What decides the price of a private label product?
Seven things: who develops the formula, the packaging, the batch size against the minimum order, the tests and documents, the certificates your buyer asks for, labour cost where the product is made, and the delivery and payment terms. Manufacturing labour cost EUR 14.9 an hour in Latvia and EUR 47.2 in Sweden in 2025 (Eurostat).
What makes up the price of a private label product?
Formula, materials, packaging, batch size, tests and documents, certificates, labour, delivery and payment. No source NordSourced opened publishes prices for private label products, and this page gives none: a price exists only in a quotation for your brief. The table lists each driver, why it moves the price, and what to ask.
| Cost driver | Why it moves the price | What to ask |
|---|---|---|
| Formula | A ready-made product has no development stage; a new formula adds one, with test batches | Is this a catalogue formula or a new one? Which development stages are charged, and who owns the result? |
| Materials | Ingredients, fabric, wood or other inputs are bought for each batch | Who buys the materials? Is their price fixed for the order or passed on? |
| Packaging | Container, closure, label and carton are priced one by one, and a custom component may have its own minimum | Which components are in stock and which are custom, and what is the minimum for each? |
| Batch size and minimum order | Setting up, cleaning and checking a line happen once per batch and are split over the units in it | What is the minimum per product and per batch, and the unit price at two or three quantities? |
| Tests and documents | Stability tests on a cosmetic often run for one or more months, and a safety assessment is due before sale | Which tests are included, and who prepares the safety report and the product information file? |
| Certificates and audits | A scheme your buyer requires narrows the shortlist to the manufacturers that hold it | Which certificate covers this product at this site? Is your own audit charged? |
| Labour | EUR 14.9 an hour in Latvia to EUR 47.2 in Sweden in manufacturing, 2025 (Eurostat) | Which steps are done by hand: filling, assembly, sewing, packing? |
| Delivery term | A DDP (Delivered Duty Paid) price includes import clearance and covers tariffs, taxes, permits and licences; an EXW (Ex Works) or FCA (Free Carrier) price ends at the named place | Which Incoterms 2020 rule (ICC's delivery terms), and which named place? |
| Payment terms | A deposit and the payment period decide when you pay | How much is paid before production, and how many days after delivery? |
Does my own formula cost more than a ready-made product?
It adds stages a ready-made product does not have: development, test batches and stability work, and at some manufacturers a higher minimum order. NordSourced has no price data to put a number on the difference, but manufacturers show it in their minimums: the route changes the quantity you must buy.
Merywood writes: "Minimum order quantity starts at 2,500 units for White Label and 5,000 units for Private Label." (source)
ERA Scientifico writes: "For custom product manufacturing, the minimum is 1000+ bottles (or 60 000 capsules), depending on your chosen dosage and formula." (source)
56 of the 443 manufacturers listed on NordSourced name formulation and R&D, and 71 name white label. If you are undecided, ask each for both routes in the same quotation; OEM, ODM or private label explains who owns the result.
How do batch size and the minimum order change the price?
The fixed work of each batch, setting up, cleaning and checking the line, is split over the units in it, so a small batch carries more of it per unit. The minimum order sets the smallest batch you can buy. Ask for the unit price at the minimum and at two larger quantities to see the effect on your product.
49 of the 443 manufacturers on NordSourced publish a minimum order: 36 in finished units, 4 in capsules or tablets, 4 by weight, 4 by volume, 1 as an order value. Compare figures only in the same unit and for the same route.
