Production costs, product creation, orders, wallet, the API, integrations, and stock.
50 articlesManufacturing cost is calculated per item based on material volume/weight, print time, post-processing time (e.g. removing supports and stringing) and any external hardware needed, as well as any custom filaments being used.
The final production cost is the manufacturing cost plus 10% of the sales price as the 3DAPI commission. The production cost is guaranteed to be the same regardless of the region of manufacturing.
The biggest factors generally are material weight and print time.
There are a few major ways to reduce the production cost:
Yes. Ordering as bulk stock unlocks lower per-unit production costs, usually with significant discounts. See Stock management & bulk pricing.
The ideal file format is 3MF made with BambuSlicer for P1S/P2S/X1C, to preserve your exact print settings. Other 3MF files, as well as STL and OBJ, are also accepted.
Yes. Uploaded models go through an automated printability check and auto-pricing system before the listing can go live, catching issues that would otherwise cause print failures.
If the printability check fails, or the model has potential issues, an admin reviews the file within 1 to 2 days and provides feedback.
Variants, defined uniquely as SKU codes, are configured in each product's Edit page.
For different colors or materials, the material selection needs to be made for the original file, then matched in the Variants table dropdown for that file. For different sizes, you can upload multiple files for each product, and select which files are referenced by each Variant/SKU.
At 3DAPI we have a set of standard materials, shown below, that can be used without any extra pricing, as we stock and use them at all locations.
You can also use custom materials, where you specify the color and optionally the filament brand that you need. These are generally charged a bit more, and in some cases require the upfront purchase of the first roll of the specialty filament per location.
Standard materials (generic brand):
A few examples of custom materials we've handled without issues: Bambu PLA Basic colors, Polymaker Matte PLA, TPU, Overture PLA, ABS, ASA, PA6CF12, PLA-CF.
Custom materials are sometimes not available in certain regions due to shortages or simply not being present. In such cases we'll let you know promptly.
Yes. An eco-friendly or recycled brand of filament can be used as a custom material setting.
The most common brands used in our network are Polymaker, eSun, and Bambu, based on availability. Often smaller farms will also use local filament brands, as long as they meet the quality standards.
From our experience and the wider community: Polymaker is recommended for color stability between batches and continents; Bambu is recommended for color choice and PLA with extra features like Granite or Sparkle; eSun is recommended for toughness.
Polymaker has been internationally available almost without issues, while Bambu and eSun saw shortages over the past months in certain regions.
Based on order channel, there are 3 types:
Stock orders are a special kind of order for parts that will be later used in normal orders. Bulk orders do not currently have an interface with automated discounts; they can be made as No Profit orders, or you can reach out for an offer.
For personalized orders, you can upload a separate product file manually or via API, or reach out to us to get a custom setup.
For custom setups, personalization is captured via the Customer notes field with Channel B or No Profit orders, or via a personalization field with Channel A imports.
Not in most cases, as we generally complete the orders as soon as possible.
Not with the current system. Our stated lead times are 3 to 5 days to ship, with the average effective lead time around 2 days. Please reach out if that is a need.
You can place prototype orders using the No Profit order menu; they are treated with the normal order flow.
3DAPI takes care of the financial tracking of your orders through the account's wallet system. Your wallet balance covers almost every financial operation on the platform:
What it does not cover is the subscription tiers and their add-ons, as those need a card.
The Wallet page contains both the full history and a few options for exporting all the data you might need.
Top-ups can be made by card or bank transfer from your dashboard.
There is also an Auto Top-Up function on your Wallet page, where you can set a threshold for refilling the wallet balance automatically.
The order will be imported with status 'unpaid', will notify you, and will wait for payment before being auto-routed by our systems.
You can request a partial or full withdrawal of your funds at any time from the Wallet page.
API access and keys are issued from your dashboard once your account is verified; availability may depend on your tier. Access to the Designer Orders endpoints requires account approval.
To get approved:
Note: if your account is blacklisted, all API requests will be rejected with 403 Forbidden. For the full API documentation, visit the API docs.
There are 2 ShipStation integrations available: ShipStation 3PL, and using the 3DAPI ShipStation.
All products sold on any sales platform have an SKU. To import an order into 3DAPI, those SKUs need to match a 3DAPI Variant/SKU code, which in turn matches the product files and settings.
We often run onboarding campaigns, so reach out to see if we're currently offering that. If so, we'll take care of your product and photo upload, SKU generation and SKU matching.
Shopify is currently in development, estimated to finish in July to August 2026. Etsy is already underway, currently pending admin reapprovals; due to Etsy's restrictive process, we do not have an ETA. Shippo is the next integration in the development plan, estimated for October 2026.
