Cheap resin 3D printer: 11 best options in 2020

Searching for a cheap resin 3D printer? Check out our list of some of the most affordable liquid resin 3D printers on the market this year!

What’s the best cheap resin 3D printer in 2020?

 
Cheap resin 3D printer announcements have flourished over the past few years. Initially intended for professional use in a variety of industries, resin 3D printers are becoming more and more common at the consumer level.

This is thanks to a relatively new resin 3D printing technology that involves the use of an LCD screen, which are widely available today and at a low cost. Hence, complex DLP and laser systems are being swapped out to make resin 3D printing more accessible and affordable to hobbyists.

If you’re a pro, you may want to take a look at our selection of professional resin 3D printers.

Generally, LCD resin printing also allows for faster 3D printing than laser-based technologies, as LCD printers are able to solidify entire layers of resin at once.

Resin 3D printers are one of the most precise types of 3D printers, especially in comparison with FFF 3D printers (entry-level ones, at least). However, you do need to know that at this stage and especially in this price range, resin 3D printing can get messy and the material is pretty smelly.

The resin vat and build plate need to be carefully cleaned after each print, the vat film should be changed every so often, and you also have to clean the printed models and put them in a special light for them to harden correctly. For your safety, it’s also required to wear gloves and recommended to wear a mask.

If you’re willing to go through all of that, take a look at our selection of some of the best cheap resin 3D printers on the market this year!

Looking for something a little easier? Check out these filament-based desktop 3D printers under $300.

Note: We haven’t tested all of the affordable resin 3D printers from this list. Our selection is based on overall feedback from specialized, trusted sources as well as crowdsourced user reviews. Read more about how we work. For a comprehensive overview of the desktop resin 3D printer market, it is possible to filter through all products currently available using our 3D printer comparison engine.

Monoprice MP Mini SLA

• Build volume: 118 x 65 x 110 mm
• Country: United States
• Price: $199

Buy on Amazon

Monoprice MP UV resin 3D printers are the cheapest resin 3D printer options available. The MP Mini SLA printer features a magnetic build plate that is very easy to remove, thus making it easier to clean the printer and prepare for multiple print jobs.

Users have reported that this 3D printer has issues with the automatic leveling and that the included slicer isn’t optimal. You’ll need to put more time and efforts into this printer, which isn’t too surprising for a machine this cheap.

More information: Monoprice Mini SLA resin UV 3D printer

SparkMaker FHD

• Build volume: 98 x 55 x 125 mm
• Country: China
• Price: $219

Buy on Amazon

The Sparkmaker, also called the Sparkmaker FHD, is one of the smallest resin 3D printers available. It only weights about 3 kg (6.6 lbs) and doesn’t take up much space, but it does have a small maximum print size.

It’s possible to launch 3D prints from an SD card after slicing models on SparkStudio software. You may want to sand the build plate a little bit to help avoid the prints from falling off before they’re complete.

More information: Sparkmaker 3D printer

Longer3D Orange 10

• Build volume: 98 x 55 x 140 mm
• Country: China
• Price: $229

Buy on Amazon

The Orange 10 is Longer3D’s most affordable desktop resin 3D printer. According to user feedback, it offers a good price-to-performance ratio. It is equipped with a touch screen display for real-time print status monitoring. A nice addition is its ability to detect if the LCD screen is overheating, in which case it automatically pauses the print to give the screen time to cool down.

Also, this cheap resin 3D printer is delivered with everything you need to get started, including a bottle of resin, gloves, and an SD card.

More information: Longer3D Orange 10

Alfawise W10

• Build volume: 98 x 55 x 140 mm
• Country: China
• Price: $269

Buy on GearBest

Alfawise is a brand from the GearBest group. Their W10 resin 3D printer uses numerous LED lights instead of only one or two, which offers more uniform resin curing. According to Alfawise, their slicer is also faster than standard slicers, and is able to slice files in a matter of seconds.

