The best 3D printers for 2021

laptop on tbale with 3D printer and 3d printed models

3D printing is becoming increasingly popular as it can provide endless levels of creativity, opening up a world of possibilities as you can build pretty much anything your heart desires.  

Having a 3D printer at home can benefit you in so many ways, from offering boundless fun as you can design and print your own toys and figurines, to offering practical and helpful solutions to daily problems. For example, you could create a doorstop for that pesky door that keeps slamming shut, or even 3D print a missing screw that’s needed for a DIY project. The options are never-ending!

Their popularity of 3D printers is also growing in a range of other sectors, take healthcare for example, where we have recently seen a flood of visors being printed out for the NHS to assist with the PPE shortage in the height of the pandemic. Similarly, 3D printing is being used to advance children’s engagement and learning in the education sector as well as opening up opportunities for those in the manufacturing industry, design industry and so much more.

As popularity increases, we are seeing more and more new 3D printer manufacturers, brands and models. We know the vast amount of options can make it difficult to choose which one is best, that’s why we have created this blog, which highlights our top 5 picks on 3D printers listed in ascending price order. 

If you want to know more about the different types of 3D printers, as well as which one will best suit your needs, we recommend checking out our 3D printer buying guide. 


1) Creality Ender 3 V2 

Creality Ender 3 V2 3d printer

  • Price: £198.00
  • Medium Build Volume: 220x220x250mm
  • Software: Cura
  • Filament Size: 1.75mm
  • Layer Thickness: 0.1-0.4mm
  • Nozzle Diameter: 0.4mm

One of the most popular 3D printers on the market is the Ender 3, which effortlessly combines functionality with affordability. It has an easy assembly as well as a relatively small size, making it perfect for beginners or those just testing the waters on 3D printing. 

It also has a carborundum glass plate which offers improved adhesion, helping to keep your print still and ensuring a smoother aesthetic on finished models. This is super beneficial as it reduces the need for any additional Adhesives, which are often used in 3D printing to hold the model in place through the printing process. 

We also love the resume print function, which enables you to comfortably resume printing if you are hit with any unfortunate unexpected issues, such as a power cut or filament running out. 

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2) Creality CR-6 SE

Creality 3D printer

  • Price: £292.00
  • Medium Build Volume: 235x235x250mm
  • Software: Cura
  • Filament Size: 1.75mm
  • Layer Thickness: 0.1-0.4mm

This Creality 3D printer is just awesome and still sits at a super affordable price, plus it has a 4.3” touchscreen, which makes it really easy and intuitive to use. 

We love the automatic bed levelling feature it has, which ensures a level plate for every single print -  eliminating the need for you to adjust the printer manually. This can save you a lot of effort, as well as massively increasing efficiency.

The CR-6’s Photoelectric filament sensor allows you to print worry-free, as you can enjoy peace of mind that even if there is a power cut or filament shortage your print will be ok, as all you need to do is add more filament to continue printing. 

We also love the modular hot end which uses a - you guessed it - modular design to allow you to easily swap out components as well as providing improved heat dissipation. 

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3) Creality Ender 5

Creality Ender 3 3d printer

  • Price: £399.00
  • Large Build Volume: 350x350x400mm
  • Software: Cura
  • Filament Size: 1.75mm
  • Layer Thickness: 0.1-0.4mm
  • Nozzle Diameter: 0.4mm

With Crealitys printing resume feature, filament sensor and 4.3” touchscreen, this 3D printer has many of the awesome features discussed in the above printers, but it also has so much more. 

The Dual X and Y axis offers more reliable precision, as well as stable guidance of the build platform. Plus, this 3D printer is capable of large build volumes, offering you much more freedom over what you want to create. 

Some stand-out features on the Ender 5 include the pre-installed ‘automatic levelling', which helps to ensure your 3D printing proceeds runs smoothly with minimal errors. As well as a strong power supply that can heat the building board up to 100 degrees in just 10 minutes! Plus, thermal runaway protection helps to ensure optimum temperature control at all times.

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4) Flashforge Creator Pro 2 

Flashforge Creator Pro 2 3D printer

  • Price: £499.00
  • Medium Build Volume: 200x148x150mm
  • Software: Flashprint
  • Filament Size: 1.75mm
  • Layer Thickness: 0.1-0.4mm
  • Nozzle Diameter: 0.4mm

The Flashforge Creator Pro 2 really kicks things up a notch as it actually has two it has dual independent nozzles. The two independently moving nozzles can create double the number of products simultaneously with the mirror effect. You could also print in 2 different colours or materials by using different filaments in each nozzle or use them to build dissolvable supports. This brilliant feature really opens up the opportunity to increase output on small scale manufacturing or increase creativity on one-off creations. 

The touchscreen also makes usability simple, and the two spool holders on the back of the printer help to keep your printing area neat. 

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5) Flashforge Creator 3

Flashforge Creator 3

  • Price: £1,999.00
  • Large Build Volume: 350x250x200mm
  • Software: Flashprint
  • Filament Size: 1.75mm
  • Layer Thickness: 0.05-0.4mm
  • Nozzle Diameter: 0.4mm

If you thought you had seen awesomeness with the Flasforge Creator pro 2, wait till you see some of the extraordinary features on this 3D printer. The Creator 3 also has independent dual nozzles, so can achieve some of the awesome benefits they provide. 

On top of this, you can create incredibly detailed prints thanks to the ability to print at 0.05mm thickness. Plus, the filter system on this enclosed printer helps to reduce particles and odour to create the ideal conditions for great quality prints. 

When your print is created, you no longer have to risk damaging the print by scraping it away (which is the case with many other printers), as the Creator 3’s flexible build surface allows you to simply flex it for your print to pop straight out. This is really handy as it saves so much time and effort, once you experience the ease of a flexible build surface you will not want to go back! 

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So, that sums up the 5 best 3D printers for 2021, we hope you have found this blog helpful. If so, feel free to have a look at our Box Blogs page where we have loads more articles such as 'How 3D printers help to combat coronavirus in Wuhan' and 'How to make money from 3D printing'. 

*Prices were correct and accurate at the time of publishing*



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