Desktop 3D Printing Market (By Component; By Technology; By Software; By Application: Prototyping, Tooling, Functional Parts; By Vertical; By Material) - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends, Revenue, Regional Outlook and Forecast 2024-2033

The global desktop 3D printing market size was estimated at around USD 4.85 billion in 2023 and it is projected to hit around USD 39.84 billion by 2033, growing at a CAGR of 23.44% from 2024 to 2033. 

Key Pointers

• North America dominated the global market in 2023 accounting for a share of more than 35% of the overall revenue.  
• North America region is expected to grow at a CAGR of 21.25% from 2024 to 2033.
• The hardware component dominated the global market, registering a revenue share of 67% in 2023. It is expected to grow at a CAGR of 23.04% over the forecast period. 
• The software segment is the second dominating segment based on the component in 2023, gaining a share of 29%. 
• The digital light processing segment dominated the overall desktop 3D printing hardware industry in 2023, gaining a share of 23%. 
• The stereolithography segment is expected to witness a significant CAGR of 22.14% during the forecast period. 
• The prototyping segment is expected to grow at the fastest CAGR of 23.85% from 2024 to 2033. 
• The plastic segment is expected to dominate in 2023 with a 53% share of the overall revenue.
• The metal segment is predicted to expand at the fastest CAGR of 31.85% throughout the forecast period. 
• The design software segment dominated the market in 2023, gaining a revenue share of 42%.
• The scanning software is projected to witness the fastest CAGR of 24.85% from 2024 to 2033.

Desktop 3D Printing Market Growth Factors

The growth of the desktop 3D printing market is driven by an advancement in technology have led to the development of more affordable and user-friendly printers, expanding the accessibility of 3D printing to individuals and small businesses. Additionally, the versatility of desktop 3D printing technology allows for a wide range of applications across various industries, from rapid prototyping to customized manufacturing. Moreover, the decreasing cost of 3D printers and materials, along with the availability of open-source designs and software, has democratized access to this technology. As a result, the desktop 3D printing market is experiencing significant growth, with continued innovation driving further expansion and adoption.

Report Scope of the Desktop 3D Printing Market

Desktop 3D Printing Market Trends:

• Customization and Personalization: Increasing demand for customized, one-of-a-kind products across industries such as fashion, jewelry, and consumer goods is driving the adoption of desktop 3D printing, allowing for unique designs tailored to individual preferences.
• Sustainability: With a growing emphasis on sustainable manufacturing practices, desktop 3D printing offers significant environmental benefits by minimizing material waste and energy consumption compared to traditional manufacturing methods, aligning with corporate sustainability goals.
• Industry 4.0 Integration: Desktop 3D printing is becoming increasingly integrated into Industry 4.0 initiatives, enabling digital connectivity, automation, and on-demand production in smart manufacturing environments, leading to greater efficiency and flexibility in production processes.
• Materials Innovation: Ongoing research and development efforts are focused on expanding the range of materials compatible with desktop 3D printing, including biodegradable polymers, recycled materials, and advanced composites, unlocking new possibilities for functional prototypes, end-use parts, and specialized applications.
• Accessibility and Education: Educational institutions and training centers are incorporating desktop 3D printing into their curricula to teach students about design, engineering, and manufacturing processes, fostering creativity, innovation, and hands-on learning experiences.

Component Insights

In terms of components, the market is classified into hardware, software, and services. The hardware component dominated the global market, registering a revenue share of 67% in 2023. It is expected to grow at a CAGR of 23.04% over the forecast period. Rapid prototyping and advanced manufacturing practices have fueled the growth of the hardware segment.

Factors including increasing penetration of consumer electronic products, rapid industrialization, and urbanization, developing civil infrastructure, and optimized labor costs have propelled the hardware segment's growth over the forecast period. The hardware is responsible for producing end parts with similar parameters, including the orientation, position, and placement of components concerning other elements in the print bed. However, the reliability and accuracy of desktop printers are a prime challenge for hardware manufacturers as the fabrication of metals remains crucial.

The software segment is the second dominating segment based on the component in 2023, gaining a share of 29%. It is expected to grow at a notable CAGR of 23.95% over the forecast period. Increasing demand for efficient automation of project and production management for 3D manufacturing has increased the market for the software segment. Each step of the production process in 3D printing primarily depends on software. In addition to automating production operations like build preparation and machine scheduling, the software can provide real-time production data and insights.

Technology Insights

Based on technology, the market is classified into stereolithography, fuse deposition modeling, selective laser sintering, digital light processing, laminated object manufacturing, and others. The digital light processing segment dominated the overall desktop 3D printing hardware industry in 2023, gaining a share of 23%. It is expected to grow at the highest CAGR of 24.56% during the forecast period. Increasing demand for jewelry production and manufacturing of parts with minute and fine details has increased the adoption of digital light processing across several industry verticals. Digital light processing is similar to that of stereolithography, wherein a safelight (light bulb) is used instead of UV laser to cure the photopolymer resin.

The stereolithography segment is expected to witness a significant CAGR of 22.14% during the forecast period. The stereolithography process enables users to create concept models, complex parts with intricate designs, and rapid prototypes for cosmetics. The process is one of the several methods used to build 3D-printed objects and is amongst the most traditional methods. The technique incorporates the stereolithography apparatus (SLA), which transforms liquid plastic into solid objects. The technology has gained momentum since it makes highly accurate parts using advanced materials and offers isotropic and watertight prototypes featuring a fine and smooth surface finish.

Application Insights

The market is classified into prototyping, tooling, and functional parts based on application. The functional parts segment is expected to dominate the market throughout the forecast period, growing at a CAGR of 23.23%. The prominent growth can be attributed to the increasing demand for designing and building functional parts. 3D printing is a versatile process that is used to create anything from desk trinkets, ornaments, and functioning parts, among others.

