3D Printing Info

Printer comparison

Creality Hi vs ELEGOO Mars 5 Ultra

Compare hardware, build volume, printing specifications, dated prices and sources.

2 selected · all documented properties

Creality Hi vs ELEGOO Mars 5 Ultra — documented properties and sources
PropertyCreality HiBEDSLINGERELEGOO Mars 5 UltraRESIN
Identity
BrandCrealityELEGOO
ClassBEDSLINGERRESIN
Identity & Market
Manufacturer & exact marketed model name (verify the exact product identity first)Creality Hi, sold as the "Creality Hi Combo" with one CFS unit[1]ELEGOO Mars 5 Ultra. Elegoo's product handle is mars-5-ultra-9k-7inch-monochrome-lcd-resin-3d-printer[2][3][4]
Street price (USD; dated snapshot per entry)The Creality US store Hi Combo page lists three variant prices - $299.00, $399.00 and $539.00 - on the same page, Aug 2026; the lowest is recorded here and the combo includes one CFS unit[5]$269.00 in Elegoo's live US product feed, in stock, checked Aug 2026. The Mars 5 Series collection page rendered $259.00 against a $338.00 compare-at price on the same day, so the two Elegoo surfaces disagree by $10[4][3]
Variants & sibling models — and how to tell them apart (spec-contamination risk)Sold as a combo bundled with one CFS multi-material unit; up to four CFS units can be stacked for 16 colours, and the extra three are bought separately. Three price variants exist on the store page, so a single "Creality Hi" price is ambiguous[1]Not a trim of the Mars 5 — a different imaging stack and a different release mechanism: 7-inch 9K LCD and 18 um pixels vs 6.6-inch 4K and 35 um, 150 vs 70 mm/h, tilt-release vs straight lift, an AI camera, and Wi-Fi added. Seven bundle SKUs pair it with Mercury Plus V2.0/V3.0 or Mercury XS at $363-$432[6][2][3][4]
Physical & Frame
Build volume X×Y×Z (mm) — advertised vs actually usable260 x 260 x 300 mm[1]153.36 x 77.76 x 165 mm[2]
Machine footprint (mm) & clearance needed (cable/spool overhang)409 x 392 x 477 mm (Tom's Hardware measurement of the printer's footprint)[7]260 x 268 x 451.5 mm[2]
Net weight (kg)11.58 kg (Tom's Hardware measurement)[7]Approximately 8.8 kg[2]
Frame construction & materialFull metal body with frame parts die-cast from aluminium alloy[1]Not documented
Enclosure: open / enclosed; panel material; door/lidOpen frame, no enclosure[1]Open-frame MSLA with a removable UV-blocking cover[2]
Kinematics & Motion Hardware
Kinematics (bedslinger i3 / CoreXY / other)Not documentedMSLA with tilt-release: the resin tank tilts after each layer to peel the part rather than pulling straight up. Single Z axis[2]
Speed & Acceleration
Max print speed (claimed, mm/s)500 mm/s max printing speed (manufacturer claim)[1]Not documented
Max acceleration (claimed, mm/s²)12000 mm/s2 max acceleration (manufacturer claim)[1]Not documented
Extruder
Type (direct drive / bowden) & design nameModular direct-drive extruder, which Creality markets as clog-free and designed for repairability[1]Not documented
Hotend & Nozzle
Hotend design (proprietary/standard; quick-swap mechanism?)0.4 mm high-flow hardened steel "unicorn" quick-swap nozzle[7]Not documented
Max nozzle temp claimed AND firmware max temp limit (both values)300 C maximum nozzle temperature (Tom's Hardware)[7]Not documented
Heated Bed & Surface
Bed surface (material, texture, coating), single/double-sidedTwo-sided epoxy-resin flexible build plate, heated[7]Not documented
Leveling & Z-Offset
Auto bed leveling: probe technology (inductive / strain gauge / load cell / touch probe)Auto levelling, plus automatic filament load and unload[1]Automatic levelling, one click, via an intelligent mechanical sensor. One-Click Self-Check routine. Alarms for resin shortage, residue detection and levelling failure[2]
Filament Handling & Detection
Filament runout sensor (type, location)Filament run-out sensor fitted[7]Not documented
Multi-material/multi-color capability or official upgrade pathPairs with up to four CFS units for up to 16 colours; the combo ships with one CFS. Multi-material also enables snap-away support material[1]Not documented
Electronics & Power
Input voltage (110/220 V, switch or auto)Not documented100-240 V, 50/60 Hz, 24 V 3 A[2]
Firmware & Openness
Firmware base & current version (Klipper fork / Marlin fork / proprietary)Klipper-derived firmware - Creality publishes the source as CrealityOfficial/Hi_Klipper on GitHub, GPL-3.0, last pushed March 2026[8][9]Not named by Elegoo. Supported slicer is CHITUBOX[2]
Connectivity, UI & Camera
Display: size, type, touch?3.2-inch touchscreen, pre-assembled and foldable to shrink the footprint[1]4.0-inch capacitive touchscreen (control panel — not the masking LCD, see W1)[2]
On-device UI capabilities (model preview, per-object controls, etc.)Touch UI with input shaping, alarm sounds and auto filament identification via the built-in RFID reader (needs Creality RFID filament)[1]Not documented
WiFi (band/standard), Ethernet, USB ports, SD/flash-driveUSB, LAN, cloud and app[7]USB and Wi-Fi[2]
Camera: built-in / optional? Resolution & framerate (verify — marketing often omits real fps)Not documentedAI camera fitted; Elegoo does not publish its resolution for this model[2]
Camera features: live monitor, timelapse, AI failure detection (spaghetti detection) — how real is it?Not documentedAI camera detects empty build plates and print errors[2]
Calibration Routines & QoL
Assembly level & time from unbox to first print95% pre-assembled[1]Not documented
Materials Support
Officially supported filament listPLA and PETG (Tom's Hardware's materials line for the Hi Combo)[7]405 nm photopolymer resin. No compatibility list published on this listing[2]
Safety
Thermal runaway protection (verify in firmware source if at all possible)Not verified directly. Creality publishes CrealityOfficial/Hi_Klipper (GPL-3.0) for this model; upstream Klipper ships the verify_heater thermal-runaway check, but the stock configuration was not checked here[8][9]Not documented
Firmware safety limits (max temp cutoffs — exact values)Not documentedOverheating protection activates above 80 °C[2]
Reliability, Support & Ecosystem
Warranty length & support reputation (evidence, not vibes)Creality's US store states "Up to 12-Month Warranty", a 14-day return and refund window and "Lifetime Customer Support" on its printer product pages. The "up to" wording means the term is not uniform across parts[10]Not documented
Independently Measured Performance
Benchmark print times (source + settings)Benchy in 32 minutes 33 seconds under Speed Boat Rules in ordinary grey PLA - independently measured by Tom's Hardware[7]Not documented
Review scores from major outlets (list outlet + score + date)Tom's Hardware rating 3.5 out of 5 in the page's structured data - the lowest score of any Creality machine recorded here[7]Not documented
Resin & MSLA
Masking LCDNot documented7-inch 9K monochrome masking LCD, 8520 x 4320 px, XY pixel pitch 18 x 18 um (manufacturer specification)[2][4]
Light sourceNot documented25-LED COB light source emitting a 405 nm UV beam (manufacturer specification)[2]
Light uniformity & intensityNot documented92% light uniformity claimed by Elegoo. No intensity figure published, and no independent measurement[2]
Vertical print speedmm/hNot documented150 mm/h maximum, which Elegoo attributes to the tilt-release mechanism (manufacturer claim). Elegoo also offers switchable slow and fast print modes but does not state the layer height the figure assumes[2]
Layer exposure timesNot documented1.5-3 s layer cure time (manufacturer figure; layer height not stated). Sortable value is the midpoint[2]
LCD life & replaceabilityNot documentedMasking LCD protected by a scratch-resistant tempered 9H glass cover that also guards against resin leakage. Elegoo publishes no rated screen life in hours and does not state whether the user can replace the LCD[2]
Resin vat & feedingNot documentedResin tank supplied with the machine; resin-shortage and residue-detection alarms fitted. Capacity not published; no auto-refill[2]

