As 3D printing continues to become cheaper and more accessible, resin 3D printers have become a popular choice for anyone interested in making highly-detailed models that wouldn’t be feasible using a filament-fed, FDM 3D printer. These MSLA (Masked Stereolithography) resin 3D printers typically have a single axis of motion, and this simple mechanical system means these machines can regularly be found for less than $300. With so many models on the market, we’ve made this list to help you find the best resin 3D printer for you.
The best resin 3D printers are capable of making high-resolution models by curing a liquid resin using a UV light source. This MSLA process uses a masking LCD to selectively block the UV light on a pixel-by-pixel basis, allowing these printers to create models that have a resolution of down to .035mm on the XY axes.
This high resolution comes at a price, as parts made on a resin 3D printer require post-processing after printing, and UV resin requires caution when handling. Because resin requires gloves and a mask to handle, we recommend beginners or anyone with young kids consider one of the FDM (fusion deposit modeling) printers on our overall Best 3D Printers page. Additionally, we have our Best Budget 3D Printers list if you are looking for more affordable options. To see our speed testing benchmark results and rankings of the top FDM models available, check out our 3D Printer Speed Hierarchy page.
Quick List
Best Resin 3D Printer Overall
This is an impressive high-speed SLA printer that produces excellent 4K+ print quality. It’s easy to use, compact, and can easily be stored away when not in use. It sports a wider build plate compared to other mid-range resin printers, which allows for printing bigger tabletop models. It’s on sale for $199 at AnyCubic.
2. Phrozen Sonic Mega 8K S
Best Resin for Print Farms
Great for anyone looking to upsize their resin experience or produce resin prints at a commercial scale. This machine excels as a “large” format printer, with a build volume that rivals standard FDM 3D printers. It’s recently been OOS at Amazon, but you can still get at MatterHackers and directly at Phrozen.
3. Anycubic Photon Mono M5s
Best High-Resolution 3D Printer
This 12K resin machine prints with a remarkable level of detail and generous build volume. Paired with a special high-speed custom resin, it’s capable of reaching an average print speed of 105 mm/hour, saving you so much time when printing multiple projects. Available at an all-time low price of $369 at Walmart.
4. Anycubic Photon Mono 2
Best Resin 3D Printer for Beginners
This printer was made specifically with first-time resin users in mind. It delivers quality 4K prints with a smaller sized vat and a petite footprint that requires minimal space. It comes with an extra large screen protector for the LED glass, which covers the glass and the slight gap around it. This makes keeping the printer clean super easy. Still on sale at Amazon for only $226.
5. Phrozen Sonic Mighty 8K
Best Splurge Resin 3D Printer
This resin printer is so dead simple to use that a beginner will have no trouble with it. It’s midsize for a resin printer without being awkward to operate and has a build volume closer to what we see in FDM printers. Best of all, it delivers on its promise of high-res quality.
Best Super-Large Format Resin 3D Printer
If you’re looking for a sturdy large-format resin printer, the Jupiter is more reasonably priced than many of its competitors. Other 3D printers with similar build volumes, such as the Peopoly Phenom goes for around $2,000. Features include an automatic resin feeder and built-in flood lighting.
7. Anycubic Photon M3 Premium
Best Large Format Resin 3D Printer
This workhorse resin MSLA 3D printer is designed to offer uncompromising performance for serious hobbyists and small-volume part production. It is ideal for anyone looking for large build volume, high resolution, or just failure-free resin printing.
8. Anycubic Photon Mono X2
Best Medium Format Resin 3D Printer
This high-res MSLA 3D printer best suits beginners or experts who are ready to move up to bigger models of up to 8 inches tall or for a batch of game miniatures with 48 microns resolution. It is quick to set up, includes an easy-to-navigate LCD screen, and is on sale for $320.
Best Resin 3D Printers in 2024
Why you can trust Tom’s Hardware
Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.
Best Resin 3D Printer Overall
The Anycubic Photon M3 is the best all around resin 3D printer we’ve reviewed. It produces crisp details with 4K+ quality that rivals more expensive machines and has a wide build plate allowing it to make larger models than competitors in its class.
A sample print of a unicorn was extremely detailed, with the ridges on its horn and its mane appearing really sharp and free from layer lines. It was also a full 180mm tall and printed in 10 hours.
