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Pricing, costs & running a laser business
Practical pricing for craft, engraving and personalization laser shops. For step-by-step help with the calculator itself, see the Guide.
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How to Price Laser Engraving Jobs (Without Guessing)
A repeatable way to price laser engraving and cutting work: the four things every job actually costs, why setup time is the number most people miss, and how to choose a margin instead of a markup.
Read →The Real Cost of Running a Laser Cutter
Tube and diode wear, power draw, extraction, overhead and your own time add up to a real per-hour cost of running a laser. Here's how to turn all of it into one hourly rate you can quote from.
Read →All posts
The Best Free Online Tools & Generators for Laser Cutters (2026 Directory)
Box makers, living hinge generators, connected text, nesting and control software: the free tools laser owners actually reach for, and how to choose between them.
Sheet Offcuts vs. Nested Pricing: How to Stop Losing Money on Custom Laser Cuts
Pricing material by the square millimetre you use hides the offcut you pay for. Learn when to bill nested area, when to bill the whole sheet, and how to absorb the waste on purpose.
How to Laser Cut Custom Cardboard Shipping Boxes: Cut vs. Score Die-Lines, Flute Direction & Zero-Waste Packaging
Choose the right corrugated board, tell cut lines from score lines, fold three box styles and export a LightBurn file with the layers already set up.
The Hours You Don't Bill: Pricing the Time Away From the Laser
The laser is only running for part of every job. Here's how to find the hours you're giving away — messages, file prep, masking, packing — and put them on the quote.
How to Price Laser Engraving Jobs (Without Guessing)
A repeatable way to price laser engraving and cutting work: the four things every job actually costs, why setup time is the number most people miss, and how to choose a margin instead of a markup.
The Real Cost of Running a Laser Cutter
Tube and diode wear, power draw, extraction, overhead and your own time add up to a real per-hour cost of running a laser. Here's how to turn all of it into one hourly rate you can quote from.
Common Pricing Mistakes Laser Engravers Make (And What They Cost You)
Eight pricing mistakes that quietly drain margin from a laser business — from charging only for cut time to confusing markup with margin — and how to fix each one.
Spreadsheet vs. Laser Quote: Why We Built a Dedicated Tool
Nearly every laser shop starts with a pricing spreadsheet. Here's exactly where spreadsheets break as the business grows — and what a purpose-built quoting tool changes.