How Much Does a 3D Printer Cost to Run? Power and Filament

The formula is average watts divided by 1,000, then times the price per kWh, then times the hours. Every dollar below uses $0.18 per kWh. That rate is the EIA average residential price of 17.99 cents per kWh for the 12 months ending July 2026, from Electric Power Monthly Table 5.3, rounded to the nearest cent. The table's data are for July 2026 and were released September 24, 2026. Checked October 18, 2026. The same table lists 18.31 cents for July 2026 alone. Your bill can sit far from either number.

Bambu's power consumption wiki, checked October 18, 2026, lists PLA average power of 80 W for the A1 Mini, 95 W for the A1, and 105 W for the P1S. Those averages come from short prints: 17 minutes 54 seconds on the A1 Mini, 16 minutes 58 seconds on the A1, and 16 minutes 8 seconds on the P1S. A 10-hour cost on this page is arithmetic from that average. It is not a measured 10-hour print.

80 divided by 1,000 times 0.18 is 0.0144, which rounds to $0.014/hr (about 1.4 cents). 95 divided by 1,000 times 0.18 is 0.0171, which rounds to $0.017/hr (about 1.7 cents). 105 divided by 1,000 times 0.18 is 0.0189, which rounds to $0.019/hr (about 1.9 cents). Ten hours is that hour times 10: 0.144 rounds to $0.14, 0.171 rounds to $0.17, and 0.189 rounds to $0.19. Hourly cells below are rounded to the nearest tenth of a cent. Ten-hour cells are rounded to the nearest cent.

The same wiki lists A1 Mini Wi-Fi standby at 6.1 to 7.3 W. If that printer sat in Wi-Fi standby for 24 hours, the arithmetic is 6.1 times 24 divided by 1,000 times 0.18, which is 0.026352, through 7.3 times 24 divided by 1,000 times 0.18, which is 0.031536. That is about 3 cents for the day. It is arithmetic from the published range, not a measured day. The A1 Wi-Fi standby line is 4.1 to 5.4 W. The P1S Wi-Fi standby line is 5.8 to 6 W.

The table uses one published PLA average per printer. Scorecards, for the machines we score, are the A1 Mini, the P1S, the K1C, the MK4S, and the Ender 3 V3 SE. We do not score a bare full-size A1. The 95 W row is Bambu's figure for that printer.

Prusa's MK4S product page, checked October 18, 2026, lists power consumption as PLA settings 80 W and ABS settings 120 W. Prusa's FAQ gives 80 W for generic PLA on an MK-series printer at a 26 C room, and 120 W for generic ABS. The table uses the PLA figure. ABS at 120 W would be 120 divided by 1,000 times 0.18, which is 0.0216, about $0.022/hr. That is a different material, so it is not a second row.

A 1 kg spool is 1,000 g. A 50 g print is 50 divided by 1,000 of that spool. Elegoo PLA, 1 kg with a spool, was $13.99 on the Elegoo US store when checked October 18, 2026. 50 divided by 1,000 times 13.99 is 0.6995, about $0.70. That page is Elegoo PLA. It is not the PLA Basic refill.

Bambu PLA Basic, 1 kg filament with spool, was $18.99 on the Bambu Lab US store when checked October 18, 2026. The refill variants on that page were $15.99. 50 divided by 1,000 times 18.99 is 0.9495, about $0.95. A 50 g print is about $0.70 to $0.95 of filament at those two spool prices, before a failed print or a color change.

This is an example, not a measured month and not a published hobbyist average. The 20 hours are an assumption so the arithmetic has a number of hours.

Example: 20 hours of PLA printing on an 80 W printer, the A1 Mini or the MK4S PLA figure, plus one 1 kg spool, and no failed prints. Electricity is 80 times 20 divided by 1,000 times 0.18, which is 0.288, about $0.29. Add the Elegoo spool at $13.99 and the example month is about $14.28. Add the Bambu PLA Basic spool at $18.99 and the example month is about $19.28.

That example leaves out the printer. The purchase cart for a first month, with the printer, two spools, a spare tip, and a tool kit, is the cheapest 3D printer buying guide. This page does not repeat that cart.

Among published PLA averages, the cheapest figure is 80 W. The A1 Mini and the MK4S both publish that number, so they tie at about 1.4 cents an hour. The A1 publishes 95 W, about 1.7 cents. The P1S publishes 105 W, about 1.9 cents. Calling one of the 80 W printers the only cheapest to run would ignore the other.

The K1C and the Ender 3 V3 SE do not publish an average, so this line does not rank them. The Ender 3 V3 SE is the cheapest printer we score to buy. That is a purchase price, on the under-$200 page, and it is not a running-cost win. The MK4S tie is watts. It is not the cheapest printer to buy.

A nozzle wears. A PEI sheet wears. A failed print still spends filament and the power from the formulas above. This page does not publish a fail rate, and it does not price those parts. The scored list of nozzles, plates, and the rest of the bench is the accessories page.

Drying is a separate cost when the material needs it. The decision, and the dryers we score, is how to dry filament. This site does not publish a dry time, and this page does not add dryer watts.