3D Printer Filament Types Compared: PLA vs ABS vs PETG vs ASA vs TPU (2026)

So Many Filaments, So Little Time

I remember standing in front of my filament shelf about two years ago, genuinely confused. I had PLA, PETG, a roll of ABS I’d barely touched, and some TPU that a mate had recommended. Which one should I actually use for a bracket I needed to print?

If you’ve been there — staring at eight different spools wondering which one won’t ruin your weekend — this is the guide I wish I’d had. I’ve printed with all eight of these materials extensively, and I’ll tell you what I actually reach for (and what sits gathering dust).

Filament Comparison Table

Filament	Print Temp (°C)	Bed Temp (°C)	Tensile Strength	Flexibility	Food Safe?	UV Resistant?	Difficulty
PLA	190–220	20–60	Moderate (50 MPa)	Low	Conditionally	No	Easy
ABS	220–250	95–110	Good (40 MPa)	Low	No	No	Moderate
PETG	220–250	70–85	Good (50 MPa)	Low-Med	Conditionally	Moderate	Easy-Mod
ASA	230–260	95–110	Good (45 MPa)	Low	No	Yes	Moderate
TPU	210–230	20–60	Low (30 MPa)	High	No	Moderate	Moderate
Nylon (PA)	240–270	70–90	Excellent (70 MPa)	Med-High	No	No	Hard
PC	260–310	100–120	Excellent (65 MPa)	Low	No	Moderate	Hard
PP	220–250	80–100	Moderate (35 MPa)	High	Conditionally	Moderate	Hard

PLA (Polylactic Acid)

PLA is where everyone starts, and honestly? Most of us never fully leave it behind. Made from cornstarch, dead easy to print, and the colour options are ridiculous — silks, mattes, marble effects, you name it. I’ve got about fifteen rolls of PLA in various colours right now and I’m not ashamed.

Best for: Decorative prints, prototypes, cosplay props, figurines, educational projects

Strengths:

• Lowest print temperature — works on literally any FDM printer
• No heated bed required (though 50–60°C helps adhesion)
• Minimal warping — I’ve printed 300mm parts flat on an open-frame printer without issues
• Wide colour selection that’ll make your head spin
• Currently around £15–20/kg on Amazon UK for quality brands like eSUN or Polymaker

Weaknesses:

• Low heat resistance — deforms above 55–60°C (I learnt this the hard way when a PLA phone holder melted on my car dashboard in July)
• Brittle under impact — drop a PLA print on a tile floor and it’ll shatter
• Degrades outdoors within months
• Not suitable for functional mechanical parts that take any real stress

PLA is the default recommendation for anyone just getting into this hobby. If you’re brand new, see our best 3D printer for beginners guide.

UK price: £15–22/kg

ABS (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene)

I’ll be honest — I barely print ABS anymore. Five years ago it was the go-to for anything functional, but PETG and ASA have made it largely redundant for most people. It requires an enclosed printer, the fumes are properly unpleasant, and the warping will test your patience.

That said, it still has its place. The acetone vapour smoothing trick is genuinely magic — nothing else gives you that glossy, injection-moulded finish so easily.

Best for: Functional parts, automotive components, electronic enclosures

Strengths:

• Good impact resistance — properly tough
• Higher heat resistance than PLA (up to 100°C)
• Can be smoothed with acetone vapour for a gorgeous glossy finish
• Well-understood material with decades of industrial use

Weaknesses:

• Significant warping — needs enclosed printer and heated bed at 95–110°C (my first ABS print curled up like a crisp packet)
• Produces styrene fumes — you absolutely need ventilation
• Not UV stable — yellows and becomes brittle outdoors
• Higher electricity costs because that bed’s running hot

UK price: £16–25/kg

PETG (Polyethylene Terephthalate Glycol)

PETG is my workhorse. If I need something stronger than PLA, this is what I reach for nine times out of ten. It prints nearly as easily as PLA but the parts are meaningfully tougher and more heat-resistant. And yes, it handles PETG too — which surprised me when I first tried it after years of PLA-only printing.

My neighbour bought a roll of PETG for printing replacement brackets for his garden furniture. Six months later, they’re still holding up perfectly in all weathers.

