How To Make Stickers To Sell On A Low Budget in 2024!
Do you want to learn how to make stickers to sell? I think the answer is YES. That’s why you clicked on this post.
Well, then you’re in luck because that’s the theme of today’s article. I’ll be walking you through how to make and sell stickers and a whole bunch of other important things that come with the entire process.
When it comes to starting a business, sticker shops are reasonably inexpensive and are an uncomplicated way to start making decent money. Now, think about what is trending and forget about those middle school cartoon stickers.
Everything and everyone thinks about aesthetics these days, creating stickers in line with that will help attract loyal customers.
You will learn all you need to know on how to turn your sticker store from a concept to reality, bring your drawings to life, and make money out of it in this post! (without braking the bank!)
You will also learn how to make stickers to sell at home, how do people make stickers, and making stickers to sell.
Ready? Let’s take a deep dive and learn how to make stickers to sell together.
DISCLOSURE
Some of the links on here are affiliate links and I may earn if you click on them, AT NO EXTRA cost to you. Hope you find the information here useful! Thanks.
What Equipment Do You Need To Sell Stickers?
So, how to make your own stickers to sell? There are a few ways you could go about this:
- Make your own OR
- Outsourcing the
- Design
- Printing
- Design and Printing
Each option requires different -to almost no- equipment. Here’s what you’ll need for each of them:
Equipment
Making Your Own
How do you make stickers? The first option is making your own. You can design your own stickers from scratch and print them from the comfort of your home.
This option is also the cheapest way to make stickers if you are just starting up your business.
If you love making sticker books but wondering how to make a sticker book to sell, the procedure is the same as making a normal sticker.
This is the most labor-intensive option but this means that you’ll have complete control over your designs and that can really set you apart.
Making stickers at home is considered DIY project or DIY stickers.
If you are wondering how to create stickers to sell at home, below are the equipment you will be need.
To start making stickers at home, you’ll need these things:
- Sticker paper
- Paper or Vinyl
- Drawing tools
- iPad Pro and Apple Pencil (2nd Gen)
- Procreate or another design software
- Wacom Intuos Drawing Tablet
- Printer
- Cutting Tools
- Scissors
Note: This is not the best idea if you’re planning on scaling your business and taking large orders. It’s too time-consuming and labor-intensive.
Fun Fact: If you are curious about how to make stickers without a printer? To make stickers without a printer, you will need baking paper. How amazing!
Outsourcing
Want to know how to make stickers to sell without buying all that hardware?
Maybe outsourcing is the option for you. You can decide to outsource tasks in two categories:
- The Design Process
- Printing Services
- Both
Outsourcing: The Design Process
The next question is how to design stickers? You can buy pre-made sticker designs for virtually little money but unless you pay a premium, you’ll end up with generic sticker templates.
On the other hand, buying designs is a quick way to help you get started selling stickers. You can buy sticker templates from websites like:
Or browse through Canva’s expansive sticker library and customize their ready-made templates.
Outsourcing: Printing Services
If you’ve got a whole bunch of design ideas on hand but think the printing and cutting process of making stickers is something you’d like to avoid altogether, then you’ll be happy to know that there are a number of printing shops that offer to print and cutting services at various costs.
We’ll have a look at some of them in a little bit.
Outsourcing: Both
Fancy setting up a sticker store without doing any of the design or printing work? That is also entirely possible!
You can opt for buying designs online, using a printer service, and then ship your product or sign up to websites like Redbubble.
Websites like Redbubble, allow you to upload an image -in this case, your premade sticker design- set your price, sell sticker designs, and that’s it.
They handle everything from manufacturing to shipping.
How Much Money Can You Make Selling Stickers?
I’m not going to give you a vague number or make bogus statements like, “you can make 8 figures selling stickers online.’
To be frank, how much you make selling stickers depends on a few things:
- Cost of production
You have to factor in the cost of the stickers, shipping, packaging, and shop fees.
- Outsourcing costs
For instance: If you choose to use a printing service you can end up paying about $1 per sticker if you order through Sticker Mule or Sticker Ninja. That cost adds up.
- Price point of your stickers
Once you’ve factored in the cost of your production (outsourcing or not), you need to decide on a realistic price point for your product.