The etched build plate works really well at holding models tight during printing, but also allows for easy removal when they’re done. The metal vat has a convenient pour spout, and Anycubic includes a screen protector for the LED light source to prevent accidental drips from ruining your printer.
Retailing for $299 at press time, the Anycubic Photon M3 is a reasonable purchase for a beginner or an advanced maker wanting to add to their fleet. You may find it hard to find the M3 on sale in other major retailers, but it is still available at Anycubic’s store for $199 — that’s $100 savings.
More: Anycubic Photon M3 Review
Best Resin for Print Farms
The Phrozen Sonic Mega 8K S is a huge resin 3D printer with a 15-inch light source and a build volume that rivals those of traditional FDM printers. It’s easy enough that a beginner can operate it, with a simple-to-navigate menu and a perfect build plate that releases models with ease. Retailing at $1,579, the Sonic Mega 8K S is a pricey machine that could make good business sense for print farms that produce massive models or tons of smaller figures. You can find it on sale at MatterHackers and at Phrozen’s store for $80 less than MSRP. Also available at Amazon with an even bigger discount of $180 when you use the 15% coupon (at $1,401).
8K resolution may no longer sound impressive, but those 43-micron pixels are the size of a human hair. When prints made with a 12K machine are put side-by-side, it’s not far off, and the difference is barely detectable by the human eye.
The Sonic Mega 8K S is an overhaul of the previous Mega 8K. The most notable improvements are the hinged, tilt-back lid and the ability to hang the build plate at an angle for drainage, both things I’d love to see on a regular-sized resin printer.
Phrozen has a number of optional accessories to make the Sonic Mega 8Ks exceptionally easy to use: a 24 liter (6 gallons) wash unit, a curing station the size of a microwave, and a pump to keep your vat perpetually full.
More: Phrozen Sonic Mega 8K S Review
Best High-Resolution 3D Printer
With its mind-blowing 12K resolution, the Anycubic Photon Mono M5s is best for printing tabletop models and miniatures that require attention to the most minute details. So, if you are looking to make high-quality prints for your hobby or business, then this printer is worth your consideration.
The Photon Mono M5s is the first resin printer that we’ve tested that does not require manual calibration. Anycubic has packed the Mono M5s with smart features like auto-leveling and monitoring capabilities to inform you of resin levels; print fails, etc. These amenities do come at a cost but provide a much-needed convenience that we appreciate.
We tested the Wekster’s Rocket bust using Anycubic’s custom high-speed resin versus other resins with various settings and came up with interesting results.
| Resin | Settings (layer height, etc) | Time to completion | Quality (your subjective view of the output) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anycubic High Speed Resin | .1 mm layer, fast mode | 50 min, 21 sec | Average quality, little detail, soft looking, looks like a 2K print |
| Anycubic High Speed Resin | .05 mm layer, fast mode | 1 hour, 31 min, 27 sec | Good quality, some detail, looks like a 4K print |
| Anycubic HD Resin | .05 mm layer, fast profile | 2 hours, 35 minutes, 37 sec | Excellent quality, Fine detail |
| Anycubic HD Resin | .05 mm layer, normal mode | 4 hours, 59 min, 45 sec | Excellent quality, extra fine detail |
| Inland Blue Standard Resin | .05 mm layer, normal mode | 4 hours, 59 min, 45 sec | Good quality, easily over cured, details lost due to low contrast color |
| Anycubic Water Washable Resin | .05 mm layer, normal mode | 4 hours, 59 min, 45 sec | Excellent quality, Fine detail, not as crisp as HD resin |
The Anycubic HD resin produced a better quality output compared to its custom high-speed resin. But there is definitely more room for experimentation, depending on the size of your model or project (if you are doing multiple prints) and cost restrictions.
The Anycubic Photon Mono M5s launched with a $539 MSRP, but is currently available for $419 at Walmart and at the Anycubic store. You can also get it at Amazon at an even better deal of $399.
More: Anycubic Photon Mono M5s Review
Best Resin 3D Printer for Beginners
As the successor to Anycubic’s Photon Mono 4K, the Mono 2 does not disappoint. It’s fast, and makes 4K resin printing look easy. Our test prints of the Fotis Mint’s Boba Fett Bust, MZ4250’s Fighters, and Succubus turned out clean results with clear, well-defined details, even for the smaller models.
