Quickest Way To Make Money 3D Printing: Selling 3D printed goods online.
Most Profitable Way To Make Money 3D Printing: Specialized 3D printing services.
I bought a 3D printer a couple of years ago, the Elegoo Neptune 3 Pro, which I can recommend as a great model for beginners who are looking to spend less than $200.
At the time, all I wanted was a way to print miniatures. But a few months later, when I needed some extra cash, I started using my 3D printer to make money.
Since then, I have made more than ten times what I paid for the printer. Here are the best ways I found to monetize my 3D printer.
Sell 3D Printed Goods Online
The simplest and most obvious way to make money with a 3D printer is by printing and selling goods online, via platforms like Etsy. You can even find the files for free on sites like Thingiverse, but I would recommend buying custom files from creators to make your goods unique.
There are literally thousands of possible items to sell, but when I tried this, I sold custom keycaps. They were quick to print and there was huge demand.
I recommend going for items that you have at least some familiarity with, so you can casually advertise your goods in the right spaces (I used subreddits that I was already posting and commenting in).
If you developed a really popular shop, you consider this a great way to start working from home with very little investment. But it will take some time to become a big seller on platforms like Etsy.
Pros
Cons
You can create an account on a marketplace like Etsy and start selling your goods in under a week.
There is a lot of competition for 3D printed items on platforms like Etsy.
You can easily find 3D files for items to sell online.
Your margins will be small unless, forcing you to process lots of orders to make significant money.
With a successful store you will have a very reliable source of income.
A high volume of orders will be very demanding on a low-end printer.
Provide Custom 3D Printing for Hobbyists
This was by far the most successful way I found to monetize my printer, although I was already involved in the kinds of hobbies that demand this work, so your experience may vary. Cosplayers and tabletop gamers, are always on the lookout for custom printing.
In my case, I mainly worked for Dungeons and Dragons players who would create 3D files of their character on sites like HeroForge, and then sent the files to me for printing. They would usually do the painting, but I also offered to paint the models for a significant additional fee.
I advertised my services in DnD groups, at my local gaming store, and on Craigslist. And I even met some great people along the way while looking for customers. Which goes to show: When you can monetize your hobby, you're never really working.
Pros
Cons
You will have much higher margins than with generic 3D printed goods.
Custom orders can be time-consuming.
You could offer painted goods to raise your margins.
There are fewer ways to market your services to these communities.
Demand for custom miniatures is rising.
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Sell Specialized 3D Printing Services
You could offer 3D printing services to specialized industry clients, like independent architects who want to show models to their clients, jewelers who want to produce prototype versions of jewelry, and even cake shops looking for complex decorations.
This is one of the best ways to make significant money with a 3D printer, but it requires you to do some of the modelling, and the final product will be held to a much higher standard. You have to approach companies yourself and seek out the work, but there are opportunities out there.
I worked with a company who built bespoke garden offices (think modern cabins, that are fully decorated and have power and internet). They worked with an architect to design these custom home offices, and I would produce small models to help them pitch their designs.
It was great money and regular work, but time-consuming to make sure every model was perfect.
Pros
Cons
The earnings potential can be very high if you find the right clients.
Finding clients for specialized printing is hard, and for the best results you will need to approach businesses in your area.
You will usually be expected to do some degree of 3D modelling, not merely printing.
Specialized printing is held to a higher standard than other forms of 3D printing.
You can find clients who regularly require your services, providing reliable income.
Rent Your 3D Printer
I only rented my 3D printer a few times, and only to people I knew through friends of friends, but you could rent your printer for longer periods of time if you aren't using it much.
The benefit of this idea is that it provides passive income; the printer generates money for you with no effort required from your side.
My only piece of advice here is to make sure you are properly insured. The nightmare scenario is that you lease your printer and somebody else breaks it, but refuses to pay.
Pros
Cons
You do not need to work, the printer will generate income for you.
Your printer will suffer more wear and tear from being regularly moved.
You will not incur the costs of running a printer.
You will not be able to use the 3D printer for your own needs.
Create 3D Printing Courses
My friend created a great 3D printing course, and even now, over a year later, he still draws a decent passive income from the course.But this idea requires expertise and, ideally, a high-end printer.
Creating a 3D printing course will also take a lot of time and effort upfront, as you will need to create learning materials and plan for hours of teaching. But once you have created your course, you can use numerous platforms like Udemy to begin finding customers.
I recommend focusing on other ways to monetize your 3D printer, unless you are very comfortable with the whole process, in which case you should give it a shot.
Pros
Cons
High-earnings potential with a successful course.
Requires far more work upfront than other methods.
Can become a good source of passive income.
This is a competitive market, with numerous 3D printing courses already available.
