The 10 Food 3D Printers You Should Know

Could food 3D printing have a place in your kitchen? Increasingly, yes: the technology is now being used in fine dining, personalized nutrition and alternative proteins, among other fields. In all of these applications, food 3D printers work the same way, building food layer by layer from a digital model, most often through extrusion. Available machines range from DIY kits for home cooks to systems for professional kitchens and industry. In this ranking, we focus exclusively on food 3D printers currently available for purchase, listed alphabetically.

Chocola3D

Developed in Bulgaria, Chocola3D is a food 3D printer based on an open syringe system. Users prepare and load their own ingredients, with no need to buy proprietary capsules or refills. The machine can print up to 26 different food materials, including chocolate, dough, cheese, meat, vegetable and fruit purées and pea protein. Chocola3D has a build volume of 250 x 230 x 150 mm, weighs 24 kg and is priced at €1,990. Alongside the printer itself, the company offers consulting, training for educational institutions, 3D model design for food and live food 3D printing shows for events.

Photo credits: Chocola3D

Cocoa Press 2

The Cocoa Press 2 prints chocolate directly from a digital file, so you don’t need a mold to make custom shapes. It comes as a $1,499 DIY kit, where you print some of the parts and assemble the machine yourself, or as a $4,499 Pro package that arrives assembled. The Pro is only sold in the US, but European buyers can order the kit through UK reseller Vector3D. Both versions have a 135 x 135 x 150 mm build volume and ship with 0.8 mm and 1.6 mm nozzles. The extruder holds the chocolate’s temperature to within ±0.1°C. The printer runs Klipper firmware and works with open-source slicers such as PrusaSlicer, and its quick-swap extruder leaves room for upgrades like multicolor or continuous printing. The Pro package adds stainless steel side panels, a hard travel case, maintenance tools and access to a Discord channel for professional users. That makes it the obvious pick for small food businesses, while the kit suits hobbyists who don’t mind building their own printer.