Prusa Brand Overview
Brand At a Glance
| Year Founded | 2012 |
| Category | Premium |
| Country of Origin | Czech Republic |
| Size of Online Community | Extensive |
| Manufacturer Support | Good |
| Availability of Parts | Available from manufacturer only |
Prusa Research is a well-known brand in the 3D printing industry, focusing on high-end, premium 3D printers at moderate to high cost. The company is one of the original 3D printer manufacturers, basing their designs on the early open-source RepRap project. They are known for well-made, top-performing, and innovative 3D printers, with extensive documentation and excellent customer support.
Getting Started Experience
Prusa’s printers are moderately beginner-friendly. Although the instructions are impeccable, the kits have many assembly steps and take several hours to assemble. However, the printers have extensive troubleshooting and calibration routines built into the firmware, making them suitable for users who are willing to invest time in the setup process.
If you’d prefer, you can purchase a fully assembled version of any of their 3D printers, but it comes with a substantially higher price tag and shipping cost. Once assembled, Prusa’s attention to detail makes it easy to walk through the setup process.
Support and Online Community
Prusa Research has a large, active community with over 50,000 members, most of whom are veteran 3D printing hobbyists with a high degree of technical expertise. Prusa also operates www.printables.com, which currently has hundreds of thousands of downloadable models and is growing rapidly. While the manufacturer support team is small and some users report delays with communication, Prusa has a large social media presence where they communicate directly with their users and openly track issues on GitHub.
Recommended Prusa 3D Printers
Prusa Research is known primarily for two printer models: the MINI+ and the i3 MK3S+.
The Prusa MINI+ is a small printer with a unique design and various ease-of-use features, such as sensorless homing, a color LCD screen with model preview, a smooth PEI coated magnetic removable sheet steel bed, an inductive bed level probe, and avaan Ethernet wired network port.
The Prusa i3 MK3S+ is a medium-sized 3D printer with a conventional gantry X-axis, a direct-drive extruder, a smooth PEI coated magnetic removable spring steel bed, dual Z-axis lead screws, tubular rails with linear bearings, a filament sensor, and power loss recovery.
In early 2023, Prusa released the newer MK4 model, which builds on the MK3S+, but we are waiting for more user feedback before recommending it. The release of the MK4 also came with a substantial price reduction of the MK3S+, making it more price competitive with the many lower cost printers on the market.
Type of User
Prusa 3D printers are recommended for more experienced users who want to get the most out of their 3D printers. These users appreciate Prusa’s vast experience and attention to detail, leading to high performance in their printers.
We also recommend Prusa if you are looking for a 3D printer that will have few maintenence issues and “just work”, and are willing to pay a premium for that level of out-of-the-box quality.
Pros and Cons of Prusa
Pros:
- Prusa makes some of the best-performing printers on the market today
- High quality components and thorough quality control make for very reliable 3D printers
- Well-written, extensive documentation and excellent customer support
Cons:
- Prusa’s competitors emphasize speed, which Prusa cannot match
- Not as agile as their competitors in terms of releasing new designs and features
- Competitors quickly catch up and offer the same features for a lower price
View more 3D Printers from Prusa