9 good reasons why handmade products are more expensive

ByWowThankYou

Have you ever wondered why handmade products come with a higher price tag compared to non-handmade products? The answer is a combination of the craftsmanship, cost of material and attention to detail that goes into creating each handmade item.

Handmade items cost more because you’re buying an exceptional thing, made by hand by an expert in their field, using the best materials. Time, energy, and and a lot of love are included in the making of the product, making it a unique and very special item.

In this blog post, I want to explore the reasons behind why handmade products are more expensive and why this is actually a good thing.

HANDMADE BUSINESS TIPS

1. Everything is made by hand

Handmade items are more expensive than mass-produced items because of the time and care that goes into each piece.

Every step is scrutinized to ensure the product is perfect, which takes even more time, but results in a quality product. There is no large scale mass production machinery involved, that would make the process simplier or quicker.

Although most artisans do use various tools to make their trade a little easier (e.g. sewing machine instead of hand stitching) there is still plenty of manual work that goes into producing each item.

And I know for a fact, that most craftspeople don’t charge for all the time they take to make a product, which would make the price sky high.

When you consider that the current minimum hourly rate in the UK in 2025 is £12.21 for individuals aged 23 and over selling a handmade card for £3.50, that might take anything up to 30-40 minutes to make is not that expensive. And that’s not even adding in the material and overhead costs.

2. Handmade takes time to make

Because most handmade items are made by hand, the process takes time. When I’ve been helping my craft friends to calculate the cost of their products, I’ve seen that the labour cost is far the largest amount and often large than the material cost.

The same was true when I was calculating my own prices for my handmade decorations – it wasn’t the cost of material that added to the price, it was my time.

Most people, like me try to calculate their labour cost based on averages and proportionally add it to the final cost of the product, but it can be still a significant chunk of the final price.

HANDMADE BUSINESS TIPS

3. The handmade product is made localy

Most of the processes involved in making a handmade product are done by the maker, including design, material selection, assembly, photography, marketing, packaging, and shipping.

This is often done while caring for children or working another job. While most craftspeople don’t charge for all this time and care, they put time, energy, heart, and soul into every piece they sell.

Whilst over the years most of the high street shops outsourced their production abroad as the labour costs are much cheaper there, the average UK based maker can’t really do that (and they probably wouldn’t anyway).

The UK based crafperson has the same expenses for food, household utilities and everything else as everyone else, so they can’t really afford to under-price their handmade goods to match the cheap overseas imports.

HANDMADE BUSINESS TIPS

4. Materials can be expensive

Craftspeople try to find the best quality, most beautiful materials, which they can usually only buy in small quantities because they don’t have the budget or space to buy in bulk.

This makes the materials more expensive for them than for High Street chains who can buy cheap manufactured components in bulk.

From experience I also know that UK based makers buy their material and tools locally, which again means that it’s fairly priced and also more environmentally friendly as it’s not being shipped across the world.

HANDMADE BUSINESS TIPS

5. The craftsperson is an expert in their field

Craftspeople, artists and makers often completed degrees or years of classes and workshops to learn their craft. They certainly had to practice their art and perfect their technique to the point where they achieve to produce that perfect product.

This takes years and years of practice, often expensive training and learning on the job. This also means that whilst the person is learning, they are using tools and material that still need to be purchased and won’t probably be good enough to sell straightaway.

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6. Each product is unique and one off

Each handmade item is a one-off simply because is made by hand. Often the maker might have just enough materials to produce a limited edition of particular product (such as fabric bags made from a special type of one off fabric) and once the material is used up, that’s it – no more!

Handmade products are also often made to order, where you can have your product personalised, choose a particular style or colour.

This means that the craftsperson makes the product based on your specification and has to work out how your personalisation affects the product making to make sure the product turns out perfectly.

Although I’ve made many handmade products before, every time I’d get a personalised order, I felt, that I was working on a brand new product, which of course takes more time.

7. Perceived value

Handmade items are often regarded as works of art, which can add to their value. The craftsmanship, creativity, and artistry involved in their creation can contribute to their higher price point.

8. Handmade is more ethical and sustainable

I’ve already mentioned that most artisans source their tools and material locally, which means that there are less air miles in importing material.

Smaller handmade business also employ people local to them as most of the times people are working with their hands and have to be physically present at the workshop or shop.

9. Restricted Production

Handmade items are often more expensive due to the restricted production capacity of individual crafters.

Unlike mass production, where large quantities of items can be manufactured quickly and efficiently, handmade production is inherently limited by the time and effort required by the artisan. As a result, the output of handmade items is typically small in quantity.

The limited production capacity of crafters impacts the economies of scale, leading to higher production costs per unit. Unlike mass-produced items, where the cost per unit decreases as production volume increases, handmade items do not benefit from the same cost efficiencies.

This restriction in production volume directly contributes to the higher price of handmade items, as the costs associated with crafting, materials, and time are spread across a smaller number of units.

Originally written on 12 December 2023 and last updated on 6 June 2025