Teespring Print on Demand: Honest Review 2024

Teespring is a popular print-on-demand platform that makes it simple to create and sell custom merchandise without upfront costs. Unlike traditional e-commerce setups, Teespring lets you focus on designing and marketing your products since it handles everything from production to shipping.

In this blog, we’ll take a closer look at Teespring’s details on features, pricing, and overall ease of use, giving you an honest review to help decide if it’s the right platform for your needs in 2024.

Overview about Teespring

Teespring, now known as Spring, was founded in 2011 by Walker Williams and Evan Stites-Clayton in Providence, Rhode Island. Its journey began with a t-shirt campaign supporting a local cause, featuring the words “FREE FISHCO” to protest the closure of a neighborhood bar. 

Initially, Teespring followed a crowdfunding model, where products were only produced if they met a minimum sales target. Over time, it shifted to a print-on-demand (POD) model with no sales minimums, making it easier for users to sell custom merchandise.

In 2021, Teespring rebranded as Spring and focused on helping social media creators sell custom merchandise to their audiences. By the end of that year, the platform had grown to include over 8 million users. In 2022, Spring was acquired by Amaze, a software company, which led to changes like closing its main production facility in Kentucky. Despite these transitions, Spring remains a go-to platform for creators looking to monetize their designs through POD.

How Does Teespring Work?

(Image Source: Teespring)

Teespring is a print-on-demand (POD) platform that makes it simple to create, print, and sell custom products. Unlike traditional printing companies that require bulk orders, Teespring operates on a made-to-order model, meaning products are only printed after a customer makes an order. This eliminates the need for upfront investment or managing inventory.

Teespring handles the entire process, from printing and packaging to shipping the products directly to your customers. It offers a wide variety of customizable items, including clothing, wall art, and home decor, which you can personalize with your own designs.

Selling with Teespring involves three easy steps:

1. Choose a product from their catalog.
2. Customize it with your design, adding images or text.
3. Set your retail price by marking up the base cost.

Once your product is ready, you can make it an accessible option for creators and small business owners by marketing it directly through social media platforms like YouTube or Instagram.

Teespring Key Features

Product Variety and Printing Quality

Teespring offers more than 50 different products, giving you a lot of choices to create unique designs and expanding your product lineup. Plus, you can unlock access to special items like clinch socks, backpacks, duffle bags, and more if you're a successful seller. The more you sell, the more opportunities you’ll have to broaden your offerings and establish your niche.

However, about where or how its products are manufactured, the platform provides at limited information. One exception is the ‘Premium AS Colour Collection,’ which is made in partnership with UK-based AS Colour and includes items sourced and printed in the UK. 

If you’re serious about providing top-quality products to your customers, it’s a smart move to order samples from your print-on-demand service. This allows you to check the quality of the base items yourself. You can also see how well your designs turn out (print quality, color accuracy, sharpness), and how durable they are after washing.

About the printing quality, Teespring simplifies the production process for new designers by handling all the technical details of printing. The platform uses Direct to Garment (DTG) and Screen Printing methods, with an automated system choosing the most suitable choice depending on factors like product type, number of colors, and order size. This ensures an easy setup for anyone starting their custom merchandise business.

For experienced designers, not being able to control the production and printing process might be a drawback to them. Since Teespring manages everything, it’s difficult to ensure the final product meets specific quality standards. But it’s a normal thing to all POD business, they often take over the responsibilities from all over the process to handle things for customers.

Here is a list of Best Print on Demand Products to sell that surely helps you to reach high profits, check it out.

User Dashboard

Teespring provides a user-friendly dashboard that lets you manage your products, track performance, and access various tools. While it’s clean and easy to navigate, it includes several tabs you’ll want to explore:

• Overview: See your account at a glance, track sales, check hot-streak challenges, and access promotional tools.
• Listings: View and edit your product listings, order product samples, or archive items.
• Storefronts: Organize multiple products in one place to share via a single URL.
• Analytics: Get insights into your business, like top-selling products and best-performing sales channels.
• Orders: Track your orders, including the number of items sold, order details, delivery status, and costs.
• Marketing: Manage tracking pixels for platforms like Facebook, Google, and Twitter.
• Integrations: Connect your store to platforms like Twitch, YouTube, and Google.
• Messages: Reach out to previous buyers, download their emails, promote campaigns, and offer discounts.
• Promotions: Create promo codes or discounts to reward buyers or boost sales.
• Pricing Discount: Adjust pricing to increase your profit margin by using flat pricing or discount tiers.
• Payouts: Manage your earnings and choose between Payoneer or PayPal for payouts.
• Settings: Update account details like your email, phone number, or display name. You can also enable features like the Boosted Network.

