What does MOQ mean in clothing?
An MOQ of 100 pieces per style means you order at least 100 hoodies of the same design. You can usually spread them across sizes, but not across colours or fabrics. Depending on the factory, the minimum applies per style, per colour, per size or per fabric.
The minimum exists because every production run has fixed setup costs: laying out patterns, setting up machines, changing yarns and organising quality control. Those costs are the same whether you make 10 or 1,000 pieces. Below a certain quantity, a production run is no longer viable for the factory. So MOQ is not arbitrary: it is arithmetic.
What is the MOQ per country?
These are the usual minimums per style in the market, by region.
- The Netherlands and Belgium: 50 to 200 pieces. Small factories, a high unit price, very short lines of communication.
- Portugal and Italy: 50 to 300 pieces. The sweet spot for small premium brands.
- Turkey: 100 to 500 pieces. A good balance between quality and price.
- China, directly with the factory: 300 to 1,000 pieces. The lowest unit price at volume.
- China through a trading company: 50 to 200 pieces, but 30 to 50% more expensive per piece.
What is the MOQ per product?
The more complex the pattern or the machine setup, the higher the minimum.
- Basic t-shirts: 50 to 100 pieces
- Hoodies and sweaters: 50 to 200 pieces
- Trousers and jeans: 100 to 300 pieces
- Jackets: 100 to 300 pieces
- Knitwear: 300 to 500 pieces
- Accessories such as caps and socks: 100 to 300 pieces
Does the MOQ apply per colour and fabric?
Often it does. If a factory has an MOQ of 100, that usually means 100 per colour per fabric: a hoodie in three colours then becomes 300 pieces. Some factories do allow colour variation within one MOQ. Always ask before you accept a quote.
What does a low MOQ cost per piece?
At most factories: more per piece, less in total, because the same setup costs are spread over fewer pieces. With us you pay a fixed price from 10 pieces, excluding VAT: €29.99 per t-shirt and €39.99 per hoodie, with a print and a printed neck label. Below 1,000 pieces, ordering more after that usually makes little difference per piece.
Work it out for your starting budget: 10 hoodies cost €399.90 with us, 50 hoodies €1,999.50. A high MOQ gives you margin, but also stock that may go unsold. That is why new brands almost always start small to test.
What minimums do other suppliers quote?
Search for low MOQ and you will see a handful of numbers that all present themselves as the minimum. Below are the minimums that Dutch and European suppliers listed on their own websites in August 2026, from low to high. These are their claims, not checked by us, and they change: always confirm them in your own quote process.
- 10 pieces per style and per colour: our lower limit for a plain t-shirt, long sleeve, hoodie or sweater with a print; a cotton tracksuit from 25 sets.
- 15 to 25 pieces: at suppliers that advertise no minimum, but still state a lower limit on their product page.
- 25 pieces: common at private label suppliers that apply your label and print to clothing already in stock.
- 50 pieces: the lower limit at most custom apparel manufacturers and at workshops that do not buy the fabric themselves.
- 100 to 150 pieces: Dutch workshops that do their own sewing, and factories that work with fixed quantity tiers.
- 300 to 1,000 pieces: directly at a large factory in Asia, where the unit price is lowest.
Is from 25 pieces also fully custom?
Usually not. At many suppliers, from 25 pieces means you buy 25 units of an existing garment from their catalogue, with your label inside and your print on it. Fabric, weight, fit and construction are then already fixed. Fully custom production, where you decide those things, often only starts at 100 to 250 pieces at those same suppliers.
That is not a criticism: they are two different products. But minimums can only be compared once you know what they refer to. These three questions expose the difference in one conversation.
- Do I choose the fabric and the GSM (the fabric weight) myself, or do I pick from an existing catalogue?
- Is a pattern made for my style, or does that pattern already exist?
- Do I get a sample of my own style, or an existing style with my logo on it?
How can MakeaLabel produce from 10 pieces?
Small runs join larger productions of brands that do order normal quantities, in our own workshop in Turkey. That is why our minimum order is 10 pieces per style and per colour for a plain t-shirt, long sleeve, hoodie or sweater with a print. Other products have their own minimum: joggers and shorts from 25, a cotton tracksuit from 25 sets and a polo from 35.
Those ten are a production of their own, with your print and your own neck label, on our base fabric in black, cream or white. You can have a sample of your style made first, before bulk starts. For a run of ten you choose two sizes, for example 5 in M and 5 in L.
Want a fully custom pattern, with your own cut, contrast panels or piping? That starts at 150 to 200 pieces per style and per colour.
How do you get around a high MOQ?
- Combine styles at the same factory: 50 hoodies plus 50 crewnecks often counts as 100 pieces in total.
- Use the same base fabric for several products.
- Work with pre-orders: sell first, then produce exactly the number ordered.
- Share a production run with another brand through a collab.