The Alfawise W10 offers offline SD card printing and has a built-in screen.

More information: Alfawise W10

Elegoo Mars

• Build volume: 120 x 68 x 155 mm
• Country: China
• Price: $279

Buy on Amazon

The Elegoo Mars has been quite popular for hobbyists and 3D printing fans. Hence, if you have any issues or questions, you’ll probably find answers on online forums and groups. Elegoo’s customer support team is also pretty reactive.

It’s equipped with a 2K LCD screen, a 3.5-inch color touchscreen, and can print layers as thin as 0.01 mm. Once you find the printer’s sweet spot with the right settings, you’ll be able to get very decent prints out of it.

More information: Elegoo Mars

ANYCUBIC Photon

• Build volume: 115 x 65 x 155 mm
• Country: China
• Price: $299

Buy on Amazon

The ANYCUBIC Photon has been a community favorite for a while. It’s one of the best offers on the market, delivering good quality prints and a relatively easy setup. If you have any trouble with the printer, you can ask one of the many Photon owners and users for help on forums and dedicated Facebook groups.

Like many other cheap resin printers, the Photon has a touchscreen and USB connectivity for offline printing.

More information: ANYCUBIC Photon resin printer

Creality LD-001

• Build volume: 120 x 70 x 120 mm
• Country: China
• Price: $399

Buy on Amazon

Creality is a prominent brand when it comes to affordable 3D printers. While they are mostly famous for their CR-10 series of large volume FFF 3D printers, they do also sell cheap liquid resin 3D printers.

The Creality LD-001, also known as Comgrow LD-001 (Comgrow is a reseller), supports Wi Fi, Ethernet, and USB connectivity. It features a 3.5-inch color touchscreen and a relatively intuitive user interface.

More information: Creality LD-001

EPAX X1

• Build volume: 115 x 65 x 155 mm
• Country: China
• Price: $399

Buy on Amazon

The EPAX X1 features a 3.5-inch color touchscreen and a 2K LCD masking screen for its 50 LED light sources. Its cover only has one “window”, contrary to most other printers on this list which have a colored, transparent cover.

Therefore you won’t be able to see the print process as much as with another printer, but it does block out more light, which may contribute to getting better quality prints.

More information: EPAX X1

ANYCUBIC Photon S

• Build volume: 115 x 65 x 155 mm
• Country: China
• Price: $469

Buy on Amazon

The Photon S is an upgraded version of the standard Photon mentioned further above. Upgrades include stronger UV light and better distribution, an air filtration system (which helps reduce smelly resin odors a bit), and an easier leveling system.

However, the metal structure of the machine was swapped out for plastic in order to help bring the price down and keep the printer affordable. Aside from this, the Photon S is overall better than the original version, which is still good quality.

More information: ANYCUBIC Photon S

Nova3D Uranus

• Build volume: 133 x 133 x 203 mm
• Country: China
• Price: $599

Buy on Amazon

Compared to other cheap resin 3D printers, the Nova3D Uranus offers a large print size. It’s also different from the classic, boxy design you can find on most resin printers in this price range.

Nova 3D also manufactures a UV light curing machine (sold separately) if you need your models to be ready quicker. Their customer support service is based in California.

More information: Nova3D Uranus

Phrozen Shuffle

• Build volume: 120 x 68 x 200 mm
• Country: China
• Price: $799

Buy on Amazon

The Phrozen Shuffle is on the higher end of the price spectrum, but it does print a bit faster than the rest and offers a bigger build area. Phrozen launched their 3D printer on Kickstarter and have been quite successful with it since then.

They also sell Phrozen Cure, a UV post curing chamber, although it is a bit pricey as well ($385).

More information: Phrozen Shuffle

Other low-cost resin 3D printers

Here are a couple other affordable resin 3D printers available on the market today:

• Anet N4 – $399
• Wanhao Duplicator 7 (Wanhao D7) – $499
• XYZprinting Nobel 1.0 – $699

If you’re looking for a more precise and powerful resin 3D printer, please take a look at our list of the best desktop resin 3D printers (SLA/DLP/LCD).

