Sketch
Updated 7 September 2026 · Live prices on every page load from Amazon US + UK
Buy on Amazon.com - $880.00 →Affiliate link. Price live from the marketplace, not cached.
At a glance
What this printer gets right and wrong
Nothing jumps out on the spec sheet as a standout feature at this price.
- ! Bedslinger design - expect ringing artefacts on tall prints at speed.
- ! 3.4 L build volume - fine for calibration prints and small parts, awkward for anything bigger than a mug.
Head-to-head spec + price table against the MakerBot Sketch. Verified printers on this marketplace only.
At this price you're well past the sweet spot for a first printer. There's no shame in starting with something cheaper - you'll learn more on a 200-400 machine and have money left for filament.
Bedslinger with middling flow rate - you already have one of these. The whole point of upgrading is speed, rigidity, or print quality that your current machine can't hit. This doesn't clear that bar.
No active heated chamber or a hot end that tops out below 280°C means no reliable ABS, ASA, nylon or PC. Fine for a hobbyist, wrong tool for commercial work in engineering materials.
Verdicts are rule-driven from the spec sheet and current price ($880). They don't capture firmware polish, support quality, or reliability - so treat them as a sanity check, not a final answer.
Live offers
Every live listing on the English-language Amazon marketplaces that I've matched to this printer. Cheapest first. Affiliate links.
- 🇺🇸 MakerBot Sketch 3D Printer with Fused Deposition Modelling Print Technology and Layer Resolution of 100 to 400 Microns (Black, Large)Amazon.com · Used$880.00View
- 🇺🇸 MakerBot Sketch Single-Printer Setup 3D Printer with Cloud Printing File Management Software for One Teacher and Five StudentsAmazon.com · New$1099.99View
- 🇺🇸 MakerBot Sketch Classroom Printer Setup Bundle (Black)Amazon.com · New$2299.00View
- 🇺🇸 MakerBot K-12 EDU Sketch & Sketch Large BundleAmazon.com · New$3882.90View
Close alternatives - what $880 gets you elsewhere
Think of this like the shopping-cart upsell: here's what a tenner more or less could buy you in roughly the same category. Same FDM tech, same marketplace, all prices live. Stretches are data-driven; they're not sponsored placements.
Save the money, similar specs on paper. You'd give up: nothing obvious on the spec sheet.
Get: 12.3 L more build volume (15.6 L) · 290°C hot end (was —°C).
Get: 39.5 L more build volume (42.9 L) · 350°C hot end (was —°C).
Frequently asked
What materials can the MakerBot Sketch print? +
At $880 the MakerBot Sketch realistically prints PLA and TPU. The listed°C hot end is too tight for PETG with confidence and rules out ABS/nylon entirely.
How big can I print on the MakerBot Sketch? +
150×150×150 mm (3.4 L). Small build area. Fine for calibration prints, minis, keychains, small functional parts. Awkward for anything bigger than a coffee mug.
Is the MakerBot Sketch worth $880? +
$880 is serious hobbyist territory. For the MakerBot Sketch to justify this over a $500 machine it needs to deliver genuine speed (volumetric flow), reliability at speed, or access to engineering materials. Check the spec table above against those three.