It’s compact and lightweight, so it won’t take up a lot of space and can easily be stored away. It’s shipped mostly assembled, which makes setup a snap as well. Although it is identical to the Mono 4K in size, it has a 20% larger build volume allowing you more flexibility for bigger print projects.
If you’ve ever wanted to try doing SLA printing, the Photon Mono 2 is a great entry-level machine for you to start. It launched at $230 and is on sale directly from the Anycubic store for $179. Currently available at an even more affordable price of $159 at Amazon and Walmart. You can’t get any better deal than that.
More: Anycubic Photon Mono 2 Review
Best High-End Resin 3D Printer
If you’re ready to throw some serious cash down for a decent-sized resin 3D printer with quality that will knock your socks off, the Phrozen Sonic Mighty 8K is here for you. Its roomy 218 x 123 mm build plate can accommodate an army of gaming miniatures or a gift-worthy superhero statue. Priced at around $899 at press time, this printer isn’t cheap. But in return for the premium, you get crispy details, prints that practically slide off the build plate, a built-in webcam and a machine that’s WiFi ready.
We enjoyed navigating through the Mighty 8K’s menus, thanks to its large and easy-to-use touch screen display. There’s little need to consult the manual – the printer walks you through an onboard tutorial to handle leveling and your first test print. Want to rerun a test file at a different exposure? No problem – the Sonic Mighty 8k will let you change exposure settings and more right inside the printer. I found this extremely helpful while dialing in a new resin.
The Phrozen Sonic Mighty 8K size is closer to what we see in FDM printers, without being so large that it dominates your workshop. The quality and extra wiggle room would be a worthwhile investment for someone running an Esty shop or an artist wanting to showcase their work. We were able to print 12 very-detailed gaming figures at once and the process only took 4 hours and 2 minutes.
Our only issue with this machine was the camera, which was released for review before it was functional. There’s no set date on when the camera firmware will be ready, but it promises the ability to monitor prints as well as create time lapses.
The Sonic Mighty 8K is on sale at Amazon for $584. For a more affordable 8K resin option, consider the Phrozen Sonic Mini 8K S which still offers amazing print detail and now compatible with all the popular 3rd party slicers but is only $349. That’s nearly half the cost of the Mighty 8K.
More: Phrozen Sonic Mighty 8K Review
Best Super-Large Format Resin 3D Printer
Elegoo’s Jupiter printer offers a combination of great quality and a huge build volume. And, despite its $1,300 price, the Jupiter is actually a great deal for its size, given that competitors cost closer to $1,000.
Where the $499 Saturn provides a 192mm x 120mm x 200mm volume, the Jupiter provides a ton more, going all the way to 277.8mm x 156.3mm x 300mm. And the print quality is pretty good as we found when outputting a detailed model of the Notre Dame Cathedral.
We also love the Jupiter’s sturdy, all-metal chassis, which makes it feel like a premium product worthy of its premium price. We found the touch screen interface easy to navigate and the leveling process relatively painless.
With over $400 off, Jupiter is still available through Elegoo’s store for $890. Alternatively, you can get the Elegoo Jupiter SE model for just $719 at Amazon.
More: Elegoo Jupiter Review
Best Large Format Resin 3D Printer
The Anycubic Photon M3 Premium set an impressive standard. Offering both high resolution and large build volume in a single machine, it effectively does the work of two separate printers and still comes in cheaper than buying them individually.
The 10-inch 8K masking LCD provides an ultra-high 0.0285mm XY resolution which allows even the finest details to resolve on printed models. We were particularly impressed when we printed a model that had a tiny, open book on a pedestal; the words on the pages were sharp and legible (though one might need a magnifying glass to see them).
The 219mm x 123mm x 250mm build volume allows users to print large models with high resolution, or simply pack the oversized build platform with multiple small parts to produce many in parallel. Featuring integrated dual air filters, a laser-etched build platform, and a razor-thin NFEP vat film, the Photon M3 Premium is easily capable of handling anything you can throw at it.
With a special introductory retail price of $619 and a planned retail price of $639, the Photon M3 Premium strikes an excellent balance between high resolution and large build volume while remaining less expensive than the competition. The included Anycubic Photon Workshop software was slow and buggy during our testing, and is the primary weak point of this machine.
