless Pricing & Earnings

How does Threadless pricing work?

Threadless is a low-risk, low-reward model. They handle production, shipping, and customer service, but they also control the pricing—meaning you don’t get to decide how much you charge.

Your earnings per sale are usually 10-20% of the retail price, depending on the product. This might sound okay at first, but when you compare it to Printful’s margins, it becomes clear that Threadless sellers make a lot less per item.

Example: How Much Can You Make on Threadless?

Let’s say you sell a T-shirt for $25 on Threadless. You might only make $3 to $5 per sale.

Now, let’s compare that to Printful:

With Printful, you can price the same shirt at $30-$35.
After production and shipping costs, you could easily make $10-$20 per sale.

That’s double or triple what you’d earn on Threadless. Multiply that over 100+ sales, and you see the difference.

This is the trade-off: Threadless requires less effort, but Printful gives you way more control over profits.

Printful Pricing & Earnings (2025 Update)

Printful recently revamped its pricing model, and it’s now more competitive than ever. Unlike Threadless, Printful lets you set your own retail prices, giving you complete control over your earnings per sale.

Printful’s 2025 Pricing Plans: Free vs Growth Membership

Printful now has two main pricing plans:

1️⃣ Free Plan – No monthly fee. You just pay for products and shipping when customers order.
2️⃣ Growth Plan ($24.99/month) – Includes product discounts, branding perks, and sample order savings.

Bonus: If your store earns $12,000 per year ($1K/month), the Growth Plan is free.

This is a huge advantage because Printful is the only POD company that makes its premium plan free when you hit a certain revenue level.

How Printful’s Product Pricing Works

Unlike Threadless, Printful follows a pay-as-you-go model. You don’t pay anything upfront—costs are only deducted when a customer places an order.

Your total cost per product includes:

✅ Base Product Cost (T-shirts, hoodies, mugs, etc.)
✅ Printing Fee (depends on design placement & printing method)
✅ Shipping Fees (varies by location & product)
✅ Optional Branding Costs (custom labels, packaging, inserts)

Here’s an example of how pricing works for different products:

Product	Base Cost	Printing Fee	Total Cost (Before Shipping)	Recommended Selling Price	Profit Margin
Gildan 64000 T-Shirt	$6.95	$2.50 (Printing)	$9.45	$25-$30	$15-$20
Bella + Canvas 3001 T-Shirt	$10.50	Included	$10.50	$30+	$19.50+
Gildan 18500 Hoodie	$22.25	Included	$22.25	$50-$60	$27-$37
11oz White Mug	$6.50	Included	$6.50	$18-$20	$11-$13

Key Takeaway: Printful lets you make $10-$30 per sale instead of the $3-$5 you’d get on Threadless.

Printful’s Shipping Costs vs Threadless

Shipping is not included in Printful’s base product cost, but you can either:

✅ Charge customers for shipping (most sellers do this)
✅ Offer “free” shipping by adding the cost into the product price

Here’s how Printful’s shipping compares to Threadless:

Product Type	Printful Shipping (US)	Threadless Shipping (US)
T-Shirts	$4.69	$5.99
Hoodies	$8.49	$10.99
Mugs	$6.49	$8.99

🔹 Surprise: Printful is actually cheaper than Threadless for shipping in many cases.

This means even with Printful’s higher base product costs, your overall pricing can still be more competitive.

Printful’s Extra Costs & Optional Add-Ons

Unlike Threadless, Printful offers premium branding options—but they come at an extra cost.

Branding Costs

Want to add custom labels, packaging, or inserts? Here’s what you’ll pay:

🔹 Inside labels: $0.99 per shirt
🔹 Outside labels: $2.49 per shirt
🔹 Embroidered logos: $6.50 (one-time fee per design)

If you’re serious about branding your business, these options help you stand out—but they do increase costs.

Extra Printing Fees

Basic front or back prints are included, but if you want multiple print areas, you’ll pay extra:

🔹 Sleeve print: $2.49 per sleeve
🔹 Back print: $5.95
🔹 Inside label: $0.99

The more print areas you use, the higher your production cost, so keep designs simple to maximize profits.

Which Pricing Model is Better?

Let’s be real: Threadless is easier, but Printful is way more profitable.

Threadless Pricing Pros & Cons

✅ No upfront costs
✅ Great for beginners
❌ Low profit margins ($3-$5 per sale)
❌ No pricing control
❌ Limited branding options

Printful Pricing Pros & Cons

✅ Higher profit margins ($10-$30 per sale)
✅ You control pricing
✅ More branding & customization
❌ Requires marketing & traffic
❌ Extra costs for premium branding

The Bottom Line: If you just want passive income, Threadless is fine. But if you want to actually build a profitable brand, Printful is the way to go.