Manufacturer claims, independent measurements, packages and test conditions retain their source wording. FDM linear speed and resin vertical speed use different units and are not directly comparable. Unknown values are marked “Not documented”. Prices and source dates remain historical snapshots; check the linked guide for product details. Differences highlight text, not a universal winner.

Sources for this comparison

  1. Creality Hi Combo product page creality.com · 2026-08 · vendor
  2. Elegoo Mars 5 Ultra product page (technical data and description) 3djake.com · 2026-08 · vendor
  3. ELEGOO Mars 5 Series collection (live US prices) us.elegoo.com · 2026-08 · vendor
  4. ELEGOO Mars 5 Series live product feed us.elegoo.com · 2026-08 · vendor
  5. Creality US store - Creality Hi Combo 3D Printer product page (live prices for the variants) store.creality.com · 2026-08 · vendor
  6. Elegoo Mars 5 product page (technical data and description) 3djake.com · 2026-08 · vendor
  7. Tom's Hardware - Creality Hi Combo review (spec box and Speed Boat Rules Benchy time) tomshardware.com · 2026-08 · review
  8. GitHub API - CrealityOfficial/Hi_Klipper repository metadata (GPL-3.0, last push Mar 2026) api.github.com · 2026-08 · doc
  9. GitHub - CrealityOfficial organisation repositories (per-model firmware sources) github.com · 2026-08 · doc
  10. Creality US store - K1 3D Printer product page (live price, warranty and returns banner) store.creality.com · 2026-08 · vendor