Should You Print Cups In-House or Outsource? A Cost Breakdown

Once a business is ordering thousands of custom cups a month, the question naturally comes up: does it make more sense to buy a screen printing machine and bring production in-house?

The outsourcing model

Outsourcing means no equipment cost, no labor overhead, and no minimum monthly commitment beyond your order's MOQ (usually 250 units). You pay a per-unit price that already includes setup, printing, and quality control. This is the right model for most businesses under roughly 5,000-8,000 units/month.

The in-house model

A screen printing machine is a fixed cost that pays for itself through volume — the more you print, the lower your effective cost per cup, because you're no longer paying someone else's margin on top of materials. It also removes minimum order constraints and lead times entirely; you print exactly what you need, when you need it.

Where the break-even usually falls

Based on typical machine costs and per-unit savings, businesses printing 8,000-15,000+ cups per month tend to reach payback within 6-12 months of ownership. Below that volume, the fixed cost of the machine, ink, screens, and labor time usually outweighs the savings versus outsourcing.

Questions to ask before buying

• Do you have consistent volume, or does demand spike seasonally?
• Do you have staff time to dedicate to a production line?
• Are you planning to resell blank cups or printing services to other businesses?

See our full ROI calculator to run the numbers for your specific volume, or read why print in-house for the full case.