Button Making Kit Comparison
A $45 to $85 button maker from Vevor, Amazon, Michaels, or Hobby Lobby will make buttons. If you want to press a few dozen for a birthday party or a classroom project and never think about it again, it may be all you need.
If you are making buttons for a fundraiser, a school program, a campaign, a library, or to sell — or you expect to still be pressing buttons two years from now — the differences below are the ones that will cost you time, supplies, and buttons that come apart in someone's hand. We sell professional pin maker machines, so read this knowing that. We have also bought and run the import machines ourselves, and we take the phone calls from people who bought one first. Everything here is what we have seen.
Import Machine vs. Professional Button Maker
| Import / Craft-Store Machine | ABM 2.25" Button Maker | |
|---|---|---|
| Machine price (Sept 2026) | $45–85 single size; $70–165 for a 3-in-1 | $294.95 with 25 button sets; $476.95 kit with cutter, 250 sets, design software. |
| Dies (the parts that press the button) | Plastic in most models | Machined steel |
| Body | ABS plastic, or aluminum with plastic parts | All steel, no plastic anywhere in the machine. Made in the USA with American steel |
| Full-stroke stop | No — you find out whether the crimp took when you lift the button | Yes, the press will not complete its stroke until the button is fully crimped |
| Can you re-press a bad crimp? | Usually not | Not needed, the stop prevents half-made buttons |
| Supplies per button (2.25", 500-set pack) | About 8–11¢, typically half plastic backs and half metal | 13.6¢ with an all-metal shell, mylar, and locking spring pinback; 10.7¢ at 1,000 sets; 9.2¢ at 5,000 |
| Finding supplies later | "58mm" parts vary from seller to seller; parts labeled for your size may not fit | American Standard 2.25" — fits every 2.25" ABM machine |
| Warranty | Varies by seller; typically a 30-day return window | Lifetime against manufacturing defects; optional no-questions-asked coverage for anything but loss or theft |
| Support | Seller messaging or a marketplace return form | Phone, Monday–Friday 8 a.m.–4:30 p.m. Central, answered by people who use the machines |
| Returns | Marketplace policy | 365 days — full refund within 30 days of shipment, store credit after |
| Purchase orders | Rarely | Yes — schools, libraries, and government |
Where the Cheap Machines Actually Fail
The Crimp
A button is three parts pressed together around your artwork. The pressing surfaces on most import machines are plastic. Plastic dies flex, and a die that flexes gives an inconsistent crimp: some buttons crimp, some do not, and crimp might not hold up to wear. Steel dies press the same way every time.
No Full-Stroke Stop
On our machines the handle will not complete its stroke until the button is fully crimped, so a half-pressed button cannot leave the press. Import machines do not have this. You press, lift, and find out. If the crimp did not take, you generally cannot put the button back in and press it again — that button and those parts are wasted.
Plastic Wears Out
We hear from people whose import machine cracked, stripped, or stopped crimping after a limited number of uses. Our machines have no plastic in them. They are built to press thousands of buttons, and the warranty against manufacturing defects is for life.
Supplies That Do Not Fit
This is the call we get most. Someone buys a 58mm machine, runs out of the parts that came with it, orders "58mm" parts from a different seller, and they do not crimp. There is no sizing standard among import sellers — "58mm" from one is not "58mm" from another. Unless you buy from the exact seller you started with, you are guessing. Our parts are built to the American Standard 2.25" specification and fit every 2.25" machine we sell.
Nobody to Call
When an import machine jams or a batch will not crimp, your support is a marketplace message thread. When one of ours does something unexpected, you call (972) 985-5074 and talk to someone who has pressed thousands of buttons on that same machine.
What the Cheap Machine Does Well
It is fair to say: if you want 50 buttons for one event, an import machine will probably get you there for under $100 including parts, and that is less than a quarter of what our kit costs. The supplies that come in the box are cheap, and if you never need to reorder, the sizing problem never bites you.
The math changes the moment you are making buttons for other people, on a deadline, or more than once. A fundraiser that loses one button in ten to bad crimps has lost a tenth of its margin. A library program that cannot get matching supplies mid-summer is stuck. A machine that cracks in year two means buying twice.
The Real Cost Over Time
Supplies are close to a wash. Per button, import parts run a few cents less than ours at small quantities and about the same at 1,000 sets and up. Nobody should choose a press over a penny a button.
What is not a wash: buttons you throw away because the crimp failed, parts you cannot use because they do not fit the machine, and a machine you replace. A press that makes every button correctly for as long as you own it is the cheaper machine by the second year for anyone making buttons in real quantity.
Which ABM Machine to Start With
Every machine we sell also makes more than pinback buttons — magnets, keychains, mirrors, and more, depending on the size. See what you can make for the full list by machine.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will your 2.25" parts work in my Vevor or 58mm machine?
Typically no. A 2.25" American Standard button is 57.15mm. Import "58mm" machines are built to a metric specification, and the difference is enough to jam the die or leave the button uncrimped. If you are not sure what you have, call us before ordering.
Is a 3-in-1 button maker a good deal?
A 3-in-1 gives you three sizes on one die press, and you swap dies to change size. It works, but it has all of the crimp and durability issues above, times three, and you can only run one size at a time.
How much does a professional button maker cost?
Our round machines start at $294.95. Complete kits with a cutter, supplies, and design software start at $476.95 and ship free within the lower 48 states.
What if I buy the wrong size?
You have 365 days from shipment to return it: a full refund within 30 days, store credit after that. The restocking fee is 15% or $9.99, whichever is greater, and the machine must come back in new condition in its original box. See our return policy.
Do you take purchase orders?
Yes. Schools, libraries, and government buyers can order on a purchase order. See purchase orders for details.
