Our team has tested almost 30 different models to find the best 3D printers on the market right now. After going hands-on, these are the models we recommend checking out – whether you’re a beginner, a pro, or a business looking for the next cutting-edge model.
With the best 3D printing units delivering untold precision, speed, and detail at an affordable price, any modeller or hobbyist can get involved in 3D printing. In fact, the technology has never been more accessible, with some budget 3D printers retailing for around the $100 mark. Paired with the best 3D modeling software, these printers offer an unrivalled creative space for product design, prototyping, or just building fun creations. At least until we’re bulk-3D printing houses on Mars. But where to start? Our tech team put the best 3D printers for modeling to the test.
As part of our review process, we looked at what you’ll need to 3D print models, how much you can build, and how effective each of the top-rated 3D printers performs. We also explored essential extra features like engraving and bundled software for bringing your creations to life.
The quick list
The Bambu Labs P1P is one of the most outstanding 3D printers we’ve ever used. Print speed is lightening fast and, as we discovered, the quality is outstanding. It’s a fantastic 3D printer for everyday use.
Efficient and easy to use, the Mingda Magician X2 is an entry-level 3D printer we found perfect for beginners and hobbyists. In our tests, it delivered decent print quality, versatile capabilities, and an affordable price tag.
“A professional-level printer on a budget” was our verdict on the Creality Ender-5 S1. In tests, it showed outstanding speed and print quality thanks to an overhauled control board and hotend.
There’s a reason Snapmaker is a dominant name in 3D printing – and the J1 proves it. Our tests revealed a reliable, fast IDEX printer that produces excellent quality prints, and looks great doing it.
It took us about 15 minutes to set-up, and it was worth the wait. Print quality is superb, and the overall ease of use and reliability make this an excellent choice for larger projects.
This 3D printer impressed our testers with its outstanding performance and user-friendly design. A seamless printing experience with great results make it a great starter choice.
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The Original Prusa MK4 sets the benchmark for all other 3D printers to follow. After running the tests, we rated this as the Best-in-Class 3D printer – but those speedy, top-quality prints comes at a expensive cost.
We love the futuristic design – and its prints are equally awe-inspiring. In our experience, the workflow and results are as good as it gets from an FDM printer.
9. Lulzbot TAZ SideKick 747
After going hands-on with the Lulzbot Taz Sidekick 747, we were really impressed. This is an open-source workhorse that’s ready to print with precision and reliability. And the print quality is superb.
Going hands-on with each unit, we benchmark print speed, resolution, and overall performance, comparing build sizes and platform. We also assessed where machines excel in specific use cases, such as the best 3D printers for miniatures versus those with a large print area. During our testing, we also compare the user experience, cool additional features, filament types, and running costs for bringing creations to life.
Best 3D printer overall
The best 3D printer for just about everyone, the Bambu Lab P1P is quick to set up, easy to use, and we found the speed at which the printer works is remarkable.
For those looking for the ultimate in customization, Bambu Labs provides templates for printing your custom side panels. The P1P allows up to 16 colors through its Automatic Material System (AMS). Control the printer with an onboard screen or connect with Bambu slicing software and mobile app.
With a customizable and advanced 3D printing experience. The P1P borrows from its larger siblings with 20000 mm/s^2 CoreXY acceleration, vibration compensation, and pressure advance technology. The printer also has an automatic bed leveling sensor and a Direct-drive Extruder for better filament control.
In our experience, the 3D printer proved to be slightly restrictive when handling the more advanced materials that need a bit of a heated chamber and hard to customise (and, therefore, not very adaptable). But overall, this printer has wholly shocked us with its price for features and just how good of a printer this model is. We genuinely think this will disrupt the 3D printing market thanks to its price for abilities.
Read our full Bambu P1P 3D Printer
Best budget 3D printer
Hobbyists and novices need not spend a lot of money on a capable, feature-rich 3D printer. There’s a lot out there that are affordable, including the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro, but the Mingda Magician X2 is a cheap 3D printer that straddles that line between performance and affordability.
We found during our tests that there are a lot of stand-out features here, particularly for beginners. For example, the 16-point auto levelling, quick swap extruder, and filament detection and removable PEI build platform will all helped make it easy for beginners to use. And we thought the touchscreen LCD was absolutely adept at displaying useful feedback like a hotbed temperature indicator, adjustments such as easy-to-understand baby-step Z-Axis tuning, all of which enhanced the printing experience.
