MakerCalc vs 3DPrintingCostCalculator
If you sell prints, you've probably met 3DPrintingCostCalculator.com— it's a solid quoting tool with a free basic calculator and a PRO tier at€9.99/month (or €299 lifetime, prices from their site, July 2026). This page compares it honestly with MakerCalc so you can pick the right one.
The short version
Most of what 3DPrintingCostCalculator sells as PRO — saved quotes, filament inventory with low-stock alerts, printer profiles, batch pricing, shareable quote links — is free on MakerCalc, with no account and no subscription, ever. What they offer that we don't: cloud storage that syncs across your devices, and a team actively building business-features like advanced analytics. If you need your quotes on your phone and your desktop without thinking about backups, their PRO is genuinely worth a look. If you want the features without the monthly bill, you're already in the right place.
Feature by feature
| Feature | MakerCalc | 3DPrintingCostCalculator |
|---|---|---|
| Cost calculator (material, machine, labor) | Free | Free |
| Multi-currency (EUR, USD, GBP) | Free | Free |
| Saved quotes & quote history | Free, unlimited, local | PRO — €9.99/mo |
| Filament inventory + low-stock alerts | Free | PRO — €9.99/mo |
| Printer profiles with real cost/hour | Free, unlimited | PRO — €9.99/mo |
| Batch / volume production pricing | Free | PRO — €9.99/mo |
| Shareable quote links for clients | Free | PRO — €9.99/mo |
| Extras/hardware cost tracking | Free (per-quote extras) | PRO — €9.99/mo |
| Multiple workspaces (e.g. hobby vs. business) | Free | — |
| 3MF import — drop a slicer file, auto-fill quote | Free | — |
| Standalone calibration tools (rotation distance, flow, pressure advance, drying, shrinkage…) | Free, 10+ tools | — |
| Account required | Never | Yes, for PRO |
| Works offline (PWA) | Yes | No |
| Your data stored | Only in your browser | On their servers (cloud sync) |
| Cloud sync across devices | No (JSON backup/restore) | Yes — PRO |
| Price | €0 | Free basic / €9.99/mo / €299 lifetime |
The privacy angle
MakerCalc runs entirely in your browser. Your filament prices, client names and quotes never leave your device — there is no account to breach and no server holding your customer list. The trade-off is real too: clear your browser data without a JSON backup and it's gone, and there's no automatic sync to your phone. Cloud tools win on convenience here; we win on not having your data at all.
Who should use which
Pick MakerCalc if you want professional quoting, inventory and calibration tools without a subscription, you value privacy and offline use, or you're a hobbyist/side-seller who doesn't need cloud sync.
Pick their PRO if you run quotes from multiple devices daily, want your data backed up for you, or specifically want the upcoming business analytics they've announced. It's a fair product at a fair price — we just think most makers shouldn't have to pay it.
Ready? Open the quote workspace or browse the full tool set — no signup, no trial timer.