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TeePublic is one of many print-on-demand businesses out there. Founded in 2013 by Adam Schwartz and Josh Abramson – the guys behind CollegeHumor – it’s known as the world’s largest site for independent creators.
In this TeePublic review, we’ll look at the products and services they offer. We’ll also answer questions like, is TeePublic legit? and is TeePublic safe? Keep reading to decide if you want to partner with this company to produce t-shirts and other products for your business.
What is TeePublic?
TeePublic is a POD company with an online marketplace twist. Beyond making it possible for you to run your own product line, independent artists can upload their unique designs and artwork. Whenever someone purchases a product with one of the artist’s designs, that artist makes money.
Company
TeePublic
Printful
Printify
Gelato
Gooten
GearLaunch
TeeLaunch
Custom Cat
CafePress
Zazzle
Spri.ng
Products
TeePublic : 75+
Printful : 280+
Printify : 600+
Gelato : 100+
Gooten : 150+
GearLaunch : 50+
TeeLaunch : 100+
Custom Cat : 300+
CafePress : 250+
Zazzle : 1,000+
Spri.ng : 180+
Print Facilities
TeePublic : Unknown
Printful : 15
Printify : 67
Gelato : 132+
Gooten : 40
GearLaunch : Unknown
TeeLaunch : Unknown
Custom Cat : Unknown
CafePress : Unknown
Zazzle : Unknown
Spri.ng : Unknown
Turnaround Time
TeePublic : 14+ Days
Printful : 2-7 Days
Printify : 2-7 Days
Gelato : 2-6 Days
Gooten : 2-5 Days
GearLaunch : 3-5 Days
TeeLaunch : 3-6 Days
Custom Cat : 3-7 Days
CafePress : 21+ days
Zazzle : 14 Days
Spri.ng : 9-12 Days
Custom Packaging
TeePublic : No
Printful : Yes
Printify : No
Gelato : Yes
Gooten : No
GearLaunch : No
TeeLaunch : Yes
Custom Cat : No
CafePress : No
Zazzle : No
Spri.ng : No
Marketplace
TeePublic : Yes
Printful : No
Printify : No
Gelato : No
Gooten : No
GearLaunch : No
TeeLaunch : No
Custom Cat : No
CafePress : Yes
Zazzle : Yes
Spri.ng : No
TeePublic offers a variety of products, such as:
Tees (including V-Neck, long sleeve t-shirts, baseball t-shirts, kids t-shirts, tank tops, and more)
Crewneck sweatshirts, hoodies, and other apparel products
Mugs
Stickers
Face masks
Phone cases and laptop cases
Bags and totes
Notebooks
Pins
Wall art and tapestries
Pillows
Onesies
Printing Technologies
TeePublic uses Direct to Garment (DTG) printing, sublimation, or digital printing to produce its products.
Printing Technologies
TeePublic
Printful
Printify
Gelato
Gooten
GearLaunch
TeeLaunch
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Spri.ng
Direct to GarmentPrint Tech
TeePublic :
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Gooten :
GearLaunch :
TeeLaunch :
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SublimationPrint Tech
TeePublic :
Printful :
Printify :
Gelato :
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GearLaunch :
TeeLaunch :
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Digital PrintingPrint Tech
TeePublic :
Printful :
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EmbroideryPrint Tech
TeePublic :
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EngravingPrint Tech
TeePublic :
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Graphic tees made with the DTG method last longer than screen-printed products. They spray the ink onto the fabric and absorbs into it. This way, the image lasts longer, even after multiple washes.
Sublimation is also an option for some products. This printing method prints the design onto special paper. The paper is transferred to the product, then heat transfers the design from the paper to the product.
They use digital printing with paper products. At this time, TeePublic doesn’t offer embroidery or engraving services. The company chooses the printing method that’s most appropriate for the product.
Pricing
It costs nothing to use TeePublic. You can open up a shop and list as many products as you want for sale.
