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Which filament should I use?

Five quick questions about your printer and the part you're making. Your best matches appear as soon as you've answered them all.

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1. What printer do you have?
2. Where will the part live?
3. How hot will it get?
4. How should it behave?
5. What matters more?

Your best matches

Ratings are ours, out of 5. How we rate

Answer all five questions to see your matches.

Nothing that handles this job prints reliably on an open printer: these materials warp or crack without the warm, still air of an enclosure. They're the best picks if you can add one.

No common filament ticks every box, so these are the closest matches.

  1. PLA Polylactic acid

    Nozzle 190–230 °C · Nothing special needed

    Ease of printing
    Toughness
    Stiffness
    Heat resistance
    Outdoor and UV
    Flexibility
    See PLA filaments →

  2. PETG Polyethylene terephthalate glycol

    Nozzle 220–250 °C · Nothing special needed

    Ease of printing
    Toughness
    Stiffness
    Heat resistance
    Outdoor and UV
    Flexibility
    See PETG filaments →

  3. TPU Thermoplastic polyurethane

    Nozzle 210–240 °C · Dry before printing

    Ease of printing
    Toughness
    Stiffness
    Heat resistance
    Outdoor and UV
    Flexibility
    See TPU filaments →

  4. ABS Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene

    Nozzle 230–260 °C · Needs an enclosure, Needs ventilation

    Ease of printing
    Toughness
    Stiffness
    Heat resistance
    Outdoor and UV
    Flexibility
    See ABS filaments →

  5. ASA Acrylonitrile styrene acrylate

    Nozzle 235–260 °C · Needs an enclosure, Needs ventilation

    Ease of printing
    Toughness
    Stiffness
    Heat resistance
    Outdoor and UV
    Flexibility
    See ASA filaments →

  6. PA6 Nylon 6 (polyamide 6)

    Nozzle 250–290 °C · Needs an enclosure, Dry before printing

    Ease of printing
    Toughness
    Stiffness
    Heat resistance
    Outdoor and UV
    Flexibility
    See PA6 filaments →

  7. PA12 Nylon 12 (polyamide 12)

    Nozzle 240–270 °C · Dry before printing

    Ease of printing
    Toughness
    Stiffness
    Heat resistance
    Outdoor and UV
    Flexibility
    See PA12 filaments →

  8. PC Polycarbonate

    Nozzle 260–300 °C · Needs an enclosure, Dry before printing, Needs ventilation

    Ease of printing
    Toughness
    Stiffness
    Heat resistance
    Outdoor and UV
    Flexibility
    See PC filaments →

  9. PP Polypropylene

    Nozzle 210–240 °C · Nothing special needed

    Ease of printing
    Toughness
    Stiffness
    Heat resistance
    Outdoor and UV
    Flexibility
    See PP filaments →

  10. PCTG Polycyclohexylenedimethylene terephthalate glycol

    Nozzle 230–260 °C · Nothing special needed

    Ease of printing
    Toughness
    Stiffness
    Heat resistance
    Outdoor and UV
    Flexibility
    See PCTG filaments →

  11. PET Polyethylene terephthalate

    Nozzle 220–250 °C · Nothing special needed

    Ease of printing
    Toughness
    Stiffness
    Heat resistance
    Outdoor and UV
    Flexibility
    See PET filaments →

  12. HIPS High-impact polystyrene

    Nozzle 220–250 °C · Needs an enclosure, Needs ventilation

    Ease of printing
    Toughness
    Stiffness
    Heat resistance
    Outdoor and UV
    Flexibility
    See HIPS filaments →

  13. TPE Thermoplastic elastomer

    Nozzle 210–240 °C · Dry before printing

    Ease of printing
    Toughness
    Stiffness
    Heat resistance
    Outdoor and UV
    Flexibility
    See TPE filaments →

How it works

Your answers are matched against our ratings for each common material. Some answers rule materials out, such as PLA for a part that lives outdoors or in a hot car, and the rest decide which ratings count most. With an open printer, materials that need an enclosure are left out unless nothing else will do.

Want the reasoning in more depth? See the best filament for each job or the filament comparison chart.