# What filaments can the Ender 3 print (stock hotend limits)?

Creality's comparison table lists the original Ender-3 as a Bowden machine for PLA, PETG, and ABS, with a 260 °C (500 °F) nozzle ceiling and a 110 °C (230 °F) bed. A Creality blog from 2020 says the hotend is not all-metal and caps it at 240 °C (464 °F) because of the PTFE tube, and names PLA, ABS, TPU, and PETG. Those two Creality pages disagree, and this catalog has no Ender-3 printer record.

Creality's comparison table lists the original Ender-3 as a Bowden machine for PLA, PETG, and ABS, with a 260 °C (500 °F) nozzle ceiling and a 110 °C (230 °F) bed. A Creality blog from 2020 says the hotend is not all-metal and caps it at 240 °C (464 °F) because of the PTFE tube, and names PLA, ABS, TPU, and PETG. Those two Creality pages disagree, and this catalog has no Ender-3 printer record.

The original Ender-3, on Creality's own comparison table, is a Bowden printer with a 0.4 mm nozzle, a 260 °C (500 °F) nozzle maximum, a 110 °C (230 °F) bed, and a filament list of PLA, PETG, and ABS. Creality's 2020 blog says the same hotend is PTFE-lined, not all-metal, and limited to 240 °C (464 °F), and it adds TPU to the list. Keep PLA inside both numbers. Treat a PETG profile that climbs past 240 °C (464 °F) as the disagreement, not as a third spec. [PLA printing](/answers/pla_print), [PETG printing](/answers/petg_print), [open printers](/answers/open-printer), [flexible filament](/answers/flex), and [PLA temperature](/answers/pla_temp) are the follow-ons. The [printer index](/printer) has no Ender-3 row.

## Two Creality pages, two ceilings

The [parameter comparison](https://store.creality.com/ca/blogs/all/ender-series-3d-printers-parameter-comparison) lists the original Ender-3, released 2018, as a Bowden extruder. Supported filaments are PLA, PETG, and ABS. Maximum nozzle temperature is 260 °C (500 °F). Maximum bed temperature is 110 °C (230 °F). The standard nozzle is 0.4 mm. On that same table the Ender-3 Pro adds TPU and PLA-Wood, still at 260 °C (500 °F) and 110 °C (230 °F). The Ender-3 V2 lists PLA, PETG, and TPU, with a 260 °C (500 °F) nozzle and a 100 °C (212 °F) bed. Later machines on the page, including ones with a 300 °C (572 °F) nozzle, are not the original Ender-3.

The [2020 Creality blog](https://www.creality.com/blog/what-filaments-can-be-used-on-a-creality-ender-3-3d-printer) says the hotend can reach 280 °C (536 °F) and then says the temperature is limited to 240 °C (464 °F) because it is not an all-metal hotend and because of the PTFE tube. The filaments it names are PLA, ABS, TPU, and PETG. Its own suggested windows on that page are PLA 180–230 °C (356–446 °F) with a bed of 20–60 °C (68–140 °F), PETG 220–250 °C (428–482 °F) with a bed of 50–75 °C (122–167 °F), ABS starting at 230 °C (446 °F) and a bed of 80–110 °C (176–230 °F), and TPU 210–230 °C (410–446 °F). The PETG suggestion runs past the 240 °C (464 °F) sentence in the same article. This page does not collapse 240, 250, and 260 into one number.

[Creality Ender PLA+](/brand/creality/ender-pla-plus) lists 190–230 °C (374–446 °F) and a bed of 60–70 °C (140–158 °F). [Creality PETG](/brand/creality/petg) lists 220–250 °C (428–482 °F) and 70–90 °C (158–194 °F). [Prusament PLA](/brand/prusament/pla) lists 205–225 °C (401–437 °F) and 40–60 °C (104–140 °F). [PLA](/material/pla), [PLA+](/material/pla-plus), and [PETG](/material/petg) are the hubs. [Creality](/brand/creality) is the brand index. ABS on an open Bowden machine is the [enclosure](/answers/abs_enclosure) problem, separate from the hotend ceiling.

