Can you print shirts the same day?

Sometimes, with a 24 piece minimum. It depends on what is already on the press and whether the garments are in stock, so it is not something we can promise online. Call and we will tell you straight whether we can do it today.

What slows a custom shirt order down?

Artwork more than anything. The clock starts when the art is approved and print ready, so a file that needs redrawing adds time before we touch a shirt. After that it is how quickly you approve the proof, whether the garments are in stock, and the quantity and number of print locations.

When does the turnaround clock start?

When your artwork is approved and ready to print, not when you place the order. A print ready vector file can start you moving the same day. A proof that sits unread for three days adds three days to your job.

Production

How fast can you get it?

Q: How long does custom shirt printing take?

Standard turnaround is 7 to 14 days. Rush is 48 to 72 hours when we can move the job up the schedule. Same day is sometimes available with a 24 piece minimum, and you need to call to check. The clock starts when your artwork is approved, not when you place the order.

Q: Do you do rush orders?

Yes. Rush is 48 to 72 hours when we can fit it into the schedule. Tell us your date when you order rather than after, so we can tell you straight away whether we can hit it.

Three speeds, and one thing that decides which one you land on more than anything else — and it is not us. It is your artwork.

MGE Custom Prints · Capitol Heights, Maryland · 6 September 2026

The three speeds

Standard 7–14 days

The normal run. Most orders go out on this.

Rush 48–72 hours

When you need it sooner and we can move it up the schedule.

Same day Call first

Not always available, and there is a 24 piece minimum. Ring us and we will tell you straight whether we can do it today.

We publish those because you deserve to plan around real numbers rather than “quick turnaround”. But the number on its own is only half the answer, because which one your job lands on is largely decided before we touch a shirt.

The clock starts at artwork approval, not at order

This is the part that catches people out, so it is worth being blunt about.

Your turnaround does not begin when you place the order. It begins when the artwork is approved and print-ready. Everything before that — sorting the file, redrawing it, waiting on your sign-off — sits outside the clock, and it is usually where the real days go.

Two identical orders can be a week apart. One arrives with a print-ready vector and is moving the same day. The other arrives as a logo screenshotted off a website, needs redrawing, then waits two days for someone to reply to the proof. Same shirts, same quantity, same press — a week between them, and none of it was printing time.

The four things that actually decide it

1. Your artwork

By a distance the biggest factor. A print-ready vector starts you moving immediately. A file that needs converting adds time before anything else can happen, and AI-generated art nearly always needs converting because it is pixels rather than a source file.

If you want to be fast, the highest-value thing you can do is send the right file first time.

2. How quickly you approve the proof

We send a proof and nothing runs until you say yes. That protects you — but a proof sitting unread over a weekend is a weekend added to your job. If you are ordering for a group, decide in advance who is allowed to approve it, so it is not waiting on a committee.

3. Garment stock

If the shirt you want has to come in from a supplier, that part is not ours to control. We will tell you up front if that is in play, and there is usually a comparable garment in stock if the date matters more than the exact style.

4. Quantity and locations

Fifty fronts is a different day than five hundred front-and-back. Every extra print location is another pass through the press. Worth knowing when you are deciding whether you really need the back print.

How to be the fast job

Send vector artwork — .ai, .eps, .pdf or .svg
Give us your date when you order, not after. We plan around deadlines we know about
Name one approver and make sure they are watching their email
Be flexible on the exact garment if the date is what really matters
Ask before you assume. If you need it sooner than standard, say so — we would rather tell you no up front than miss something you were counting on

That last one is the whole point. We would rather turn a job down than take it and let you down — that is the reputation ninety-eight reviews were built on.

Price it now, so the only question left is the date

Would you like to find out your price without the hassle of a phone call or email? Get the number here, then ring us about timing with your quantity already in hand.

Instant price

Common questions

How long does custom shirt printing take?

Standard is 7–14 days, rush is 48–72 hours when we can move it up, and same day is sometimes possible with a 24 piece minimum. The clock starts at artwork approval.

Do you do rush orders?

Yes — 48–72 hours when the schedule allows. Tell us your date when you order and we will tell you straight away whether we can hit it.

Can you do same day?

Sometimes, with a 24 piece minimum. It depends what is on the press and whether the garments are in stock, so call rather than assume.

What slows an order down most?

Artwork, then proof approval. Both are usually on the customer side, which is good news — it means you control most of your own turnaround.

Is embroidery the same timing?

Similar, with one extra step: embroidery artwork has to be digitized into a stitch file first — a one-off $45, and not charged again when you reorder the same design on the same item. See how embroidery pricing works.

Want the next one?

We publish one of these a week — real numbers off our own price list, no fluff. Would you like to know when the next one goes up? Leave your email and we’ll tell you.

Just new posts. No sales blasts, and you can tell us to stop any time.

Got a date you can’t move?

Tell us when you order rather than after. We plan the schedule around the deadlines we know about, and we will tell you straight whether we can hit yours. Black-owned and veteran-owned, in Capitol Heights since 2016.

Would you like to know whether we can make your date before you commit to anything? Click below, or ring us.

Tell us your deadline (202) 643-7805