Initially relegated to large industrial processes, they experienced a bit of a boom in the mid-2010s, when the technology became affordable to small offices, design firms, and hobbyists. Since then, 3D printers have evolved along with several vectors. Low-cost, high-resolution resin printers have joined filament-based (or FDM) printers in the home and hobbyist market. Printers with large print areas have become available at both the low and high end, with lower-end printers optimizing for the very basic heated plates needed for large prints, while the higher-end solutions add sealed chambers, temperature management, touchscreens, and cameras. Printers with dual extruders are becoming more common, and the slicing software needed to prepare prints is becoming more sophisticated. We’re also starting to see more full color and metal printing. In this guide, we award best-of-show for a range of printer categories. We’re spotlighting the machines based on where they’re best used. We’re starting with the most expensive offerings and ending with our favorite under-$200 printer. You can follow my day-to-day project updates on social media. Be sure to follow me on Twitter at @DavidGewirtz, on Facebook at Facebook.com/DavidGewirtz, on Instagram at Instagram.com/DavidGewirtz, and on YouTube at YouTube.com/DavidGewirtzTV. If you’re building prototypes you intend to use rather than just show off, this printer can produce tough parts with tight tolerances for use in industrial applications. Our friends at Fargo 3D Printer Repair tell us, “Overall a solid machine from a reputable company, we like the additional size of the 450mc over the 380mc.” Pros:
Large range of industrial materialsU.S. DOD STIG compliance data protection built into machineGrabCAD Print software
Cons:
High priceSmallish build area for the priceNo Wi-Fi
There’s some serious materials science going on here. Using a process called Bound Metal Deposition, the printer uses bound metal rods that are analogous to filament in FDM plastic printers. The source material contains a mix of metal, wax, and polymer binders, which allows the object to be printed on the build plate. Once the object has been printed, it needs to be placed into a tank where a solution dissolves the primary binding agent and creating a series of open channels within the object. The final stage of post-processing involves the use of a sintering furnace, which heats the finished object to a point before liquefaction, causing the object to become a solid mass. What intrigues us most is the office setting this printer can function in. The company says there’s no need for respirators or external ventilation, which means this $120,000 device can coexist in a design environment without special environmental accommodations. Pros:
It 3D prints metalMake complex, metal replacement parts on-demandFits on a workbench
Cons:
Price is up thereTwo-step printing and sintering processThe strengths…and weaknesses…of cast metal
At approximately $15,000, this is a large format printer, with a build area of 370 x 390 x 450mm. It supports Ethernet and wireless connectivity and uses filament print cartridges that allows an ease of use when swapping of filament without the hassle of fighting with the extruder. Our friends at Fargo 3D Printer Repair tell us, “A fantastic printer for flexibles and fine detail work.” Pros:
Reliable flexible part productionDual nozzles allow you to mix flexible and rigid plastics in one partVoice-based user guide on-machine
Cons:
Voice-based user guide on-machineNo internal cameraOnly one available nozzle size
But the stand-out feature of this made-in-America printer is the four print heads. It’s possible to print with 1, 2, 3, or all four print heads, and if you print with fewer heads, you can remove them to increase the overall build area. This allows for tremendous low-volume production gains and manufacturing efficiencies. Our friends at Fargo 3D Printer Repair tell us, “This printer’s multi-head capabilities are fantastic for a wide variety of uses depending on the application.” Pros:
Print four filaments at onceRemove unused print heads to increase print capacityLarge available print capacity
Cons:
Requires Raspberry Pi to add network connectivityCan be as loud as a washing machine or air conditionerSpool support is a simple bar on the back of the machine
What makes this product a standout is not that it has two extruders. Other best-of-show products we’re spotlighting do as well. Instead, it’s the company’s Independent Dual Extrusion System (or IDEX) printing technology, which allows both extruders to work independently of each other. The printer has duplication and mirror modes where two identical (or mirrored) objects can be extruded simultaneously. The printer is capable of printing a wide range of industrial-grade materials developed by BASF and Mitsubishi Chemical. It also has HEPA and carbon filters, so the printer can be safely used either in an office environment or on a factory floor. Pros:
Dual extrudersPrint two duplicates at oncePrint two mirrored items at once
Cons:
Smart cabinet is a pricy upgradeCustomer support forum questions left unanswered
Also: Is the Ultimaker S5 the ultimate Ultimaker 3D printer? My favorite aspect of the S5 is how easy it is to load filament. The filament feed system simply slots open, you feed in your filament, and close the latch. It’s rock-solid reliable and virtually zero hassle. The S5 comes with a heated bed, it auto-trams by testing a grid of points along the bed surface, has a dual extruder system with removable and customizable print heads and has a built-in camera. You can control one or a fleet of Ultimaker either via Ethernet or wirelessly via Ultimaker’s Cura slicer and printer control environment. I often transfer models straight from my Fusion 360 computer-aided design environment right to the Ultimaker, which saves both time and steps. This is an ideal machine for rapid prototyping and low-volume manufacturing. Pros:
Easiest filament loading system of any printerReliable prints nearly all the timeEasily replaceable printheads
Cons:
Cura slicer still not updated for Apple Silicon MacsFilament spool holder doesn’t easily hold wider spoolsMachine shows occasional cryptic error messages
Also: Is MakerBot’s new Method 3D printer ready enough to save the company? Since then, the company has been hard at work on an all-new printer: the Method. This printer has a full-enclosed, climate-controlled heated print area, sealed and climate-controlled filament storage, a redesigned extruder, and an onboard camera. What’s more, the company seems to have learned from its rushed release of the Replicator+. The Method has had more than a year of testing before it’s being released into the market. At $4,999, MakerBot bills the Method as a manufacturing and prototyping workstation. The Method can maintain a chamber temperature of 60°C. The new Method X model can maintain a chamber temperature of 100°C, allowing for reliable printing of more exotic and troublesome filament types. Pros:
Fully temperature-managed chamber for filament extrusionRemovable, replaceable extrudersTop-end printers support wide range of materials
Cons:
Expensive base model doesn’t support ABSProprietary filaments
But what we like best about the Form 3+ SLA printer (and the earlier Form 2) is the resin cartridge and post-processing system offered by Formlabs. Resin printing is generally an unpleasant task, requiring a great deal of attention is spent to avoid coming in contact with toxic resins. Rather than pouring resin into an open vat, users of the Form 3+ merely insert a resin cartridge (like a big ink cartridge) and start printing. Formlabs also offers a post-processing 3D printing system consisting of a cleaner and UV chamber, both of which are automated, making post-processing a mostly hands-off process. Pros:
Resin cartridge removes much of the resin mess challengeCleaning system helps to remove toxic resin from finished printsFlexible quick release system for removing parts from plates
Cons:
Very high quality, lower-priced resin printers make the added price difficult to justifyCartridge system, while convenient, causes vendor lock-in
The Creator Pro 2 also does something the the S5 doesn’t: it lets you run each extruder independently. That means you can use one for one color and one for another. You can use one for supports and one for the object. You can even use one extruder to print one object while simultaneously using the other extruder to print another object. Or you can have the printer print two of the same objects at once, without having to modify the original 3D model file. This makes for an incredibly flexible printer. The machine has a solid metal frame. That solidity reduces vibrations and makes your prints come out better. The build plate is fixed in the machine, however, which is a bit of an annoyance. I found that painter’s tape was the best solution for build plate adhesion that doesn’t weld the print to the surface. It does use a non-standard slicer, so it takes time to come up to speed. But once you’ve figured it out, you’ll have a workhorse that won’t give up. Pros:
Those independent dual extrudersExtremely solid metal frameFor what it does, the price is impressive
Cons:
Manual leveling is a bit tediousFlashPoint slicer is cumbersomeBuild area could be bigger