More: Anycubic Photon M3 Premium Resin 3D Printer Review
Best Medium Format Resin 3D Printer
The Anycubic Photon Mono X2 is a fantastic resin 3D printer that combines affordability and a generous build volume with great 4K resolution. The Mono X2 delivers crisp details at 48 microns per – smaller than a grain of salt. We’ve printed full sized dragons, 8 inch tall sculptures and entire squadrons of miniatures in one go with the Mono X2.
Retailing at $339.99, the Mono X2 is an excellent bargain for beginners who don’t want to start small or experienced makers who need a little elbow room. It’s easy to use with a laser etched build surface that helps prints stick in place without being too hard to remove.
The X2 has a 9.1-inch monochrome LCD with an improved light source that provides smoother prints than ever before. It comes with a screen protector for the LED glass, which covers the glass to protect it from scratches or dreaded resin drips. Our only beef with this printer is the four-point leveling system, which is tedious to perfect.
More: Anycubic Photon Mono X2 Review
Best Resin 3D Printer for Miniatures
If you’re looking to create small models for table-top gaming, or just display, the Elegoo Mars 3 Pro is a great choice, thanks to its great build quality and high resolution. The Mars 3 Pro has an XY resolution of 35 microns (0.035mm) which allows you to show intricate details in even small objects.
When we printed mz4250’s Red Dragon model, fine ridges on the tail and bones in the wing were sharp, without any visible splotching or errors. Even the spines and beard on the head were crystal clear. Its LCD screen provides a 4098 x 2560 resolution for prints, which is higher than the 4K resolutions of competitors like the Phrozen Sonic Mini 4K and AnyCubic Photon Mono 4K.
Unlike the Phrozen Sonic Mini 4K, which is very competitive in this area, the Mars 3 Pro doesn’t suffer from any build quality issues.It’s easy to level and even has a built-in air purifier that, in our tests, mitigated but did not completely remove the resin odor that all MSLA printers emit. With a price in the $300 – $350 range, this isn’t the cheapest resin printer on the market, but it offers great quality output and strong usability for the money.
Read: Elegoo Mars 3 Pro Review
Today’s Best Resin Deals
Shopping Tips for Best Resin 3D Printers
What you Need to Know When Buying a Resin 3D Printer
There are several factors to consider before buying one of the best resin 3D printers, so be sure to consider these questions before making a choice.
🤔 Mono or RGB LCD? The type of masking LCD on your resin 3D printer can have the single largest impact on your overall print speed. Because they are commonly used in other electronics, RGB masking LCDs are cheaper, but slower because they don’t allow UV light to pass through efficiently and need more exposure time per layer. For example, the RGB LCD on the Creality LD-002R requires 9 seconds per layer, while the Mono LCD on the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro requires only 2.2 seconds per layer.
🤔 How much build volume do you need? Most resin 3D printers have smaller build volumes than FDM 3D printers, so you may find yourself limited by this relatively small build volume. If you are interested in printing large parts, you’ll want to look at a large format resin 3D printer such as the Elegoo Saturn or the Anycubic Photon Mono X.
🤔 2K, 4K, or Beyond? A resin 3D printer that uses a 6.08-inch 2K screen like the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro is capable of an XY resolution of .05mm as well as a layer height of .05mm. For context, this means even a relatively low-resolution resin 3D printer is still capable of making extremely fine details that simply wouldn’t be possible on an FDM printer. If you need even more resolution, a 4K screen is capable of making finer features, but is typically more expensive.
🤔 Post Processing Equipment? Resin 3D printers create parts that require post-processing before they are completely finished. Typically, this workflow involves rinsing the parts in a solvent to dissolve any excess resin on the surface of the part, followed by a cure cycle that uses UV light to fully polymerize the part. This process can be done manually by submerging the part in a solvent and using an inexpensive UV light for curing, but some manufacturers have created post-processing equipment like the Elegoo Mercury X that automate the process and reduce the mess.
7. Anycubic Photon M3 Premium
Best Large Format Resin 3D Printer
This workhorse resin MSLA 3D printer is designed to offer uncompromising performance for serious hobbyists and small-volume part production. It is ideal for anyone looking for large build volume, high resolution, or just failure-free resin printing.