| Manufacturer | Country | Product groups | Published minimum order |
|---|---|---|---|
| Allreasons | Latvia | Food & beverages | 100 units |
| Amber Linen | Lithuania | Apparel | 5 pieces |
| Aukmergės baldai | Lithuania | Furniture & interior | 20 pieces |
| Bars Production | Sweden | Food supplements, Food & beverages | 10,000 bars (yearly minimum ≈100,000) |
| Berner | Finland | Cosmetics, Household & cleaning | 1,000 pieces (small batch) |
| BF-ESSE | Latvia | Food supplements | 90,000 capsules |
| BioCC | Estonia | Food supplements | 30,000 capsules |
| Comco | Lithuania | Home textiles | 50 units |
| Cosmetic Lab | Latvia | Cosmetics | 500 units |
| Cosmetics Nord | Latvia | Cosmetics | 1 unit |
| ERA Scientifico | Latvia | Food supplements | 500 bottles (ready-made/white label) |
| Finnish Superberries | Finland | Food supplements, Food & beverages | 1,000 litres (juice) |
| Futures Nutrition | Lithuania | Food supplements | 1,000 units (starter batch) |
| Gauya Furniture | Latvia | Furniture & interior | 10,000 EUR |
| Glora | Latvia | Other | 5 pieces |
| GMT Beauty | Latvia | Cosmetics | 500 units (per product type) |
| HYPERPHARM (Client) | Estonia | Food supplements | 100 units (ready-made formula) |
| Jonnex-Farma | Latvia | Food supplements, Cosmetics | 60,000 capsules (other forms differ) |
| Kemvit | Finland | Household & cleaning | 1,000 litres (or 1000 kg) |
| Kote Labs | Latvia | Cosmetics | 5 kg |
| Labs Nutrition | Sweden | Food supplements | 120 kg |
| Lāma | Latvia | Furniture & interior | 30 pieces |
| Lami Super Booster | Estonia | Cosmetics | 100 kg |
| Make My Products | Sweden | Furniture & interior | 100 pieces |
| Merywood | Estonia | Cosmetics, Food supplements, Pet | 2,500 units (White Label) |
And 24 more in the directory.
The minimum order guide explains what each figure covers, and small first orders lists the manufacturers that take the smallest quantities.
How much does labour cost where the product is made?
In 2025 an hour of manufacturing labour cost EUR 14.9 in Latvia, EUR 16.4 in Lithuania, EUR 19.5 in Estonia, EUR 43.6 in Finland and EUR 47.2 in Sweden, against an EU average of EUR 35.0 (Eurostat). Labour is one line of the price, so a gap in labour cost is not the same gap per unit.
| Country | EUR per hour |
|---|---|
| Latvia | 14.9 |
| Lithuania | 16.4 |
| Estonia | 19.5 |
| Finland | 43.6 |
| Sweden | 47.2 |
| EU average (27 countries) | 35.0 |
Ask which steps are done by hand. The larger their share of the work, the more the labour cost of the country shows in your price; the labour cost guide compares the five countries in more detail.
What do tests, documents and certificates add?
Time and work before the first sale. For a cosmetic, Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009, Article 10 requires the responsible person to "ensure that the cosmetic product has undergone a safety assessment" before it is placed on the market, by an assessor with a university diploma in pharmacy, toxicology, medicine or a similar discipline.
Stability work runs for one month or more: Cosmetics Europe and CTFA write that tests "are often performed at 37°C, 40°C or 45°C during 1, 2, 3... months", depending on the product type. The notification itself costs nothing: the Commission calls the CPNP (Cosmetic Products Notification Portal) "a free of charge online notification system".
A certificate your buyer requires narrows the shortlist to the manufacturers that hold it; see which certificates manufacturers have and the audit checklist.
How do delivery and payment terms change the price?
They move costs between you and the manufacturer. An EXW or FCA price ends where the seller delivers, at its premises or a named place (ICC Academy). Under DDP, ICC Academy says "the seller is ultimately responsible for the import clearance process and any associated challenges", and the buyer pays a higher price covering tariffs, taxes, permits and licences.
Payment terms decide when you pay. Directive 2011/7/EU caps an agreed payment period between businesses at 60 calendar days unless the contract expressly agrees otherwise, and late payment adds statutory interest and a fixed EUR 40 per invoice (Your Europe). The payment terms guide covers both.
What should a quotation show so that prices compare?
The same brief, priced the same way. Ask every manufacturer for the unit price at the same quantities, with the formula route, packaging components, tests, documents, the Incoterms rule and place, and the payment terms stated. A quotation that leaves one of them out is not cheaper, only incomplete.
- Unit price at the minimum order and at two larger quantities.
- One-off charges: development, samples, test batches, artwork and printing set-up.
- What is included: materials, packaging, filling, labelling, testing and documents.
- Delivery: the Incoterms 2020 rule and the named place.
- Payment: deposit, balance and the period in days.
- How long the prices stay valid.
The check guide sets out what the brief should state, so that every quotation answers the same question.
Questions and answers
How much does a private label product cost to make?
No published price applies to your product, and NordSourced does not invent one. The price depends on the formula route, materials, packaging, batch size, tests, certificates, labour cost and the delivery and payment terms. Send several manufacturers the same brief and ask for the unit price at two or three quantities, with everything included stated.
Is it cheaper to make private label products in the Baltics than in Sweden or Finland?
