Should you choose screen print or embroidery for your order?

For quantities under about 24 pieces, embroidery usually wins on total cost despite the one-time digitizing fee. For large runs of printed tees with photographic detail or many colours, screen print wins. Left chests on professional workwear almost always go embroidery, regardless of quantity.

Screen printing and embroidery aren't competing — they serve different purposes. The right choice depends on your garment, your design, your quantity, and what your customer actually wants.

Embroidery adds a premium feel that screen print can't replicate. Thread has texture, depth, and a perceived quality that reads as 'professional' in a way that ink doesn't. Corporate clients, sports teams, and premium brands usually want embroidery for left chests and caps.

Screen print is better for large designs with fine detail, gradients, or lots of colors. Back designs with photographic elements or complex gradients are almost always better as screen print. Embroidery has physical limits — very fine lines get lost in thread texture, and true gradients aren't possible.

On pricing, the comparison isn't as simple as per-piece cost. Embroidery has a one-time digitizing fee (from $15), then a per-piece embroidery cost that's typically $3-8 depending on stitch count and location. Screen printing has higher setup costs (screen fees, $25-50 per color) but lower per-piece costs at volume.

For quantities under 24, embroidery often wins on total cost. For large runs of printed tees, screen print wins. For left chests on professional workwear, embroidery almost always wins regardless of quantity.

Our artwork team can prepare files for either output — separated screen print files or digitized embroidery, depending on what your production requires.