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CNC part cost calculator

Material and cycle time are per part; setup and CAM programming are batch costs that amortise across quantity. This calculator keeps the two separate so quantity breaks show up honestly.

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The single most common quoting mistake is treating a part as if it costs the same at any quantity. It does not. Some costs repeat with every piece, and some are paid once for the whole batch. This calculator keeps them apart.

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CNC part cost calculator

Material and machining time are per part; setup and programming amortise across the whole batch. All calculations stay in this browser.

Material / per part

Machining / per part

Batch costs

Material / part

PLN 127.01

Machining / part

PLN 308.00

Setup and programming / part

PLN 30.80

Cost / part

PLN 465.81

Net price / part

PLN 548.01

Net price for the batch

PLN 13,700.24

Planning model: material × (1 + allowance) + machining time × rate + (setup + programming) × rate ÷ batch quantity. Net price = cost ÷ (1 − margin); the calculator accepts 0–95% because 100% would divide by zero. The currency selector only changes the result format. The result excludes VAT, freight, outsourced finishing and quality costs unless you enter them under "other cost".

The model

Cost per part = material × (1 + allowance) + machining time × rate + (setup + programming) × rate ÷ quantity + other.

Net price per part = cost per part ÷ (1 − margin).

The third term is the one that moves. Setup and CAM programming are batch costs: they are paid once whether you make one part or five hundred. Dividing them by quantity is what produces a quantity break, and it is why the same drawing can be honestly quoted at very different unit prices.

Cost split for one machined part and how the setup share per part falls as batch quantity rises from one to ten to one hundred pieces
Why quantity matters: setup and CAM programming are paid once per batch, so the share each part carries drops from 100% at a quantity of one to 34% at ten and 13% at a hundred.

What goes in each field

Stock mass is the mass of the billet you buy, not the finished part. If you do not know it, work it out with the material weight calculator and bring the number back.

Scrap and offcut allowance covers what you pay for but cannot use — saw kerf, the end of the bar, the material you must buy in standard sizes. A few percent for plate, considerably more when a part is cut from bar stock.

Machining time is spindle time per part, including tool changes and in-cycle moves. It is not the whole floor-to-floor time unless your rate already excludes loading and unloading.

Machine hourly rate should be your cost-recovery rate. Work it out with the machine hourly rate calculator if you have not already.

Setup and CAM programming are entered per batch. Programming is often the larger of the two on a first order and near zero on a repeat — quote a repeat with programming set to zero to see the difference.

Other cost per part is the catch-all for anodising, heat treatment, inspection, special tooling amortisation and anything else you would rather not model separately.

What this deliberately leaves out

This is a planning model, not a quoting system. It does not read your geometry, does not know which features drive your cycle time, and cannot tell you whether 1.4 hours is a realistic estimate for the part in front of you. That number still comes from your experience or your CAM software.

It also excludes VAT and other taxes, freight, packaging, minimum order quantities and any scrap credit you recover from the chips. The margin field accepts 0–95% because 100% would divide by zero, not because 95% is a recommendation.

For the reasoning behind which features actually drive machining cost, read what drives CNC machining cost and how to quote CNC parts.

Kostira applies this arithmetic to real STEP geometry — bounding box, stock, features and material read straight out of the file, against rates you save once. See how it works.

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FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Why does the price per part fall as quantity rises?
Setup and CAM programming are paid once per batch, not once per part. At a quantity of one they land entirely on that part; at a hundred they are divided by a hundred. Material and cycle time do not amortise, which is why the price falls steeply at first and then flattens.
What machine rate should I enter?
The cost-recovery rate for the resource that will run the job. If you do not have one, work it out with the machine hourly rate calculator first, then bring the number back here.
Does this include finishing, inspection or freight?
Not unless you enter them. Anodising, heat treatment, inspection time and delivery are not separate fields; put them in the other cost per part field, or quote them as separate lines.
Is any data sent to a server?
No. The calculator runs entirely in the browser and makes no network request; no inputs leave the device.