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If you are sourcing turned or milled brass components, the first question on your mind is probably the price. The honest answer is that there is no single rate card for brass cnc machining, because every quote is built from your drawing, your quantity, and your finish requirements. That said, industry pricing follows clear patterns, and once you understand what drives the number, you can estimate your per-part cost with surprising accuracy and take real steps to bring it down.
This guide breaks down the typical per-part price ranges for brass machined parts, explains the five cost components behind every quote, and shows how to reduce what you pay without sacrificing quality.
Based on typical industry pricing, most brass machined parts fall into one of three bands:
| Part Scenario | Typical Quantity | Typical Cost Per Part |
|---|---|---|
| Simple turned parts (bushings, standoffs, fittings) | 1,000+ pcs | $0.50 to $5 |
| Medium-complexity milled parts (housings, brackets, manifolds) | 50 to 500 pcs | $15 to $80 |
| Complex or tight-tolerance parts and prototypes | 1 to 10 pcs | $50 to $300+ |
These are ballpark figures, not quotes. A simple brass fitting ordered by the thousand can cost less than a dollar per piece, while a single prototype of a multi-feature valve body can run into the hundreds. The only way to get an exact number is to submit your drawing for a quote, but the ranges above are a reliable starting point for budgeting.
Your cnc machining cost per part is never arbitrary. It is the sum of five components, and each one can be influenced by your design and purchasing decisions.
Brass bar and plate stock generally costs between $3 and $15 per pound depending on the alloy, form, and supplier. Your material charge covers the full blank, not just the finished part weight, so a part machined from an oversized blank pays for the chips on the floor too. Choosing the right alloy matters here: C360 free-cutting brass is usually the most economical option, while specialty grades like C260 cartridge brass cost more and machine more slowly.
Before the first chip is cut, the shop invests time in CAM programming, workholding, and first-article inspection. This one-time charge is fixed whether you order 5 parts or 5,000, which is why quantity has such a dramatic effect on unit price. A $300 setup spread over 10 parts adds $30 to each one; spread over 2,000 parts, it adds just $0.15.
Machining is typically billed at $30 to $100 per hour depending on part complexity, machine type, and region. This is where brass has a built-in advantage: it is one of the most machinable metals in common use. Free-cutting brass allows high spindle speeds, fast feed rates, and long tool life, so cycle times are short compared with stainless steel or titanium. A part that takes four minutes in brass might take ten in stainless, and that difference goes straight to your unit price.
A standard ±0.05 mm tolerance is routine work for any competent shop. Call out ±0.005 mm on multiple features, however, and the part needs slower finishing passes, temperature-controlled measurement, and more inspection time. Tight tolerances are sometimes essential, but every unneeded decimal place adds cost.
Polishing, nickel or chrome plating, passivation, and other finishes typically add $10 to $150 to an order depending on the process and batch size. Brass parts are often left as-machined because the raw finish is already attractive and corrosion resistant, so skipping an unnecessary finish is easy money saved.
Buyers sometimes assume brass is expensive because the raw material costs more per pound than aluminum or mild steel. In practice, the total part cost tells a different story. Brass machines two to three times faster than steel, produces short manageable chips, and is gentle on cutting tools. The result is less machine time per part, which usually outweighs the higher material price. Brass swarf also retains real recycling value, and shops that recycle efficiently pass some of that recovery into their pricing.
Add brass's natural corrosion resistance, electrical conductivity, and sealing properties, and you often get a part that needs no plating and no secondary protection at all. For fittings, connectors, valve components, and electrical hardware, brass is frequently the lowest total-cost option even when it is not the cheapest material on the quote.
A reliable quote needs four things: a 2D drawing or 3D model, the brass alloy, the quantity, and the surface finish requirement. With those in hand, a good machine shop will return a firm price within a day or two, often with suggestions for cost savings you had not considered.
At ANOK Precision Manufacturing in Shenzhen, China, we have been machining brass components for customers in the medical, aerospace, automation, and electronics industries for more than 15 years. Our ISO 9001:2015 certified shop runs more than 50 machining centers, including CNC turning, 4-axis, and 5-axis machines, and we routinely work with C360 and C260 brass at tolerances down to ±0.002 mm. Our engineering team provides DFM feedback that has helped customers reduce design costs by up to 30%, and our in-house surface treatment capability means plating, passivation, and polishing are handled under one roof.
If you are comparing suppliers or planning a new project, send us your drawing for a no-obligation quote. Our precision brass cnc machining services cover everything from a single prototype to production runs in the hundreds of thousands, and we will tell you honestly where your design can save money before we ever cut metal.
Bottom line: most brass parts cost between $0.50 and $80 per piece in production quantities, with prototypes and complex parts running higher. The fastest way to find your exact number is to send your drawing to a shop that machines brass every day and ask for both a quote and a DFM review.