Last updated: June 22, 2026
Quick answerPTA fundraiser t-shirt profit margins typically run $10–$14 per shirt when you sell at $20 and keep landed cost under $9, which means a group of 240 parents can clear $4,000 or more in a single three-week campaign. At Eagle Ridge Apparel in Meridian, ID, we price Gildan cotton tees with a 2-color screen print at around $8 landed, so the math works without a minimum order or a surprise fee at pickup.
A Meridian elementary PTA came in last spring with a goal: $4,000 for new playground equipment, three weeks to raise it. We ran the math together in about 15 minutes, settled on a blank and a price, and they cleared $4,284 — including a $1,500 district match — in 21 days. The math isn't complicated, but you have to know which three numbers to watch.
The three numbers that actually drive your fundraiser
Landed cost per shirt is what you pay us, all-in: blank, print, tax, shipping. Sale price is what parents pay you. Volume is how many you sell. That's it. Net profit equals (sale price minus landed cost) multiplied by shirts sold, minus any card processing fees if parents pay online.
Everything else is noise. Get those three numbers right and the fundraiser works. Mess up one of them and you've volunteered 60 hours for a $400 check.
Eagle Ridge prints and embroiders in Meridian, ID — no minimums, free digitizing on your first run. Want us to run the margin math for your PTA? Reach out or get a free quote here.
A real playground fundraiser, worked backwards
That Meridian PTA wanted $4,000 net. We started with the target and worked backwards instead of picking a shirt and hoping.
- Goal: $4,000 net profit
- Sale price: $20 per shirt
- Volume target: 240 shirts ($4,800 gross at $20)
- Required landed cost: under $9 per shirt to clear $4,000 after card fees
We spec'd a Gildan G500 cotton tee at $4.50 landed plus a 2-color front-chest screen print at $3.50, so $8 landed per shirt. At $20 sale price that's $12 per shirt before fees. They sold 232 of 240 in 11 days. $2,784 net from shirt sales, plus the $1,500 district match, done.
Why $20 works and $15 doesn't
PTAs across the Treasure Valley have tested every price point from $12 to $30, and the pattern holds pretty consistently. Twenty dollars sells the most shirts per fundraiser week.
- $15 and under: parents assume the quality is cheap. Volume goes up slightly, margin collapses.
- $18: works, but it's an awkward number that feels like you're trying to game the psychology.
- $20: parents hand it over without thinking. The cultural sweet spot.
- $22: fine for a limited-edition design, but you'll lose a few buyers at the margin.
- $25 and up: only holds for premium work — embroidered, vintage-style, multi-color full-art. Expect volume to drop around 40%.
Stick with $20 unless your design is genuinely special.
Volume is where the real money is
Below 50 shirts, the economics don't work. Setup costs eat too much of the per-shirt margin. We recommend 100 pieces as the real floor for a fundraiser that's worth the effort. Here's how the numbers spread out:
- 40 shirts at $20: $800 gross, roughly $560 net — $14 per shirt. Fine profit rate, low total.
- 100 shirts at $20: $2,000 gross, roughly $1,300 net — $13 per shirt.
- 240 shirts at $20: $4,800 gross, roughly $3,360 net — $14 per shirt.
- 500 shirts at $20: $10,000 gross, roughly $7,000 net — $14 per shirt.
Per-shirt profit barely moves from 100 to 500 pieces. The win is just selling more shirts. That's it.
Run a pre-sale — don't guess on inventory
The fastest way to kill a fundraiser is ordering 250 shirts and selling 160. You're stuck eating the difference or storing 90 Gildan tees in somebody's garage until the next school year. (We've seen it happen. It's not fun.)
We set up a free online storefront where parents order and pay by card over a 2-week window. We produce only what sold. The PTA sees deposits hit their account; nobody's stuck with unsold inventory. Storefront setup is free on our end.
Three mistakes that sink PTA fundraisers
Picking a blank without checking sizing. If the shirt doesn't come in YXS, half your kindergarten families can't participate. Check the size run before you commit to a blank.
Cutting the timeline too close. Standard turnaround at 200-plus pieces runs 14 to 18 business days. Order four weeks before the event, not two. We do offer 24-hour rush for some jobs, but a 200-piece screen print order isn't one of them.
One person approving the mockup. The PTA president approves at 11 PM, production runs the next morning, and then someone notices the school name is misspelled. Always have two people review the mockup. Always.
Related
Tell us your target dollar amount and we'll work the math backwards with you — landed cost, sale price, volume target, the whole thing. Free quote with a margin breakdown: request it online or reach out.
Frequently asked
How do I price PTA fundraiser shirts to hit my goal?
Start with your net target, divide by your expected unit margin, and that gives you your minimum sell quantity. At a $20 sale price and $8 landed cost, you need roughly 200 shirts to clear $2,400 before any district match.
How long does a PTA t-shirt fundraiser order take to print?
Eagle Ridge typically turns screen-printed orders in 7–10 business days from approved artwork; rush is available for in-stock blanks if your campaign window is tight.
Does Eagle Ridge do PTA shirt printing near Boise or Meridian?
Eagle Ridge Apparel prints and embroiders in Meridian, ID, and serves PTAs across the Treasure Valley, from Nampa to Eagle, with no minimums and free digitizing on a first run. Reach out to run the margin math before you commit.
How We Make This Stuff
Everything covered in this post is produced in our Meridian, Idaho shop at 2700 E Lanark St. Eagle Ridge Apparel is a family-run print shop serving the Treasure Valley since 2019 — we embroider, screen print, DTF, sublimate, laser-cut leather patches, laser-engrave drinkware, and UV-print promotional goods on equipment we operate ourselves. No outsourced decoration, no overseas fulfillment, no third-party middlemen.
Most custom apparel orders ship in 7–10 business days from approved mockup. Rush production in 3–5 business days is available on most decoration methods; embroidered hats are the tightest constraint. We hold no minimums on any decoration type — order one piece or one thousand — though pricing scales aggressively over 50, 100, and 250-piece tiers. Free digital mockups before production starts. We don't begin a run until you sign off on what it'll look like.
Two ways to order: design it yourself online in our designer tool (any quantity, any decoration method), or request a custom quote and we'll send back pricing within one business day. Talk to a real person — email info@eagleridgeapparel.com or send us a message, and most inquiries get a response within two hours during the business day.
