Which filament should I use?

• How it works
• Filament chart
• PLA vs PETG
• Outdoors and cars
• Strong parts
• Flexible
• Cosplay
• Nozzles and drying
• FAQ

How the filament finder works

There are dozens of filament types, and most guides list all of them and leave the choosing to you. This quiz does the choosing. It asks five plain-English questions and follows the same path an experienced maker would use when a friend asks which filament to buy.

1. Say what you are making. Decor and gifts, useful things for the house, strong mechanical parts, something bendy, or cosplay and props.
2. Say where it will live. Indoors, somewhere hot like a car or a sunny window, outside in the sun and rain, or near water.
3. Pick a finish. A plain color, matte, shiny silk, or something special like wood, marble or glow in the dark.
4. Tell us about your printer. Open, enclosed, or no printer yet. ABS, ASA, nylon and PC need an enclosure.
5. Choose how much fuss is OK. Keep it easy, allow a little tuning, or take on engineering filaments that need drying and special nozzles.
6. Get your filament. See the best filament type for your project, starter settings, spools worth buying and two alternatives.

If the best filament for the job needs something you don't have, like an enclosure for ASA, the result says so and shows the best option that works on your setup.

3D printer filament types compared

Every filament type the quiz can recommend, rated from 1 to 5. Heat is how well a part keeps its shape when it gets warm: PLA softens at about 55 °C, PETG at about 70 °C, ABS and ASA at around 90 to 100 °C, PC above 110 °C and carbon fiber nylon well above 150 °C.

Filament	Ease	Strength	Heat	Outdoors	Flex	Needs	Best for
PLAPolylactic acid						Nothing special	Decor, toys, gifts, prototypes
Matte PLAPLA with a matte finish						Nothing special	Display pieces, figures, cosplay
Silk PLAPLA with a glossy, metallic sheen						Slower outer walls	Vases, statues, gifts
Specialty PLAWood, marble and glow in the dark PLA						Hardened nozzle for glow	Decor with texture or glow
Tough PLAPLA+ and Tough PLA						Nothing special	Household parts, wearable props
PETGPolyethylene terephthalate glycol						Textured plate or glue stick	Useful parts, water, warm spots
TPUThermoplastic polyurethane, 95A						Slow speeds, external spool	Cases, bumpers, gaskets, grips
ABSAcrylonitrile butadiene styrene						Enclosure, ventilation	Tough indoor parts, car interiors
ASAAcrylonitrile styrene acrylate						Enclosure, ventilation	Outdoor parts, car parts
PETG-CFCarbon fiber PETG						Hardened nozzle	Stiff brackets, mounts, jigs
Nylon CFCarbon fiber nylon (PA-CF, PAHT-CF)						Enclosure, hardened nozzle, dry box	Gears, high heat, under the hood
PCPolycarbonate						Enclosure, dry box, hot bed	Very tough, heat resistant parts
LW-PLALightweight foaming PLA						Temperature tuning	RC planes, light helmets

Ratings compare filaments with each other and assume a typical spool from a good brand. Within a type, brands differ, so the spool label always wins.

The best filament for beginners: PLA

PLA is where almost everyone should start. It prints at 200 to 220 °C, barely warps, needs no enclosure and is cheap, at about $15 to $20 a spool. It also comes in the widest range of colors and finishes. Matte PLA hides layer lines, silk PLA has a metallic shine, and wood, marble and glow in the dark versions add texture. The PLA guide covers settings and common problems.

PLA has two weak spots. It softens at about 55 °C, so it deforms in a hot car or a sunny window, and it is fairly brittle. Tough PLA, often sold as PLA+, fixes most of the brittleness with the same easy printing.

PLA vs PETG: which should you use?

Use PLA for decor, toys, gifts, figures and prototypes that stay indoors. Use PETG for useful parts: hooks, clips, brackets, planters and anything near water or somewhere warm. PETG softens at around 70 °C, bends a little before it breaks, and lasts a few years outdoors.

The trade-offs are small. PETG prints hotter (230 to 260 °C), strings more, and sticks so hard to smooth PEI that it can rip the surface, so print it on a textured plate or with a thin layer of glue stick. The PETG guide has tuned settings.

Best filament for outdoor use and car parts

ASA is the best filament for anything that lives outside. It resists UV light, rain and heat, so garden parts, mounts and signs keep their strength and color for years. It is also the right choice for car parts in direct sun, like dashboard mounts and phone holders, because it holds its shape to around 95 to 100 °C.

ASA, and the closely related ABS, need an enclosed printer to stop them warping, and should be printed in a ventilated room. On an open printer, PETG is the best you can do: it handles a few years outside, longest in black, and works in a car out of direct sun. Never use PLA for outdoor or car parts. The ABS and ASA guide explains the details.

Best filament for strong, functional parts

For most strong parts, start with PETG. If you want stiffer, more stable parts like brackets and jigs, PETG-CF adds carbon fiber and a beautiful matte finish, and only needs a hardened steel nozzle. On an enclosed printer, ABS is tough and handles heat. For the hardest jobs, like gears, high-load brackets and parts near engines, carbon fiber nylon (PA-CF or PAHT-CF) and polycarbonate (PC) are the strongest filaments most home printers can run. They need an enclosure and a carefully dried spool. See the engineering materials guide.

How you print matters as much as what you print with. Parts are weakest between layers, so turn them so the layers run along the load, and add walls before you add infill.

Best flexible filament: TPU

TPU 95A is the flexible filament to start with. It feels like a firm phone case and works for bumpers, gaskets, grips, watch straps and RC tires. It prints best slowly on a direct drive printer. Feed it from the external spool holder, because most automatic spool changers, like the Bambu Lab AMS and Creality CFS, can't handle soft TPU. Less infill makes a softer, squishier part. The TPU and flexibles guide has more.

Best filament for cosplay and props

Most cosplay is printed in PLA, because it is easy to print, sand, prime and paint. For armor and props that get worn and bumped, Tough PLA bends a little instead of cracking. Matte PLA hides layer lines, so there is less sanding before paint. Silk PLA gives a metallic look with no paint at all. For big helmets you have to wear all day, LW-PLA foams as it prints and can weigh less than half as much. If your props ride in a hot car to a convention, consider PETG or ASA. Pieces that are too big for your printer can be cut into parts with the free 3D Model Splitter.

Hardened nozzles, enclosures and drying

Do you need a hardened steel nozzle?

Only for abrasive filaments: carbon fiber (CF), glass fiber (GF), glow in the dark and some sparkle filaments. They wear out brass and stainless steel nozzles quickly. A hardened steel nozzle costs about $15 to $30, and it prints regular filaments just fine too.

Do you need an enclosure?

For ABS, ASA, nylon and PC, yes. They shrink as they cool, and an enclosure keeps the air around the print warm so parts don't warp or split. PLA, PETG and TPU don't need one. On an enclosed printer, open the door or lid for PLA so the hotend stays cool and doesn't clog from heat creep.

Do you need to dry filament?

PLA is usually fine from a sealed bag. PETG, TPU, ABS and ASA print better dry, especially once a spool has been open for a few weeks. Nylon and PC should be dried before every print. Damp filament pops, strings and prints weaker parts. The filament drying guide lists times and temperatures for each material.

Frequently asked questions