Tip: Scope out the competition and see what the average cost is and price your product somewhere in the middle.
- The amount of orders you receive
This is straightforward, the more orders you get = the more money you make.
I can’t give you an exact figure on how much you can make selling stickers but I will leave you with this. Shay Budgets is a blogger that has made nearly $30,000 with her part-time Etsy shop selling budget planner stickers.
Yup, 5 figures and she’s doing it part-time.
How Much Does It Cost To Make Stickers?
Just like the question ‘how much can you make selling stickers’, how much it costs to make stickers will vary depending on your equipment and which route you’re taking.
For the heck of it, let’s crunch some numbers.
Making Your Own
If you’re making your own stickers, you will have to purchase a:
- Canon all-in-one printer = $180
- Drawing Tools:
- iPad+Apple Pencil = $850+$125 or Wacom Intuos Tablet= $80
- Design software i.e. Procreate =$10
- Sticker paper =$12
- Cutting tool =$200
All of that adds up to $1,377 (apple products) or $482 if you opt for the Wacom tablet. If you’re outsourcing design, then you’ll spend $392 on the printer, cutting tool, and sticker paper.
If you’ve chosen to outsource both the printing and design process then your cost would depend on the price the retailer is charging you.
I hope the above explanation has answered your question about how much do stickers cost to make.
How To Make Your Own Stickers To Sell?
If you’ve made it this far, then you’ll know all the ways you can make stickers: make your own or outsource.
If you are an artist and wondering how to sell stickers as an artist, you can follow the same steps as well.
Making your own stickers at home can be labor intensive but it does have its pros.
Most print stores have a minimum order. Which means you’re at the mercy of their terms and conditions. You can wind up with 100pcs stickers in your inventory.
If that doesn’t sound like something you want, then stay tuned for the next section.
1.Designing Your Stickers
How do I make my own stickers? You don’t need to be an artist to design stickers, nor do you need fancy design software.
You can simply piece together a few clip arts, icons, make your own on Canva or even Powerpoint.
Yes, you heard that right, PowerPoint! I actually have a whole article about making and selling digital stickers.
Tip: Look at the market, check trends and go to niches like fandoms or TV shows for sticker designs.
Here are some other free design softwares you can use:
You can find clip arts at MyCuteGraphics and customizable sticker designs on Canva.
Once you’ve done that, you can move on to printing.
2.Printing Your Stickers
There are two main types of printers in the consumer market:
The difference? How they distribute ink.
Inkjet Printers
Inkjet printers tend to be the common choice for sellers looking to make stickers at home because they’re accessible and cheaper compared to laser printers.
The problem with inkjet printers is that if you’re printing full prints or supersaturated images, you can go through a lot of ink.
Laser Printers
Laser printers don’t disperse ink onto paper but it makes a polymer coating. This means that it won’t rub off. It’s good quality and is smudge-proof.
The con? Hardware and ink can be expensive. You’ll be paying more money upfront but it’ll be for quality and longevity.
After printing, you can now cut your stickers out.
3.Cutting Your Stickers
There are two most common machines for vinyl crafters:
If you’re looking for cutting tools, then I’d recommend going with either of these because there are hundreds of YouTube tutorials that’ll walk you through everything.
4.Packaging Your Stickers
Packaging is important.
This is where you can add personality to your product within reason of course -keep in mind all of this will add to your production cost.
Before we talk about packaging, I’m going to let you in on something. It doesn’t matter how pretty your packaging is. If it gets to the customer damaged, that is no bueno.
Here are some of the packaging supplies you’ll need:
- Envelopes -Rigid Mailers
- Cello Bags
- Tissue paper
- Jute (rope) or Washi Tapes
Splurge on protection instead of aesthetics.
Don’t compromise package protection over style. For instance, you could pimp out your packaging but opt for rigid white envelopes for shipping.
Use cello bags to add extra protection, pack it up in tissue paper, seal shut with tape or rope to add the finishing touches.
Inserts
Aside from the actual sticker, you should also consider adding a business card –VistaPrint has some of the cheapest- with a discount to encourage repeat purchases.
Shipping Labels
Whenever someone makes an order, you have to print a shipping label.
The whole cutting and taping labels manually to envelopes is time-consuming. If you’re not going to sit there and cut 70 stickers by hand, why would you do the same for the labels?