Smaller joints and other metallic hardware connecting components are examples of functional parts. When developing machinery and systems, the accuracy of these functioning pieces and their precise sizing are essential. 3D printing of functional parts offers users to easily fabricate the prototype without relying on machine shop resources, allowing iteration with shorter lead times leading to lessened fabrication costs and reduced time to market.

The prototyping segment is expected to grow at the fastest CAGR of 23.85% from 2024 to 2033. The market for the prototyping segment has witnessed extensive adoption across several industry verticals. The automotive, aerospace, and defense verticals use prototyping to design and develop parts, components, and complex systems. Prototyping offers highly accurate results allowing manufacturers to build reliable end products. Hence, the segment is anticipated to continue dominating the market during the forecast period.

Material Insights

The market is classified into plastic, metal, and ceramic segments in terms of material. The plastic segment is expected to dominate in 2023 with a 53% share of the overall revenue. The demand for plastic to create 3D-printed molds has increased due to its highly flexible manufacturing capabilities. Plastic is comparatively inexpensive, readily available, and suitable for several extrusion processes. Moreover, researchers are conducting extensive research and development to innovate new polymers by synthesizing several polymers and blending them with existing raw materials to ensure better performance in the final product.

On the other hand, the metal segment is predicted to expand at the fastest CAGR of 31.85% throughout the forecast period. The metal used for 3D printing is becoming more popular as the demand for direct fabrication of complex end-use parts grows. Metals enable tooling for traditional manufacturing technologies easier, lowering costs and shortening lead times. Metal 3D printing blends 3D printing's design flexibility with metal's mechanical qualities.

Software Insights

The market is classified into design software, inspection software, printer software, and scanning software segments based on software category. The design software segment dominated the market in 2023, gaining a revenue share of 42% and is expected to retain its dominance over the forecast period. Design software allows users in the automotive, construction, aerospace and defense, and engineering verticals to create designs of the object to be printed. Design software acts as a bridge between the components to be printed and the printer’s hardware.

On the other hand, the scanning software is projected to witness the fastest CAGR of 24.85% during the forecast period. The growing popularity of scanning items and saving scanned papers is expected to increase the demand for scanning software. Scanning software maintains images of objects regardless of size or dimensions for 3-dimensional printing of these products as needed.

Vertical Insights

The market is classified into education, fashion & jewelry, objects, dental/healthcare, food, and other segments in terms of vertical. The dental/healthcare segment dominated with a 25% share of the overall revenue. Due to the active implementation of technology in many production processes related to this vertical, the healthcare vertical is expected to contribute considerably to the expansion of desktop additive manufacturing during the projection period. AM contributes to developing artificial tissues and muscles that mimic actual human tissues and can be utilized in replacement surgeries in the healthcare sector. These features are likely to aid in adopting desktop 3D printers in the healthcare sector and contribute considerably to the vertical's growth.

The fashion & jewelry segment is anticipated to witness notable growth at a CAGR of 24.26% over the forecast period. The increasing adoption of 3D printing in manufacturing miniatures, imitation jewelry, clothing, apparel, and art and craft has propelled the market growth. The concepts of investment casting and lost wax casting are integrated with the capabilities of a digital design and manufacturing process for manufacturing 3D-printed jewelry. Jewelers utilize CAD software tools to create digital designs, and these designs are then fed into a high-resolution 3D printer to print the 3D printed patterns, which are cast into the mold. 3D printing minimizes time-intensive manual labor and allows users to efficiently preserve the design, modify and recreate it when required.

Regional Insights

North America dominated the global market in 2023 accounting for a share of more than 35% of the overall revenue. The region is expected to grow at a CAGR of 21.25% throughout the forecast period. Factors such as the presence of significant players in the region and the ability of consumers to spend higher when compared to other regions are further expected to drive the market growth. Further, the use of 3D-printed metal components in private aerospace companies and the government sector, coupled with high defense expenditure in the U.S., is expected to propel market growth over the forecast period. The U.S. and Canada have primarily adopted 3D printing technology across several manufacturing processes, which has largely contributed to the development of the 3D printing industry over the forecast years. The regional market offers lucrative opportunities for additive manufacturing in different applications.

Europe is likely to emerge as the second most promising region during the forecast period. Rising technological advancements and large-scale adoption of additive manufacturing technology are the factors propelling growth in this region. Favorable government policies, increased funding for R&D, and technology standardization across Europe are expected to boost market growth over the forecast period. According to AMFG, a leading European player engaged in providing automation software for additive manufacturing, Europe is the region with the highest number of additive manufacturing firms.

Desktop 3D Printing Market Key Companies

• 3D Systems, Inc.
• 3DCeram
• Autodesk, Inc.
• Canon, Inc.
• Dassault Systèmes
• EnvisionTEC
• EOS (Electro Optical Systems) GmbH
• ExOne
• GE Additive
• Materialise NV
• Proto Labs, Inc.
• Shapeways, Inc.
• Stratasys Ltd.
• Voxeljet AG

Desktop 3D Printing Market Segmentations:

By Component 

• Hardware
• Software
• Services

By Technology 

• Stereolithography
• Fuse Deposition Modeling
• Selective Laser Sintering
• Digital Light Processing
• Laminated Object Manufacturing
• Others

By Software 

• Design Software
• Inspection Software
• Printer Software
• Scanning Software

By Application 

• Prototyping
• Tooling
• Functional Parts

By Vertical 

• Educational Purpose
• Fashion & Jewelry
• Objects
• Dental/Healthcare
• Food
• Others

By Material 

• Plastic
• Metal
• Ceramic

By Region

• North America
• Europe
• Asia Pacific
• South America
• Middle East & Africa