Pricing
TeePublic
Printful
Printify
Gelato
Gooten
TeeLaunch
GearLaunch
Custom Cat
CafePress
Zazzle
Spri.ng
Monthly Fee
TeePublic : $0
Printful : $0-$49
Printify : $0-$29
Gelato : $0-$99
Gooten : $0
TeeLaunch : $0
GearLaunch : $0-$4.99
Custom Cat : $0
CafePress : $0-$6.95
Zazzle : $0-9.95
Spri.ng : $0
Apparel Pricing
TeePublic : N/A % of sale
Printful : $8-$42
Printify : $7-$60
Gelato : $8-$25
Gooten : $9-$60
TeeLaunch : $11-$19
GearLaunch : $9-$35
Custom Cat : $9-$33
CafePress : $15-$60
Zazzle : $13-$24
Spri.ng : $11-$40
Non-Apparel Pricing
TeePublic : N/A % of sale
Printful : $8-$45
Printify : $5-$82
Gelato : $4-$88
Gooten : $20-$330
TeeLaunch : $15-$85
GearLaunch : $3-$20
Custom Cat : $3-$63
CafePress : $5-$70
Zazzle : $2-$300
Spri.ng : $2-44
Bulk Order Discounts
TeePublic : Inquiry Required
Printful : Up to 30%
Printify : No
Gelato : No
Gooten : No
TeeLaunch : No
GearLaunch : No
Custom Cat : No
CafePress : Up to 35%
Zazzle : Yes
Spri.ng : No
Store owners receive a flat rate for each item they sell. You’re paid monthly via PayPal or Payoneer. The rate you earn depends on what the item is, and whether they purchased it at the regular or sale price.
Features
Since TeePublic’s primary focus is on supporting artists who upload their designs, the features are different.
Features
TeePublic
Printful
Printify
Gelato
Gooten
GearLaunch
TeeLaunch
Custom Cat
CafePress
Zazzle
Spri.ng
Use Without Online StoreFeature Use Without Online Store
Since TeePublic’s primary focus is on supporting artists who upload their designs, the features are different.
You can use it without an online store since people will place orders directly on the TeePublic website.
You won’t find a mockup generator here, though. This can be quite a drawback for people who are new to the POD space. One thing that sets TeePublic apart is that you can take advantage of design services. Just visit the Hire an Artist page, scroll through, and contact the artists you’re most interested in working with.
Ecommerce Integrations
Because TeePublic is a standalone marketplace, it doesn’t integrate with any of the major ecommerce platforms.
Ecommerce Platform Integrations
TeePublic
Printful
Printify
Gelato
Gooten
TeeLaunch
GearLaunch
Custom Cat
CafePress
Zazzle
Spri.ng
ShopifyIntegration with Shopify
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BigCommerceIntegration with BigCommerce
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WooCommerceIntegration with WooCommerce
TeePublic :
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WixIntegration with Wix
TeePublic :
Printful :
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Gelato :
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TeeLaunch :
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SquarespaceIntegration with Squarespace
TeePublic :
Printful :
Printify :
Gelato :
Gooten :
TeeLaunch :
GearLaunch :
Custom Cat :
CafePress :
Zazzle :
Spri.ng :
Marketplace integrations
Since TeePublic is its own marketplace, you cannot integrate it with other marketplaces like Etsy, eBay, or Amazon.
Marketplace Integrations
TeePublic
Printful
Printify
Gelato
Gooten
GearLaunch
TeeLaunch
Custom Cat
CafePress
Zazzle
Spri.ng
EtsyIntegrations with Etsy
TeePublic :
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Gelato :
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GearLaunch :
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CafePress :
Zazzle :
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eBayIntegrations with eBay
TeePublic :
Printful :
Printify :
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AmazonIntegrations with Amazon
TeePublic :
Printful :
Printify :
Gelato :
Gooten :
GearLaunch :
TeeLaunch :
Custom Cat :
CafePress :
Zazzle :
Spri.ng :
Customer Support
TeePublic customer support is limited to email, an online help center, and live chat. You do not get access to a dedicated account manager. There is no phone number for general support. Live chat is not available 24/7.