Enter the Rollo printer. It can print out dozens of labels in under a minute and it doesn’t need any ink. It’s an online shipping solution that works with UPS, USPS, and soon FedEx.
Outsourcing Stickers To Sell
Don’t want the hassle that comes with designing, printing, cutting, or all of the above? Why not outsource.
Outsourcing is one of the best way to sell stickers and cut all the hassle.
Design
If you are wondering how to make stickers online, there are plenty of websites that allow you to buy or download sticker designs for little to no cash, and here are a few of them:
Printing
If you are into printable stickers and wondering how to make printable stickers to sell. Websites like GotPrint, Sticker Ninja, or Sticker Mule, are print providers that specialize in stickers.
I can’t choose one for you but I will go into comparison to help you make your choice.
GotPrint’s prices are cheaper than Sticker Ninja or Sticker Mule and are the best option if you’re on a budget but be advised that they don’t do vinyl printing.
Sticker quality: They use 60lb paper with gloss labels and UV coating
Price for 3” round stickers: $41.90 plus shipping for 100pcs
Sticker Ninja and Sticker Mule both use durable vinyl. And their prices are fairly similar:
—Sticker Ninja’s price for 3” round stickers: $86 plus shipping for 100pcs
—Sticker Mule’s price for 3” round stickers: $83 plus shipping for 100pcs
Have you heard of Redbubble? If you don’t want to deal with printers at all then maybe the question you should be asking is ‘how to make stickers to sell on redbubble?’
The answer? It’s as easy as 1, 2, 3:
- Sign up and open a store
- Upload your design
- Let the platform do the work
Redbubble handles everything from manufacturing and shipping of the product. You get a cut of the sales based on the price you set your products.
Where Can I Sell My Stickers?
If you’re wondering how to start a sticker shop or more precisely how to start an Etsy sticker shop then I highly recommend checking out my other article ‘how to make money selling stickers on Etsy‘.
It is a jam pack with everything you need to know on how to make stickers to sell on Etsy. But Etsy aside, here are a few platforms you can sell your stickers on:
Types Of Stickers You Can Sell
Now that you know how to make sticker sheets to sell, we can talk about the types of stickers you can sell.
You can sell anything from digital files, or physical products.
According to Etsy, the most in-demand stickers are sticker packs, laptop stickers, and stickers for hydro flasks.
These are the most common types of stickers that can be found on Etsy:
- Logo Stickers
- Clear Stickers
- Bumper Stickers
- Die Cut Stickers
Die-cut stickers are stickers that are cut to the shape of your design in any size or shape. These stickers are scratch, moisture, and sunlight resistant.
- Photo Stickers
Photo stickers are customizable and allow customers to turn their favorite photos into stickers.
- Digital Stickers
Digital stickers are much like physical stickers, you can stick them anywhere -in the digital world that is. If you’re interested in learning how to make digital stickers to sell, I’ve got a whole post dedicated to that.
Tips To Succeed Selling Stickers
This post is meant to teach you how to make stickers and sell them whichever way you choose but creating a side hustle like this isn’t just about the matter of ‘how to sell stickers’.
It’s also about making something that will add to your income.
This is why I thought we should end this article with tips to help you succeed in the sticker selling business.
Get This Selling Digital Stickers Course!
This E-Printables Side Hustle Course is one of the most popular Etsy printables course in the market, with plenty of great reviews. It also teaches you onto make digital stickers to sell!
The co-creators of this Etsy digital products course, Julie and Cody, have made thousands of dollars from their own Etsy printables business, so they know what they’re talking about.
Ps; They have a FREE Etsy Ebook that will share a list of best-selling products by month and teach you how to capitalize on seasonal trends to make sales.
Invest In Equipment
A quality product is the foundation of any good business.
Invest in good equipment instead of spending less on an inferior version. Sometimes this pays off but in most cases, you’ll have to replace it.
Overhead costs can be expensive but buying good equipment can save you time and time equals money. For instance, you could spend a whole day cutting over a hundred pieces of stickers by hand but that is time-consuming and not productive.
Bottom line: invest in good equipment to save time and costs in the long haul.
Analyse Your Competition
Price matters. The average price for a single sticker on Etsy is between $2–$6.
