Cost of Quilting
 

I am looking into having my quilt professionally quilted, can anybody tell me what the going rate is?

Professional is the key word. Many with a long arm think they are a pro. I've paid as little as $60 for a large throw size up to $300 for a king size. A lot depends on the batting. Be sure a good quality batting is used, not the scratchy stuff and pick you thread color. State if you want your quilt trimmed or not. I prefer no trimming. I only want LAs that do computer designs only because none in my town are worth a hoot when it comes to freehand quilting.

My LAer charges .015cents per square inch for computer all over. .02 for some of each, and .03 for free hand design.

I was just charged $91.93 for a queen size (91x100) which included the batting and piecing the back. My long armer gives choices on patterns. It breaks down to .007 per square inch for the quilting, .25 per liner inch of warm and natural batting 2.00 for thread and 5.00 to piece the back. If you don't want to use a pattern a custom job is more... .03 per square inch.

I am sure that prices vary from state to state.

Geographic location comes into play as well. In my area the starting price is also .015 per s/i for an end to end (hand guided or computer) but in other areas I have heard the price can be lower or higher. All depends what the local market is willing to pay. Many people are willing to ship the quilt to a LAQ that they like. Longarmers in high demand like Judy Madsen of Green Fairy Quilts have long waiting lists and charge by the hour instead of by the square inch.

I just paid $147.00 for a beautifully quilted pantographed double sided quilt (2 bonnie hunter mysteries)
But I provided my own batting and both sides were starched and pressed and flat. She didn't have to do anything to them to make them ready, nor did she have to do anything to them when the quilting was done.

So the per inch cost can vary and so does what the the quilters will include in that per inch price.

I've sent my quilts all over the western USA which ups the total about thirty bucks (total, includes both ways), a flat rate medium USPS box.

so be sure you are comparing apples to apples :)

It depends a lot on your location. If there are quilt shops near you, you should be able to get some brochures with prices. You can also ask at your quilt guild if you belong to one. There is a big cost difference between an all over meander & a custom job.
Plan on spending a bit of time when you drop the top off to discuss what you want done. Ask to see their work. Most professional quilters will have some sort of standard written agreement. If they don't, insist on something in writing stating the size of the top, batting, thread, type of quilting & cost per inch/hour and estimated completion date.
The back needs to be larger than the top so contact them in advance to get their size requirements. Also, find out how they want the backing prepared. Some will request all seams be horizontal, some don't care, some will accept sheets, some won't...

I was just discussing that with a quilt shop in our area that does long arming. They start at $.02 per square inch. I am a hand quilter and I start at $.06 . I am not sure about the long armers but I would prefer to provide the batting and backing at my cost so that I have control over it. My price would go up if the quilt has small pieces as that requires a lot more work for me because of all of the seams. I can provide a choice of quilting patterns as I have many stencils. If I am required to purchase additional stencils I would pass along the price. I can use sheets for backing as long as they are not a very high thread count. The tighter the weave the harder it is to quilt.

Awesome, thanks for the quick replies. The person in town charges 1.5 cents PSI, she will bind it for $25.00, very nice lady and sounds like she is on target with her price, I have seen her work as she does all the quilts for the fabric shop in town