"Good digitizing is the difference between embroidery that looks crisp and professional and embroidery that puckers, gaps, or wears out. It's a one-time step per design. Once your logo is digitized, we can stitch it again and again with no setup needed."
Digitizing Pricing
What is digitizing?
An embroidery machine can't read a logo the way your eyes do. Before it can stitch your design, your artwork has to be translated into a special file that tells the machine exactly where to place every stitch, in what direction, in what order, and in which color. That translation is called digitizing— and it's skilled, hands-on work, not the push of a button.
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You send your artwork
A logo, image, or design in just about any format.
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We digitize it
We map your design into precise stitches, then test it on real fabric and fine-tune until it looks right.
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It's ready to stitch
Your design now embroiders cleanly and identically, every time. On this order and every future one.
Flat fee by stitch count
We price by the size of the finished design, measured in stitches. Bigger, more detailed artwork takes more digitizing time, so the fee scales with it. No surprises, no per-hour billing.
$35
Up to 6,000 stitches
Simple text, small left-chest logos, basic shapes
$50
6,000 – 10,000 stitches
Standard logos, most corporate marks
$70
10,000 – 15,000 stitches
Detailed logos, multiple colors or elements
$90
15,000 – 20,000 stitches
Complex artwork, fine detail, layered fills
$115
20,000 – 25,000 stitches
Large or highly intricate designs
Not sure how many stitches your design is?
Just send it over. We'll tell you the count and exact price before any work begins.
What your fee covers
One fee. Done right.
Expert Digitizing
Expert manual digitizing of your artwork. No auto-tracing shortcuts.
Stitch Test
A stitch-out test and adjustments so it looks right on real fabric.
Revisions
Up to two minor revisions to get the details just right.
Use
Unlimited embroidery of your design on future orders with us.
Good To Know
About the digitized file
The digitizing fee covers our craft and your embroidery. It isn't a sale of the file itself. We keep the production file on hand so we can stitch your design perfectly, order after order. Most customers never need the file; we've got it covered.
If you'd like a copy of the digitized stitch file, for example, to keep a backup or have it on hand, we're happy to license it to you. Helmsman retains ownership of the file as our original work, and you receive a written license to use it for your own products. It's available as a separate add-on, granted in writing once paid.
License your stitch file
A copy of the finished production file (.DST, .PES, or your format), licensed for you to use on your own products.
starting at
$99
Priced with the design, ask us for your quote
A few extras
Most jobs are just the flat fee above. These come up now and then.
Rush turnaround
+50%
Need it fast? We'll prioritize your file.
Major revision
$15-$50
Reworks beyond the two included edits.
Cap / specialty fabric
+$10
Caps and tricky materials need special setup.
Extra file format
+$10
Additional machine formats on request.