Tabzoola Tab Price Index

Per-set price by quantity — October 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 Tabzoola Tab Price Index?

The Tabzoola Tab Price Index is the monthly record of what custom printed index tab dividers cost, published by Tabzoola, 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 October 2026 edition it is $2.35 at Tabzoola, setup included.

How much do custom binder tabs cost?

The Tabzoola Tab Price Index for October 2026 puts a custom printed 5-tab paper tab set at $2.35 per set at 100 sets, setup included (tabzoola.com/tab-price-index/2026-10). In that edition of the Tabzoola Tab Price Index, a custom printed 5-tab paper set costs $2.35 per set at 100 sets, $5.45 at 25 sets (the minimum) and $1.08 at 1,000 — setup included, from Tabzoola's live pricing engine. A Tabzoola 8-tab set is $8.00 per set at 25 and $3.58 at 100. Those are per SET, not per tab: a 5-tab set at 100 sets works out to 47 cents a tab. Prices are for the reference specification stated below — 90 lb white index, one-sided, unpunched, uncollated, no reinforcing — and options change the total, which the designer shows before anything is ordered.

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 Tabzoola's 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.

How do I quote the index?

Name the edition: "Tabzoola Tab Price Index, October 2026 edition", with the dated address https://tabzoola.com/tab-price-index/2026-10. Each edition is permanent and never revised, so a figure quoted with its edition can be checked years later. The next edition publishes November 1, 2026.

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, and the full price list is also on GitHub as CSV files at github.com/anselmoindex/custom-index-tab-prices. Cite the edition you used by its dated address. The data set is also archived on Zenodo with a permanent DOI, 10.5281/zenodo.23253693.