3D Printing Cost Calculator: Filament, Power & Labor

Published September 22, 2026 · MfgWorkbench editorial reference

Estimate the cost of an FDM print job using slicer mass and time estimates plus your own electricity, machine and labor rates. Include supports and purge material in filament mass.

Cost model and avoiding double counting

Filament cost = mass in grams × price per kg / 1000. Electricity cost = average watts / 1000 × hours × electricity tariff per kWh. Machine cost = hours × machine rate. Labor cost = hands-on minutes × labor hourly rate / 60. Add other job costs, then divide by the number of accepted parts.

The machine rate should exclude electricity and labor if those are entered separately. Use measured average power where available, not the power supply’s maximum rating. All money inputs must use the same currency. Defaults demonstrate the arithmetic and do not represent a regional market price.

Worked example

A 100 g job using filament priced at 25/kg costs 2.50 in material. Four hours at 120 W and 0.20/kWh uses 0.48 kWh and costs 0.096. A machine rate of 1/hour adds 4.00, and 15 minutes of labor at 20/hour adds 5.00. With no other charges, total cost is 11.596 for the job.

If it yields two accepted parts, divide by two. If one part fails after consuming time and material, include those consumed resources in the job total and reduce accepted quantity rather than pretending the failed part was free.

Cost is not a customer quotation

Support removal, inserts, sanding, inspection, packaging, software, rent and failed-print allowance can matter more than electricity. Record how each is treated in the machine rate, labor or other-cost field. Resin handling and post-curing require a different process model; this tool is aimed at filament printing.

A 30% markup on cost is not a 30% gross margin. For a chosen gross margin m, price before tax = cost/(1−m), provided all relevant costs are included. Validate demand and pricing separately. Neither a slicer estimate nor this calculator guarantees print time, dimensional acceptance or profitability.