How to use this calculator
This calculator answers one question: is this art market or craft fair actually worth your time? Real cost includes booth fee, travel, materials you'll consume, and the hours you spend prepping inventory and running the booth.
- Enter the booth fee and your travel costs (gas, lodging, meals).
- Set how many pieces you'll bring and your average price.
- Estimate sell-through honestly. If unsure, start at 50 percent.
- Add material cost per piece (what each piece costs you to make).
- Total prep plus event hours, and your hourly rate.
- Read the effective hourly rate at the bottom. That number decides whether to repeat the event next year.
Frequently asked questions
What's a realistic sell-through rate?
Wildly variable. New vendors at a regional craft fair often see 30 to 50 percent. Established artists at a curated art market can hit 70 percent or higher. Start at 50 percent if you genuinely don't know, and adjust after your first event.
Why does effective hourly rate matter more than profit?
Profit hides time. A $400 profit on a weekend event that ate 25 hours is $16 per hour, barely above minimum wage in many states. The effective hourly rate is the number that decides whether to repeat the event next year.
What if I'm doing this event for exposure?
Quantify the actual cost. If the event costs you $200 to attend (booth, gas, lost teaching income, your own time), $200 is what the exposure costs you. Decide whether that exposure is worth $200. Sometimes yes, often no.
What if the booth is free?
Set booth fee to 0. The math still works on the other inputs. Plenty of community events and pop-ups have no booth fee but still cost you in travel, materials, and time.
What about multi-day events?
Multiply prep plus event hours across all days. Expected sell-through usually scales with foot traffic, so a 3-day fair often produces roughly 2x the sales of a 1-day fair, not 3x. Be honest about that scaling.
Related free tools
Selling between teaching?
Many artists pay the bills with a mix: art markets in summer, workshops in winter. Class Price Calculator handles the workshop side. Cost modeling, enrollment scenarios, sliding-scale tiers, and risk buffers in one tool. Built by the teaching artists at the Lander Art Center.
Get Class Price Calculator