CNC machining cost estimator: from your drawing to a line-by-line price
A quote is a recipe.
RFQdecoder reads your drawing and writes the manufacturing recipe: the material, every operation, every euro. You see where the price comes from, line by line.
Price as of 5 October 2026. Not included: anodising, dedicated tooling, shipping.
Method
From drawing to price in three steps
The drawing is read
Views, dimensions, title block, mass, holes and threads. Every value shows where it comes from.
The routing is written
One sentence per step, in shop-floor order, with the machine and the cost next to it.
You know what to discuss
The missing step, the rate that is too high, the batch that costs: every line can be edited and everything is recalculated.
Cost breakdown
A real part, broken down into its price
The costing of housing BTC-120-80-45 in 6082 aluminium, 200 parts. Each cost item adds to the previous one, and whatever is not included is named. The full method: should cost analysis.
- 10Saw cutting
- 20Machining, setup 1
- 30Machining, setup 2
- 4013 hole operations
- 50Deburring, inspection
Same part, fixed costs and batch size
Sensor housing BTC-120-80-45, aluminium (prices as of 5 October 2026, daily material quotes)
Fixed order costs
Paid once, whatever the quantity.
- Machine setups: 90 min (saw 8 min, machining centre 80 min, deburring 2 min): €130.05 excl. VAT (overheads and margin included)
- CNC programming and dedicated fixture: not included in this example. They depend on the part and the shop (1 to 8 hours of programming depending on complexity, according to a published guide).
Variable price per part
- Material: aluminium block 125 × 85 × 50 mm, €7.83
- Manufacturing time: 8.8 min per part
- €21.97 excl. VAT per part (material, machining, inspection, scrap, overheads and margin)
Unit price by batch size
= variable price + fixed costs ÷ quantity
| Quantity | Unit price |
|---|---|
| 1 part | €152.03 |
| 10 parts | €34.98 |
| 50 parts | €24.57 |
| 200 parts | €22.62 |
| 1,000 parts | €22.10 |
Beyond a few dozen parts, the price tends towards the variable price: the fixed costs are amortised. If the part needs long programming or a dedicated fixture, small batches rise accordingly. Prices follow daily material quotes.
Anodising, dedicated tooling and shipping: named, not included.
Processes
From machined parts to circuit boards
Machined and formed parts
Sheet metal
- CuttingLaser and punching, by material and thickness
- BendingBends, setups, handling
- Stamping and blankingPress, tool, rate per part
- Tube bendingBends, handling, bender setup
Plastics and assembly
- Injection mouldingMould, cycle time by material, mould change
- WeldingWelds, tacking, wire and arc time
- Welded assembliesSeveral parts, one assembly routing
Electronics
- Printed circuit boardsSolder paste, SMT placement, reflow, test
- Cables and harnessesCutting, stripping, crimping, connectors
Surface treatment (anodising, zinc plating, painting): on any part, on a separate line. Accepted drawings: PDF, DXF, STEP.
Who it is for
One file, one click
No form to fill in first: upload the part, and the tool only asks what the drawing does not say.
Buyer
Received a quote? Upload the drawing and compare line by line: material, time, rate, margin.
Design engineer
Export the STEP file from CAD and see what drives cost before the design is frozen.
Project manager
A price range to set the budget, without waiting for every supplier to answer.
Developer
An API key or an MCP server: your tools and AI agents send the drawing and get the cost breakdown in JSON. See the API and MCP
Work it out yourself
Calculators and price benchmarks
Machine hour rate
Depreciation, energy, maintenance, tooling, operator: the cost of one hour of a machining centre.
Machined part cost
Material, operations, scrap, overheads and margin: the formula applied line by line.
CNC machining of a part
A real part costed step by step, and what makes the price go up or down.
Should cost of a part
What a part should cost, item by item, to discuss a supplier quote.
Laser cutting and bending
Cut length, bends and setups: the price of a sheet metal part, from one-off to series.
An injection mould
Published price ranges, and the weight of the mould in the price of each part.
An API key and an MCP server to cost parts from your ERP, your PLM or your AI assistant: Claude Code, Cursor, Mistral Le Chat and any MCP-compatible agent. Same engine, same breakdown, in JSON. Free trial of 10 estimates.