How do you calculate print run cost?

Multiply impressions by paper+ink per impression and by good-copy yield, then add the makeready and plate charge. For 25,000 impressions at $0.045, 95% yield and a $650 makeready charge, total run cost is $1,718.75 and cost per good impression is $0.06875.

What is makeready and why does it dominate short runs?

Makeready is the fixed setup - mounting plates, registering color, bringing ink up to density - paid once per job. Here it is $650. On a 25,000 run it adds $0.026 per copy, but on a 2,500 run it would add $0.26, which is why short offset runs are proportionally expensive.

What is a good cost per impression?

It depends on sheet size, color count, and stock, but simple work at volume often lands in the $0.03-$0.08 range per impression. The $0.06875 here is reasonable for a mid-length job; heavier coverage, more colors, and short runs push it higher.

How does good-copy yield affect the cost?

A 95% yield means 5% of impressions are spoilage from setup sheets and misregisters. It scales the variable cost, giving $1,068.75 in variable cost rather than the $1,125 you would pay at perfect yield - so you effectively pay for paper you throw away.

Print run cost vs cost per impression?

Total run cost is the whole job - $1,718.75 - while cost per impression is that total divided by impressions, or $0.06875. Quote the per-impression figure to compare jobs, but bill the total plus your markup.

Should I gang jobs to lower run cost?

Ganging spreads one makeready across multiple pieces, dropping the effective fixed cost per job. If the $650 makeready covered two products at once, each carries roughly half, materially lowering cost per good impression on both.

Printing, Labels & Industrial Converting calculator

Print Run Cost Calculator

Print run cost is the total cost of a sheet-fed or offset job and the resulting cost per good impression once you fold in paper and ink, spoilage, and the fixed makeready and plate charge. Print estimators and pressroom managers rely on it to build quotes and to see how heavily makeready weighs on short runs. Because plates and makeready are paid once per job, the cost per impression falls sharply as the run lengthens - the classic offset economics that push buyers toward gang runs and longer press stints. Nailing this number keeps quotes competitive without giving away margin on setup.

What this calculator does

Estimate the total cost of a press run including stock, ink, spoilage, and the flat makeready charge.
A commercial printer uses this to price a run and see how makeready spreads across the impression count.
It computes total run cost from impressions, paper+ink, and yield, then divides by impressions to give cost per good copy.

Formula used

Total run cost = impressions x paper+ink/impression x good-copy yield% + makeready charge
Cost per good impression = total run cost / impressions

Inputs explained

Sheets or impressions:
Paper and ink per impression:
Good-copy yield:
Makeready and plate charge:

How to use the result

Use it when estimating an offset or sheet-fed job, evaluating run-length breakpoints, or checking how makeready loads onto a quote.
It applies yield as a single multiplier and does not model per-color plate counts, wash-up time, or press speed separately, so long multi-color jobs may need a more detailed model.

Current U.S. benchmarks

The producer price index for paperboard and containers stands at 276.831 (BLS, May 2026), up 8.8% from a year earlier. Quotes priced off last quarter's material cost miss this move.
The U.S. has 22,301 printing and related support establishments employing about 386,248 workers (Census County Business Patterns, 2023).

Common questions

How do you calculate print run cost? Multiply impressions by paper+ink per impression and by good-copy yield, then add the makeready and plate charge. For 25,000 impressions at $0.045, 95% yield and a $650 makeready charge, total run cost is $1,718.75 and cost per good impression is $0.06875.
What is makeready and why does it dominate short runs? Makeready is the fixed setup - mounting plates, registering color, bringing ink up to density - paid once per job. Here it is $650. On a 25,000 run it adds $0.026 per copy, but on a 2,500 run it would add $0.26, which is why short offset runs are proportionally expensive.
What is a good cost per impression? It depends on sheet size, color count, and stock, but simple work at volume often lands in the $0.03-$0.08 range per impression. The $0.06875 here is reasonable for a mid-length job; heavier coverage, more colors, and short runs push it higher.
How does good-copy yield affect the cost? A 95% yield means 5% of impressions are spoilage from setup sheets and misregisters. It scales the variable cost, giving $1,068.75 in variable cost rather than the $1,125 you would pay at perfect yield - so you effectively pay for paper you throw away.
Print run cost vs cost per impression? Total run cost is the whole job - $1,718.75 - while cost per impression is that total divided by impressions, or $0.06875. Quote the per-impression figure to compare jobs, but bill the total plus your markup.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.