Buyers often assume the relationship between quantity and price is a smooth line: half the pieces, roughly double the unit cost. In knitwear it is not. The cost of a garment has two parts, and only one of them scales with quantity.
What actually sits inside a knitwear unit price
Ask any factory to separate a quotation into these four blocks and the shape of the curve becomes visible immediately:
| Block | Scales with quantity? | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Set-up | No | Pattern, knitting program, machine set-up, linkage and finishing preparation. Fixed per style and per colour. |
| Material | Yes | Yarn, trims, labels, packaging. Improves slightly with volume through bulk yarn purchase and lower waste. |
| Making | Yes | Knitting, linking, finishing, inspection. Efficiency improves in longer continuous runs. |
| Overhead & margin | Partly | Handling, communication, administration, and the factory's margin. Small orders carry proportionally more handling per piece. |
The practical consequence: on a 30-piece run, set-up can be a very large share of the unit price. On a 100-piece run of the same garment, set-up is spread three times as far, and material and making efficiency both improve. The unit price falls — but not in a straight line.
The cost curve at 30, 50 and 100 pieces
The chart below shows the shape of the curve rather than a price for a specific garment, because the absolute figures depend on yarn, structure and trim count. The pattern holds across most custom knitwear:
Using an anonymised real quotation as an indicative anchor — a 7GG knitted half-zip polo in 100% wool, EXW China, at small quantity around 30 pieces — the unit price sat at approximately USD 25–45; the same style in a 55% wool / 45% cotton blend sat at approximately USD 20–25. Those ranges are for a genuine garment with a knitted collar, chest pocket, metal half-zip and a woven patch — the trim list alone accounts for a meaningful share of the difference against a plain pullover.
Two cautions when reading any small-run figure. First, a range is more honest than a point price at enquiry stage, because yarn quality, garment weight and stitch structure are still open. Second, confirm the trade term: EXW and FOB are not the same number, and the gap between them is often larger than the difference between two competitive factories.
Why 30 pieces is the awkward quantity
Thirty pieces is where a project is small enough to be expensive per unit but large enough to require full development work. It is a legitimate way to launch a first style, and it is the quantity at which the material choices matter most:
The single biggest lever
A custom dye usually carries its own minimum, which can exceed your garment order. Choosing a stock yarn in a close colour removes that minimum entirely and shortens lead time. On a 30-piece run this decision can matter more than any negotiation on making cost.
Every custom trim adds a minimum
A custom woven patch, a custom zipper pull, a special label — each has a supplier minimum that applies regardless of how few garments you make. Standard trims in the right finish often look identical at a fraction of the cost.
Colours multiply the minimum
Minimums typically apply per colour, not to the total. Two colourways of 25 pieces is not the same commercial proposition as one colourway of 50. If a first season needs four colours, ask what that does to both the minimum and the unit price before committing.
Reading an itemised sample fee
The sample fee is development cost, not a discountable line, and it should be broken down. A workable two-stage structure looks like this:
| Stage | Indicative cost | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Material confirmation | ~USD 50–80 | Recommended yarn options, hand-feel samples, colour references, international shipping |
| Garment prototype | ~USD 250 | Pattern adjustment, knitting programming, yarn preparation, sample knitting, first fitting adjustment, finishing, shipping |
Ask specifically about the three items that are routinely excluded from a headline sample price: the cost of a further sample after a major revision, whether grading across sizes is charged separately, and who pays import duties and customs clearance on arrival. None of these are unreasonable to charge — they are only unreasonable to discover later.
How to keep a first run affordable without weakening it
Cheap material is not the answer; a first season that arrives with the wrong hand-feel costs more than it saves. The levers that actually work are structural:
Start on stock yarn in a close colour and move to a custom dye once the style has proven itself. Launch one or two colourways rather than a full range, because each colour carries its own minimum. Use standard trims in the correct finish. Hold the style constant between quantities so the quotation at 100 pieces is genuinely comparable with the one at 30 — no quiet change of yarn or trim list between the scenarios, or the comparison is meaningless.
Finally, treat the sample as part of the cost of the style, not as a separate expense. A well-developed sample is what makes the bulk quotation accurate in the first place.
FAQ
Small-run cost questions
Is 30 pieces too small for a knitwear order?
Not necessarily, but it is the most expensive quantity per unit. At 30 pieces the set-up cost is spread over very few garments, so the unit price can be 30–60% higher than at 100 pieces. Stock yarn and standard trims are what make a run this small practical.
Why is the unit price so much higher at 30 pieces than at 100?
Set-up costs are fixed regardless of quantity: pattern and programming, machine set-up, linkage and finishing preparation, and trim sourcing. At 30 pieces those costs are divided by 30; at 100 pieces, by 100. Material efficiency also improves with larger batches.
How much should I budget for a first knitwear sample?
As a planning benchmark, roughly USD 200–300 for a first garment prototype including international shipping, plus an optional USD 50–80 for a yarn and material confirmation stage. Treat both as development cost, not as a deposit against production.
Can I split 100 pieces across several colours?
You can, but the minimum usually applies per colour rather than to the total. Splitting 100 pieces into four colourways of 25 can trigger four separate minimums, so ask whether your colourway count changes the minimum or the unit price before you commit to a range.
Does using stock yarn really lower the price?
Often, yes — significantly on small quantities. A custom dye usually carries its own minimum, which can be larger than the garment order. A stock yarn in a close colour removes that minimum and shortens lead time at the same time.
Related guides in this library: what to ask a knitwear factory before commissioning a paid sample, how MOQ is calculated for custom knitwear, why quotes for the same sweater vary, and how yarn, gauge and density shape the garment.