The Creality K3 and Qidi Tech Plus4 are cross-brand rivals: both are prosumer-tier printers, listed $150 apart. Note that the Plus4 has been replaced by the Plus5 and is no longer sold new. Both are CoreXY printers with 4-slot multicolor and automatic calibration. The K3 costs $150 more and gets you support for PET, PCTG, PLA-CF and PETG-CF; the Plus4 answers with an enclosed chamber (with ABS, ASA, PA, PA-CF, PC and PPS-CF on its materials list) and 48% more build volume.
First-generation product — recently released, still early days
Best for: Multicolor hobbyists and small creators who are tired of purge towers and filament waste, and who want tool-changer-style multicolor at well under half the price of Bambu's tool changers.
Full details →This printer is no longer sold new. It has been replaced by the Qidi Tech Plus5.
Best for: Makers and small businesses who need a large enclosed build volume for engineering materials at a prosumer price — particularly those printing PA-CF, ABS, and PC at scale. Look for clearance deals — the Plus5 is the current model.
Full details →| Creality K3 | Qidi Tech Plus4 | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | ||
| Starting Price | $849 | ★ $699 |
| Print Specs | ||
| Tier | Prosumer | Prosumer |
| Motion | CoreXY | CoreXY |
| Build Volume | 260 × 260 × 260 mm | ★ 305 × 305 × 280 mm |
| Max Speed | 500 mm/s | ★ 600 mm/s |
| Multicolor | ✅ 4 slots | ✅ 4 slots |
| Enclosure | ❌ | ★ ✅ |
| Auto Calibration | ✅ | ✅ |
| Open Source | ❌ | ❌ |
| Upgrade Kit | — | — |
| Buy Timing | ||
| Released | Oct 13, 2026 | Sep 20, 2024 |
| Cycle length | — | ~408 days |
| Cycle advice | Buy | Superseded |
| Deals advice | Caution | Clearance |
| Next model | — | — |
The K3 was released on Oct 13, 2026, 30 days ago. It is a first-generation product, so there is no earlier cycle to predict its successor from.
The Plus4 has been replaced by the Plus5 and is no longer sold new, so there is no release cycle left to time — any unit you find now is leftover or second-hand stock.
On timing alone, the K3 is the safer buy right now — it launched only 30 days ago, while the Plus4 has already been replaced by the Plus5.
Cycle and deal status as of November 12, 2026. See the launch calendar →
The Plus4 lists at $699 and the K3 at $849 — $150 apart, so the K3 costs 21% more.
Per litre of build volume, that works out to $48 for the K3 versus $27 for the Plus4 — the Plus4 is both cheaper and roomier, so it wins on value outright.
Buy the K3. The Plus4 has already been replaced by the Plus5 and is no longer sold new, so it is only worth considering at a clearance price. If the Plus4 appealed to you, the fair comparison today is the K3 against the Plus5.
Compare Creality K3 vs Qidi Tech Plus5 →
How we judge timing and deals: read our methodology →
Four docked nozzles swap in about 5 seconds, so color changes no longer require purging a single nozzle. Creality quotes up to 85% less filament waste and up to 80% shorter multicolor print times.
Nozzles from 0.2 to 0.8 mm can be mixed in one print using extra nozzles sold separately. With a dedicated nozzle, TPU 95A prints without the feeding problems common to filament-switching systems.
The K3 brings near-tool-changer multicolor to a sub-$900 printer, well below Bambu's $2,399 H2C and $2,499 H3C.
One of the largest build volumes in the prosumer enclosed category — 40% more printable area than the Bambu X1C at a lower price point.
The second-generation active heating delivers consistent chamber temperatures for PA, PA-CF, ABS, ASA, and PC with minimal warping across the full build plate.
Handles high-performance engineering composites including PA-CF, PET-CF, and PPS-CF without requiring a separate hotend upgrade.