Filament
PLA
The filament almost everyone starts with: it prints cool, barely lifts and does not smell. In exchange it softens around 55–60 °C, so a PLA part left in a car parked in the Mexican sun will deform. Prusa publishes 210 ± 10 °C nozzle and 40–60 °C bed for its Prusament PLA, with a density of 1.24 g/cm³ measured to ISO 1183.
Safety and handling
It is the lowest-risk household filament, but printing in a closed room with no ventilation is still a bad idea: any molten thermoplastic emits ultrafine particles and volatile organic compounds. Print in a ventilated space, never touch the nozzle or heated bed while running (the nozzle sits around 210 °C and the bed around 60 °C) and keep the machine away from small children. PLA is biodegradable only under industrial composting conditions: at home, and in ordinary rubbish, it behaves like any other plastic.
Food contact
A 'food-safe' PLA spool does not make the printed part food-safe: the grooves between layers trap bacteria and the material degrades when washed in hot water. For food contact the practical rule is single use, or a food-grade coating plus a new nozzle free of other materials' residue.
Technical profile
- Nozzle temperature
- 200–220 °C
- Bed temperature
- 40–60 °C
- Heated bed
- No
- Enclosure
- Not needed
- Density
- 1.24 g/cm³
- Absorbs moisture
- Yes
- Drying
- 45 °C · 6 h
- Difficulty
- Beginner
Typical price per kilo in Mexico
Price not verified
Strengths
- Cheap and available in any shop, including Mexican general-electronics chains
- Easy to print: the material where the fewest things go wrong
- Good detail and little warping, even on large models
- Does not need a heated bed, though 60 °C improves adhesion
- No noticeable smell while printing
Weaknesses
- Brittle and inflexible: it snaps instead of bending
- Softens above roughly 55–60 °C; useless inside a car in the sun
- Poor UV and outdoor resistance
- Harder to post-process (sand, glue) than ABS or ASA
- Weaker layer adhesion than PETG
Common uses
- Prototypes and concept models
- Figures, scale models and decorative objects
- Organisers, boxes and indoor parts under no load
- Low-wear toys
- Calibration parts
Related problems
Documented printing defects that show up with this material.
- The first layer will not stick to the bed
- Stringing: threads and cobwebs between parts
- Under-extrusion: less material comes out than it should
- Over-extrusion: more material comes out than needed
- Elephant foot: the base comes out flared
- Blobs and zits: bumps on the surface
- Ringing or ghosting: echoes and ripples on the walls
- Overheating: the part deforms on small areas
- Drooping overhangs and edges curling upward
Work out your cost
How much material a part uses and what it costs to print, with the formula in plain sight.
- Quiz: which 3D printer suits me?
- Filament calculator: grams, metres and pesos
- Resin calculator: millilitres, grams and cost
- 3D print cost calculator in Mexican pesos
- 3D printer power consumption calculator
- 3D printing material comparator
- Nozzle and layer height reference
- Diagnostic tree: find your failure by symptom
- STL vs 3MF: which to use and how to convert
- 3D printer comparator
- 3D printing glossary search
Sources
- [1]PLA | Prusa Knowledge BasePrusa Research · Manufacturer · accessed July 27, 2026
- [2]Technical datasheet — Prusament PLA by Prusa Polymers (v1.1, 16-02-2022)Prusa Polymers · Manufacturer · accessed July 27, 2026
- [3]Drying filament | Prusa Knowledge BasePrusa Research · Manufacturer · accessed July 27, 2026