This dashboard makes it easy to manage and grow your business on Teespring. 

Store Setup & Customization

Teespring is designed specifically for print-on-demand, making the setup process simple. Starting your store is as easy as uploading your designs and turning them into products. 

When you first log in, the Overview dashboard guides you to start creating products immediately. While there are a few additional settings to configure—mainly related to payouts—they’re fairly easy to figure out, even though they aren’t highlighted clearly. During testing, it took just over six minutes to create an account, adjust the settings, and upload a design.

Once your design is uploaded, you’ll choose a product to display it on, such as a t-shirt, to see how it looks. While Teespring allows you to add text to your designs, advanced customization options are limited.

You can opt for a lot of fonts, but styling choices like arcing, shading, or 3D effects aren’t available. There’s a 14-color palette to choose from, and for custom colors, you’ll need to use Hex Color Codes, which might be a hassle if you’re not familiar with them.

Positioning your design and text is straightforward, thanks to guides that show the printable area. You can resize, rotate, or drag elements easily, with automatic alignment to keep everything centered.

While setting up the first product is quick, creating designs for additional products can become time-consuming. Teespring offers a wide range of items, including different styles of t-shirts, hoodies, sweatshirts, leggings, masks, and phone cases. For each product, you’ll need to adjust the design layout, ensure it fits well, and select matching colors. Although this involves a lot of clicking and waiting, it’s a reasonable trade-off considering Teespring handles all the printing, shipping, payments, and customer service for you.

💡 Pro tip: Try EComposer to build stunning store with these POD Products and share the heartwarming story of your business, along with adorable photos and behind-the-scenes moments online. Make them engaging to create a connection with you.

Content Management System

The customization tools on Teespring are extremely basic, so calling it a CMS isn’t entirely accurate. Teespring focuses on print-on-demand merchandise, not web hosting, and its storefront design options are minimal:

• Header: You can choose a background color using a detailed color palette with sliders. You can also decide whether to display your logo or a site title at the top, and whether that branding stays on every page.
• Banner: You can add an optional image under the header.
• About: This creates an "About" page where you can write a short description of your store or yourself and include links to social media. However, the bio character limit isn’t specified, and it’s quite short—you’ll exceed it with just a few sentences.
• Social Profile: If you have any social media profile, just add it into your store to showcase to the customers, Teespring provides a list of platforms to add in.

That’s about all you can do for branding your store. From the storefront setup page, you’ll also add products to your store. Note that this is separate from creating products. When you create products, they’re added to your inventory with prices and options, but you’ll still need to manually add them to the storefront. This setup allows you to manage multiple storefronts and decide which products appear on each.

All products are automatically categorized, and these categories show up in the navigation menu at the top of your storefront.

Think of a Teespring storefront as more of a merch table at an event than a full-featured online shop. It’s simple, functional, and focused on selling products rather than offering a complete shopping experience.

Other Notable Features

Teespring provides convenient features like Same Day printing and 2-Day shipping, making it possible to create a fast and seamless shopping experience, similar to Amazon. They also take care of payments, inventory management, and customer service. Beyond these basics, Teespring has introduced innovative tools that have played a big role in their recent growth:

1. Retargeting Ads:

If a customer views your product but doesn’t purchase it, Teespring runs ads to remind them of your product and encourage them to come back and buy it.

2. Email Marketing:

Teespring supports email marketing in two ways:

• Your products might be featured in Teespring’s branded marketing emails (usually for items that are already selling well).
• You can directly send emails to previous customers using Teespring’s "Messaging" feature, targeting all buyers or creating specific groups based on their purchase history.

3. Unique items

Many print-on-demand services focus on basic items like t-shirts, sweaters, and hats, but standing out with only these standard products can be tough. If you want to offer something more unique, Teespring might be the right platform for you. It allows you to create distinctive items like beanies, keychains, and pop sockets, even if you're new to designing.

While you can still sell classic products like custom t-shirts, adding unique options can help attract more customers and increase sales. Teespring even lets you design completely custom plush dolls—something you won’t find on most other print-on-demand platforms.

