The Prusa Research CORE One+ and Snapmaker U1 are cross-brand rivals: both are prosumer-tier printers, listed $100 apart. Both are CoreXY printers with automatic calibration. The CORE One+ costs $100 more and gets you an enclosed chamber (with ABS, ASA, PA and PC on its materials list) and a top speed of 600 mm/s (vs 500); the U1 answers with 33% more build volume and support for PCTG and PVA.
Early in release cycle — no urgency to wait
🔧 Upgrade kit available — from CORE One+, MK4S
Best for: Makers who want CoreXY speed and precision with Prusa's open-source ethos, community support, and long-term repairability — without Bambu's closed ecosystem.
Full details →First-generation product — recently released, still early days
Best for: Multicolor and multi-material hobbyists who want a true tool changer (four separate hotends, soluble supports, TPU and PLA in one print) for well under $1,000, and tinkerers who value Klipper-based firmware they can inspect and modify.
Full details →| Prusa Research CORE One+ | Snapmaker U1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | ||
| Starting Price | $999 | ★ $899 |
| Print Specs | ||
| Tier | Prosumer | Prosumer |
| Motion | CoreXY | CoreXY |
| Build Volume | 250 × 220 × 270 mm | ★ 270 × 270 × 270 mm |
| Max Speed | ★ 600 mm/s | 500 mm/s |
| Multicolor | ★ ✅ 8 slots | ✅ 4 slots |
| Enclosure | ★ ✅ | ❌ |
| Auto Calibration | ✅ | ✅ |
| Open Source | ✅ | ✅ |
| Upgrade Kit | 🔧 From CORE One+, MK4S | — |
| Buy Timing | ||
| Released | Aug 13, 2026 | Apr 10, 2026 |
| Cycle length | ~209 days | — |
| Cycle advice | Buy | Buy |
| Deals advice | Caution | Buy |
| Next model | — | — |
The CORE One+ was released on Aug 13, 2026, 91 days ago. Its previous release cycle ran about 209 days, so it is 44% of the way through — roughly 118 days before a successor would be due at that pace.
The U1 was released on Apr 10, 2026, 216 days ago. It is a first-generation product, so there is no earlier cycle to predict its successor from.
Both are early enough in their cycles that timing should not decide this one. The CORE One+ has roughly 118 days of runway on past cadence and the U1 launched 216 days ago. Pick on features and price.
Cycle and deal status as of November 12, 2026. See the launch calendar →
The U1 lists at $899 and the CORE One+ at $999 — $100 apart, so the CORE One+ costs 11% more.
Per litre of build volume, that works out to $67 for the CORE One+ versus $46 for the U1 — the U1 is both cheaper and roomier, so it wins on value outright.
If you are buying before Dec 5, 2026, the active sale tips value toward the U1.
Our pick for most buyers is the CORE One+, for an enclosed chamber (with ABS, ASA, PA and PC on its materials list) and a top speed of 600 mm/s (vs 500), plus a higher editor score (9.0 vs 8.4). Go for the U1 instead if you want to spend less — it is $100 cheaper ($899 vs $999).
How we judge timing and deals: read our methodology →
The CORE One+ matches Bambu CoreXY speed (600 mm/s) while keeping everything open source — firmware, hardware, slicing profiles.
Unlike Bambu's closed ecosystem, every component of the CORE One+ can be modified, repaired, or community-improved.
The CORE One+ (Gen 2) can be ordered with Prusa's INDX toolchanger in 4- or 8-tool versions, shipping from 15 October 2026. Each material gets its own nozzle, with about 12 seconds per material change and almost no purge waste. The MMU3 remains compatible as a 5-color add-on.
Each filament has its own preheated hotend, and swaps take about 5 seconds. Multicolor prints skip the purge tower and filament waste of single-nozzle switching systems.
Separate hotends mean PLA with PVA or breakaway supports, or rigid PLA with TPU, in one print. Single-nozzle multicolor systems handle these combinations poorly.
Snapmaker has published its Klipper, Moonraker and Fluidd forks on GitHub, and Snapmaker Orca is built on Orca Slicer. There is already an active community firmware project. RFID filament recognition stays proprietary.