After taking into account what kind of stickers you want to sell and how you intend to make them, you’re going to need to find a sweet spot at the price point.
If your stickers are more up-market, you can offer free shipping. Alternatively, you can keep your prices low and charge the customer for shipping.
Note: Etsy bumps items marked “free shipping” but if a similar item is cheaper than yours and also offers free shipping, it won’t really matter.
Use Bundles
The best way to make money selling stickers is to sell them in bundles or packages. This is good for you because you can print or order your stickers in bulk and save on costs.
Besides, by using the bundle method, questions like how much to make stickers will not be lingering in your mind.
When you sell them in sets, you also maximize your profit per sale as well as save on shipping materials.
Offering “Buy 3 get 1 free” incentives is another sure-fire way to increase sticker sales. Everyone loves a deal, right?
FAQs On How To Make Stickers To Sell
Is It Profitable To Sell Stickers?
It can be amazingly profitable to start selling custom stickers! You create any custom printed stickers and then you have the opportunity to sell them as many times as your heart desires.
Sites like Tumblr and Reddit can assist you with determining what your target audience wants and what the current trends are.
A simple Google search can provide lots of ideas on selling physical stickers, but if you need something more unique, it is recommended to check out some of the top print-on-demand websites or specialty marketplaces like Etsy and StickerYou.
What Kind Of Stickers Can I Design?
If there is one thing you should know before starting your own sticker shop, it’s that the sticker business is a thriving market.
But wait, what kind of stickers sell? Do you need a graphic designer to begin sticker shops? Do you need to maintain a transparent background and what is a vinyl material?
Yes, I know. There seem to be so many questions when you want to sell stickers online.
The choices are nearly unlimited, but here are a few of the most popular types of stickers that you may acquire for yourself or effectively advertise online.
I have listed some sticker ideas to sell just for you.
Bumper Sticker
Bumper stickers have been popular for a long time and show no signs of going out of style. Political or activist inscriptions, trending memes, and even sassy quotes are frequently seen on them.
Vinyl stickers with strong adherence are the go-to-choice of bikers when it comes to stickers professionally printed.
Be it a feminism-inspired sticker or creating stickers that are meant for the biker dudes, find your niche, and create stickers that is sure to sell like hotcakes!
Water Bottle Stickers
Reusable water bottles are the ideal method to remain hydrated throughout the hot summer months as more people attempt to decrease harmful waste.
Sustainability isn’t simply a nice notion – it’s also a popular topic at the moment.
Because a water bottle is likely something you will be carrying around, just like your phone, people love to customize them with personalized stickers.
When you are printing stickers for water bottles, they have to be long-lasting and weatherproof. They are generally reduced in size so that you can see the entire picture without having to flip the bottle over.
Bedroom Stickers
No one is truly painting their bedroom walls anymore when there are custom sticker businesses out there making it easy for consumers to decorate their room as they wish.
Pop culture is a terrific place to go when it comes to design, and it’s especially popular in children’s and adolescent rooms.
Not only do bedroom stickers look fantastic, but they are also a simple and affordable way to dress up any area.
So, out of all the sticker sellers out there, you might just want to be one to try out the bedroom sticker-making niche.
Laptop Stickers
Now, if you took a look at my laptop, you will find the laptop casing covered in Harry Potter stickers because I love Harry Potter, and the more stickers I collect, the better.
I am almost 100% certain that there are many of you who are geeks in their own way just like I am.
Custom stickers are a popular way for people to customize their essential electronics. Trending memes, particularly emojis and big-brand logos, is a preferred creative influence for this sort of sticker collection.
So, keep this in mind when you are about to sell physical stickers.
How To Price Stickers For Sale?
When it comes to stickers cost, there are factors such as the cutting machine, the creative process, the material of vinyl stickers, business card, and shipping labels, that needs to be considered.
However, if you are just starting out with your sticker business and are just learning the ropes to make and sell stickers, do not overcomplicate the pricing process of the stickers created.
Many sticker shops sell their stickers from anywhere between USD 2 – USD 6, although larger or more intricate designs might command higher fees.
To obtain a rough notion of how to price your collection competitively, look at other how sticker shops operate and compare their pricing and sticker sizes to your own.