4. Teespring Go:

If you’re looking to grow your product range and step beyond traditional print-on-demand, Teespring Go is a great option. It lets you sell almost any type of product online and offers two flexible approaches:

Fulfillment Service

• Send your inventory to Teespring, and they’ll handle storage, order fulfillment, and customer service.
• You can also create product mock-ups and launch listings using their tools.
• Teespring charges a service fee of around 15% of the selling price, and you keep the rest as profit.
• However, you’ll need to source your products from a reliable supplier.

Sourcing and Fulfillment

• Ideal if you’re unsure how to find custom products.
• Teespring helps you source items from trusted vendors, manage inventory, and launch your listings.
• They’ll take care of storage, order fulfillment, and customer support, all for a 15% service fee.

Keep in mind that with this option, you’re not using the print-on-demand model. You’ll need to maintain an inventory of your products to ensure you’re ready to sell.

5. Tracking Pixels:

Teespring allows you to integrate tracking pixels from Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Google. The data collected feeds into their analytics tool, offering deeper insights than basic sales reports.

These features streamline selling, expand your reach, and help you track and market your products effectively.

Integrations and Compatibility with Other Platforms

Teespring focuses on selling your products through social media and online fan communities, rather than traditional ecommerce platforms. It offers 8 integrations, allowing you to sell on:

• TikTok Shop
• Beacons
• YouTube
• Twitch
• Linktree
• Instagram
• OnlyFans
• Discord

This makes Teespring a great choice for social media influencers and content creators that want to reach their audience directly on these platforms. 

1. Tiktok Shop

TikTok Shop lets creators sell their products directly within the TikTok app. Viewers can easily buy items shown in videos, making it simple for fans to support creators while enjoying content.

2. Beacons

Beacons is a link-in-bio tool that combines multiple links into one easy page. It helps creators showcase their content, products, and social profiles, making it easier for fans to access everything in one place.

3. YouTube Merch Shelf

(Image Source: Spring)

This feature is designed for YouTube creators who can monetize their channels. It adds a virtual "shelf" displaying your products directly under your videos, giving influencers a new way to earn money beyond ad revenue. During live streams, a “Merch Alert” notifies viewers in real-time when someone buys your product, creating excitement and encouraging more sales. You can even pin products to the top of the chat or run limited-time offers to create urgency and boost purchases.

4. Twitch Merch Store

This feature allows you to sell merchandise directly during Twitch live streams. You can even offer exclusive subscriber-only items, integrating the shopping experience seamlessly into your live broadcasts.

5. Linktree

Linktree provides a single link that leads followers to different destinations like social media, websites, and products. It simplifies the user experience, giving fans easy access to all of a creator's content.

6. Instagram Checkout

Teespring was one of the first platforms granted access to Instagram’s exclusive checkout feature in 2019. However, this option is selective, and not all Teespring stores are eligible. Applications are reviewed individually, as Instagram enforces strict standards for participation.

7. OnlyFans

OnlyFans is a platform where the creators can share exclusive content with paying subscribers. It allows creators to earn through memberships, tips, and pay-per-view content, providing a steady income while building a closer connection with fans.

8. Discord

The Discord integration allows buyers to share custom merch alerts in any chosen channel. These alerts include a link to the purchased product, leveraging social proof to reach a larger, always-active audience.

9. Other eCommerce Marketplaces

When you create a store with Teespring, you can actively promote your products, but Teespring also helps behind the scenes. 

It automatically connects your store to seven online marketplaces: Amazon, eBay, Walmart, Etsy, Wish, JD.com, and Rakuten. An algorithm manages this process, selecting products and sellers that meet specific criteria—like avoiding controversial content, having at least one sale, and maintaining good trust scores. These products are then listed on the most suitable platforms without you needing to opt-in or do any extra work (though you can opt-out if you prefer).

Teespring handles all the sales and customer support on these marketplaces. While the algorithm sets the prices, ensuring your profit per item may vary, you are guaranteed a minimum profit for every product sold.

While Teespring doesn't offer direct integrations with popular ecommerce platforms like Shopify, Wix, and WooCommerce, it is still a favorable option if you’re looking for social media selling integrations.

Pricing and Fees

Teespring, like most popular print-on-demand services, is free to use. You don’t need to pay any subscription fees to get started. You can easily register for an account, upload your designs, and begin selling without any upfront costs. This makes it a great choice for people with a limited budget.

Teespring still needs to make money, so it does this by keeping a small part of the sale price for each item. Instead of taking a percentage of your earnings, Teespring charges a fixed cost for each product. You decide how much profit you want to make on top of that fixed cost. The key to success is getting buyers interested in your products.

