3D Printing Cost Calculator

Use this 3D printing cost calculator to calculate the overall cost of the printing project. The tool considers different factors to calculate this cost. These include material type, filament diameter and length, labor costs, and markup. Based on these values, our calculator gives you the following results:

• Filament Weight: The material amount that is used in printing (Measured in grams or kilograms)
• Material Cost: Indicates the cost of resin or filament used for the printing job.
• Labor Cost: To be paid to the person operating the 3D printer.
• Final Price: The total cost of the 3D printed object, including material, labor, and overhead costs.

How Much Does 3D Printing Cost?

3D printing costs can vary between $3 to thousands of dollars. This is because there is no fixed cost for every printing job. However, the factors mentioned above affect the overall prices.

Apart from this, you can calculate the printing cost by either of the following two means:

Using Manual Formula:

Remember that the complete printing cost is dependent on different daughter costs, including material cost, labor cost, and markup (if any). The equations include:

Material Cost:

\(\text{Material Cost} =  ρ π *\left(\dfrac{d}{2}\right)^{2} * L * Price\)

where;

• ρ = Material Density
• d = Material Diameter
• L = Filament length used in printing
• Price = Material Cost (Per unit weight in either kilograms or pounds)

Labor Cost:

Labor Cost = T × Hourly Rate

where;

• T = Time for a complete printing job
• Hourly Rate = Cost of one hour of 3D printing

Markup:

Final Price = (Material Cost + Labor Cost) × (100% + Markup)

Using 3D Printing Cost Calculator:

Our 3D printing price calculator takes in all the factors mentioned in the above formulas as inputs. It then gives you instant results that save you a lot of time when you are surfing manual calculations. Let’s find out how!

• Enter the Material Cost: Select the material type, enter the filament diameter & length, and the unit price for this section.
• Enter The Labor Cost: For this part of the tool, you need to enter printing time & cost of printing per hour.
• Enter Markup Details: If you want a particular profit percentage on the printing job, you can provide it in the following section.

After you are done with entering the inputs, click “Calculate” and get your printing costs.

Key Factors Influencing 3D Printing Costs:

The following section discusses the main factors that impact the printing costs.

Material:

The choice of the material directly impacts overall printing costs. Our 3D printing cost calculator guestimates printing budgets based on the most commonly used materials, listed in the table:

Apart from this, many engineering-grade plastics or metal alloys can be more expensive. Also, colors containing pigments can increase printing costs.

The Volume of a 3D Model:

The volume of the object and the space needed to print it are a couple of factors that matter the most while calculating printing costs. Considering this fact, larger objects take more time to print out than smaller ones.

Energy Consumption:

Energy used during the printing process also adds to the final expense. The larger the object is, the more energy consumption is used, and vice versa.

Estimated 3D Printing Times:

The time for 3D printing is affected by the material choice. The table below contains the approximated printing times for different types of materials:

Applications of 3D Printing Price Calculator:

The following are the practical applications of a 3D print cost calculator:

Product Development and Prototyping:

Helps engineers and designers estimate the cost of prototype production before closing any deal. It also enables strong decision-making power for the selection of the best printing materials.

Manufacturing:

Manufacturers can use the 3d print calculator online to determine the production costs if the printing job includes a large quantity of units. Plus, they can easily identify opportunities to reduce costs by optimizing design, materials, and production processes.

Education and Training:

Our 3D print calculator can be quite handy if students need to learn about effects of different materials on printing costs. Students can also estimate their overall printing project budgets for educational goals.

Research and Development:

The tool supports research and development activities by providing cost estimates for experimental prototypes.

Limitations:

The results calculated by the 3d printing price calculator depend only on the inputs you enter. Any varying market trends might not change these calculations until or unless you provide a new value accordingly.