3D Printing InfoPrinter comparison
FlashForge Creator 4 vs Original Prusa XL+ Five-Head
Compare hardware, build volume, printing specifications, dated prices and sources.
2 selected · all documented properties
Open these two in the interactive comparisonMore FlashForge Creator 4 comparisonsMore Original Prusa XL+ Five-Head comparisons
| Property | FlashForge Creator 4IDEX | Original Prusa XL+ Five-HeadTOOLCHANGER |
|---|---|---|
| Identity | ||
| Brand | FlashForge | Prusa Research |
| Class | IDEX | TOOLCHANGER |
| Identity & Market | ||
| Manufacturer & exact marketed model name (verify the exact product identity first) | Flashforge Creator 4, sold in A and S configurations (Creator 4A, Creator 4S)[1] | Original Prusa XL+, Five-Head variant ("Prusa XL+ Five-Head" in the e-shop variant data)[2] |
| Release date (announcement and actual shipping) | Not documented | The XL+ refresh was announced on 13 August 2026, on sale immediately in all toolhead configurations, with assembled printers shipping later in August 2026 and upgrade kits for existing XL owners from around the end of August. The original Original Prusa XL predates it[3] |
| Street price (USD; dated snapshot per entry) | $10,999.00 at Top 3D Shop with a 2-3 week lead time, checked Aug 2026[1] | $3,610.18 on prusa3d.com, Aug 2026 (lowest listed price for the Five-Head variant; the 5-toolhead Enclosure bundle starts at $3,925.00)[2] |
| Variants & sibling models — and how to tell them apart (spec-contamination risk) | Two factory configurations that share the chassis but not the temperature ceiling: Creator 4A ships 2 x HT extruders (320 °C max, no composite support), Creator 4S ships 1 x HT + 1 x HS (360 °C max, supports PA-CF, PA-GF, PP-CF, PPS-CF). A third extruder type, F, is rated 265 °C and intended for flexibles. Any published "360 °C" figure applies only to the HS head[1] | Top XL+ configuration. Single-Tool $2,128.70, Dual-Head $2,768.52, Five-Head $3,610.18 (Aug 2026); same frame, bed, electronics and build volume in all three. Prusa markets it as the largest active toolchanger on the market and states a silicone-printing toolhead is due in Q4 2026[2][4] |
| Physical & Frame | ||
| Build volume X×Y×Z (mm) — advertised vs actually usable | 400 x 350 x 500 mm[1] | 360 x 360 x 360 mm, which Prusa states as 46.7 litres[2] |
| Machine footprint (mm) & clearance needed (cable/spool overhang) | 840 x 675 x 1000 mm (1050 mm on the stand). FlashForge specifies an installation space of at least 1400 x 1500 x 1600 mm[1] | About 700 x 900 x 720 mm (Prusa's own figure is approximate)[2] |
| Net weight (kg) | 90 kg net[1] | About 30 kg[2] |
| Frame construction & material | Fully enclosed professional chassis on a stand[1] | Aluminium extrusions and steel sheets (Prusa's comparison table for the XL)[5] |
| Enclosure: open / enclosed; panel material; door/lid | Fully enclosed with HEPA 13 filtration and an actively controlled chamber[1] | Open frame. The Enclosure for Prusa XL+ is an optional add-on; Prusa says the printer is ready for chamber temperatures up to 60 C, that the new better-sealed enclosure reaches around 50 C on the printer's own waste heat, and that 60 C needs an upcoming chamber heater for which no shipping date has been given[2][3] |
| Passive chamber temperature reached (if enclosed; measured values preferred) | Up to 65 °C, actively controlled (manufacturer claim)[1] | Not documented |
| Kinematics & Motion Hardware | ||
| Kinematics (bedslinger i3 / CoreXY / other) | IDEX — two independently driven extruders on the same gantry[1] | CoreXY with 1.5 mm GT belts, Input Shaper and Phase Stepping[2] |
| Belts (type, width, e.g. Gates?) | Not documented | 1.5 mm GT belts[2] |
| Speed & Acceleration | ||
| Max print speed (claimed, mm/s) | 10-200 mm/s, adjustable per material. On the 4S the HS head is quoted 100-150 mm/s and the HT head 100-200 mm/s (manufacturer figures)[1] | Not documented |
| Vibration Compensation / Input Shaping | ||
| Input shaping supported? Implementation (Klipper IS / Marlin ZV / proprietary) | Not documented | Input Shaper and Phase Stepping[2] |
| Extruder | ||
| Type (direct drive / bowden) & design name | Direct drive, two independent extruders, interchangeable modules (F / HT / HS)[1] | Nextruder direct drive; each toolhead carries its own extruder, hotend, nozzle and filament[2] |
| Hotend & Nozzle | ||
| Hotend design (proprietary/standard; quick-swap mechanism?) | Not documented | Quick-swap nozzles - 0.25 mm for detail, 0.6/0.8 mm for speed, hardened steel for abrasives, high-flow CHT for throughput; toolheads ship with high-flow nozzles[2] |
| Max nozzle temp claimed AND firmware max temp limit (both values) | Depends on the fitted extruder module: F 265 °C, HT 320 °C, HS 360 °C[1] | 290 C claimed max nozzle temperature[2] |
| Stock nozzle size & sizes included in box | 0.4 mm default; 0.6 and 0.8 mm optional[1] | Not documented |
| Heated Bed & Surface | ||
| Max bed temp claimed AND firmware limit | 130 °C maximum (manufacturer claim)[1] | 120 C max heatbed temperature[2] |
| Bed surface (material, texture, coating), single/double-sided | Not documented | Segmented heatbed of 16 individually controlled tiles across the 360 x 360 mm surface, so only the tiles under the part are powered; removable double-sided satin print sheet supplied[2] |
