When learning how to price amigurumi, beginners often make one big mistake. Underpricing their work. They think of their crochet as a hobby and not a business. It’s amazing if you want to take up crochet as a hobby like most people but others want to start making a little cash. Knowing your supplies’ cost and time is two of the most important inputs when pricing your crochet for sites like Etsy or even locally.
We are going to make it a whole lot easier and teach you how to price amigurumi, give you a repeatable formula and even teach you a few ways how to package crochet items for sale.
How to Price Amigurumi: Why It is Hard…
Making amigurumi for sale is super fun in your free time. You can be working on your project while watching TV, in bed and pretty much take it anywhere. Sure, making the project might not be hard but why do so many crochet business owners fail at pricing?
Pricing amigurumi is hard because crocheters struggle to track their time and they also struggle to put a value on their time. Should their time be worth minimum wage? How about the going hourly rate of a doctor. Maybe neither.
So How Much Is My Time Worth Crocheting?
You can’t price like a hobby to have a business in crochet. If you are pricing in the $12-$18 an hour range for your time, you should still be able to make a profit on top of your time.
Over time, you will get better and faster with your skills. One mistake many beginners make in a crochet business is crocheting what they want. If you want to have a small business in crochet then you need to make what the customer wants.
You have to make what the customer wants. Not what you want.
These could be washcloths, amigurumi or crochet dolls. The products need to be items that you can complete in a reasonable amount of time compared to the price you are charging.
Another good one is hats using bulky yarn. Some can be made in just a few hours.
What You Need to Price Amigurumi
You can’t price amigurumi just on a whim. You need the following items to price amigurumi.
- Scale
- Good template
- Repeatable system
A scale will let you weight you skein before your project and after your amigurumi project. You can then determine how much yarn is used and the cost of that yarn.
Next, you’ll want to plug that and your time into a good pricing template.
Lastly, you’ll want to repeat the same way you price every time. Use the scale, a crochet pricing template and same formula to have consistency in your crochet business. It doesn’t take much to price your amigurumi and once you have a system down, it will only take minutes.
Yarrney’s Amigurumi Pricing Formula (Works for All Crochet Too!)
While we like using a pricing template, here is the basic amigurumi pricing formula –
Yarn & Materials + Time Involved + Shipping + Selling Fees + Profit Margin = Price
Once you use a template, you can start developing a pricing list.
Crochet Pricing List
While we certainly frown upon a generalized price list, you can make your own once you have determined the cost per unit of the goods you are making. From there you can set your mark up and know what your price is to sell in stores vs online.
For a good idea of how much some crochet and amigurumi items sell for, here is a generic crochet pricing list –
- Hats – $30-$100+
- Wash clothes – $15-$22
- Amigurumi dolls – $25-$75
- Coffee cup sleeves – $18-$25
- Purses – $40-$100+
- Clothing – $50-100+
Do some of the prices seem high? They may to a beginner but remember you are selling handcrafted, branded goods. There is a proposition for the time and quality that you put into each good. While these are good general ranges for crochet products, you still need to price so you can make a profit.
Grab a pricing template, fill in your costs and then add a mark up.
What Are Some Amigurumi Items That Sell
Just because you like making crochet projects doesn’t mean they will sell. As we mentioned, you’ll need something that the customer wants. We have listed a few of the best-selling amigurumi projects below.
- Crochet stuffed animals
- Amigurumi dolls
- Micro crochet projects
Just because they are best selling though doesn’t mean that yours will sell. Try to differentiate and make your own style or label. Having your own label or brand to your crochet projects adds value and let’s you charge a bit more in the consumer’s eyes.
Too often people just start cranking outwash clothes but they do nothing to add a label. Once they are frustrated that they feel like a sweatshop, they give up. You need to brand, it is key. You need to have a few different products, it is also important.
Where To Sell Crochet Items
Everyone’s first thought when selling crochet projects is generally Etsy and craft fairs. Is there anything wrong with selling your crochet projects on these platforms? No. Will you face a lot of competition? Yes. There are hundreds of amigurumi dolls on Etsy. We don’t want you to get discouraged but rather be different. We will repeat again, be a brand.
For beginners, these are still some of the best places to sell amigurumi and crochet projects-
- Meta
- Etsy
- Craft fairs
Can you think of any places to sell your projects that aren’t so crowded and mainstream? We can. Here are some of the better places to try to sell your amigurumi dolls, animals and goods-
- Local stores
- YouTube leads to your own website
For the first one, it may seem intimidating but ask some local toy shops or specialty shops if they will carry your goods. To do this, your amigurumi projects will need to be labeled and you should have a little brochure or catalog to take along. It is much more likely that you get stocked if you can show what you can offer and show the quality you make.
The second unique way to sell your amigurumi projects is to reach out to YouTubers. You don’t need to even make a video. Often you can work with small creators who you can pay for leads to your own website. It may be a bit of work upfront to set up your website but at the end of the day, you will own your own shop.
How to Package Crochet Items for Sale
Packing your crochet items for sale is unfortunately another added cost. One that can be very cheap or very expensive. It all depends how much you do in terms of packaging.
There are two main types of packaging to consider when you learning how to price amigurumi. That is local packaging and packaging if you are going to sell online like Etsy.
Packaging Crochet Items Locally
Packing crochet items locally can be the cheaper option. When selling your amigurumi in a local store, all you really need is a hanger if the item can’t stand on its own and a good-looking label. This gives you a little more room when pricing to spend it on the label cost.
As we mentioned, it can be intimidating to ask a local small business owner to be stocked in their store but if you want to outlay less cash and run a lean start-up with your crochet business, this is the way to go.
How to Package Crochet Items for Etsy
That is not to say that local is the only way to sell amigurumi. Now with online marketplaces, it has never been easier to reach so many eyes. The major costs when packing crochet items for Etsy come down to your shopping box, bubble wrap and labeling. You might need to cut back on the cost of your project label since you will have to think about using a box to ship.
One thing you might want to avoid is using a plastic mailer when sending your amigurumi product you sold on Etsy. Do you really want your Etsy crochet stuffed animal you worked hard on, get messed up on the way to the customer?
On top of that, just imagine how non-exciting it is to a customer that you are getting your much long-awaited amigurumi product in a plain cheap plastic mailer. No one wants that!
Final Thoughts on How to Price Amigurumi
When thinking about how to price amigurumi, you need to start with your yarn, time and packaging. It is essential that you use a pricing template. Otherwise, you will be like more than half of beginners who are just guessing how to price amigurumi.
Take your crochet or amigurumi business to the next level now that you know how to price amigurumi.
