PCB price per square inch over time?

[quasar]

Are there any sources that can demonstrate the massive price reduction in PCB prototyping?

There are stories about how a prototype board, with month-long turnaround, would cost like $1000 and today it would cost $10. I am trying to find some sources that demonstrate that, but running into a wall.
For instance, there is this "Producer Price Index" for (USA domestic) PCB manufacturing, but it isn't the correct metric for consumer cost in a global market.
https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/PCU334412334412

Where would one get info about PCB price per square inch over time, like since late 90s?

[thm_w]

You can try using archive.org and look at older companies like sierra, advanced circuits, gold phoenix, etc.

One issue is most PCB houses never used to publish prices, you always had to call them for a quote. A few companies would offer standard sizes and prices, eg eurocard. Probably found in old magazine ads.

[ataradov]

Your issue here would be that the way prices are calculated changed as well. The business models are not the same. In the 90s all board manufacturers charged a fixed setup fee, which did not depend on the board size (apart from extreme cases). Then first articles would be produced at a high markup again. But after that the same set of masks could be used for mass production, which is relatively cheap. The setup was not affordable for modern understanding of "prototyping". And for mass production, where setup cost is amortized, the prices have not changed that drastically.

Direct imaging, high levels of automation and overall improvements in the equipment enabled cheap setup, which gets absorbed into the cost per inch for low quantity orders.  Plus in many cases those $10 prototyping offers are loss leaders, they don't make any money on them. This was not a thing in the 90s at all.

[tszaboo]

Your issue here would be that the way prices are calculated changed as well. The business models are not the same. In the 90s all board manufacturers charged a fixed setup fee, which did not depend on the board size (apart from extreme cases). Then first articles would be produced at a high markup again. But after that the same set of masks could be used for mass production, which is relatively cheap. The setup was not affordable for modern understanding of "prototyping". And for mass production, where setup cost is amortized, the prices have not changed that drastically.

Direct imaging, high levels of automation and overall improvements in the equipment enabled cheap setup, which gets absorbed into the cost per inch for low quantity orders.  Plus in many cases those $10 prototyping offers are loss leaders, they don't make any money on them. This was not a thing in the 90s at all.

Basically there was a huge price jump, when you could go from making an entire panel from one customer to pooling. It went from those old 1000 USD prices to 1/10th of that.  The second price jump started when Chinese factories started offering online pricing and pooling.
Now I think prototypes are just sold at dump pricing. I ordered a board for 4 EUR, including shipping, and it was somehow delivered by DHL. I cannot send a postcard to next town for that price.

[woofy]

To give you an actual example, my first pcb was made in 1982, measured appox. 200x150m and cost £100. That was for a single prototype pcb without soldermask or legend screens.
That is the equivalent of £354 today. Compare that with jlcpcb at £12.17 and that's for 5 pcb's with soldermask and legend screens.

[EPAIII]

But if you want to send 100,000 post cards you can negotiate a much better price. Even companies with a moderate volume of shipping can have the various shipping companies compete for their business. Even 1,000 post cards will get a better price per card. I have seen this in action. In shipping, as in many other industries, volume is everything.

Your issue here would be that the way prices are calculated changed as well. The business models are not the same. In the 90s all board manufacturers charged a fixed setup fee, which did not depend on the board size (apart from extreme cases). Then first articles would be produced at a high markup again. But after that the same set of masks could be used for mass production, which is relatively cheap. The setup was not affordable for modern understanding of "prototyping". And for mass production, where setup cost is amortized, the prices have not changed that drastically.

Direct imaging, high levels of automation and overall improvements in the equipment enabled cheap setup, which gets absorbed into the cost per inch for low quantity orders.  Plus in many cases those $10 prototyping offers are loss leaders, they don't make any money on them. This was not a thing in the 90s at all.

Basically there was a huge price jump, when you could go from making an entire panel from one customer to pooling. It went from those old 1000 USD prices to 1/10th of that.  The second price jump started when Chinese factories started offering online pricing and pooling.
Now I think prototypes are just sold at dump pricing. I ordered a board for 4 EUR, including shipping, and it was somehow delivered by DHL. I cannot send a postcard to next town for that price.

[thm_w]

But if you want to send 100,000 post cards you can negotiate a much better price. Even companies with a moderate volume of shipping can have the various shipping companies compete for their business. Even 1,000 post cards will get a better price per card. I have seen this in action. In shipping, as in many other industries, volume is everything.

You can't ship via DHL for 4 EUR, this has to be some kind of loss leader deal.
tszaboo, are you going to note the company?

[tszaboo]

But if you want to send 100,000 post cards you can negotiate a much better price. Even companies with a moderate volume of shipping can have the various shipping companies compete for their business. Even 1,000 post cards will get a better price per card. I have seen this in action. In shipping, as in many other industries, volume is everything.

You can't ship via DHL for 4 EUR, this has to be some kind of loss leader deal.
tszaboo, are you going to note the company?

Scroll to the top of the page.
I didn't order with DHL, it was standard post, yet it got delivered by them. Maybe just the last 10KM from a distribution center.

[BrianHG]

Plus in many cases those $10 prototyping offers are loss leaders, they don't make any money on them. This was not a thing in the 90s at all.

You said it.  A few k$ just to get your foot in the door, never mind seeing a PCB in less than a month unless you want to pay double or triple that.

Prices slightly improved right at the end of the 90's, but you can still expect to sink close to a k$ for anything at all.

In the beginning, it was all home made UV exposure boxes, home laser printed acetate film, home made etchant tank and a lot of hole drilling...