How to Price Handmade Jewelry

Short answer

To price handmade jewelry, cost every component separately: each bead, finding, clasp and length of wire or cord, worked out from the pack price. Add your making time at an hourly rate, plus packaging. That total is your unit cost. Mark it up for wholesale, then mark wholesale up for retail. A common starting point is to double cost for wholesale and double wholesale for retail.

Why jewelry is easy to underprice

A single piece of jewelry can use a dozen different components, each bought in a pack of a different size. Beads come in strands or bags of 100, clasps in packs of 10 or 20, wire on a reel measured in metres. It is easy to guess a lump "materials" figure, and guesses usually leave things out: crimp beads, jump rings, the extra wire you trim off.

The fix is to cost each component on its own line and let the maths add up the pennies.

Costing each component

For every component the formula is the same:

Cost used = pack price ÷ quantity in the pack × quantity used

Some examples:

Beads: a bag of 100 for $12.00, 22 used: 12 ÷ 100 × 22 = $2.64
Beading wire: 10 m for $6.00, 0.25 m used: 6 ÷ 10 × 0.25 = $0.15
Clasp: pack of 20 for $5.00, 1 used: $0.25
Crimp beads: bag of 100 for $3.00, 2 used: $0.06

Measure wire and cord including what you cut off, not just what ends up in the piece. Offcuts that are too short to reuse are part of the cost.

For precious metal and gemstones, the same method applies, but the pack price moves more. When you restock at a different price, update the pack cost so the piece cost follows.

Handmade Pricing Calculator

Prices handmade items by itemizing every material, your time, overheads and markup.

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Handmade Pricing Calculator was built for this kind of item. Each component gets its own line where you enter what you paid, how much came in the pack and how much this piece used, and the app converts the bulk price to the amount used. Because the original pack figures are kept, you can change a pack price later and the cost is worked out again. Materials you use often can be saved to your library and pulled into the next design by name.

Adding your time

Labour is often the biggest part of a jewelry price, even when the materials are cheap.

Time a real piece, from laying out beads to closing the last crimp.
Include the finishing: polishing, attaching tags and carding or boxing.
Use a named rate for each kind of work if they differ. Wire wrapping or metal work may deserve a different rate from simple stringing.

For a floor to compare your rate against, GOV.UK gives the UK National Living Wage for workers aged 21 and over as £12.71 an hour from April 2026. The U.S. Department of Labor gives the federal minimum wage for covered nonexempt employees as $7.25 an hour. These apply to employees, not to sellers, but if your price pays you less, you are effectively paying to make the piece.

Worked example: a beaded bracelet

Item	Working	Cost
Beads	100 for $12.00, used 22	$2.64
Beading wire	10 m for $6.00, used 0.25 m	$0.15
Clasp	20 for $5.00, used 1	$0.25
Crimp beads	100 for $3.00, used 2	$0.06
Materials		$3.10
Labour	40 minutes at $18.00 an hour	$12.00
Overheads	box, card and pouch	$0.90
Unit cost	3.10 + 12.00 + 0.90	$16.00
Wholesale	100% markup on unit cost	$32.00
Retail	100% markup on wholesale	$64.00

Materials are less than a fifth of the unit cost. If this bracelet were priced at "double the materials", it would sell for $6.20 and pay nothing for 40 minutes of work.

Wholesale and retail

The bracelet example uses the traditional double-and-double-again approach. Craft Professional describes keystone pricing, where the wholesale price is half the retail price, and says shop owners who buy wholesale typically expect to pay about half of retail. Building retail from wholesale, rather than from cost, makes sure both you and the shop are paid.

At wholesale, a 100% markup gives you a 50% margin. Investopedia explains the difference: markup is how much you add to cost, margin is the share of the selling price you keep. Our guide on how to calculate wholesale price covers the formulas in full.

Pricing collections and variations

Jewelry sellers often make the same design in several colours or lengths. A few habits keep the prices right:

Price each size separately if the component count changes. A longer necklace uses more beads and more wire.
Price each material separately if the beads cost different amounts. Glass and gemstone versions of one design are different products.
Keep matching sets consistent. If earrings and a bracelet are sold together, price each piece first, then decide whether to offer a set price.
Recheck prices when you restock. Component prices change, and a design that was profitable last year may not be now.

When the full price is too high

If your market will not pay the full retail price, look at the numbers before you cut:

Find your real hourly rate. Take a price you can get, subtract materials and packaging, and divide by the hours. At $40 direct, the bracelet leaves $40 - 3.10 - 0.90 = $36.00 for 40 minutes, which is $54 an hour. You may have more room than you think.
Simplify the design to cut making time.
Buy components in larger packs, which can lower the cost per piece.
Sell direct if a shop's keystone price would be too high for your buyers.

Quick checklist

Every bead, finding and length of wire on its own line
Offcuts included in wire and cord
Making and finishing time measured, not guessed
An hourly rate you chose on purpose
Packaging per piece
Wholesale built on unit cost, retail built on wholesale

Try your own numbers in the free handmade price calculator. For yarn-based items, see how to price crochet items.