3D Printing InfoPrinter comparison
Creality K1C vs ELEGOO Mars 5 Ultra
Compare hardware, build volume, printing specifications, dated prices and sources.
2 selected · all documented properties
Open these two in the interactive comparisonMore Creality K1C comparisonsMore ELEGOO Mars 5 Ultra comparisons
| Property | Creality K1CCOREXY | ELEGOO Mars 5 UltraRESIN |
|---|---|---|
| Identity | ||
| Brand | Creality | ELEGOO |
| Class | COREXY | RESIN |
| Identity & Market | ||
| Manufacturer & exact marketed model name (verify the exact product identity first) | Creality K1C (product page title "K1C Carbon 3D Printer")[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) | $369.00 on store.creality.com, Aug 2026. Creality's comparison page shows $529 against a struck-through $559 on the same day[5][6] | $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) | The carbon-fibre-capable K1. Against the K1: all-metal hotend and a steel-tipped tri-metal "unicorn" nozzle integrated with the heatbreak instead of metal+PTFE and copper; air filter fitted instead of absent; 1080p AI camera, foreign-object detection, remote monitoring, time-lapse, build-surface detection and failure detection all standard instead of optional; a much longer filament list including PLA-CF, PA-CF and PET-CF. Build volume, footprint, speed and screen are identical to the K1, so a spec box that lists only those numbers cannot tell the two apart. A K1C Bayern Edition also exists[1][6] | 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[7][2][3][4] |
| Physical & Frame | ||
| Build volume X×Y×Z (mm) — advertised vs actually usable | 220 x 220 x 250 mm[1] | 153.36 x 77.76 x 165 mm[2] |
| Machine footprint (mm) & clearance needed (cable/spool overhang) | 355 x 355 x 482 mm[1] | 260 x 268 x 451.5 mm[2] |
| Net weight (kg) | 12.4 kg net, 16 kg gross[1] | Approximately 8.8 kg[2] |
| Enclosure: open / enclosed; panel material; door/lid | Enclosed with passive chamber heating only - Creality's comparison table lists "Passive Heating" for the K1, K1C and K1 Max and no chamber heating for the K1 SE[6] | Open-frame MSLA with a removable UV-blocking cover[2] |
| Kinematics & Motion Hardware | ||
| Kinematics (bedslinger i3 / CoreXY / other) | CoreXY (Creality's own K1-series comparison table)[6] | MSLA 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) | 600 mm/s max printing speed (manufacturer claim). Creality's own footnote says the 600 mm/s figure was achieved in Creality Lab and that the typical speed is 300 mm/s[6][1] | Not documented |
| Recommended/typical print speed | 300 mm/s typical printing speed with 12000 mm/s2 typical acceleration, stated by Creality alongside the 600 mm/s headline[6] | Not documented |
| Max acceleration (claimed, mm/s²) | 20000 mm/s2 max acceleration (manufacturer claim)[6] | Not documented |
| Extruder | ||
| Type (direct drive / bowden) & design name | Dual-gear direct-drive extruder[6] | Not documented |
| Hotend & Nozzle | ||
| Hotend design (proprietary/standard; quick-swap mechanism?) | All-metal hotend with a tri-metal "unicorn" quick-swap nozzle - a steel-tipped copper nozzle integrated with the heatbreak, replaced as a unit[1] | Not documented |
| Max nozzle temp claimed AND firmware max temp limit (both values) | 300 C claimed max nozzle temperature[1] | Not documented |
| Heated Bed & Surface | ||
| Max bed temp claimed AND firmware limit | 100 C max heatbed temperature[1] | Not documented |
| Bed surface (material, texture, coating), single/double-sided | PEI flexible build plate[1] | Not documented |
| Leveling & Z-Offset | ||
| Auto bed leveling: probe technology (inductive / strain gauge / load cell / touch probe) | Hands-free auto levelling[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; power-loss recovery[1] | Not documented |
| Cooling & Air Handling | ||
| Part-cooling fan(s): count, size, ducting design | Dynamically balanced closed-loop part-cooling fan; dynamically balanced PWM hotend fan; activated-carbon air purifier fitted[1] | Not documented |
| Electronics & Power | ||
| Input voltage (110/220 V, switch or auto) | Not documented | 100-240 V, 50/60 Hz, 24 V 3 A[2] |
| Total rated power draw | 350 W rated power; input 100-120 V / 200-240 V, 50/60 Hz[1] | Not documented |
| Firmware & Openness | ||
