# Formlabs Form Studio 1 vs Snapmaker U1

As of Nov 4, 2026, the Formlabs Form Studio 1 costs $699 and the Snapmaker U1 costs $699. The Formlabs Form Studio 1 scores higher in our ranking (8.0 vs 7.3 out of 10). Pick the Formlabs Form Studio 1 for hobbyists and small studios who want reliable, low mess resin printing. Pick the Snapmaker U1 for fast multi color with little waste.

Prices checked Nov 4, 2026. HTML version: https://robotsforthat.com/vs/formlabs-form-studio-1-vs-snapmaker-u1/

## Side by side

| | Formlabs Form Studio 1 | Snapmaker U1 |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $699 | $699 |
| 3 year cost | $699 | $699 |
| Our score | 8.0/10 | 7.3/10 |
| Rank in 3D printers | #10 | #19 |
| Status | on sale | on sale |
| Warranty | 1 year on Formlabs hardware (Formlabs comparison page) | 1 year in the US for machines and modules (Snapmaker US store) |
| Build volume | 200 x 125 x 235 mm, 5.9 L (Formlabs) | 270 x 270 x 270 mm (Snapmaker) |
| Print speed | Up to 130 mm/h with Alpha Fast Resin at 250 micron layers; about 40 mm/h average across materials (TechRadar) | Up to 500 mm/s toolhead speed, 20,000 mm/s2 acceleration (Snapmaker) |
| Multi color | No, resin printer prints one resin at a time | Yes, 4 independent toolheads; tool swaps took about 10 to 12 s for Tom's Hardware and about 5 s for TechRadar, with very low purge waste |
| Enclosure | Yes, hood over the print area; Tom's Hardware found the hood mount flimsy | No, semi open; optional Top Cover sold separately for ABS, ASA, PA and PC (Snapmaker) |
| Auto leveling | Level check during onboarding (Tom's Hardware); automatic resin dispensing from cartridges (TechRadar) | Yes, mesh bed leveling and automatic toolhead offset calibration (Snapmaker) |
| Max nozzle temp | Not applicable, resin (MSLA) printer with no nozzle | 300 C, 0.4 mm stainless steel nozzles (Snapmaker) |
| Heated bed | No heated bed; heated chamber 25 to 45 C (TechRadar) with conduction resin heating (Tom's Hardware) | Yes, up to 100 C, flexible PEI plate (Snapmaker, TechRadar) |
| Filament types | Not applicable, uses Formlabs resins (nine validated per TechRadar, no biocompatible ones) plus Open Material Mode for third party resin | PLA, PETG, TPU, PVA, PCTG; PET, ABS, ASA, PA, PC with the Top Cover; carbon and glass fiber blends also need a hardened nozzle (Snapmaker) |
| Connectivity | Ethernet and Wi-Fi; PreForm and Dashboard software (Tom's Hardware, TechRadar) | Wi-Fi (2.4 GHz), USB flash drive (Snapmaker); Tom's Hardware also lists LAN. Klipper firmware, OrcaSlicer support |
| Camera | Yes, for live monitoring and timelapse (Tom's Hardware) | Yes, 2 MP chamber camera (Snapmaker); both reviewers hit an early bug where it did not work with Orca |
| Noise | No dB figure; TechRadar described a low, rhythmic background sound | No dB figure; TechRadar found it much quieter than competing multi filament machines |
| Assembly | About 5 minutes to set up (TechRadar) | Setup takes 15 to 30 minutes (TechRadar) |
| Weight | 14.5 kg; 342 x 315 x 502 mm (Tom's Hardware) | 18.2 kg; 584 x 499 x 730 mm (Snapmaker) |
| Resolution | 35 micron XY pixel pitch, 28 LED backlight; layers 30 to 250 microns (Formlabs, TechRadar) | n/a |
| Best for | hobbyists and small studios who want reliable, low mess resin printing | fast multi color with little waste |
| Skip if | you want the cheapest resin printer or many third party resins | you mostly print single color parts |

## What reviewers found

### Formlabs Form Studio 1

- Tom's Hardware: Editor's Choice. No print failures in testing. A figure took 10 h 56 min at 0.05 mm layers using 264 ml of resin. Print times felt slow with standard resin. [Source](https://www.tomshardware.com/3d-printing/formlabs-form-studio-1-review)
- TechRadar (5/5): Editor's Choice. No failed prints over a month, including a resin swap. A 100 mm model took about 10 hours; a tank model took 2 h 44 min. RFID cartridges were not recognized on beta software. [Source](https://www.techradar.com/pro/formlab-form-studio-1-review)

### Snapmaker U1

- Tom's Hardware: Editor's Choice. Tool swaps took about 10 to 12 s versus about 90 s on Bambu Lab. A PLA spiders print took 3 h 20 min with 4.4 g of purge waste, where a P1P took about 2 hours longer and used about 25 g more. A multicolor lettering print wasted just 0.76 g. [Source](https://www.tomshardware.com/3d-printing/snapmaker-u1-review)
- TechRadar (4.5/5): Scored 4.5 out of 5 with average dimensional error of 0.056 mm. Tool changes took about 5 s and multi color prints ran two to three times faster than before; a robot tortoise finished in under a day versus 36 hours previously. Cons were add ons needed for some materials and early connectivity bugs. [Source](https://www.techradar.com/pro/snapmaker-u1-3d-printer-review)

## Questions buyers ask

### Which is better, the Formlabs Form Studio 1 or the Snapmaker U1?

The Formlabs Form Studio 1 scores higher in our ranking (8.0 vs 7.3 out of 10). Pick the Formlabs Form Studio 1 for hobbyists and small studios who want reliable, low mess resin printing. Pick the Snapmaker U1 for fast multi color with little waste.

### What is the difference between the Form Studio 1 and the U1?

Build volume: 200 x 125 x 235 mm, 5.9 L (Formlabs) on the Form Studio 1, 270 x 270 x 270 mm (Snapmaker) on the U1. Print speed: Up to 130 mm/h with Alpha Fast Resin at 250 micron layers; about 40 mm/h average across… on the Form Studio 1, Up to 500 mm/s toolhead speed, 20,000 mm/s2 acceleration (Snapmaker) on the U1. Multi color: No, resin printer prints one resin at a time on the Form Studio 1, Yes, 4 independent toolheads; tool swaps took about 10 to 12 s for Tom's Hardware and… on the U1.

Full reviews: [Formlabs Form Studio 1](https://robotsforthat.com/robot/formlabs-form-studio-1/index.md), [Snapmaker U1](https://robotsforthat.com/robot/snapmaker-u1/index.md)