How to Use Sellfy to Launch Print-on-Demand Merch

The short answer: if you want branded merch for your audience without buying stock, Sellfy prints each item only after a customer has paid, and the margin is yours to set: its own example prices a T-shirt with a $28.25 base cost at $45 for a $16.75 profit, per the print-on-demand article (checked on 26 October 2026). The steps: pick a plan and connect payments, put a card and your VAT number on billing, prepare a print-ready file, create and price the item, cap the stock if it is a limited run, order a sample, publish shipping times, then launch to your list.

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The job: one design, on one or two items, sold to people who already follow you, with nothing paid in advance and no box of unsold hoodies afterwards. What Sellfy is and costs is in the Sellfy glossary entry.

Before you design anything:

1. Price for the tax you will pay on fulfilment. Sellfy charges EU and UK sellers VAT on the fulfilment cost unless a VAT number is on file. For example, at a 21% rate on the $28.25 base cost that is $28.25 x 0.21 = $5.93, which takes the $16.75 profit down to $10.82, per the print-on-demand article.
2. Start from the brand assets and the list you have. A logo or line already printed on your slides is the design. The people who already open your emails are the first buyers, and Sellfy's email tool carries 2,000 sends a month on Starter, per the pricing page.
3. Decide how you will read profit. Sellfy's analytics count revenue including tax and fees, per the analytics article, so profit is order value minus the fulfilment charges in your Billing history and the Stripe or PayPal fee.

What you need

• A paid plan before the launch. The cost article says checkout is disabled during the 14-day trial; Starter is $29 a month, or $264 a year.
• Stripe or PayPal. The money from each order goes to your own account.
• Artwork you have the rights to. The content guidelines make you responsible for copyright, trademark and publicity rights.

Step 1: Connect payments

Go to Payment Settings, click Connect an existing Stripe account, log in if asked and click Authorize access, as the Stripe article describes. A green switch next to the Stripe logo means it worked.

Step 2: Put a card and your VAT number on billing

After each paid order, Sellfy charges the base cost, shipping and taxes to the payment method under Billing, and may group orders placed within the same two-hour window into one invoice, per the print-on-demand article. If your business is VAT registered in the EU or UK, add the number to your Billing info; the article says VAT is then no longer collected on each invoice.

Step 3: Prepare a print-ready file

The tips article asks for PNG with a transparent background, or JPEG otherwise, at 150 DPI at least and 300 recommended, in sRGB or CMYK. Leave black areas transparent on black garments, avoid neon RGB colours and semi-transparent elements, and upload only the final version: a design cannot be changed once it is on Sellfy. Fabric changes the result too; the same article says poly and tri-blends print with a faded, vintage look where 100% cotton prints crisp.

Step 4: Create the item

Go to Products, Add new, choose a product category and type, customise it with your file, and click Save, following the print-on-demand article. The item catalogue lists what can be printed or embroidered.

Step 5: Set the price over the base cost

Each item's base cost appears in the Variants section below Price Settings in the last step of product creation. Set the final price as base cost plus the margin you worked out above, including the VAT from point 1 if it applies to you.

Step 6: Cap the stock for a limited run

A limited edition is a reason to buy this week. Go to Print-on-demand, select the product, scroll to Variant, choose edit, turn off Unlimited and enter the number, as the print-on-demand article describes.

Step 7: Order a sample

Use the sample order form in the product's settings; it needs payment details saved in Billing. For several samples, the same article suggests ordering through your storefront as a customer would, to save shipping, which needs a paid plan.

Step 8: Publish the shipping times

The shipping article says 97.66% of orders are printed and shipped within 5 business days, and gives international delivery as 7 to 27 business days. Shipping a shirt to Europe costs the buyer $4.59 for the first item and $1.45 for each extra one, with VAT added on EU shipping. Put the delivery window on the product page, and expect slower dates around the holidays.

Step 9: Launch to your list

Create a coupon under Marketing, Coupons & Discounts, Add new discount, Coupon, with a percentage, dates and a redemption limit, per the coupons article. Adding a minus and the code to the product URL gives a link with the code already applied. Then send the campaign from Sellfy's email tool, which reaches only people who opted in, as the email marketing article explains with reference to the GDPR.

Step 10: Let an agent write the dispatch note, and a person send it

Merch buyers abroad wait longer than download buyers, and a short note on timing heads off "where is my order" emails. The Zapier integration triggers on a completed payment. Add an AI by Zapier step that reads the buyer's country and drafts two lines with the delivery window from your shipping table, then a Human in the Loop approval, so a person checks the dates before anything goes to the customer.

Sellfy counts every store sale toward your plan's yearly revenue limit, per the revenue limit article, so a $45 shirt adds $45 toward Starter's $10,000 even though $28.25 of it goes straight back to Sellfy for fulfilment. In that example the cap fills at $45 / $16.75 = 2.69 times the pace of your profit, toward the next plan or the 2% overage, so put the cap in the launch budget.

What Sellfy's help centre warns about

• Designs are final on upload. There is no editing afterwards.
• Black on black. Black ink on a black garment prints grey and fuzzy.
• Screens are not paper. The tips article says 100% colour accuracy cannot be guaranteed.
• Holiday shipping. Delivery slows with demand, and holiday estimates come out in October or early November.

FAQ

Do I pay anything before a merch order comes in?

No. Sellfy charges the base cost, shipping and tax only after your customer has paid you, per the print-on-demand article; you pay the plan.

How long does delivery take?

Five to 11 business days in the United States and 7 to 27 internationally, including production, according to the shipping article.

Can I change a design after uploading it?

No. The tips article says changes are not possible once a design is uploaded, so upload the final file.