| Firmware base & current version (Klipper fork / Marlin fork / proprietary) | Creality OS, a Klipper derivative - the K1-series firmware source is published as CrealityOfficial/K1_Series_Klipper on GitHub under GPL-3.0, described by Creality as a clone of upstream Klipper. Creality also lists the printhead front cover and side-mounted spool holder as open-source parts[8][9][6] | Not named by Elegoo. Supported slicer is CHITUBOX[2] |
| Connectivity, UI & Camera | ||
| Display: size, type, touch? | 4.3-inch 800x480 colour touchscreen[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.) | Colour touch UI with sleep mode, lighting control and input shaping; remote monitoring, time-lapse and AI failure detection are included rather than optional[1] | Not documented |
| WiFi (band/standard), Ethernet, USB ports, SD/flash-drive | Wi-Fi and USB drive; 8 GB on-board storage[1] | USB and Wi-Fi[2] |
| Camera: built-in / optional? Resolution & framerate (verify — marketing often omits real fps) | AI camera fitted as standard, 1080p, with foreign-object detection and failure detection[6] | AI 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 documented | AI camera detects empty build plates and print errors[2] |
| Materials Support | ||
| Officially supported filament list | ABS, PLA, PETG, PET, TPU, PA, ASA, PC, PLA-CF, PA-CF, PET-CF[1] | 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's published firmware for the K1 series (CrealityOfficial/K1_Series_Klipper, GPL-3.0) is described by Creality itself as a clone of upstream Klipper, and upstream Klipper ships the verify_heater thermal-runaway check; whether Creality's stock printer.cfg enables it, and with what thresholds, was not checked here[8][9] | Not documented |
| Firmware safety limits (max temp cutoffs — exact values) | Not documented | Overheating 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 | ||
| Review scores from major outlets (list outlet + score + date) | Tom's Hardware rating 4.5 out of 5 in the page's structured data[11] | Not documented |
| Resin & MSLA | ||
| Masking LCD | Not documented | 7-inch 9K monochrome masking LCD, 8520 x 4320 px, XY pixel pitch 18 x 18 um (manufacturer specification)[2][4] |
| Light source | Not documented | 25-LED COB light source emitting a 405 nm UV beam (manufacturer specification)[2] |
| Light uniformity & intensity | Not documented | 92% light uniformity claimed by Elegoo. No intensity figure published, and no independent measurement[2] |
| Vertical print speedmm/h | Not documented | 150 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 times | Not documented | 1.5-3 s layer cure time (manufacturer figure; layer height not stated). Sortable value is the midpoint[2] |
| LCD life & replaceability | Not documented | Masking 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 & feeding | Not documented | Resin 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
- Creality K1C product page (full specification table) creality.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Elegoo Mars 5 Ultra product page (technical data and description) 3djake.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- ELEGOO Mars 5 Series collection (live US prices) us.elegoo.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- ELEGOO Mars 5 Series live product feed us.elegoo.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Creality US store - K1C 3D Printer product page (live price) store.creality.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Creality - Compare K1 Flagship Series (K1 / K1C / K1 Max / K1 SE side-by-side spec table) creality.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Elegoo Mars 5 product page (technical data and description) 3djake.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- GitHub API - CrealityOfficial/K1_Series_Klipper repository metadata ("clone from https://github.com/Klipper3d/klipper/", GPL-3.0, last push Dec 2025) api.github.com · 2026-08 · doc
- GitHub - CrealityOfficial organisation repositories (per-model firmware sources) github.com · 2026-08 · doc
- Creality US store - K1 3D Printer product page (live price, warranty and returns banner) store.creality.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Tom's Hardware - Creality K1C Review (spec box and measured print time) tomshardware.com · 2026-08 · review