Resin 3D Print Cost & Time Calculator

How it works

layers = height ÷ layer thickness · time = bottoms × (bottom exposure + lift) + (layers − bottoms) × (exposure + lift) · resin = model mL × (1 + supports) × parts × (1 + waste) · cost = resin ÷ 1000 × price/L + IPA + electricity

A resin printer cures a whole layer at once, so unlike FDM the time is set by the number of layers and how long each takes, not by how much of the plate is covered — a lone miniature and a plate of twenty print in the same time. Each layer needs its exposure plus the mechanical lift that peels the cured film off the vat and lowers it back, and the peel step is often the larger share, which is why release films and lower lift heights matter more than a brighter screen. Cost is dominated by resin, and the slicer's figure needs marking up for supports, the resin that clings to the part and drips away, the occasional failed print, and the alcohol used to wash it.

Worked example

One 35 mL part with 15% supports uses about 40 mL; with 10% waste, 44 mL of $30/L resin costs $1.33, plus roughly $0.18 of IPA and $0.03 of power — $1.54. A 60 mm tall part at 50 µm is 1,200 layers: 6 bottom layers × 37 s and 1,194 × 9.5 s ≈ 3 h 13 min. Printing ten of them on the plate takes the same 3 h 13 min for about $15.

Frequently asked questions