Teespring offers a wide variety of products, and their prices depend on the style and fabric. Here’s a general idea of what items may cost:

• Short Sleeve T-shirts: $10 to $18
• Long Sleeve T-shirts: $13 to $23
• Tank Tops: Around $13
• Sweatshirts/Hoodies: $18 to $32
• Baby Products: $10 to $23

Teespring also provides volume discounts. If you reach a sales goal in one month, your product cost for the next month will be based on that success. While Teespring isn’t the cheapest option out there, it’s affordable, and with careful planning, you can still make a profit. 

Additionally, in terms of store domain, you have 2 options:

• Connect existing domain: $11.99/year
• Purchase new domain: price diverse from around $38 per year (.online/.net/.clothing/.co/shopping…) 

Customer Service

Teespring offers customer support through live chat and email, but its live chat is only available during business hours—Monday to Friday, 9 AM to 5 PM EST. Many users have mentioned that getting in touch with the support team can sometimes be challenging.

Teespring also has a help center with articles and guides to support users in setting up their stores and using the platform. However, the help center is fairly basic, covering only the essentials of getting started without much detailed guidance. Additionally, the help resources are only available in English, which might limit accessibility for some users.

Additionally, Teespring also has a Design Support team who helps sellers launch campaigns by offering setup guidance and design assistance. While they don’t create designs from scratch, they assist with file issues and troubleshooting, ensuring a smooth and stress-free experience for users.

Pros and Cons of Teespring

1. The Pros

• Wide Product Range: Teespring offers various products, including apparel, home décor, and accessories, allowing sellers to diversify their offerings.
• Free to Use: No upfront costs or subscription fees make it ideal for beginners.
• Standalone Storefront: Sellers can create their own online store directly on the platform.
• Digital Product Sales: Teespring supports selling digital goods, expanding revenue opportunities.
• Easy Integration: Works well with platforms like Instagram, YouTube, and Twitch, perfect for content creators targeting fanbases.
• Rush Shipping: Some products offer faster delivery options, improving customer satisfaction.

2. The Cons

• Higher Product Costs: Teespring’s product prices are generally higher compared to other platforms, which can reduce profit margins.
• Limited Mockup Options: The platform provides fewer tools for creating detailed product mockups.
• No Sample Discounts: Unlike competitors, Teespring doesn’t offer discounted samples for sellers to test products.
• Customer Support Limitations: Support is not as comprehensive or available 24/7, which may delay issue resolution.
• Less Customization for Branding: Fewer options for branded packaging compared to alternatives.

Others also read

A Full Guide To Start a print on demand Business

12 Best Shopify Themes for Print on Demand (POD) Stores

Best Print-on-Demand (POD) Apps FREE & Paid

Real Reviews from Customers

Not everything about Teespring is perfect, and there are several concerns users have raised.

1. Customer Complaints

On Trustpilot, Teespring has an average rating of 2.3, which is lower than ideal. Many customers expect a rating of 4.0 or higher for reliability. Some of the main issues include:

• Account Deactivation: Users have reported having their accounts shut down without warning or explanation.
• Product Quality: Complaints about prints peeling or washing off after the first wash are common.
• Unfulfilled Orders: Some customers claim they never received their orders or refunds.
• Spam Emails: There are reports of excessive spam emails, frustrating users.

2. Company Challenges

Many believe Teespring grew too quickly and struggles with providing strong customer support. Some of the customers have even taken legal action against the company since the lack of care has made them upset.

3. Improving Response

The positive news is that Teespring has started responding to these complaints on Trustpilot. If they continue improving customer service, Teespring has the potential to regain trust and be a solid platform for sellers. Time will tell if they resolve these issues fully.

Teespring Print on Demand Alternatives

If you’re planning to start a print-on-demand store, many other POD services are worth exploring. Here’s a quick overview of some popular alternatives to Teespring.

1. Printful

Printful is a well-known platform for creators to design and sell custom products like hoodies, t-shirts and other merchandise. E-commerce platforms like Amazon, Shopify, Wix, and eBay have been integrated smoothly with Printiful and it also offers such a wide range of high-quality items.

When a customer places an order, Printful handles the production and shipping, freeing creators to focus on marketing and customer engagement. While there’s a fulfillment fee, Printful’s efficient process is cost-effective compared to managing production yourself.

Target Audience: Creators selling clothing and accessories.

Pricing:

Pros and Cons

2. Gelato 

Gelato is a top global print-on-demand platform, helping online store owners, artists, and creators sell custom designs on items like mugs, phone cases, wall art, and hoodies. It eliminates the demand for inventory, reducing upfront costs and risks.