Overall, the printer itself delivers great performance as well, delivering excellent high-quality prints during testing. However, we did feel the print times were slow. While it can hit up to 100 mm/s, the recommended print speed is 60 mm/s. In comparison, the speedy Bambu Lab P1P can reach print speeds of up to 500mm/s.
Being on the affordable side, there are compromised here like the limited nozzle options and the fine-tuning you do have to make for better print quality. However, you’re getting a pretty fantastic deal for how much you’re paying here.
Read our full Mingda Magician X2 review
Best 3D printer for small businesses
Creality consistently enhances its 3D printers, and the Ender-5 S1 is no exception. Though resembling the Ender-5, its overhauled control board and hotend significantly improve speed and print quality. Priced in the mid-range, it competes with more expensive printers in terms of output quality.
The machine’s assembly took longer than the Ender-3, but the four columns, we found, provide a stable base. All the usual test print rattled off the build plate at speed during out tests, with the printer’s solid build minimizing shake and vibration, which had a huge impact on the quality of its prints. And its compact design encloses all components within the printer’s perimeter, and two carry handles enable easy portability.
The advanced control board and tool head elevate the printer, while the potential addition of the Sonic Pad and a sleek casing make it a strong contender. The Ender-5 S1 appeals to enthusiasts, modellers, product designers, and anyone seeking top-quality prints from a moderately priced device.
Read our full Creality-5 S1 review
Best for precision
Snapmaker, known for its exceptional three-in-one machines, introduces the J1, a dedicated 3D printer. This all-metal machine doesn’t transform into a CNC or laser engraver but stands out as a unique 3D printer.
The J1 features an IDEX design, making it a dual-material machine with almost independent hotends for faster material swapping and printing. It offers fast, normal, and smooth print presets to suit various needs, with the smooth setting providing finer surfaces and better dimensional accuracy, ideal for prototyping.
The Snapmaker J1’s design is impressive, even though a lid hinge for PLA printing could be a useful addition. This one of the more accessible systems we have used, as we found its ease of use and ability to quickly assign support structures through the software amazing. More importantly, it’s an affordable, reliable, and fast IDEX printer with excellent print quality. Although there are cheaper dual-material options, the J1 excels in quality and ease of use, making it the best in its class.
Read ofull Snapmaker J1 review
Best large-scale 3D printer
The Anycubic Kobra Plus is a 3D printer that effortlessly combines large-scale printing capabilities with a wealth of features to empower your creativity. Its massive build volume might be the first thing you notice, but it’s the printer’s remarkable reliability and ease of use that truly set it apart in a competitive market.
At first glance, the Kobra Plus may seem daunting due to its size and weight; however, it’s intuitive design and lightweight construction make it a breeze to set up and operate. Once assembled, you’ll appreciate the seamless integration of features such as auto bed levelling, filament detection, and a user-friendly touchscreen.
The Kobra Plus doesn’t shy away from delivering high-quality prints, ensuring our projects looked exceptional every time. Its glass print bed did occasionally pose challenges when removing prints, but this minor inconvenience was overshadowed in our experience by the printer’s outstanding performance.
Despite a few areas that could use refinement, the Anycubic Kobra Plus offers incredible value for its price. This 3D printer is an ideal choice for those who require a large-scale, reliable, and feature-packed machine to bring their creative visions to life.
Read our full Anycubic Kobra Plus review
Best 3D printer for beginners
The Elegoo Neptune 4 Pro is one of the best 3D printers for beginners – if you don’t mind a certain level of investment.
Notable features of the Neptune 4 Pro include the dual-gear direct drive extruder, which ensures smooth and consistent filament extrusion, and the intelligent segmented heatbed, offering precise temperature control. The printer’s sturdy construction adds to its overall reliability and durability.
Compared to its predecessors, the Neptune 4 Pro significantly improves speed, bed levelling, and extruder performance. These enhancements make it a worthwhile upgrade for those seeking enhanced printing capabilities. During our testing, the Neptune 4 Pro showcased reliable and consistent print quality. The dimensional accuracy, which initially showed some deviations, was easily rectified by us with belt tension adjustments, resulting in precise and smooth models. While there were a few minor challenges, such as initial dimensional accuracy adjustments and software compatibility, these issues were easily overcome.
The Neptune 4 Pro offers an excellent proposition regarding value for money. Its competitive pricing, robust features, and reliable performance make it a compelling choice in its price range.