Best for: Functional parts, outdoor fixtures (with limitations), mechanical components, food-adjacent items

Strengths:

• Excellent layer adhesion — parts feel properly solid
• Good chemical resistance
• Minimal warping compared to ABS
• Higher heat resistance than PLA (up to 80°C)
• Conditionally food safe (with caveats — see our PLA food safety guide)

Weaknesses:

• Prone to stringing — I ruined my first PETG print before I learned to dial in retraction settings
• Can be a nightmare to remove from build plates (use PEI or glass — trust me)
• Scratches more easily than ABS
• Slightly hygroscopic — needs dry storage or you’ll get bubbly, stringy prints

UK price: £17–24/kg

ASA (Acrylonitrile Styrene Acrylate)

Think of ASA as ABS’s better-behaved sibling. Same mechanical properties, same acetone smoothing trick, but it won’t fall apart in sunlight. If you need parts to live outside year-round, this is the one.

I printed a weather station enclosure in ASA about eighteen months ago. It sits on my garden fence in full sun, rain, frost — still looks brand new. A PLA version would’ve been mulch by now.

Best for: Outdoor enclosures, garden fixtures, automotive trim, weather stations

Strengths:

• Excellent UV resistance — won’t yellow or degrade in sunlight
• Good mechanical properties similar to ABS
• Can be acetone-smoothed like ABS
• Handles British weather without complaining

Weaknesses:

• Requires enclosed printer and heated bed at 95–110°C
• Produces fumes (though less nasty than ABS)
• Not food safe — see our detailed ASA food safety guide
• More expensive than ABS at currently around £22–30/kg on Amazon UK

For a deep dive into ASA’s safety profile, including chemical composition and regulatory status, read our complete guide: Is ASA Food Safe?

UK price: £22–30/kg

TPU (Thermoplastic Polyurethane)

TPU is brilliant fun but a right pain to print. It’s flexible — rubber-like at 85A shore hardness, semi-rigid at 95A. Phone cases, watch straps, vibration dampeners… anything that needs to squish or bounce.

Fair warning: if your printer has a Bowden tube setup, don’t even bother. The filament will buckle and jam inside the tube. You need a direct-drive extruder. I learned this after three hours of unpicking jammed filament from my old Ender 3’s Bowden tube. Not fun.

Best for: Phone cases, watch straps, vibration dampeners, gaskets, shoe insoles, drone bumpers

Strengths:

• Excellent impact absorption — you can literally throw TPU prints at a wall
• High wear and abrasion resistance
• Good chemical resistance
• Can stretch without breaking

Weaknesses:

• Difficult to print — requires direct-drive extruder (Bowden tubes cause jams, as I know from bitter experience)
• Slow print speeds (20–30 mm/s recommended — make a cup of tea)
• Stringing is almost unavoidable. Accept it.
• Poor bridging and overhang performance

UK price: £20–28/kg

Nylon (PA — Polyamide)

Nylon is the serious one. If you need parts that genuinely perform — gears that spin, hinges that flex thousands of times, bearings that self-lubricate — nylon is the answer. It’s also the most demanding filament I’ve ever printed.

The moisture sensitivity is no joke. I once left a roll of nylon out overnight (not even a particularly humid night) and the next day’s prints were popping and crackling like Rice Krispies. Straight in the filament dryer it went.

Best for: Gears, hinges, snap-fits, bearings, tools, jigs, fixtures

Strengths:

• Outstanding impact resistance — genuinely hard to break
• Self-lubricating — ideal for moving parts
• Excellent fatigue resistance (it just keeps flexing without cracking)
• Can be dyed after printing

Weaknesses:

• Extremely hygroscopic — must be dried before use and printed from a dry box
• Significant warping — needs enclosed printer
• High print temperatures (240–270°C)
• Not cheap, mind — £30–50/kg for quality brands

UK price: £30–50/kg

PC (Polycarbonate)

Polycarbonate is the strongest thing you can put through a consumer FDM printer. Proper industrial-grade stuff. But it demands a lot from your machine — we’re talking 260–310°C nozzle temperatures, 100–120°C bed, and an enclosed chamber. Not every printer can handle it.

Worth the faff? For high-temperature or high-impact applications, absolutely. I printed some LED lamp enclosures in clear PC and the optical clarity was stunning (especially at the price of the filament versus buying off-the-shelf enclosures).

