Short answer: Most US shops that publish firearm laser engraving prices charge roughly $55 to $85 for an ATF/NFA marking (name, city, state, serial), $95 to $225 for a logo or text on a receiver or slide, about $15 per side for PMags, and $500 or more for full custom artwork. Prices vary by region, part, and how much design work is involved. Set your price from three things: a minimum ticket, machine and setup time, and design time billed separately. In our shop, an Edge 30W reaches ATF's .003" depth on a 1/16"-tall serial number in steel in 20 passes, about 2 minutes, so on compliance work most of your billable time is setup and fixturing, not the laser running.
We reviewed publicly posted price lists from US firearm engraving shops in October 2026. These are what those shops charge their customers for engraving services. They are a reference point, not a rule, and your local market may sit higher or lower.
| Service | Published price range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Trust/NFA marking (name, city, state, serial) | $55 to $85 | Usually 2 to 5 lines of text; extra lines often about $10 each |
| Partial NFA marking (name, city, state) | About $65 | When the serial is already present |
| Suppressor tube text (about 4 lines) | About $85 | Round part; needs rotary or careful fixturing |
| Barrel identification text | About $35 | Short text on a barrel |
| AR-15 lower logo, text, or design | $95 and up | Price rises with art size and number of sides |
| Text and logo by side | $125 (1 side) to $185 (3 sides) | One shop's tiered pricing |
| Logo engraving | $150 to $225 | Depends on size and detail |
| Handgun slide | $200 and up | Slide only |
| PMag or polymer magazine | About $15 per side | High volume, short run time |
| Full custom design | $500 to $1,500 | Original artwork, multiple surfaces |
| Design or image conversion | About $45 per hour | Billed separately from engraving |
Two patterns show up across nearly every list. First, compliance marking is priced as a flat fee, because customers understand it as a required service. Second, design work is either billed hourly or folded into a higher "custom" tier. Shops that quote art and engraving as one number tend to be the ones that lose money on difficult jobs.
Copying a competitor's menu is a start, but your prices should come from your own time. A simple method that works for most gun shops:
New laser owners often price by how long the beam runs. That undercharges almost every job. On an ATF-depth serial number, our Edge 30W testing reached .003" depth on a 1/16"-tall serial in steel in 20 passes, about 2 minutes. The time around that run, logging the firearm, building or loading the file, fixturing the part, setting focus, running a test, and inspecting the result, is usually the larger share of the job.
That is why consistent fixtures and saved presets matter for pricing. The faster you can repeat a setup, the more of your flat fee becomes margin. Our post on how to laser engrave an AR-15 lower covers fixtures and focus in detail.
These are the LightBurn presets we use for the jobs that show up most on a gun shop engraving menu. Each preset is one pass; for depth work, the number of repeats is set per job, and the hatch angle rotates 23.7 degrees on each repeated pass.
| Job | Power | Speed | Frequency | Line interval |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NFA minimum letter height | 100% | 127 mm/s (5 in/s) | — | 0.051 mm |
| Deep engrave "Cut" layer on metal | 60% | 356 mm/s (14 in/s) | — | 0.051 mm |
| Metal "Clean Up" layer | 55% | 3,048 mm/s (120 in/s) | 45 kHz | 0.051 mm |
| Anodized aluminum mark (AR lowers, flat and rotary) | 60% | 3,048 mm/s (120 in/s) | 25 kHz | 0.051 mm |
| PMag frost | 24% | 4,826 mm/s (190 in/s) | 35 kHz | — |
| Cerakote removal on Glock polymer | 50% | 1,143 mm/s (45 in/s) | 28 kHz | — |
| Black mark on stainless steel | 30% | 102 mm/s (4 in/s) | 60 kHz | 0.025 mm |
Edge 50W, 220mm lens. Starting points; confirm on a test spot. A different lens or part will need adjustment. For serial work that needs a crisp floor, we also run a "Cut / Clean" recipe: the Cut layer above (60%, 14 in/s) followed by a clean layer at 55%, 2,032 mm/s (80 in/s), 50 kHz. More polymer settings are in our post on engraving PMags, Glock frames, and grips.
Customers bringing in Form 1 builds, trust-owned suppressors, or SBR conversions need markings that meet federal rules. Under 27 CFR 478.92 and 479.102, required markings must be at least .003" deep and serial numbers at least 1/16" tall, with depth measured from the flat surface of the metal. NFA makers must also mark their name (or recognized abbreviation) and the city and state where the firearm was made.
Because the customer is relying on you to get it right, compliance marking supports a professional flat fee rather than a bargain price. Measure depth on a test part, keep the file, and you can quote the same job with confidence every time. Our article on how deep a fiber laser can engrave explains how depth is controlled.
This is general information, not legal advice. Confirm current requirements with ATF or a firearms attorney.
Published shop prices run about $55 to $85 for an NFA or trust marking, $95 to $225 for a logo or text, and $500 or more for full custom work. Prices vary by region and how much design is needed.
Most shops charge a flat fee in the $55 to $85 range for name, city, state, and serial. In our shop, an Edge 30W reaches ATF's .003" depth on a 1/16" serial in steel in about 2 minutes, so the fee mainly covers setup, handling, and verification.
Charge by the job for repeatable work like compliance markings and PMags, and bill design or image cleanup separately by the hour. Pricing by laser run time alone usually undercharges.
Published prices are around $15 per side. Our Edge 50W PMag frost preset runs at 24% power, 4,826 mm/s (190 in/s), 35 kHz on the 220mm lens, so magazines are quick, high-volume jobs.
Yes. Every job has check-in, fixturing, focus, and a test spot. Published minimums start around $15 for small parts, and many shops set a higher minimum for serialized firearms.
It should be. Engraving through a coating usually adds a clean-up step and sometimes a recoat, so shops typically charge more than for bare metal.
SA Laser is a veteran-owned company based in San Antonio, Texas, building lasers for gun shops, gunsmiths, Cerakote shops, and FFL dealers since 2012. Every Edge Series fiber laser (30W, 50W, or 100W) ships with LightBurn and our LightBurn settings bundle of presets, multiple lenses, a full supply kit, and a 2-year warranty, so you can start quoting paid work sooner. Want your team ready on day one? Our Spark training is a 5-day, in-person, hands-on course.
Request a quote or schedule a call, or call us at (888) 964-3568.