Fast forward nearly a decade and Prusa Research is one of the fastest-growing tech companies in Central Europe, and the Original Prusa i3 series (which has had three major design iterations) and in 2016 was the most-used 3D printer in the world. What we like about the i3 MK3S+ is how reliable and robust it is, how smartly the device trams the build plate, and how inexpensive the machine is for all it does. Fully assembled, the Original Prusa i3 MK3S+ is $999, but those with a little more time on their hands and a hankering for adventure, there’s a $749 kit if you’re willing to assemble it yourself. If you’re on a budget, hop on over to our best budget 3D printers list and check out the Prusa MINI+. It’s one of our top picks. Pros:
Save $200 (and learn a lot) if you’re willing to build it yourselfHugely popular, constantly updatedOpen source design
Cons:
Long 3-4 week lead time on ordersDirect sales only
While I have a lot of experience with desktop-level 3D printers, I haven’t had much of an opportunity to use industrial 3D printers. So I turned to the folks at Fargo 3D Printer Repair who not only have experience with these printers but have a daily view into the reliability and failure points for a wide range of printer brands. They were kind enough to take the time to provide us with their recommendations, which I included in the listings above. In this guide, we’ve presented 3D printers with a price range from over $100,000 to under $200. Amazingly, all will actually create a good-quality 3D object from a foundation material. But how do you choose? Are there any good guidelines for bringing 3D printers into your office, shop, factory, or studio? Yes, yes there are. First, I’m going to point you to an explainer I wrote last year: Also: Everything you need to know about 3D printing and its impact on your business That will give you a solid overview of the various technologies and trends with 3D printing. Plastic opens up your options wide. There are plastic filaments that embed metallic flecks or wooden fibers, allowing you to 3D print objects that have metallic or wooden characteristics but are still fundamentally made of plastic. The metallic objects can rust, be shined up, or be ferrous enough to attract a magnet. The wooden objects can support wood stains and finishes.Almost all of the FDM (fused deposition modeling) filament printers we’ve proposed above will print a wide variety of plastic filaments. In addition to the wood fiber and metallic filaments, you can print carbon fiber, nylon, ABS plastic, flexible plastics, and more. Generally speaking, the more exotic the filament, the hotter the hot end (the part that melts the plastic) will need to get. Look at the material specs for the filaments you want and compare them to the max temperatures of the hot ends. Generally, if a printer says it supports multiple filament types, you’re good. If a printer only supports PLA or does not have a heated bed, you’re limited to a more simple plastic. FIlament printers have a range of key features that you will want to consider. Heated beds allow for better object adherence while printing, but large heated beds on open-framed printers will dissipate the heat at the edges, reducing the reliability of those prints. Some filament printers have auto-alignment, which sets the distance between the bed and the print head. Personally, I hate aligning printers by hand, so I always look for the automatic alignment feature. It’s usually on the more costly printers, but it’s worth it. Some filament printers support multiple filaments. This can be useful both for printing multiple colors or for mixing filament types, like printing a flexible hinge between two rigid hard plastic elements or printing supports in a dissolvable filament, making it easier to create a finished object. We even spotlight a filament printer that comes with a CMYK ink cartridge and it sprays ink on every layer to impart full color. If you want to create highly-detailed objects for miniatures or jewelry, you’ll want to look at a resin printer. These use light to harden plastic resin in thin layers. They’re messy, but their detail is often second to none. Buying a printer will often involve cost/benefit trade-offs and you’ll need to decide which features are must-have, and which are merely nice-to-have. That, along with your budget, will help drive your choice. I often tell folks that 3D printers are a lot like sewing machines, in that you can buy a fabulous sewing machine, but if you don’t know the difference between stitches, techniques, and fabrics, you’ll still wind up with a mess. 3D printers do have a learning curve, but if you’re willing to learn how best to use them, each of the machines we’ve recommended above will do a decent job for the market they’re intended for. Go out there and build something cool.
The best 3D printers under $500 for beginners
In addition, here are a few other options to look into:
