When we get to the decision to buy some specific 3D printing gear, parts, or filament, it is logical to look for the best price and convenience. Here we will list major marketplaces for 3D printing gear. We will provide some stats, brief “pros and cons”, price, convenience, affiliate marketing, etc. And at the end, we will mention specialist physical and online stores that deserve a separate blog dedicated only to them.
3D Printing Gear Bargains
No matter what our stats may show, but if there is a 50% off offer in one of the stores for the same product, it worth a brief research before spending the money.
Amazon
Everyone knows Amazon. They are big and powerful. Only a .com branch has 2.5 billion visits per month*. There is a wide range of 3D printing-related products on their platform, but it is convenience, not the price, which is their strongest point. The warehouses, if you are in the Western Europe or the US, are more likely to be not far from your location. “Get it tonight/tomorrow” message is very tempting.
– Price: Average
– Convenience: High
– Affiliate Program Yes (Cookies for 24h)
eBay
eBay is a marketplace where we can buy and sell. The .com online store has 1 billion visits per month*. It is cheaper to shop on eBay than on Amazon. It is possible to find real bargains there. For example, no-brand filament will cost 1.5-3 times less than elsewhere, which allows significant savings for the bigger projects. However, eBay sellers may be less reliable, may run out of stock or take longer to ship, which may be a problem if your project depends on the timing, or if a specific color shade is required. Also, in some cases, higher delivery charges may be applicable. In any case, it is worth comparing the prices.
– Price: Low
– Convenience: Moderate
– Partner Network: Yes (Cookies for 24h)
AliExpress
The biggest Chinese marketplace. The .com online store has 0.5 billion visits per month*. Have warehouses in the US and Europe which means some deals may offer free delivery. Compared to Amazon and eBay, AliExpress sells mostly Chinese products. For example, it is impossible to find the reputable US or EU filament brands on AliExpress.
– Price: Low
– Convenience: Moderate
– AliExpress Portals: Yes (Cookies for 30 days)
Banggood
Another Chinese marketplace. Banggood online store has 40 million visits per month*. There are warehouses in the US and Europe which means some deals may offer quick and free delivery. Proudly promoting a 30-day refund or replacement policy, plus PayPal can be used as a payment method. The same as on AliExpress, all 3D printing gear is Chinese.
– Price: Low
– Convenience: Moderate
– Affiliate Program: Yes (Cookies for 30 days)
Gearbest
23 million visits per month*. Gearbest is a social marketing-focused marketplace. YouTubers, who are reviewing 3D printing gear, started using affiliate links as early as in 2015. 30-day cookies made a big difference in comparison with Amazon or eBay programs.
– Price: Low
– Convenience: Moderate
– Associate Program: Yes (Cookies for 30 days)
Please post your comment below or Contact Us if we’ve missed any 3D printing gear selling major marketplaces. We will update our table accordingly.
* Roughly numbers at the moment of writing this post 23.07.2020 (Source: Similarweb).
Affiliate Marketing as a Scaling Point
Why do we refer to the affiliate marketing as a scaling point, as in the most cases, it will never play a decisive role anyway? The answer is “just in case”. 3D printing community members, including businesses, love to share their makes, designs, and ideas, and if “the showcase” goes viral, then why not to attach an affiliate link to it. In the end, there is nothing to lose, people get used to affiliate links in the same way as to the Google ads. But a convenient reference to the product will add a positive experience while browsing.
Broadliners vs Specialists
3D printing gear specialists physical and online store – blog coming soon.
We have to stress that specialists are crucial as their services are unbeatable by major online marketplaces even by the likes of Amazon. Such 3D printing-specialised stores and services, like e3donline.com or matterhacker.com, will always have our respect for being the true pioneers. Behind their doors is not just a warehouse, but the real R&D (research and development) facilities. Some specialist stores may charge a higher price for 3D printing gear, but not all. Quite a few offer the same prices as the manufacturer. Another advantage is that the specialists have a few machines in their portfolio that are not available via the general online marketplaces. These may be the professional-grade machines for such verticals like dentistry, for example. We will cover this subject, together with listing the stores, in the near future. Stay tuned.
(Image: 3DWithUs)