| Leveling & Z-Offset | ||
| Auto bed leveling: probe technology (inductive / strain gauge / load cell / touch probe) | Automatic bed levelling; FlashForge does not name the probe technology in this spec table[1] | Load-cell sensor - the nozzle is the probe, which Prusa says automatically accounts for nozzle changes, surface textures and thermal expansion and removes manual Z-offsets. Toolhead-to-toolhead alignment on the XL+ uses a separate permanently mounted eddy-current Tool Offset Sensor, replacing the removable mechanical pin used on the original XL[2][3] |
| Filament Handling & Detection | ||
| Filament runout sensor (type, location) | Not documented | Filament sensors fitted; Prusa's comparison table lists two filament sensors for the XL[5] |
| Spool holder location & max spool size; drybox compatibility | Two spool bays, 1 kg and 2 kg capacity[1] | Not documented |
| Multi-material/multi-color capability or official upgrade path | Not documented | Up to five independent toolheads with automatic tool changing; five materials or five nozzle sizes loaded at once, fed from up to five 2 kg spools for multi-day unattended runs. Parked heads stay preheated and power down when unused[2] |
| Cooling & Air Handling | ||
| Part-cooling fan(s): count, size, ducting design | Not documented | 360-degree part cooling on each toolhead, new on the XL+ and matching the MK4S and CORE One arrangement; Prusa states it delivers more airflow and distributes it more evenly around the nozzle. Additional fans and heatsinks cool the electronics. Fan sizes are not published[2][3] |
| Electronics & Power | ||
| Mainboard model & MCU (exact chip markings if teardowns exist) | Not documented | Custom 32-bit xBuddy electronics with STM32 (Prusa's comparison table for the XL)[5] |
| Input voltage (110/220 V, switch or auto) | AC 100-130 V / 200-240 V, 50-60 Hz, 30 A overcurrent protection[1] | Not documented |
| Total rated power draw | 2320 W rated[1] | Not documented |
| Firmware & Openness | ||
| Firmware base & current version (Klipper fork / Marlin fork / proprietary) | Not named; the supported slicer is FlashPrint[1] | Open-source firmware - Prusa states "Firmware: Open-source; ships with the full current Prusa feature set", and the XL is covered by the prusa3d/Prusa-Firmware-Buddy source tree[2][6] |
| Connectivity, UI & Camera | ||
| Display: size, type, touch? | 7-inch touchscreen, 1024 x 600[1] | 3.5-inch 65k-colour screen with touch control (Prusa's comparison table for the XL)[5] |
| On-device UI capabilities (model preview, per-object controls, etc.) | Not documented | On-device touch UI; Prusa Connect and the Prusa mobile app are optional - Prusa states the machine is fully offline capable[5][2] |
| WiFi (band/standard), Ethernet, USB ports, SD/flash-drive | USB flash drive, Ethernet, Wi-Fi[1] | Ethernet, optional Wi-Fi; USB drive for print files. Prusa Connect optional and fully offline operation supported[2][5] |
| Materials Support | ||
| Officially supported filament list | Standard and engineering plastics on the HT head; the HS head adds PA-CF, PA-GF, PP-CF and PPS-CF. Materials such as PC, PA and carbon fibre are the stated targets for the 130 °C bed[1] | PLA, PETG, ASA, ABS, PC, PA (nylon), TPU, PVA, HIPS, PP, CPE, PVB and carbon-fibre composites. Prusa states an open material policy - any brand of 1.75 mm filament, no chips and no subscriptions[2] |
| Safety | ||
| Thermal runaway protection (verify in firmware source if at all possible) | Not documented | Open-source firmware on the xBuddy platform, which carries hardware overcurrent protection cutting heater and heatbed power above 15 A[7][6] |
| Reliability, Support & Ecosystem | ||
| Warranty length & support reputation (evidence, not vibes) | 12 months on the printer, 3 months on extruder parts[1] | 2-year warranty for consumers in the EU, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, Norway and Iceland; 1 year for EU enterprises and 1 year for the rest of the world, which includes the United States. A printer bought from a reseller or privately carries 1 year from the original delivery date and is handled by the reseller. Prusa advertises 24/7 chat and e-mail support in seven languages[8][5] |
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
- Flashforge Creator 4 (A/S) product listing with full spec table top3dshop.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Original Prusa XL+ product page (spec block and variant price data) prusa3d.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Prusa blog - Better Prints, Easier Use: Prusa XL+, CORE One L+ and CORE One+ (Gen 2), Our Big Product Update (published 13 August 2026) blog.prusa3d.com · 2026-08 · doc
- Prusa 3D printers category listing with live e-shop prices, Aug 2026 prusa3d.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Original Prusa MK4S 3D Printer product page (Technical Parameters + CORE One+/MK4S/XL comparison table) prusa3d.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- GitHub - prusa3d/Prusa-Firmware-Buddy (firmware for MINI, MK4, XL and CORE One) github.com · 2026-08 · doc
- Prusa blog - Original Prusa MK4 is here (published 29 March 2023), including the MK4 specification table and launch prices blog.prusa3d.com · 2026-08 · doc
- Prusa Knowledge Base - Warranty help.prusa3d.com · 2026-08 · doc