The platform is a strong alternative to Teespring, offering global reach, sustainable practices, and ease of use. It’s a great option for anyone looking to start or grow an online store with custom products.

Target Audience: Artists, designers, and online store owners seeking an easy way to grow their product range.

Pricing:

• Free: $0 for forever
• Gelato+: $24/month or $239/year
• Gelato Gold: $119/month, or $1185/year
• Gelato Platinum: Bespoke Pricing

Pros and Cons

Read our Detailed Reviews on Gelato to find out if it is a suitable alternative.

3. Redbubble

Redbubble is an online marketplace designed for independent artists to sell their creations. It allows creators to showcase their work on products like clothing, accessories, and home decor. Similar to Spring, Redbubble combines a print-on-demand service with a marketplace, enabling artists to sell directly through its website while third-party printers handle production.

Pricing on Redbubble is based on a combination of the platform's base price and the artist's markup, with the base price deducted automatically after a sale. However, its product catalog is smaller than competitors, and the product costs may feel high for many creators.

Unlike Spring, Redbubble lacks integrations with platforms like YouTube, Twitch, or Instagram, limiting additional sales opportunities.

Target Audience: Artists and designers.

Pricing: Free to sign up; takes around 20% per sale.

Pros and Cons

4. CustomCat

CustomCat, established in 1999, is one of the oldest print-on-demand platforms, similar to TeeSpring. It offers creators over 500 customizable product options, including t-shirts, sweatshirts, jerseys, hats, backpacks, and phone cases.

The platform supports various printing methods, such as embroidery, dye sublimation, and digital printing, ensuring high-quality results. CustomCat integrates seamlessly with platforms like Etsy, BigCommerce, WooCommerce, Shopify, and even custom online stores.

Getting started is simple—sign up, choose products, design using the product tool, and publish them to your connected store.

Target Audience: Creators and artists.

Pricing: Free to join, with premium plan options.

Pros and Cons

Figure out our blog on CustomCat Reviews to discover information about this POD.

5. Merch by Amazon

Merch by Amazon is a print-on-demand platform where designers, artists, and creators can sell their designs without upfront costs. Simply upload your artwork, and Amazon print on demand takes care of production, shipping, and customer service. Your designs are listed on Amazon’s marketplace, giving you access to a huge audience.

You earn royalties on each sale, so there’s no need to handle inventory or fulfillment.. Plus, all products are made to order, reducing waste and storage needs. 

Target Audience: Creators and artists who want to make money from their work with little effort.

Pricing: 

• Invite-only, no upfront fees.
• Earn royalties per sale.
• Royalties depend on price minus taxes and costs.
• Limited control over pricing.

Pros and Cons

To find out more options for the Print on demand industry, read our analysis on Top Print on Demand Companies of the Year!

Teespring Review: Final Verdict

Teespring is a well-known platform for selling custom designs online. Although it faced some challenges in the past, like customer support issues and limits on what could be sold, it has improved a lot recently.

Teespring is now rebuilding its reputation, and customer reviews are becoming more positive as the platform focuses on better service.

It’s a simple, low-risk choice for anyone wanting to sell their own merchandise. With built-in marketing tools and options to expand sales channels, it offers an easy way to start selling your designs online. If you're interested in creating and selling custom products, Teespring is worth considering.

FAQs

1. Is Teespring still profitable in 2024?

Yes, Spring (formerly Teespring) has become more profitable in 2024. It has introduced features like marketing integration and multi-channel sales, making it easier for creators to earn money. While success depends on factors like product design and marketing, Spring offers a good opportunity to make money with print-on-demand.

2. How do I contact Spring Support?

Spring provides multiple channels for customer support:

• Help Center: Find answers to common questions.
• Email: Reach their support team directly.
• Social Media: Get assistance through Spring’s social media accounts like Twitter and Instagram.

3. Can you actually make money from Teespring?

Yes, you can make money on Spring. The platform provides tools to help you create and market your designs. By creating appealing products and promoting them effectively, you can earn significant revenue.

4. What are the fees for using Spring?

Spring takes a commission on each sale, which varies by product category and your pricing. There may also be transaction and shipping fees. It’s important to check their fee structure before selling to understand potential costs.

5. Is there a Spring app?

There isn’t a dedicated app for Spring yet. However, you can manage your account via their mobile-friendly website on smartphones or tablets.