A Basic Guide for Creating Custom Patches on A Budget

If you love the look of custom patches on clothing and accessories—and are considering placing an order yourself—you may be curious about the cost. Much like getting a custom painting commissioned, getting personalized patches does come with costs that are determined once you present your preferences.

Today, we’ll be guiding you about creating customized patches while maintaining your budget.

Is Creating Custom Patches Cost-Effective?

When it comes to creating custom patches, you are already on the right path if your goal is to work within limited personal or brand budget.

Custom patches are cost-effective compared to direct embroidery or screen printing design on clothing and accessories. The latter options require branding a piece of garment permanently...and you may have to go for the price of the medium (clothing/bags/shoes/keychains) according to the embroidery or printing service.

With custom patches, you get to exercise more control over your choice of medium, which means that you can cut costs.

Guide For Creating Custom Patches – The Low-Budget Version!

How much do custom patches cost? The answer is not a straight-up net total. What kind of patch do you need and what are the colors and sizes? Are you looking for a small number of patches or need to order in bulk?

The cost of creating custom patches depends on so many factors since you are buying something that is fully personalized for you. However, you can take certain steps to ensure that your total doesn't blow your budget.

1. Keep It Simple

Just as you would pay more for printing on a piece of paper with more colors, you pay more for patches that have a higher number of colors. Add lettering to the mix and the total cost goes up. A more complex design uses up more raw materials, labor, and machinery time and power. If you are designing custom patches on a budget, steer clear of more intricate artwork and move towards something simpler.

Creating custom patches doesn’t automatically mean your design isn’t interesting. Making your patch eye-catching is all about making the most of limited color and pattern options.

Play with contrasts, uses your whites and black for lifting the design, or pair complementing shades—which is especially pleasant for pastel combinations. You'll be surprised at how easily you can get a gorgeous patch with fewer materials involved!

2. Design Yourself

As a small-scale brand or club or team, you may have a very limited budget for creating custom patches. Now patch-making isn’t something you can do in-house unless you have the proper materials, state-of-art equipment, and skill. But the design process for custom patches on a budget—now that’s where you can get creative yourself!

With apps like Canva or Photoshop, you can conjure up a basic logo or symbol yourself. It doesn't have to be too elaborate to exude uniqueness to make an impact. Take the logo for Nike or Shell or Apple Inc. for instance; top brands around the world have no-frill logos, yet they convey the message of what the brand is about.

If you need further help, patch manufacturers often offer free assistance for patch design when you place an order.

3. Browse Patch Types

You can’t get a guide for creating custom patches and not consider different types of custom patches. The same artwork for embroidered patches will not cost you the same as PVC patches or chenille patches. Each type of patch has its own materials, equipment, labor, and other factors that contribute to the total cost.

That said, embroidered patches usually cost less than other patches. You may even get a lower quote for chenille patches from some manufacturers since simple chenille patches typically use up less amount of yarn compared to embroidered or woven patches.

While some purposes may call for a specific type of patch—like custom patches for baseball hats with chenille-style stitching—most occasions do not have specifications. In those scenarios, you can go for classic embroidered patches for beautiful pieces of art within your budget!

4. Go For Bulk Orders

Looking to design custom patches for shirts for your sports club? If starting out small, you may be tempted to order a limited number of patches with the intention of ordering more when the need arises. Cost-wise, this may not be the smartest move.

If you want to get custom patches on a budget, bulk orders may be beneficial. First, bulk orders mean a lower price per patch. You can get extra patches for any future member, and patches also make great merchandising material for the fans!

Second, you avoid the entire process of ordering again, particularly shipping charges. Expert’s guide for creating custom patches is that in one go, get all the personalized patches you need for a long time to avoid crossing your budget.

5. Compare Manufacturers

Not every patch manufacturer will offer you the same quote. Pricing differs according to their products, equipment, and service. Plus, there's the matter of profit margin. Thus, when creating custom patches compare manufacturers.

Here are some incentives you should look for that’ll help lower your overall quote for creating custom patches:

• Fairer rates and bulk discounts
• No to low-minimum order limit policy
• Fast shipping to avoid any delay costs for you

Many patch manufacturers keep their costs low so as to cater to small businesses. Online patch manufacturers can usually afford to offer low quotes as their service costs go down drastically when operating on a digital front.

However, choosing online patch services or the service that offers the lowest quotes does not mean that you overlook quality. Cheaper patches that end up fraying or peeling quickly will cost you more than higher quality patches with a higher price point.

Custom Patches On A Budget With Elegant Patches

Looking for reliable patch manufacturers? Whether you need a one-on-one guide for creating custom patches or you're ready to order custom patches—we can help!

Elegant Patches offer reasonable rates, a low minimum order limit, and exceptional service! We cater to small and large businesses throughout the U.S. Reach out to us today and place your order today!