Bambu Lab A1 vs A1 mini: running cost
Bambu Lab A1 vs A1 mini on price, power and wear. On PLA the Bambu Lab A1 mini costs $0.016 less an hour to run, from the makers' own figures.
Which costs less to run
On PLA the Bambu Lab A1 mini costs $0.016 less an hour than the Bambu Lab A1, which comes to $16 over a thousand hours of printing. The two list prices are $80 apart. This compares what the machines cost to own and run, not how fast they print or how the parts look, so weigh it against what the extra money buys.
Side by side on PLA
| Bambu Lab A1Bambu Lab wiki | Bambu Lab A1 miniBambu Lab wiki | |
|---|---|---|
| List price | $299 | $219 |
| Average draw | 95 W | 80 W |
| Electricity per hour | $0.017 | $0.015 |
| Wear and upkeep per hour | $0.093 | $0.079 |
| Running cost per hour | $0.110 | $0.094 |
| A month at 200 hours | $21.99 | $18.78 |
| Standby for the rest of the month | $0.51 | $0.69 |
Electricity is at the US residential average. Wear and upkeep use the same assumptions as the rest of the site. A month is 200 hours of printing, with standby for the rest. Change the tariff, the material and the hours in the running cost comparison.
Each printer in full
- Bambu Lab A1What a Bambu Lab A1 costs to run per hour on PLA, ABS and PC, from Bambu's own measured draw, with a worked quote for a 12-hour dragon.
- Bambu Lab A1 miniWhat a Bambu Lab A1 mini costs to run per hour on PLA and PETG, from Bambu's measured draw, with a worked quote for a 6-hour flexi axolotl.
Other comparisons
- Bambu Lab P1S vs P2S: running costBambu Lab P1S vs P2S on price, power and wear. On PLA the Bambu Lab P1S costs $0.042 less an hour to run, from the makers' own figures.
- Bambu Lab A1 vs P1S: running costBambu Lab A1 vs P1S on price, power and wear. On PLA the Bambu Lab A1 costs $0.018 less an hour to run, from the makers' own figures.
- Prusa MK4S vs CORE One+: running costPrusa MK4S vs CORE One+ on price, power and wear. On PLA the Prusa MK4S costs $0.052 less an hour to run, from the makers' own figures.
- Bambu Lab P1S vs Prusa CORE One+: running costBambu Lab P1S vs Prusa CORE One+ on price, power and wear. On PLA the Bambu Lab P1S costs $0.147 less an hour to run, from the makers' own figures.
Keep these numbers for every print
Printyard runs this arithmetic on your phone at the machine and on the web: every quote itemised, every roll to the gram, and a month with the fees and the failed prints already taken out.
Sources
- Electric Power Monthly, Table 5.6.A: average price of electricity by sector, August 2026 · U.S. Energy Information Administration · checked October 30, 2026
- Bambu Lab Printer and AMS power parameters · Bambu Lab · checked October 30, 2026
- 3D Printers, Bambu Lab US Store (typical price of the base printer, without AMS) · Bambu Lab · checked October 30, 2026