Last Updated on November 24, 2025 by Ewen Finser
The first time I used a bulk t-shirt printing service, I was setting up a campaign for an underserved community. All the sales from the shirts went to that community, so having bulk discounts that dropped the price meant more money from the fundraiser.
I didn’t expect all the shirts to sell out as quickly as they did and all of the sudden my needs pivoted to fast delivery and an easy reordering process.
That’s how I discovered some of the best bulk t-shirt printing services. I put in the research so now you don’t have to.
Best Bulk T-Shirt Printing Services
- BlueCotton: Best for bulk pricing, free shipping on standard orders, overall money saving
- Printify: Best for on-off print orders, large or small
- Printful: Best for on-demand, a la carte orders or drop shipping
- Custom Ink: Best for design assistance and name-brand apparel
Now, each organization has different needs, so I’m going to compare each of these based on the same features and metrics so you can choose one that most closely aligns with your business model. For example:
- Businesses need consistent quality, reliable delivery, and speed especially for merch, content for upcoming trade shows, or corporate marketing items.
- Schools & Universities need guaranteed delivery dates and repeat order facilitation particularly for seasonal items like faculty orders, student club merch, or sports clothing.
- Churches & Nonprofits need affordability especially for bulk orders, with clear deadlines they can report up the chain.
- Organizers (Moms, Volunteers, Community Leaders) need simple ordering processes and support when they get stuck on local fundraiser orders, PTO event orders, or even family reunions/birthdays.
- A rapidly growing, high-value market for merch resellers and influencers needs consistent print quality, fast restocking, and in-house production without any middleman delays.
So which one is best for each group?
BlueCotton
BlueCotton is highly cost-effective at scale because everything is managed through in-house production.
BlueCotton manages its pricing on a scale so as you start your custom design process you can change the quantity and see how that directly impacts your costs, typically lowering costs by 10 cents per item.
BlueCotton is the best option for those who have time. The traditional timeline for complete order from start to finish is around 10 business days so plan accordingly.
But if you need something right away, you can take advantage of the rapid delivery options from BlueCotton. They offer “Shirts in a Day” (1 business day) option available (at a 40% upcharge); also 3-day Super Rush (at a 25% upcharge), and 5-day Rush. When you look at the calendar when you first place an order it will show you what the guaranteed delivery dates are and what the respective prices are.
In addition to the high turnaround time, they also have a nine step quality control process and everything is reviewed by people, not just machines. If something goes wrong and you want a real person on the other end, you’ll get one with BlueCotton.
- Price (per shirt base): From ~$4.14+ (bulk discounts available)
- Minimum order amount: 6
- Sample availability: Offers both blank and printed samples.
- Shipping options: Free standard shipping to all 50 US states; Rush (5-day), Super Rush (3-day), and 1-day options
- Turnaround time: Turnaround Time (Production); 1-10 business days standard; “Shirts in a Day” option available
- Refund policy: Reprints/refunds offered for material differences or deficiencies (holes, tears, stains)
- Reordering: Easy via “Your Orders” section of account; can reorder exact design or edit quantities/styles.
- Guarantees: Guarantees product free from material defects (holes, tears, stains). All production is in-house in the US for quality control.
Printful
Printful stands out in a unique way when it comes to the pricing structure: they have a higher base price especially when it comes to shirts but they give you bulk discounts that start at a minimum order of 25 items which is a lot more reasonable than large-scale production from companies like Custom Ink.
Printful uses a similar setup to Printify where you choose from an available catalog and then you use the design maker to upload your artwork or your text. Once you do that you simply add it to the cart, select the shipping you want and continue the checkout process. They do have express shipping available but fulfillment time is typically upwards of 5 days. If you aren’t sure about which item you want from the catalog you can order a sample but it only comes with a 20% discount so you are still paying 80% of the full price and you are limited to only three sample items per month.