We are continuously making new integrations, so reach out to see the latest list. In select cases, we can make a rush integration for your specific provider on request.
The fastest option for integrating a provider not currently available is via the API. We've built the documentation to be AI-compatible, so vibe-coding a solution can be a quick and easy option.
Install via OAuth from the Shopify App Store. Per Shopify's requirement 1.2.1, billing is split: the app subscription (Pro tier) runs through Shopify's Billing API, while physical goods payments run through your 3DAPI Wallet with embedded margin, since those aren't app charges.
ShipStation is an order aggregator platform, most popular with US-based businesses.
If you want to route all your orders, we recommend connecting your stores to the 3DAPI ShipStation. In this scenario, you do not need an account.
If you want to route only some of your orders, ShipStation 3PL is the way. This means having your own ShipStation account and the 3PL add-on they offer. Through the 3PL add-on, you can make automatic routing rules to the 3DAPI ShipStation account, which takes care of the rest.
This is 3DAPI's own ShipStation connection, natively routing across the ~13 supported sales channels, rather than you connecting your own separate ShipStation account.
Connecting a store to a ShipStation account requires logging in with that store's details into ShipStation. For Shopify, you can create a secondary user for the store and share those credentials with the 3DAPI team. For Etsy, they only allow a single account per store, so you'll set up a quick 10-minute call with an admin to input your details into our account live.
3DAPI operates as a 3PL warehouse node inside ShipStation, so orders routed through your existing ShipStation setup can be fulfilled by 3DAPI's network. See ShipStation's 3PL add-on overview for up-to-date details.
In short, share your ShipStation account name with an admin and we'll send you an invite. Once accepted, you can delegate orders to our account and system.
Manual orders can be entered directly on the No Profit Orders page.
Yes. One 3DAPI account can connect multiple sales channels simultaneously.
Stock refers to pre-printed and pre-purchased inventory held ahead of demand, rather than printed on-demand per order.
The core concept: printing and handling a batch of the same products is more efficient, and much cheaper, for the manufacturing process, and therefore for you as the buyer. Stocks are parts, whether 3D printed in a batch or packs of external hardware, that are later used in on-demand order fulfillment.
Stocks need to be purchased upfront per region. Once made, they can be used in normal order fulfillment, bringing your unit cost much lower.
Bulk pricing applies above a minimum quantity threshold and reduces the per-unit production cost, scaling further at higher quantities. This is not currently available in the UI, only on request.
Stock pricing has the same general parameters as on-demand pricing. The price difference comes from the print efficiency of filling build plates, and the human efficiency of handling an entire batch of products at once.
We've seen products where switching from on-demand manufacturing to Stocks reduced production costs to 50%, 30%, or even less of the on-demand cost, simply by optimizing print scheduling and manufacturing workflows.
If you need to drop even lower, reach out at contact@dapi.digital or through a support ticket. We often offer discounts for larger orders.
The biggest savings typically come when:
Yes. In the product page, you can enable which Stocks you want used, and add them individually for each Variant. This works alongside the on-demand designs uploaded for that product.
If the product Variant only needs Stock, the time-to-ship is lower than on-demand printing, around 2 days. Usually next day, as it only needs to be packed and shipped.
Time to complete an order for Stock depends on the nature and quantity of the Stock in question. Usually 1 to 2 weeks.
Stocks can be added via the Stock menu. A stock needs 3 things to be well defined: the number of units, the optimized file, and the material choice. For non-3D-printed stock, provide the purchase link for the external hardware instead.
The 3D printing file should be as optimized as you can, and must include all the plates that need to be printed. Images are appreciated, as they help explain and recognize the Stock in question.
Under Stocks, the Stock Levels page shows the level of stock for each region and stock you have.
Using the Stock Orders page, stocks can be manually ordered for each region you want. Stock can also be auto-managed by the system.
Orders with product SKUs that use that stock will be blocked: they cannot be assigned for fulfillment. The same applies if the stock is ordered but not yet ready for fulfillment.
Yes. In the Stock Dashboard menu, for each region you can set a minimum threshold and an auto-reorder value. Reorders need enough money in the wallet to be placed.
If you need a new unlisted region for a given stock, please reach out and we'll set it up for you.
Currently only our main regions and manufacturing nodes can use stock: USA, Europe, UK and Australia.
Stock sitting beyond a grace period incurs storage fees, according to your active subscription plan. After that, it can be disposed of or shipped to a desired location. Storage fees are paid from the wallet.