Best for: High-strength functional parts, transparent components, electrical insulators, high-temperature applications

Strengths:

• Highest impact resistance of common FDM filaments
• Heat resistant up to 140°C
• Good optical clarity in natural/transparent versions
• Excellent dimensional stability

Weaknesses:

• Requires very high print temperatures (260–310°C) — not all printers can handle this
• Needs enclosed chamber and heated bed at 100–120°C
• Hygroscopic — requires dry storage and dry printing
• Expensive at currently around £35–55/kg on Amazon UK

UK price: £35–55/kg

PP (Polypropylene)

PP is everywhere in injection moulding — food containers, bottle caps, car bumpers — but printing it is an absolute nightmare. I’ve tried. Multiple times. The warping is savage, nothing sticks to the bed without special PP tape, and just when you think a print’s going well, the corners lift.

Is it worth persevering? For very specific applications (living hinges, chemical-resistant containers), yes. For anything else, save yourself the headache and use PETG.

Best for: Living hinges, chemical-resistant containers, lightweight structural parts, packaging prototypes

Strengths:

• Excellent chemical resistance
• Very lightweight
• Good fatigue resistance for living hinges
• Conditionally food safe (in injection-moulded form)

Weaknesses:

• Severe warping — worst of any common filament, bar none
• Very poor bed adhesion — needs PP tape or special build surface
• Limited availability and colour options in the UK
• Layer adhesion can be poor

UK price: £25–40/kg

Which Filament Should You Actually Choose?

Don’t overthink it. Here’s my honest recommendation:

• Just starting out? → PLA. No question. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.
• Need stronger functional parts? → PETG. This is what I’d recommend to my mates.
• Outdoor use? → ASA
• Flexible parts? → TPU (but make sure you’ve got a direct-drive extruder)
• High-stress mechanical parts? → Nylon
• Maximum strength? → Polycarbonate
• Chemical resistance? → PP (and good luck with the warping)

Most makers — myself included — end up using two or three filament types regularly. PLA for quick prototypes and decorative prints, PETG for anything functional, and maybe TPU or ASA for specific jobs.

Cost Comparison (UK Prices, 2026)

Filament	Budget (per kg)	Mid-Range (per kg)	Premium (per kg)
PLA	£12–15	£18–22	£25–35
ABS	£14–18	£20–25	£28–35
PETG	£15–19	£20–24	£28–38
ASA	£20–25	£25–30	£35–45
TPU	£18–22	£23–28	£30–40
Nylon	£25–35	£35–50	£50–70
PC	£30–40	£40–55	£55–75
PP	£22–30	£30–40	£40–55

Something people forget: higher-temperature filaments crank up your electricity costs too. At UK rates of 24.5p/kWh, a print in PC can cost 30–40% more in energy than the same print in PLA. Not a fortune, but it adds up.

Storage Tips for All Filaments

Moisture is the enemy. Seriously. I cannot stress this enough — wet filament causes stringing, popping, rough surfaces, and failed prints. Here’s the priority ranking from “will ruin your day fastest” to “you’ll probably be fine”:

1. Nylon — absorbs moisture within hours. Must use a filament dryer. Non-negotiable.
2. TPU — highly hygroscopic. Store vacuum-sealed.
3. PC — very moisture-sensitive. Dry before every single use.
4. PETG — moderately hygroscopic. Airtight container with desiccant does the job.
5. ABS/ASA — mildly hygroscopic. Sealed bag with desiccant is sufficient.
6. PLA — least sensitive, but still degrades with prolonged moisture exposure. Don’t leave it out for weeks.
7. PP — very low moisture absorption. The one thing PP doesn’t make difficult.

Invest in a filament dryer — currently around £35–50 on Amazon UK for a basic model like the SUNLU S2. It’ll save you far more in failed prints than it costs. Proper job.

My Final Take

There’s no single “best” filament — only the best filament for what you’re making right now. Start with PLA, graduate to PETG when you need strength, and explore the speciality stuff as your skills and your printer’s capabilities grow. That’s exactly the path I followed, and I’ve never regretted it.

For printer recommendations matched to different filament types, see our guides to the best 3D printer for beginners and the best 3D printers for prototyping.