The economics of 3D printing provide justification of why the use of 3D printing will be incorporated by many industries and consumers. Companies always try to find ways to reduce manufacturing costs. Consumers would prefer to purchase the best quality product at the least expensive price. 3D printing has the potential to reduce costs of manufacturing products that are of equal or better quality. As improvement is made in 3D printers and more functionality of 3D printers is achieved, 3D printers will be able to manufacture products more precisely and with less waste of material. As industry sees the benefit of this technology, the greater demand for these machines will lead to economies of scale for the production of 3D printers and thus ultimately allow these machines to be more affordable to both industry and individual consumers. Consumers may opt to purchase a 3D printer to create household and personal products rather than purchase them at a store because of cost and individual preference.

A life-cycle economic analysis study by the Department of Material Science & Engineering at Michigan Technological University on 3D printers found that self-replicating rapid prototypes (RepRaps) 3D printers, even with conservative assumptions, could save the average U. S. household hundreds to thousands of dollars per year in avoided purchases by printing commercial products in their own home. The study was conducted with 20 items that would be purchased by a household. RepRaps would provide a return on investment between 40% to 200%. With improvements in reliability, growth in open source designs and a drop in costs, 3D printers will become a mass-market produced product.

One of the other economical advantages of 3D printing is their ability to reduce costs from disintermediation. By reducing the parties involved in the production of a product, the overall price of that product is lowered. The consumer can also be more involved in the product’s development. 3D printers can allow for the quick manufacturing of products at any location, which can lower transportation costs for that product and provide a priceless benefit of convenience or reduced waiting for the particular product. The following video demonstrates how 3D printing has revolutionized the production of soft tissue prostheses.
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The future of 3D printing is immense. We will see an increase in innovation from user communities in many industries. This can be anticipated due to several factors, which include a better understanding of modular design, a decrease in design and collaboration costs from less expensive computerized design tools and a decline in communication costs. These factors will also allow for less expensive innovation from individual consumers, which will be an additional driving force behind the emergence of 3D printers in our society.