- Price (per shirt base): From ~$12.95+ (discounts for 25+ items)
- Minimum order amount: No minimum order quantity for standard orders (bulk pricing starts at 25 items)
- Sample availability: Available for most products at a discount.
- Shipping options: Flat Rate (Standard), Express, and international options available
- Turnaround time: 2-5 business days for fulfillment
- Refund policy: No refunds for buyer’s remorse; only for quality issues (up to the seller to cover costs)
- Reordering: Easy via account dashboard; reordering a previous design is straightforward. Can also use Printful Warehousing & Fulfillment for instant restocking/shipping.
- Guarantees: Only quality issues are covered (e.g., print peeling). No refunds for buyer’s remorse. Offers a 3-step quality check process.
Printify
Printify has a sign up process which is free. From there you have control over the product and supplier using the available catalog. Once you choose the product and supplier you want then you can use a mock-up generator with your design and order a sample. Samples don’t come included like they do with BlueCotton, however you can still order a single item at cost.
The downside is that there’s no return here if you don’t like the sample, and you still have to pay the full cost of a single item order.
- Price (per shirt base): From ~$7.66+ (varies by supplier; bulk discounts available)
- Minimum order amount: No minimum order quantity for standard orders
- Sample availability: Samples are available to order from any print provider in the network.
- Shipping options: Varies by supplier; offers Economy, Standard, Priority, and Express options
- Turnaround time: Varies widely by supplier (typically 2-7 business days for fulfillment)
- Refund policy: Reprints/refunds offered for damaged/defective products if reported within 30 days with photo proof
- Reordering: Manual reorder or automated via e-commerce store integration.
- Guarantees: Only guarantees for damaged/defective products if reported within 30 days. Quality varies by supplier; sampling is recommended.
Custom Ink
Custom Ink’s key advantages over competitors has to do with the name-brand apparel and extensive design tools. Whereas the other bulk t-shirt printing services tend to offer the same product lines and they have more flexibility in terms of pricing and shipping, Custom Ink lets you modify brand names like American Apparel, the North Face, and Nike.
They also support your custom design, as the name would suggest, with a focus on the interactive “Design Lab” they offer where you choose design templates, fonts, and clipart to make a professional looking design even if you have no skills in that area.
Custom Ink generally has strong bulk pricing and they are all inclusive fees, but the company doesn’t manage things in house so instead they source those print jobs elsewhere and that means you are dealing with a middleman and the cost of a middleman.
- Price (per shirt base): Generally high, quote-based pricing (best for bulk orders)
- Minimum order amount: Minimum of 6 units
- Sample availability: Offers samples, usually a blank garment for sizing/fabric check.
- Shipping options: Standard (free on most orders), expedited, and rush options with guaranteed delivery dates.
- Turnaround time: Typically 2 weeks, with rush options available for 3 days
- Refund policy: Satisfaction guaranteed; will replace/refund orders that do not meet expectations.
- Reordering: Simple reordering process via the user’s online account; designs are saved.
- Guarantees: 100% Satisfaction Guarantee; they will replace the order or provide a full refund if it doesn’t meet expectations.
Summing Up
So which company is best for your needs?
BlueCotton is my favorite pick, for a few reasons, namely price point, ordering process, and shipping options. Any business, volunteer, or church looking for bulk pricing will find the most favorable options with BlueCotton. If you need a reliable, traditional bulk printer with free shipping options to cut down prices, BlueCotton is your choice. If your goal is quality control with a flexible refund policy and in-house production that increases efficiency for good turnaround times and good overall quality, BlueCotton can meet those needs with ease.
If lower base product costs with the same on-demand print/dropshipping print options are key to your business model though, go with Printify.
If you want an on-demand print service, with more flexibility and no minimum orders, specifically for dropshipping and e-commerce integration as opposed to bulk ordering for one-off events, you want Printiful. If you want more extensive design tools to support the creation of your custom product, or custom name-brand apparel like The North Face or Nike then Custom Ink has what you need.