Customer Support
TeePublic
Printful
Printify
Gelato
Gooten
GearLaunch
TeeLaunch
Custom Cat
CafePress
Zazzle
Spri.ng
Dedicated AMCustomer Support with Dedicated AM
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Phone SupportCustomer Support with Phone Support
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Help CenterCustomer Support with Help Center
TeePublic :
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24/7 SupportCustomer Support with 24/7 Support
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Live ChatCustomer Support with Live Chat
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There’s a FAQ section for artists and customers. Both are excellent resources to help you address issues you may run into. If you still can’t find the answer to your question, you can submit a support ticket, email, or reach out on live chat.
If you make a mistake, such as the wrong color, size, or shipping address, you can change your order for up to two hours after you place your order via the Change Order page. After that time has passed, your order processes and goes to the printing queue. If you notice changes after that, you’ll have to reach out to customer service with the contact form. There may or may not be time to make changes.
FAQs
TeePublic is completely safe to use as an artist and as a customer. If you’re buying a gift for someone, you’ll want to order it at least a few weeks ahead of when you actually need it. The turnaround time can be quite long.
Yes, TeePublic is legit. There have been a few complaints about it over the years. But no company is ever able to keep 100% of its customers happy all the time. Artists earn $4 from every product sold ($2 if the product is on sale). When you upload a design to TeePublic, it’s on sale for 72 hours. After that, it goes to the regular price.
Alternatives
If you’re not convinced TeePublic is the right partner for your POD business, look at these alternatives.
Overall
User Ratings
Best For
Pricing
Pricing Based On
Value
Features
Customer Support
Integrations
Ease of Use
Printful
Overall : 4.8
User Ratings :
4.0 (4 votes)
Best For : Boutiques, Small Businesses, High Order Volume
If you want to offer a variety of products and be in control of the pricing, then Printful could be the answer you’re looking for. Printful has more branding features than anyone else on the market, which is great if you want to start your own clothing line. It also offers warehousing and storage should you decide you want to keep extras of your most popular items on hand for faster fulfillment.
Printify is a platform similar to Printful. The main difference is that Printify items rarely cost as much as Printful. This means you’ll get to put more money in your pocket when you sell something. Printify doesn’t have as many branding features.
Spri.ng (TeeSpring)
Spri.ng, formerly known as Teespring, is like TeePublic. Though it doesn’t have a network for independent artists, it integrates with some of the most well-known third-party websites to get your products in front of as many people as possible.
Leave Your Review
If you’ve got any first-hand experience with TeePublic, we’d love to hear from you. Our reviews help countless readers who are starting their own ecommerce businesses. Your thoughts add value and insight to help them make purchasing decisions.
Lucinda has been a web geek since the '90s. She's a web designer and content creator who specializes in small business, ecommerce, digital marketing, and SEO.
User Reviews:
1.4/5 (6 votes)
Hanady
October 18, 2022
Review as a designer
The 1 star is for their uploading system, better than Redbubble's.
However, I uploaded over 20 designs at one go, with each design I took time to write the title, tags, and description, edit the deisgns on the products, etc. No spamming, just quality keywords.
After all that, 6 hours later they deactivated my account. I have tried emailing legal@teepublic.com and help@teepublic.com and have not received any acknowledgment of my emails. My suspicion is that they thought I stole work from my redbubble account. But I wrote to them trying to confirm that that is my work and it is my redbubble account. Anyways, not sure it's worth making an account here if they're just going to de-activate without a fair warning of review.
Herbert
July 6, 2022
Junk
Ordered a 2x large t shirt it’s too small for any adult very poor quality can actually see thru shirt asked for a refund even offered to pay for return shipping now they are ignoring me please don’t do business with this rip off company seriously poor quality and not so good customer service
Bj Breecher
February 16, 2022
Dont….
Ordered a product from them. Per their 'tracking site' (shady), it made it as far as Madison, Wi and never left. Contacted customer service, they apologized and send anotherbitem. Same results, so they gave up and are planning to refund my money.
I'd stay away from this company.