Banner Prices
When it comes to banner prices, nothing is straightforward. Here is a guide to figuring out the true price of a vinyl banner:
Actual banner prices
Many banner companies charge several fees. The most common fees include:
- Design fee: The company charges a fee to design your banner.
- Setup fee: Even if you send in your own banner design, the company often charges a setup fee to cover the time it takes to download and convert your files for their printing process.
- Banner price: This is the cost of printing the actual banner.
- Hemming: Sneaky banner printers may not include hemming in the banner price.
- Grommets: This is another hidden fee some companies don’t include in the banner price.
- Shipping: If you’re buying your banner online, shipping is often not included. This can actually work to your benefit! Let’s say you are ordering 3 different banners. If the company includes shipping in the banner price, you may really be paying $11 each banner for shipping — which is $33. But if the company charges $11 to ship the first banner, and $1 each to ship the other banners, you are only paying $13, so your total banner price is lower.
Watch out for companies that try to charge you extra for hemming and grommets! These companies may also try to upsell you after you place your order — for example, trying to get you to pay more design changes.
Standard banner prices
The banner industry is full of different prices, but here are some general rules of thumb.
Square foot price: The most common way to price banners is by the square foot. Let’s say you are ordering a 3×8 banner, which is 3 feet x 8 feet = a total of 24 square feet. If your banner company charges $5 per square foot, your banner price is 24 x 5 = $120.
- Local sign shops usually charge at least $4 per square foot, and some go as high as $10 per square foot. You are paying extra for customer service, since someone has to take your order and then print your banner in the middle of doing all sorts of other jobs.
- Online banner companies usually charge between $3 and $5 per square foot. The trick here is that many websites charge extra fees, as noted above, so make sure you know the full price before you spend time designing a banner on a website, only to find the price is much higher than your original quote.
What to do about banner prices
Shop around, just like you would shop for anything else. But remember that the cheapest banner may not be the best quality, and if the banner tears before you’re ready to take it down, you may end up paying more in the long run replacing it.
Online reviews can be really helpful in determining whether a banner company is good or not.
If you’re short on time and want a recommendation right here, Unbeatable Banners charges a simple banner price, plus flat-rate shipping of $11 for the first banner, $1 for each additional banner. There are never any other fees.