Labour is cheaper. An hour of manufacturing labour cost EUR 14.9 in Latvia, EUR 16.4 in Lithuania and EUR 19.5 in Estonia in 2025, against EUR 43.6 in Finland and EUR 47.2 in Sweden (Eurostat). The unit price also depends on materials, packaging, batch size and development, so compare quotations for the same brief.
Which private label manufacturers in Europe publish their minimum order?
49 of the 443 manufacturers NordSourced lists in Sweden, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia publish one on their own website: 36 in finished units, 4 in capsules or tablets, 4 by weight, 4 by volume, 1 as an order value. Each figure is in the manufacturer's own unit and often belongs to one service, so compare like with like; the minimum order guide explains how.
Which manufacturers in Northern Europe make fewer than 100 units?
12 of the manufacturers on NordSourced publish a minimum below 100 finished units: Cosmetics Nord, The Room Studio (Client), Amber Linen, Glora, Skarvin, Unique Linen and 6 more. A small minimum often applies to a ready-made product or one service, so read the sentence on each profile and ask what the unit price is at that quantity.
Does a smaller batch cost more per unit?
It can, because the fixed work of a batch, such as setting up, cleaning and checking the line, is split over fewer units. How much more depends on the product and the line, and no source NordSourced opened puts a number on it. Ask each manufacturer for the unit price at the minimum and at larger quantities.
Is CPNP notification of a cosmetic a cost?
Not in fees. The European Commission calls the Cosmetic Products Notification Portal a free of charge online notification system, and says no further national notification is needed in the EU. The work before it is not free: Article 10 of Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 requires a safety assessment by a qualified assessor before the product is placed on the market.
How long does stability testing of a cosmetic take?
No fixed duration exists. The Cosmetics Europe and CTFA guideline of March 2004 says accelerated tests are often run at 37°C, 40°C or 45°C for 1, 2, 3 or more months, depending on the product type, and that standard stability tests cannot be prescribed. Each manufacturer designs its own programme, so ask what it includes.
Does a DDP price include import duty?
Yes. ICC Academy says that under DDP the seller clears the goods for import and the buyer pays a higher price that covers tariffs, taxes, permits and licences. Under DAP the buyer carries out and pays for import clearance. Compare a DDP quotation with a DAP one only after adding your own import costs to the second.
Does packaging design cost extra?
Ask, because manufacturers handle it differently. 46 of the 443 manufacturers on NordSourced name packaging design among their services on their own website; it may be included or quoted separately. Your quotation should list the design work, the printing set-up and the minimum of each custom component apart from the unit price.
What is a minimum order value?
A minimum stated in money rather than in units. 1 of the 443 manufacturers on NordSourced publishes its minimum this way. Gauya Furniture writes: "Our minimum order value for private label projects is EUR 10,000." Divide an order value by your unit price to see how many units it means, and compare it only with other order values.
Why do two quotations for the same product differ so much?
Because they may not price the same thing. One may include development, testing and packaging and the other not; one may quote EXW and the other DDP; the minimums may be in different units. Send the same brief, ask for the same quantities and delivery term, and list what each quotation includes before you compare.
Who pays for the safety assessment of a cosmetic?
The law says who is responsible, not who pays. Article 10 of Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 requires the responsible person to ensure a safety assessment before the product is placed on the market. Whether the manufacturer arranges it within the price or you commission it separately is a commercial question, so ask for it as a line in the quotation.
Where to go next
Sources
- Eurostat, Labour cost levels by NACE Rev. 2 activity (lc_lci_lev), manufacturing, 2025, Eurostat. Checked 12 Oct 2026.
- Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 on cosmetic products, Article 10, European Parliament and Council (OJ L 342, 22.12.2009), hosted by the European Commission. Checked 13 Oct 2026.
- Guidelines on Stability Testing of Cosmetic Products (March 2004), Cosmetics Europe and CTFA. Checked 13 Oct 2026.
- Cosmetic Products Notification Portal, European Commission, DG GROW. Checked 13 Oct 2026.
- Place of delivery and risk transfer in global trade contracts (31 July 2025), ICC Academy. Checked 13 Oct 2026.
- Incoterms 2020: DAP or DDP? (25 February 2025), ICC Academy. Checked 13 Oct 2026.
- Directive 2011/7/EU on combating late payment in commercial transactions, legislation.gov.uk (The National Archives), text of the Directive. Checked 13 Oct 2026.
- Late payment, European Commission, Your Europe. Checked 13 Oct 2026.
Directory figures are counted from the manufacturers listed on NordSourced, each listed because its own website says it makes products for other brands; see how we check. This page is general information, not legal advice. Found a mistake? Tell us.