Bambu Lab X1C vs Prusa MK4: A Cost-Per-Print Comparison
The X1C is faster. The MK4 has a longer lifespan estimate and lower purchase price. Which one actually costs less per print depends on your volume and workflow.
The Bambu Lab X1C and the Prusa MK4 are the two machines most often recommended for serious hobbyists and small print farms. They have different philosophies, different price points, and very different speed profiles. Here is what the numbers look like when you run both through a proper cost model.
Purchase price and depreciation
Bambu X1C: approximately £1,100–1,200 (combo version with AMS). Rated lifespan: approximately 3,000 print-hours, giving a depreciation rate of around £0.37–0.40 per print-hour.
Prusa MK4: approximately £700–800. Rated lifespan: 5,000 print-hours or more (Prusa machines are repairable to an unusual degree — many MK3S+ machines have been running for 5+ years). Depreciation rate: approximately £0.14–0.16 per print-hour.
The MK4 costs £300–500 less upfront and depreciates significantly slower. On pure machine cost, the MK4 wins clearly.
Speed and print-hours per day
The X1C prints at 300–500 mm/s in Core XY mode with input shaping compensation. In practice, most FDM prints complete 2–3× faster on the X1C than on the MK4 at equivalent quality. For a print that takes 4 hours on an MK4, the X1C finishes in 90–120 minutes.
That speed difference is a business input, not just a convenience. If you sell prints, faster cycle times mean more revenue per day from the same machine. If machine depreciation is charged per print-hour rather than per print, the X1C's faster completion also means fewer hours of wear per job.
Electricity cost
X1C at full speed: approximately 150 W average (the machine draws more during heating but less during actual printing once enclosure is up to temperature). MK4: approximately 85 W average.
For a 4-hour MK4 print vs. a 1.5-hour X1C print: MK4 costs 0.085 × 4 × 0.24 = £0.082. X1C costs 0.15 × 1.5 × 0.24 = £0.054. The X1C uses less electricity per print despite being higher wattage, because it finishes faster.
Failure rate and support
The X1C with its AMS multi-material system adds failure modes (filament runouts, tangling, AMS jams) that a single-material MK4 does not have. For single-material printing, the X1C is very reliable. For multi-material, budget more troubleshooting time.
Prusa has a decades-long reputation for repairability — virtually every part is available separately, the community Wiki covers every known failure mode, and the open firmware means you can fix things yourself. Bambu Lab is improving its parts availability but is newer to the market.
Which makes sense for you?
At low volume (under 100 prints per month), the MK4's lower upfront cost is hard to beat and the speed difference matters less. At moderate to high volume (200+ prints per month), the X1C's speed advantage starts to generate measurable extra revenue that offsets the higher purchase price within 6–12 months.
For multi-colour or multi-material printing, the X1C with AMS is the clear choice — there is no comparable workflow on the MK4 (a multi-material upgrade exists but is complex).
Run both scenarios through PrintCostCalc with your actual print volumes and electricity rate to see which comes out cheaper for your specific situation.