Despite the fact that I am adamant that you should look at the total cost of your project not the price of the fabric alone, I am constantly quoted a price per yard maximum when I ask people what their budget is. But caving to popular sentiment, let's talk about what fabric runs per yard.
The first thing to remember is that fabric is usually sold by the linear yard not the square yard. What does that mean? That means that you get the whole (normally larger than 36") width for the price listed. The second thing to remember is that while yes to an extent you get what you pay for, and yes beautiful things cost money...That like most other things the generic very well may be 100% the same, but cost a lot less.
There are two main ways that fabric is sold, the first is by the bolt. A company my buy 25, 35, 50, or even 100 yard (or meter) piece of fabric and have it in their store (these fabrics are usually what is meant when a company says "in stock" regardless of if they can be reordered or not). The cost of the fabric is greatly reduced allowing for either a low base price, a high discount, or in some cases both. The second way that fabric is purchased is referred to as "cut yardage". Fabric that appears as hanging samples, in books, or that is sold by businesses that don't have showrooms with bolts of fabric is normally purchased in this fashion. A minimum yardage (often 2 yards, and frequently only in whole yard increments) is purchased and shipped to the designer, workroom, or client. This normally carries a much higher price per yard, but depending on the amount of fabric needed may still work out to be much less expensive then buying an unneeded bolt. That being said, not every company will sell the fabric at a reduced price if buying a bolt.
So how much should you expect to pay for fabric? Bolt pricing on a reasonably priced drapery weight fabric will be anywhere from $15-30. Prices can and certainly do climb from there, but most places won't stock fabric that runs significantly more than $100-150/yd. Upholstery fabric normally runs between about $25-50/yd at the reasonable end, and once again most places won't stock a bolt of $350/yd fabric (most places, not all).
Special order fabric is a bit more complex. The least expensive pieces from the least expensive companies usually run in the $15-20/yd range. There are of course linings and sheers that cost less, but for most fabrics this is the absolute minimum. In reality you should expect to pay not less than $30/yd with a much better selection between $40-50/yd. Upholstery fabric or fabric from a mid-range company will be $45-80 unless it is one of their more expensive pieces where you could expect to pay between $80-150/yd. High-end or To the Trade only companies will often start near $100/yd and can easily go to between $300-400. Lastly there are the few fabrics out there that really break the bank. It is not unheard of for fabric to be between $1,000-3,000/yd (although at that range I have only seen them sold by the meter). These ultra expensive fabrics are usually not even produced until they are ordered and paid for, and there are no samples. An example of this is a historic stripe from France a certain national site asked me to price out once.
Note: Fiber content can certainly have an effect on the price of the fabric, but it is not the only factor. The same 100% dupioni silk that you can buy for under $30/yd in our stores (even less now that it's on sale) can be purchased from one of these high-end companies for over $70/yd. A faux silk dupioni might run you $35-55/yd, either way the silk costs less than the poly.
Hope this helps,
Yaron
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