3D printer comparison 2024

BySercan Kahraman Letzte Überprüfung:

threedom 3D Printers Search Engine – Alpha Version (feedback and wishes welcome 🙂 )

Manufacturer

Printing method

max. Print speed [mm/s]

Pressure temperature:

Heating bed temperature:

Number of extruders:

The following 3D printers match your search:

Why should I compare 3D printers at all?

Nowadays, you can consider yourself very lucky if you find a device that makes you directly happy in the mass of available 3D printers. Unfortunately, this is becoming increasingly difficult and so the risk is indeed there and relatively high that you will get the wrong one. For this reason, in my opinion, a comparison is always suitable.

Threedom will do a pre-filtering for you.

How does threedom's 3D printer comparison work?

Very easy.

Just select the categories that are important for you on the left side and you will get your filtered list. Sort the result again and then select the printer and look at the detail page or go directly to the 3D printing store we trust.

3D printer categorization

To make your search even easier, I've pre-categorized them so you can see the best list for each category directly.

By target group

Each target group has different criteria that are important for selecting a 3D printer.

By design or process

Each 3D printing process has its own printers, of course, and in each process there are also different types of printers.

By (special) function

Some 3D printers have special functions or are designed for a special purpose.

According to budget

In the meantime, there are 3D printers for actually every budget.

Criteria for the selection of a suitable 3D printer

In the following, I will present you with some criteria that are weighted differently for each user. A 3D printer for children should meet different requirements than a 3D printer kit.

Price/Performance

Price is becoming more and more important with the growing financial pressure, for all products. Nevertheless, one must never lose sight of quality or performance in this context. 3D printing is not yet where 2D printing is with inkjet or laser printers. While with inkjet printers you can find very good printers for little money and get started right away, 3D printing is a little different. You can assume that as the price goes down, there will be some trade-offs. On the one hand, this can be in the case of features that simplify operation and increase reproducibility, and on the other hand, it can also affect quality-relevant components. If plastic is used instead of aluminum for mechanical components, the price of the printer can be low, but likewise you can assume that sooner or later the wear will start sooner than with metal components.

High print quality

The print result will either take the fun out of printing or inspire you and you will keep fine-tuning to achieve better results. Currently, the layer height of 0.1 mm or 100 microns is the minimum resolution that any fused deposition modeling(FDM) printer should achieve. However, please don't be lured by promises of very high resolutions. While they can be realistic for processes such as SLA and DLP, FDM and the hobby sector in particular will eventually come to a physical end.

Of course, resolution can be increased with upgrades like airbrush nozzles, but we're not talking about “what if” scenarios here. Otherwise, you would have to consider all scenarios for each printer. Would that add value? I don't think so. Feel free to send in your upgrades because I love what our community is creating.

Reproducibility of printing results

One point that is sometimes neglected: The reproducibility of the print results. The stability of the device also plays a role. It doesn't do you any good if the printer prints great but needs 20 minutes of calibration every time to get good results. This used to be the “quasi-standard”, especially for 3D printers under 500€.

But times have changed. Nowadays, you have to be able to rely on your machine. This point can spoil the fun of the whole thing. That is why this is a very important point for me personally.

As a family man with a full-time job and great projects like threedom, I can't afford to fiddle with the device for 20 minutes anymore.

“I just want to start printing” – Is my motto. When a 3D printer makes a move. sits around for 3 months and then I only have to clean the heating bed to start the pressure and it prints directly as before, yes, then I am very very happy.

Simplicity of use

Meanwhile, this point has finally arrived in the 3D printing sector. Menus that are intuitive to understand and easy to use, that's what will just simplify the move to the mass market.

I don't mean high-resolution displays alone, because today there are also websites that look good but are not easy to use. It's the same with 3D printers. Some have interfaces that look great, but are otherwise slow or simply have a menu structure that no one can comprehend.

Inherently high print bed adhesion

The first layer is the most important in 3D printing.

If this does not adhere correctly, then most likely the print will come to nothing. Many of the 3D printers available today now offer coated printing surfaces that feature a PEI coating, for example. Others have materials other than glass directly as the print bed, allowing for a higher probability that the print object will also adhere during a printing process.

Quick and easy calibration

Whether you are a beginner or a professional, without a quick and easy calibration, at some point the fun will be spoiled. My old CTC from 2015 was made of poplar and it always took forever to calibrate the thing properly. Now the printer is completely disassembled in a Samla box in the basement. It just wasn't fun anymore in the long run.

So that you don't also have to go over to cutting up a printer like that, you should think carefully before buying whether it's not worth it to you to forego, for example, a great look in the printer itself, but then to have an easily adjustable device in return.

I personally pay more and more attention to this criterion.

Heating bed available (FDM)

Hard to imagine, but they still exist: 3D printers without a heating bed. Many of the criteria may depend on personal preference, but I would declare the presence of a heating bed as a must-have.

Why?

Very simple. Without a heated bed, you can actually only print PLA in FDM printing, since a heated bed is not needed for this with a good print substrate. You're severely limiting yourself with a 3D printer without a heated bed in terms of material variety.

Spare parts available

Yes.

This is usually not a problem with an open-source 3D printer, but there are also manufacturers who like to cook their own soup and use proprietary hardware. If there are no more spare parts because the manufacturer is located in Asia, where the availability of spare parts may not be mandatory, you have to be a very good maker to solve problems on your own.

Soft criterion: Printer-specific fan community

This shouldn't be a big deal unless….

…you are a beginner and need your time to warm up to the material.

What do you do if you have a specific question about a specific printer that even threedom may not know about?

Exactly!