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Embroidery

Sleeve Embroidery

Add logos, flags, or text to one or both sleeves. Popular for corporate polos, work uniforms, and team jerseys. Price is per arm. Maximum design area is 3" x 3" per sleeve.

Logo & artwork orders require digitizing ($125 one-time fee).

Text-only orders do not require digitizing.

Add Digitizing
Max Size: 3" x 3"
Up to 8,000 stitches

Drag & drop your design or click to browse

PNG, JPG, SVG, or WebP • Max 1 file

Price

$10.00

About Sleeve Embroidery

Everything you need to know about sleeve embroidery

Add logos, flags, and unit numbers to one or both sleeves. The signature placement for first responders and corporate teamwear.

Sleeve Embroidery Specs

Max design size3" wide x 3" tall
Stitch count includedUp to 8,000 stitches
Thread colors includedUp to 7 colors
Standard turnaround3-5 business days
Same-day available?Yes, on stock items by 12pm
Price$10 per arm

What is sleeve embroidery?

Sleeve embroidery places a small (3-inch square or smaller) design on the upper arm of a polo, button-down, jacket, or work shirt. The placement sits between the shoulder seam and the elbow, centered on the outer arm panel. Sleeve is the signature spot for American-flag patches on first-responder uniforms, unit numbers on volunteer fire department polos, division logos on construction crew shirts, and country names on international team apparel. Corporate brands often use it as a third placement after left-chest and back, adding a sleeve hit for sponsorship logos or location-specific branding. Each sleeve is hooped and embroidered separately, which is why we price per arm — many orders are one-sleeve-only (left arm flag, right arm bare) but balanced two-sleeve layouts are equally common.

Best garments for sleeve embroidery

Sleeve embroidery works on any garment with enough sleeve panel real estate to support a small hoop — polos, dress shirts, button-downs, fleece, soft-shell, and most jackets are all good candidates. Short-sleeve garments are slightly trickier because the design has to land cleanly between the seam and the hem; we usually recommend a 2.5-inch design (versus 3 inches) on short sleeves to avoid crowding. Sleeveless garments obviously can't carry sleeve embroidery — for tanks and muscle tees, look at left/right chest or full back instead.

How to prepare artwork for sleeve embroidery

Sleeve designs are small, so simplification matters even more than it does on chest. Keep typography bold and 1/4 inch or larger. American flag designs (the single most common sleeve order) follow a specific layout convention — the union (stars) goes toward the front of the garment so the flag reads as if it is moving with the wearer. Confirm flag orientation when you place the order. Vector files preferred; high-res PNGs acceptable. Thread color limit is 7 — most sleeve designs use 3-4 colors, so this rarely becomes a constraint.

Need help preparing your file? Read our embroidery file format guide or order logo digitizing.

Sleeve Embroidery pricing details

Sleeve embroidery is $10 per arm. A two-sleeve order (left and right) is $20. Digitizing is the standard $125 one-time fee if your sleeve design is custom; standard American flags and common military insignia are already in our library and skip the digitizing fee. When you order sleeve embroidery alongside left-chest on the same garment, total is $18 per piece (a $2 bundled discount). Volume tiers at 24, 72, and 144 pieces apply.

Sleeve Embroidery FAQ

Do you have American flag designs already digitized?
Yes. We carry standard 2.5" and 3" American flag stitch files in subdued (tactical) and full-color versions — no digitizing fee, ready to run. Same for many common military, fire, and police insignia.
Which arm should the American flag go on?
Right arm, union (stars) forward — that is the U.S. military standard for the flag patch, and most first-responder and corporate teamwear follows the same convention.
Can you embroider on the cuff of a long-sleeve shirt?
Yes, cuff embroidery is a stylish alternative to upper-arm sleeve placement. Common for chef coats (name on cuff) and high-end corporate shirts. Pricing matches sleeve at $10 per cuff.
Will sleeve embroidery work on a fleece jacket?
Yes, with the right stabilizer. We use a heavier cut-away on fleece to prevent the loose pile from grabbing the needle. Standard sleeve pricing applies.
Can I put a number on a sleeve like a sports jersey?
Absolutely — single-digit and double-digit numbers in any of our stock athletic fonts. Numbers ship as text embroidery ($8) rather than logo embroidery ($10) since they use stock fonts and skip the digitizing fee.

Ready to order sleeve embroidery?

Get same-day service on stock items, free digitizing on orders over $150, and no-minimum pricing on every job.