## The threads

[r/FixMyPrint 1gsxmyt](https://www.reddit.com/r/FixMyPrint/comments/1gsxmyt/) is die swell. The score-159 comment says print slower and hotter. Hotter, on a PTFE-lined hotend, still has to respect whichever ceiling you believe.

[r/FixMyPrint 133lrep](https://www.reddit.com/r/FixMyPrint/comments/133lrep/) is filament scraping the inlet. The score-153 comment says add a guide so the filament does not enter at a sharp angle. That is a path, not a material list.

[r/FixMyPrint 1hym5rs](https://www.reddit.com/r/FixMyPrint/comments/1hym5rs/) wrote the bed as 50F and the nozzle as 200F. The score-53 comment says that is probably 50 °C (122 °F), that 50 °C (122 °F) is slightly low for PLA, and that 60 or 65 °C (149 °F) can work. Do not copy the Fahrenheit figures as a profile. No excerpt was supplied for the PETG 220/70 thread or the Ender-3 Pro PLA thread.

Updated 2026-10-19. Sources accessed 2026-10-19. Use case: Open printer.

## Ranked filaments

| Rank | Filament | Nozzle | Bed | Price per kg |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | Creality Ender PLA+ | 190–230 °C (374–446 °F) | 60–70 °C (140–158 °F) | — |
| 2 | Creality PETG | 220–250 °C (428–482 °F) | 70–90 °C (158–194 °F) | — |
| 3 | Prusament PLA | 205–225 °C (401–437 °F) | 40–60 °C (104–140 °F) | — |

## What the community says

r/FixMyPrint 1gsxmyt is die swell. The score-159 comment says print slower and hotter. It does not name an Ender-3 maximum. r/FixMyPrint 133lrep is filament scraping the extruder inlet. The score-153 comment says print a filament guide. r/FixMyPrint 1hym5rs is an Ender-3 PLA+ print whose title says a 50F bed and a 200F nozzle. The score-53 comment says the writer probably means 50 °C (122 °F), that 50 °C (122 °F) is slightly low for PLA, and that 60 or 65 °C (149 °F) is usable. No excerpt was supplied for r/FixMyPrint vslh1y or wdks0y. Those bank titles use 220/70 for PETG and 200–208 °C (392–406 °F) with a 60 °C (140 °F) bed for PLA on an Ender-3 Pro.

## Sources

- [Creality, Ender series parameter comparison](https://store.creality.com/ca/blogs/all/ender-series-3d-printers-parameter-comparison) (manufacturer)
- [Creality blog, filaments on the Ender-3](https://www.creality.com/blog/what-filaments-can-be-used-on-a-creality-ender-3-3d-printer) (manufacturer)
- [Open Filament Database, Creality Ender PLA](https://api.openfilamentdatabase.org/api/v1/brands/creality/materials/PLA/filaments/ender_pla/index.json) (other)
- [Open Filament Database, Creality PETG](https://api.openfilamentdatabase.org/api/v1/brands/creality/materials/PETG/filaments/petg/index.json) (other)
- [Prusa Knowledge Base, PLA](https://help.prusa3d.com/article/pla_2062) (manufacturer)
- [Open Filament Database, Prusament PLA](https://api.openfilamentdatabase.org/api/v1/brands/prusament/materials/PLA/filaments/pla/index.json) (other)
- [Community source, r/FixMyPrint 1gsxmyt](https://www.reddit.com/r/FixMyPrint/comments/1gsxmyt/) (reddit)
- [Community source, r/FixMyPrint 133lrep](https://www.reddit.com/r/FixMyPrint/comments/133lrep/) (reddit)
- [Community source, r/FixMyPrint 1hym5rs](https://www.reddit.com/r/FixMyPrint/comments/1hym5rs/) (reddit)
- [Community source, r/FixMyPrint vslh1y](https://www.reddit.com/r/FixMyPrint/comments/vslh1y/) (reddit)
- [Community source, r/FixMyPrint wdks0y](https://www.reddit.com/r/FixMyPrint/comments/wdks0y/) (reddit)

HTML: https://filamentfacts.com/answers/ender_filament