Read our full Elegoo Neptune 4 Pro review
Best premium 3D printer
The Original Prusa MK4 is, in our experience with the machine, a best-in-class performer. A premium price-tag is the only reason this isn’t the best 3D printer overall. It’s a feature-rich FDM printer that builds on the success of its predecessor, the MK3S with new advanced features and impressive performance. However, expect to pay a fair amount for this premium pro device.
In our tests, it proved to be an outstanding 3D printer from a company whose heart remains tied to the open source community. The new Loadcell sensor ensures trouble-free first-layer printing, while the next-gen extruder (Nextruder) enhances ease of maintenance and safety.
All aspects of the machine have been enhanced, including the 32-bit heart of the machine that enables great flexibility for remote printing, quick-swap nozzles, and a customizable UI. The MK4 also supports various materials, from PLA and PETG to Nylon, ASA, PVA, and more. Reliability, automatic first-layer calibration, impressive printing speed, and a host of safety features like filament sensors and power panic all make the latest Original Prusa MK4 the printer to own.
Expect excellent speed and accuracy with a device that we found was deceptively easy to use, despite packing a complex toolset. Overall, we felt its advanced features, automatic bed leveling, and compatibility with various materials make it a versatile and powerful tool for professionals and hobbyists alike.
Read our full Original Prusa MK4 review
Best 3D printer for professionals
This elegant delta design should get your attention if you’re looking for a professional 3D printer for fairly large and complex projects. It uses FDM technology to build 3D models from rolls of filament.
Still, instead of the more common cartesian printers, the TRILAB DeltiQ 2 has a fixed round build plate with the extruder suspended between three arms that move the print head along three axis. It gives this model a fairly small footprint, while its high tower design ensures it can print some quite large pieces. Unlike most 3D printers, it has two extruder options, one for standard PLA and PETG and the other for flexibles. It just requires a little retooling to swap between them.
The TRILAB DeltiQ 2 is designed for the professional market, and it proved to be fast at printing large objects with excellent dimensional accuracy. But we did find that slight tweaks to the profiles depending on the type of model were necessary to get the best from the printer. But this is also a printer uses some of the best components available in its construction, and the interface is a smartphone running a dedicated app, allowing it to sit well in any laboratory, studio, or classroom.
Read our full TRILAB DeltiQ 2 review
Best open-source 3D printer
The LulzBot TAZ SideKick 747, with over 50% 3D printed parts, demonstrates confidence in its Open Source heritage. This workhorse delivers precision, reliability, and exceptional print quality, catering to tinkerers and enthusiasts alike.
With a significant redesign under new ownership, the SideKick 747 feels more connected to the Open Source community than ever before. With LulzBot’s outstanding support and plug-and-play capabilities via Cura LE, we were able to start printing quality objects right away.
The design, upgrades, and high volume of 3D-printed parts make it a versatile and customisable printer. The BL Touch sensor required initial adjustments during our testing, but the machine rans smoothly afterwards.
While Wi-Fi connectivity and a touchscreen interface would be welcome additions, the SideKick 747 remains a fantastic choice for home or professional use. With multiple tool head options, it’s a perfect base for those who love to experiment and expand their printer’s capabilities. The LulzBot TAZ SideKick 747 is among the top 3D printers on the market.
Read our full LulzBot TAZ SideKick 747 Review
Best 3D printers: FAQs
What is a 3D printer?
Where office-style printers print ink onto paper, you can use 3D printers to build real-world objects made from plastic, metal, and wood digital models for straight-to-market products, spare parts, or prototyping. FDM printers now come in all shapes and sizes and are well-suited to prototyping and crafting larger objects. At the same time, resin-based (SLA, MSLA, and DLP) printers allow for much greater detail, typically at a smaller scale, making them a fantastic buy for anyone looking to design jewelry or create tabletop miniatures.
Whether you are a hobbyist looking to get started in the world of 3D printing or if your business relies on it, 3D printing is a method of creating physical products, unlike any other way we have seen. Printing in 3D is an easy way to create products through additive measures, meaning there is little to no waste. Additionally, the limits are near endless because you can theoretically 3D Print just about anything.
What kind of materials does a 3D printer use to print?
3D printers utilize a range of materials to print.
Entry-level FFF 3D printers remain the most popular, as they’re usually cheap and easy to use. Good for prototyping and general use, these filament printers use Poly Lactic Acid (PLA), Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS), PETG, TPU, Nylon, and Polycarbonate. Of these, PLA and ABS are the most popular at the moment.
A resin 3D printer or stereolithography (SLA) printer offers higher quality and more precision for intricate modeling – but they cost more. These printers use a photosensitive resin exposed layer by layer to create the final model. This lets you print more complex and detailed designs, but takes more time to set up and it’s a bit messier.
