Hi, the going rate is around $1/1,000 stitches, and some people charge $0.50 extra for thread color changes over 3 or 4 and often have a $5 or $10 minimum. So figure out your design and divide by 1,000. Sounds like a lot of money, but when you figure in stabilizer, thread, your time and all those bucks you paid for your embroidery machine...