Did you know that you could build a resin 3D printer on your own? DIY resin 3D printers are affordable, but can be quite tricky to build. Below are some cheap DIY resin 3D printer projects you can try out if you have the time:

• Hi-Res DIY DLP 3D Printer
• Build a DIY Laser 3D Printer Stereolithography at Home
• Chimera: $60 DLP High-Res 3D Printer

Bear in mind that you will have to dedicate a lot of time to these projects, and they will require a lot of tweaking before delivering decent results.

The following are general statements and apply to cheap resin 3D printers and cheap FFF 3D printers. Professional and industrial-grade 3D printers (both resin and filament) overcome some of these limits.

Resin 3D printer advantages compared to FDM 3D printers

In comparison with filament-based 3D printers, resin 3D printers offer some advantages:

• They offer a higher level of detail and accuracy
• Surface finishes are smoother than FFF 3D prints
• It is possible to make castable or burnable molds (e.g. for jewelry making)
• Resin 3D printers generally require less tweaking

Resin 3D printer limits compared to FFF 3D printers

Cheap resin 3D printers also have some limits when compared to filament 3D printers:

• Resin 3D printer build volumes are often much smaller
• Material handling is time-consuming (cleaning up after each print)
• Printed models require post-processing (cleaning and UV hardening)
• The material is more expensive, smelly, toxic, and less colors are available
• The resin tank needs to be replaced after a few uses

Conclusion: should I get a resin 3D printer or a filament 3D printer?

This will depend on what you’re going to use your 3D printer for. If you need to 3D print figurines, chess parts, or anything small and detailed, then a resin 3D printer is the way to go to get high resolution. However, you will need to get used to the cleaning routine (don’t forget to wear gloves!) and find a dedicated, well-ventilated room for the printer.

If you need to 3D print larger objects and don’t mind sacrificing a little bit of accuracy and details, then a filament printer may be best for you. You’ll have a larger choice of materials and at a cheaper price, although you will have to put time and effort into tweaking your printer (build plate, axes, nozzle, temperatures, etc.).

Check out our selection of the best filament 3D printers under $300 and under $1000.

 

SLA 3D printers, LCD 3D printers, and DLP 3D printers all use liquid resin as 3D printing material. A light source makes the resin become solid in specific areas.

To put it (very) simply, laser stereolithography printers use a very precise laser, while DLP printers use a special light projector and mirror system. For more information, take a look at our guide to 3D printing technologies.

LCD-based resin 3D printers generally also use a light projector, but instead of using a complex system to direct the light to the right place, they simply use an LCD screen as a “mask”. The screen displays a slice of the object, and lets the projector’s light shine through the necessary places. LCD resin printers are cheaper than SLA or DLP 3D printers.

Resin 3D printers tend to be a lot slower than filament-based technologies because the resin needs a few seconds of light for each layer. If you multiply each layer by the number of seconds it takes to solidify the resin, you’ll see that it can take a whole day to 3D print something that’s only a few inches tall.

How much does a 3D printer resin cost?

The average cost of standard 3D printing resin is about $50 per liter. The price depends on the quality of the resin material, the type of the resin material, as well as the manufacturer.

How does a resin 3D printer work?

Resin 3D printers use liquid resin as the 3D printing material. The resin will become solid when struck by a computer-controlled UV laser or other light source. Find out more in our guide to resin 3D printers.

Are resin 3D printers easy to use?

For someone with at least some 3D printing knowledge and experience, it can be relatively easy to learn how to use a resin 3D printer.

More 3D printing resources

• Check out our selection of the best 3D printers.
• Try 3D scanning for free with these smartphone 3D scanner apps.
• We reference over 1,000 3D printers in our database to fuel our 3D printer comparison engine.