Beyond plastics, some of the best 3D printers we’ve seen are using concretes and metals. You won’t see many of these on a desktop. But it’s a possible path towards more efficient and sustainable house-building and other large-scale construction work.
What’s the difference between FFF vs FDM 3D printers?
While effectively employing the same printing process and using the same materials, there are some differences between a fused filament fabrication (FFF), fused deposition modeling (FDM) printer.
Firstly, FDM is a name trademarked by Stratasys – although other companies can use the name. But it’s not the only difference.
You’ll find variations in print quality. Working with more materials than FFF 3D printers, true industrial-grade FDM printers offer larger build platforms, fusing use layers closer together for a stronger bond.
On the other hand, this makes them more expensive to buy and run compared to FFF printers, which are popular especially among beginners.
Do 3D printers use a lot of electricity?
It depends on the size of your 3D printer, what materials are being used and how long you’re using the machine. In our experience, FDM printers use the least amount of power compared to other 3D printers.
What is the most profitable thing to make with a 3D printer?
There are a wide range of profitable items that can be made with a 3D printer. These range from personalized items such as phone cases an others, to replacements parts, prototypes, and teaching tools. Any of those areas, if marketed correctly, has the potential to be profitable.
Is 3D printing worth investing in?
It depends on how you intend to use your 3D printer and how often (like most things, really). If you’re going to get joy out of modeling and printing – whether it’s for personal or professional use, then 3D printing is absolutely worth the investment – especially since costs for entry-level 3D printers are coming down.
How to choose the best 3D printer for you
To select the best 3D printer, you’ll need to consider what you’re going to do with it. If you’re going to be printing small objects, then a small-size printer is apt, but a large printer is naturally the best option for bigger creations.
For printing high-quality objects with fine details, you’ll need a high resolution printer, but these prints will cost more and take more time to get ready.
Look out for the printer’s interface and the overall ease of use, along with other aspects like the kind of software it uses, the type of filament, build platform, and pricing.
Find our more in our guide How to get started in 3D printing.
How we test the best 3D printers
We’ve tested, reviewed, and rated a whole range of printing tools, tech, and services, from the best printers for home and office to the best business card printing services. Whether we’re evaluating and comparing the best all-in-one printers or 3D printing equipment, we apply the same rigorous testing process to every model so you can make an informed choice.
Our testing of the best 3D printers use a collection of bespoke benchmarks that help show the strengths and weaknesses of each model that, after time, can be compared against other products. These will differ depending on printer type, but a filament printer will be tested for stringing, bridging, and speed, as well as additional commentary on detail, achieved, and noise levels.
This will be done fairly, with dues given to different materials and printer types, with resin printers being subject to smaller, more detailed models to replace the stringing test. Design, price, and performance will also be explored as sections within the reviews.
In our 3D print workshop, every 3D printer undergoes a comprehensive testing process, regardless of whether it’s budget-friendly or eye-wateringly expensive. Our testing procedures are designed to put these printers through rigorous evaluations to ensure we identify the best options available for you.
The testing journey begins with the initial build, set-up and calibration, assessing the ease of the process. While some printers can be up and running within minutes, others may require far more time and effort.
Next, we examine the first layer print quality, dimensional accuracy, bridging, overhangs, stringing, layer adhesion, and surface finish. Speed is another important factor, as we analyse the time it takes the printer to produce a model without compromising print quality. Noise levels are also a consideration; some printers are far from quiet, especially when the speed picks up – OK for short prints but incredibly annoying if a print duration is hours or days long.
Our comprehensive testing includes thoroughly examining features, such as connectivity options, user interface intuitiveness, software compatibility, and any additional functionalities offered. We explore material compatibility, testing the printer with various filaments or resins to assess versatility.
Finally, we consider the price of the printer’s overall performance and features, ensuring it aligns with our expectations. We carefully evaluate the intended market for the printer, considering specific user needs and suitability for various applications. Additionally, we analyse the design and aesthetics, recognising the importance of a well-designed and visually appealing product.
By subjecting each printer to these tests and assessments, we can confidently provide you with an informed recommendation as to which is the best 3D printer.
All our tests are conducted from the perspective of the printers target market where possible, so expect to see a lot of tabletop miniatures and figurines alongside the usual ‘benches’ (test models that are also dubbed as ‘torture tests’ to see where a printer needs to be better optimized for future prints).
