Improved chamber temperature control: The P2S enclosure maintains a more consistent chamber temperature over the P1S, reducing warping on long ABS and PA prints.
Early in release cycle — no urgency to wait
Updated November 12, 2026 · 8 picks, ranked
Multicolor went from party trick to standard feature in about two years: Bambu Lab's AMS forced every competitor to ship a multi-material system, and the current generation is the first where multicolor works reliably across brands rather than just on one.
This list ranks the current multicolor-capable printers we track — machines sold with, or officially expandable to, a multi-material system. The buy-or-wait badge is key in this category: color systems are exactly where each new generation makes its biggest leap.
Improved chamber temperature control: The P2S enclosure maintains a more consistent chamber temperature over the P1S, reducing warping on long ABS and PA prints.
Early in release cycle — no urgency to wait
Dual-nozzle in the X1C footprint: A second Bowden-fed nozzle enables two-material prints and soluble supports without a purge tower, in the same compact 256 mm class as the X1C it replaces.
Just released — full support runway ahead
Nine PrintTools with 6-second swaps: Swaptek keeps nine tools docked, loaded and pre-heated, each with its own filament path and heater. Bambu quotes 6-second material switches and very small purge volumes per swap, so multi-material prints waste far less filament than single-nozzle AMS printing.
First-generation product — recently released, still early days
Prusa's answer to Bambu P-series: The CORE One+ matches Bambu CoreXY speed (600 mm/s) while keeping everything open source — firmware, hardware, slicing profiles.
Early in release cycle — no urgency to wait
330×320×325 mm — 105% more than the A1: Bambu's largest bed-slinger build volume, big enough to print full-size helmets and large props in a single piece rather than in glued sections.
First-generation product — recently released, still early days
340×320×340 mm — Bambu's largest build volume: The H2S offers more than twice the print volume of the X2D. At 1000 mm/s it is also among Bambu's fastest printers, making it the top choice for high-throughput professional production.
Mid-cycle — watch for announcements before buying
AMS Lite multicolor: The A1 Combo includes the AMS Lite for 4-color filament switching — the same system used on the A1 Mini and A2L.
Overdue for a refresh — no successor announced yet. Prices should be at their lowest
Up to 6 hotends with Vortek wireless nozzle-swapping: The H2C's Vortek system swaps hotends wirelessly — no filament purging, no switching waste. Each material has its own dedicated nozzle, enabling true multi-material production including soluble support combinations.
First-generation product — recently released, still early days
| Model | Price | Build volume | Max speed | Multicolor | Timing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bambu Lab P2S | $549 | 256x256x256 | 600 mm/s | ✅ | ⏰ Buy now |
| Bambu Lab X2D | $649 | 256x256x260 | 1000 mm/s | ✅ | ⏰ Buy now |
| Bambu Lab H3C | $2499 | 330x320x325 | 1400 mm/s | ✅ | ⏰ Buy now |
| Prusa Research CORE One+ | $999 | 250x220x270 | 600 mm/s | ✅ | ⏰ Buy now |
| Bambu Lab A2L | $469 | 330x320x325 | 500 mm/s | ✅ | ⏰ Buy now |
| Bambu Lab H2S | $1249 | 340x320x340 | 1000 mm/s | ✅ | ⏰ Caution |
| Bambu Lab A1 | $299 | 256x256x256 | 500 mm/s | ✅ | ⏰ Wait |
| Bambu Lab H2C | $2399 | 330x320x325 | 1000 mm/s | ✅ | ⏰ Buy now |
For decorative prints, logos and multi-material supports, yes. Know the trade-off: multicolor printing produces purge waste and slows prints down significantly — a four-color print can use 30%+ more filament in purge alone.
Often, and it's frequently the smart order: buy the printer now, add the color system when prices dip. Our device pages note which models support official multi-material upgrades and what they cost.
Current-generation FDM printers with multicolor capability, scored on color-system maturity and value, with release-cycle position as the tiebreak and the source of each buy/wait badge.
Rankings combine our editor scores with live release-cycle data and are recomputed on every site update. See how we rate.