Reference — straight answers
Answers to the pricing questions makers actually ask.
Short, sourced explainers on what a 3D print costs and how to price one.
How much does it cost to 3D print something?
Most small hobby 3D prints cost about $0.50–$5 in filament alone. A realistic all-in cost — adding machine wear, electricity, failed prints and your time — is roughly $3–$15 for a palm-sized part, and more for large or multi-colour prints.
What markup should I add to 3D prints?
A common markup for a 3D printing service is 2×–3× the material-plus-machine cost, or an hourly rate of about $10–$30 on top of materials. Markup has to cover failed prints, machine wear, design time and profit — not just filament.
How much does 1 kg of PLA filament cost?
A 1 kg spool of standard PLA costs about $18–$25 from mainstream brands in 2026. Budget PLA can drop to ~$15, while specialty PLA (silk, matte, wood-fill, high-speed) runs $25–$40.
How much electricity does 3D printing use?
A typical desktop FDM printer draws about 70–150 watts while printing, so a 10-hour print uses roughly 0.7–1.5 kWh — about $0.10–$0.35 at average US/EU rates. Electricity is usually a small part of the total print cost.
What types of PLA filament are there?
PLA comes in several variants: standard PLA, tougher PLA+ (also sold as PLA Pro), high-flow PLA HF for fast printers, aesthetic types like silk, matte and wood-fill, and specialty types like carbon-fibre PLA-CF and foaming lightweight LW-PLA. Standard PLA costs $18–$25/kg; variants add $5–$30 on top.
How much does it cost to print with PETG?
PETG filament costs roughly $20 to $30 per kilogram, about $0.02 to $0.03 per gram, similar to PLA. A typical print costs a few dollars in material, though PETG's higher print temperatures and its tendency to string and absorb moisture make it marginally more expensive to run than PLA.