What does this calculator do?
Cost each material stream separately, including purge from its supplying spool. Premium support grams are not ordinary model grams.
How to use the calculator
- Collect measurements and check units.
- Check every spool and material interface compatibility. Interface-only premium support may save more than a minor unit-price change.
- Record assumptions and check the result before applying it.
How the calculation works
Cost = (mass A × price A + mass B × price B) / 1000 × (1 + loss)
Material cost = sum(grams_i × price_i/net grams_i). Shared machine, electricity and labor are added once.
Practical calculation example
80 g at 0.025/g plus 20 g at 0.08/g give 3.60. Charging all 100 g at the lower rate undercounts 1.10.
Understanding the results
Check every spool and material interface compatibility. Interface-only premium support may save more than a minor unit-price change.
Account for each material independently
A two-material job can use inexpensive structural filament and expensive support or decorative material. Averaging spool prices ignores the actual consumption split. Enter mass and price per kilogram for each material, using the same currency. Zero consumption contributes zero cost, so a one-material comparison does not need a fabricated second quantity. If a job contains more than two materials, calculate additional contributions separately and combine them before using the full print-cost calculator.
Keep the mass basis consistent
Use sliced material amounts that include the categories you intend to price. Model, support, brim and purge may be reported together or separately. Read that report before adding a loss percentage. If purge is already included in each entered mass, adding another purge allowance counts it twice. The additional-loss input represents material outside the entered quantities. It applies the same percentage to both cost contributions; unequal losses need a separate calculation or adjusted individual masses.
Follow the example from grams to money
Material A uses 100 g at 25 per kg, costing 100 / 1000 × 25 = 2.50. Material B uses 40 g at 40 per kg, costing 1.60. Together they cost 4.10. With an additional 10% loss allowance, the result is 4.51. The chart separates the two baseline material costs and the 0.41 allowance. This allowance is a budget assumption. It does not claim the printer physically wastes exactly that amount every time.
Equal volumes do not imply equal mass
Materials can have different densities. A shared geometric volume does not imply equal mass or equal cost. If your slicer supplies only volume, convert each material using its own manufacturer density. Filament lengths need diameter and density for that material. A nominal spool weight is not consumption for a particular part. For partly used spools, availability is a separate question from cost; use remaining-filament and prints-per-spool tools to check whether the job can complete.
Material compatibility remains a print decision
The calculator adds money; it does not establish that materials print together successfully. Temperatures, interface adhesion, support removal and nozzle contamination need evaluation. A cheaper interface may increase failure probability or finishing time. A tool-changing system may reduce purge yet have different machine costs. Compare complete job costs after the material subtotal, including electricity, machine wear, labor and expected failures. A lower material result does not automatically mean cheaper total production.
Compare deliberate alternatives
Calculate a baseline from the current sliced file, then reslice an alternative such as fewer supported surfaces or a smaller decorative region. Enter its new per-material consumption rather than arbitrarily reducing both masses. Record extra finishing work. For a purchasing comparison, keep consumption constant and change only one price. These experiments answer different questions: geometry affects usage, sourcing affects unit price. Separating them explains why apparent savings may disappear after print-time or labor changes.
Advanced tips
- Check every spool and material interface compatibility. Interface-only premium support may save more than a minor unit-price change.
Common mistakes
- Counting purge once in sliced masses and again as an identical loss allowance.
Frequently asked questions
Does additional loss include purge automatically?
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No. Include purge once, either in entered masses or in a justified additional allowance.
Can I use different currencies?
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Convert both prices to one currency first. The tool performs no exchange conversion.
Sources & methodology
Mathematical results depend on the supplied inputs. Material properties and machine limits need confirmation for your exact equipment. Editorial specialist approval remains pending.