This is a means for you to gauge how much you should price your stickers and to ensure you run profitable sticker businesses.
Is Selling Stickers On Etsy Worth It?
So you have decided to print stickers and sell them online. You have probably heard that setting up an online store on Etsy is the way to go, but is it worth it?
People are looking for entertaining and original designs to customize their stuff, and stickers have been a huge trend on Etsy.
The existing market is enormous. Many individuals currently make money selling stickers on Etsy. For many people, Etsy is the place to go when they want to buy original artwork of any kind, and stickers are no exception.
So scratch away the doubt you’re having and trust that Etsy is a great place for sticker makers provided you are consistent in creating your artwork following the steps mentioned above!
How To Design Stickers To Sell?
Interested in selling stickers, but wondering how to design stickers to sell I got you covered.
- Choose your file for printing on your computer.
- Connect the computer to your printing machine.
- Prepare your choice of paper and print the design.
- Apply any finishes or lamination to the printed design.
- Use the Cricut machine to cut around your sticker.
How To Make Stickers At Home To Sell?
How do I make stickers at home? It is very simple. You will need to insert your design into a color printer and the next step is to print them onto sticker paper!
Next, cut them according to their shapes either by hand or using a cutting machine like a Silhouette or Cricut.
How To Sell Stickers Online?
The first option is to set up your own online sticker shop. Besides, you can sell on Etsy and use a dropshipping marketplace like Redbubble
If you are selling on Etsy, ensure that,
- Engaging product descriptions featuring keywords.
- High-quality product photos to capture audience attention.
- A streamlined checkout and delivery process for customers
How To Start A Sticker Business?
Wondering how to start a sticker business? I have listed down steps for you to follow to kick-start your business.
- Choose your stickers.
- Figure out your target audience.
- Design your stickers.
- Decide whether to buy equipment or outsource production.
- Build a website.
- Price your stickers.
- Pick a shipping method.
- Create a return policy.
How To Design Stickers?
Interested in designing stickers but unsure how to design them? Follow the steps listed below to ease the process.
- Start with Canva.
- Choose a template. Select a sticker template from our library, or you could also start from scratch.
- Tweak with exciting elements.
- Make it rain stickers.
- Order your prints.
Can I Make Stickers And Sell Them?
Yes, you can make and sell stickers. There are websites such as Redbubble and Society6 that let you upload your art, print, and ship the product for you when a customer makes a purchase.
It’s an effective way to market and sell your sticker designs without having to worry about operation, marketing, or handling customers.
How Much Does It Cost To Start Making Stickers?
If you are pondering how much does it cost to make a sticker? It cost between $100 and $1,000.
You need to buy equipment and supplies if producing the stickers by yourself. These start-up costs can be lowered if the designing and printing works are outsourced. This will save time to assure quality stickers.
How To Make Stickers To Sell With Cricut?
Follow these 7 steps to make stickers to sell with Cricut.
- Step 1: Download a premade sticker sheet image file.
- Step 2: Upload the sticker image to Cricut.
- Step 3: Print the image.
- Step 4: Set materials.
- Step 5: Load the mat.
- Step 6: Cut the stickers.
- Step 7: Unload the mat and remove the stickers.
How To Make Stickers To Sell On Etsy?
If you are wondering about how to make stickers to sell on Etsy with Printify, follow the steps below.
- 1: Sign up and choose your sticker. Start by signing up for a free Printify account.
- 2: Apply your sticker design.
- 3: Edit product details.
- 4: Connect your Etsy store.
- 5: Publish and start selling stickers on Etsy.
Conclusion
There you have it, folks, everything you need to know about how to make stickers to sell, where to sell them, and the type of stickers you can sell.
Whether you decide to make them on your own, outsource parts of the process, or the entire thing, I hope this article helped you in some way.
Related posts on making extra money:
- How To Make Money With A Laser Engraver (+21 Product Engraving Ideas)
- How To Make Money Selling Stickers On Etsy
- How To Make Digital Stickers (And Earn Extra Money)
- How To Increase Sales On Etsy [30 Unique Tips!]
- How To Start Selling Prints On Etsy [And Make LOTS Of Money!]
- 49 Best Digital Products To Sell On Etsy In 2023
- 37 things To Make And Sell On Etsy In 2023
