Bambu Studio
Bambu Lab's official slicer: free, open source under AGPL-3.0 and derived from PrusaSlicer. The natural route if you own an A1, P1S or X1.
Open sourceFreeWindowsmacOSLinux
Software
Slicers, CAD, mesh repair and remote control: what each program does, which system it runs on, what it costs and where it falls short.
14 results
Slicers
CHITUBOX Basic
The other major resin slicer. CHITUBOX Basic is free and there is a paid Pro version; it ships for Windows, macOS and Linux. It is not open source.
Closed sourceFree with paid tierWindowsmacOSLinux
Lychee Slicer
Mango 3D's resin and filament slicer, with a free Lite tier and Plus and Library subscription plans. It is not open source.
Closed sourceFree with paid tierWindowsmacOSLinux
OrcaSlicer
A community fork of Bambu Studio, free and AGPL-3.0 licensed, with built-in calibration tools and support for printers from many brands.
Open sourceFreeWindowsmacOSLinux
PrusaSlicer
Prusa Research's slicer, free and AGPL-3.0 licensed. It is the trunk from which Bambu Studio and OrcaSlicer branched, and it remains the best documented.
Open sourceFreeWindowsmacOSLinux
UltiMaker Cura
The oldest and most widely installed slicer in the filament world: free, open source under LGPL-3.0 and with profiles for hundreds of printers.
Open sourceFreeWindowsmacOSLinux
Design and CAD
Autodesk Fusion
Professional parametric CAD with a free personal-use licence, renewable every three years, limited to non-commercial projects generating under 1,000 USD a year.
Closed sourceSubscriptionWindowsmacOS
Blender
Free modelling and digital sculpting software under the GNU GPL. It is not CAD, but it is the tool for organic figures and resin-bound models.
Open sourceFreeWindowsmacOSLinux
FreeCAD
Free parametric CAD under the LGPL-2.1 licence, for Windows, macOS and Linux. The no-strings alternative to Fusion, with no commercial-use limit.
Open sourceFreeWindowsmacOSLinux
Onshape
Parametric CAD that runs entirely in the browser, with a free plan for non-commercial use in which all your documents are public.
Closed sourceFree with paid tierWebiOSAndroid
Tinkercad
Autodesk's free CAD that runs in the browser and on iPad. The standard entry point for designing your first part without installing anything.
Closed sourceFreeWebiOS
Mesh repair
Autodesk Meshmixer
Autodesk's free tool for repairing and manipulating meshes. Still downloadable, but Autodesk states it is no longer in development and will not be supported.
Closed sourceFreeWindowsmacOS
Remote control
Obico
Remote monitoring with AI failure detection, for OctoPrint and Klipper. Open source under AGPL-3.0, with a paid cloud service or free self-hosting.
Open sourceFree with paid tierWebLinuxiOSAndroid
OctoPrint
Free AGPL-3.0 server for controlling and watching your printer from a browser. Usually installed on a Raspberry Pi wired over USB.
Open sourceFreeLinuxWindowsmacOS