I was recently on a camping trip with friends and was asked “How much does it cost to get started in stained glass?”
Do you want to know what I answered with?!
“Idk, maybe like $150” *hand over face* LOL
I knew the next day when I thought about it that I was way off. But the truth is, I never really paid too much attention to price when I first started, so I actually had no idea.
I was so excited when I started, I remember I purchased most of what I needed on Amazon, and THEN spent another $300 at the local glass studio on other supplies and glass – all before I ever put my cutter wheel to a piece of glass.
Now.. this was BEFORE I got laid off and had extra money to spend. If I were to discover stained glass now, I’d have to really pay attention and be very intentional about my spending. I realize this would be the case for a lot of people interested in getting started with stained glass. So I decided, for my own knowledge, and for the benefit of those interested in knowing – I’d lay it all out here.
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To figure out how much it costs to get started with stained glass, we’re going to look at a couple of different options for buying your supplies. Like purchasing starter kits vs all the tools individually.
Supplies Cost
As I mentioned, I purchased all my supplies separately both online and at my local glass studio (which isn’t so local anymore now that I’ve moved.) I’ve already put together a blog covering all the supplies I use, and linked out to each product. I’ll use this same product list to determine our cost for purchasing our suppliers this way.
Purchasing Supplies Individually
This list does not include the basic safety equipment I list in Supplies You Need to Create Stained Glass, and only has those items that are absolutely necessary and that you most likely do not already have (and does not include tax.)
| Item | Cost |
| Glass cutter | $13 – $27 |
| Glass cutting oil | $12 |
| Running pliers | $11 |
| Grozing pliers | $12 |
| Inland glass grinder | $190 |
| Copper foil tape | $10 – $25 |
| U shaped lead came border 12ft | $24 |
| Xacto Knife | $7 |
| Hakko FX601 soldering iron | $74 |
| Soldering iron stand | $11 |
| 60/40 Canfield solder | $25 |
| Flux | $12 – $16 |
| Lead nippers | $10 |
| Fid pack | $10 |
| Jump rings | $10 |
| Patina | $14 |
| Silver hanging chain | $9 |
| Total | $455 – $500 |
So, by purchasing all your tools and supplies separately you’re looking at about $500. Keep in mind this is before you purchase any of your glass.
For your stained glass sheets you have a couple options:
- Purchasing glass packs online
- Buying individual stained glass sheets online or from a local studio
Either way, for your first few projects let’s estimate that you’re going to spend anywhere between $50 and $100.
That brings our total before we start creating to $505 – $600.
Purchasing a Beginner Stained Glass Kit
There are a lot of options when it comes to beginner kits. The prices range based on the brands of the supplies included in the kit. If you don’t particularly care about getting the better brands, a low-end stained glass kit could save you a lot of money.
If you prefer to stick to the quality brands, especially of the more important tools like your soldering iron and grinder, it may be best to just purchase the more expensive beginner pack.
| Kit | Contents | Price |
| Start-Up Kit | Low-end iron with bare minimum of supplies | $345 |
| Start-Up Kit 2 | Same as kit 1 + soldering paste and fids | $350 |
| Start-Up Kit 3 | Better grinder, but same no-temp control iron | $434 |
| Ultimate Start-Up Kit | Only one with lead came and Hakko iron (without manual temp control) | $689 |
With the first three kits, you will still need to purchase some supplies if you intend to add a lead or zinc came border to any of your creations. It also isn’t clear if the color of the glass shown is the color of the glass you get. You may get a random selection.
The Ultimate Start-Up Kit is most comparable to our list above and does include some items that the list does not. Like the two homosote boards, safety goggles, and flux remover. Depending on your work surface, the homosote boards may not be necessary, and the flux remover is nice to have but isn’t necessary. The only other thing included that you’ll absolutely want to have is the safety goggles.
As you can see, you have options for getting started with your supplies. How much you spend depends on how much you care about using brand names, and if you want absolutely everything you’ll eventually need, or just enough to start practicing.
From everything we’ve covered, including the kits, you can expect to spend anywhere from $400 – $700. I think that’s a safe (and wide) range to anticipate. It all depends on how how much you care about brands, and how much time you want to spend shopping.
