Tab Price Index

Per-set price by quantity — August 2026

Every figure is the manufacturer-direct price with setup included; the per-tab column divides it by the tabs in the set.

The channel spread — what the same set costs three ways

Measured 2026-08-17 by carrying one identical specification through to the checkout total on each channel: 50 sets × 5 tabs, letter, 90# index, black 1-sided, unpunched, uncollated, no reinforcing — checkout total ÷ 50. Channels are described, not named; the figures are what a buyer would have paid that day.

The spread between the cheapest and dearest channel was 2.5× on an identical set. The middle channel is the one to read carefully: its sticker price is the lowest of the three, and its checkout total is not.

Method

• On the first of each month a script queries the tabzoola.com pricing engine — the same code that prices live orders — for the reference basket and writes the edition. Nothing is typed by hand.
• Reference basket: each product's default specification (paper: 90# index, one side, unpunched, uncollated, no edge reinforcing; poly: .015 solid poly, black, one side, unpunched, uncollated), so editions measure the same thing.
• Setup is included in every per-set figure. A price that excludes setup is not comparable, and the channel spread above shows why.
• The channel spread is re-measured when it is re-measured; its date is printed and it is not silently updated.
• Past editions are never revised. Corrections, if any, are noted on the edition they concern.

Common questions

What is the Tab Price Index?

A monthly record of what custom printed index tab dividers cost, published by the manufacturer from its live pricing engine. Each edition lists the per-set and per-tab price for 5-, 8- and 10-tab sets at 25, 50, 100, 250, 500 and 1,000 sets, on paper and on poly, with setup included, and is kept at a permanent dated address so it can be cited.

What is the headline figure?

The per-set price of a 5-tab paper set at 100 sets — the order a small office actually places. In the August 2026 edition it is $2.35, setup included.

Why does the per-set price fall so steeply with quantity?

Custom tab printing is a make-ready business: typesetting, plates and die setup are charged once per job. Spread across 25 sets that setup dominates the price; across 1,000 sets it nearly disappears, which is why a 5-tab set moves from $5.45 to $1.08 across the index.

Are these the prices I would actually pay?

Yes — every figure is produced by the same engine that prices orders on tabzoola.com, for the reference specification stated on the page. Options such as Mylar colors, two-sided printing, punching, collation or a different stock change the price, and the designer shows the exact total before anything is ordered.

Where do the channel-spread figures come from?

From carrying one identical specification through to the checkout total on three kinds of seller on a stated date. The channels are described by how they sell — manufacturer-direct with instant pricing, reseller with online pricing, reseller behind a quote wall — and are not named. The date is printed so the figures can be judged for age.

Can I reuse the data?

Yes. The full index is published as JSON at tabzoola.com/tab-price-index.json under CC BY 4.0. Cite the edition you used by its dated address.