7 Essential Types of 3D Printing You Need to Know

You probably remember the first time you saw a regular paper printer work. The frantic zipping back and forth, the smell of warm ink, and then—magic—a digital file became a physical page. 3D printing feels a lot like that, but instead of just moving left and right, the machine moves up. It's building an object thin layer by thin layer.

But here is the thing: there isn't just one way to do it. If you’re just starting to look into this world, you’ll quickly realize there are many different types of 3d printing, and they don't all work the same. Some use melted plastic, others use liquid resin that hardens with light, and some even use metal powder and lasers.

Understanding these differences is the first step toward actually making something. Whether you want to print a custom replacement part for your sink or a piece of glowing art, the method you choose changes everything about the final result.

• The most popular method: FDM
• The detail king: Stereolithography (SLA)
• Industrial strength: Selective Laser Sintering (SLS)
• The colorful world of Material Jetting
• Why different types of 3d printing matter for you

Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) is the starting point

If you’ve seen a 3D printer at a library or in a friend’s garage, it was almost certainly an FDM machine. This is the most common of all types of 3d printing for a good reason. It’s basically a high-tech glue gun. A spool of plastic thread, called filament, gets pushed through a hot nozzle. The nozzle melts the plastic and draws a flat shape on a bed. Once one layer is done, the bed moves down (or the nozzle moves up), and it draws the next layer right on top of the first one.

FDM is popular because it’s relatively cheap and easy to understand. You can use a huge variety of plastics, from standard PLA—which is made from cornstarch—to tough, heat-resistant nylons.

At Aivanha, we rely heavily on this method. When we create things like the Aivanha Aura Lamp, FDM allows us to produce durable, beautiful structures that work perfectly in a home setting. It’s arguably the most cost-effective way to get a physical object in your hands quickly. For many of our designs, including the Aivanha Curve Lamp, this additive process ensures the TwistSecure lock system fits snugly every single time.

Related: easy 3d design tools for creating your own models

Stereolithography (SLA) for high detail

While FDM uses Heat, SLA uses Light. This is one of the older types of 3d printing, but it’s still unbeatable for fine details. Instead of a plastic string, you have a vat of liquid resin. A UV laser or a high-res screen shines a very specific pattern of light into the liquid. Where the light hits, the liquid turns into a solid.

The result is incredibly smooth. If you are printing tiny jewelry or miniature figures for a tabletop game, you don't want to see the "layer lines" that are common in FDM. SLA makes parts look like they were injection-molded in a factory.

There is a trade-off, though. Resin is messy. You have to wash the parts in alcohol when they're done and "cure" them under a UV lamp. It’s a bit more of a laboratory vibe than the "set it and forget it" nature of FDM.

Also Read: how to finish and polish your 3d prints

Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) for tough parts

Now we’re getting into the heavy hitters. SLS is a professional-grade method that you won’t usually find in a home office. It uses a bed of fine powder (usually nylon). A powerful laser "sinters" (fuses) the powder together.

The coolest part about SLS? You don't need "supports." In FDM or SLA, if you’re printing a bridge, the printer can't just print on air—it has to build scaffolding underneath. With SLS, the unsintered powder surrounds the part and acts as its own support. This allows for incredibly complex geometries that other types of 3d printing simply can't handle.

This Might Interest You: the evolution of additive manufacturing over the decades

Direct Metal Laser Sintering (DMLS)

This is basically SLS but with metal powder. If you’ve ever wondered how aerospace companies print rocket engines or how medical companies make custom titanium hip implants, this is it. It’s incredibly expensive, but it allows for parts that are stronger and lighter than anything made by traditional casting or machining. Among all types of 3d printing, this one feels the most like science fiction.

Material Jetting and PolyJet

Imagine a standard inkjet printer, but instead of ink, it drops tiny droplets of photopolymer (liquid plastic) that are instantly cured by UV light. These machines are incredible because they can mix different colors or even different materials (hard and soft) in the same print. You could print a hard plastic handle with a soft, rubbery grip in one single pass. It’s extremely high-end and usually reserved for high-fidelity prototypes.

Digital Light Processing (DLP)

DLP is a close cousin to SLA. The main difference is that instead of a laser drawing lines like a pen, it uses a digital projector screen to flash a whole layer at once. Think of it like a movie projector. Because it does the whole layer at once, it can be much faster than SLA for certain objects. It's one of the types of 3d printing frequently used in dental offices to make molds for crowns or aligners.

How these types of 3d printing affect what you buy

When you're looking for a gift or something for your home, you shouldn't have to worry about the technical jargon. But knowing the "why" behind the process helps explain why some things look and feel the way they do.

For example, we use FDM for our lamps because it provides the structural integrity needed for something you’re going to touch and use every day. Our Aivanha Drift Lamp needs to be sturdy and heat-resistant enough to hold a bulb securely. FDM is perfectly suited for that. It’s also the fastest way to turn a new design into a real product you can buy.

But there are times when you need something more visual, like a photo frozen in time. That’s where lithophanes come in. When we produce the Aivanha Lume³, we use specialized 3D printing techniques to create varying thicknesses in the material. When light shines through, it creates a high-contrast image. This is a great example of how different types of 3d printing software and hardware can be tuned for artistic expression rather than just industrial parts.

Read More: choosing the right materials for your printer

Why material choice matters as much as the printer

You can have the best printer in the world, but if you put the wrong stuff in it, the result will be a mess. In FDM printing, the type of plastic determines if your part will melt in the sun or snap if you drop it.

Most people start with PLA because it smells like waffles (seriously) and rarely warps. But if you're making something like our Aivanha Lume³ Dual, you need a material that interacts with light in just the right way. We use materials that offer the perfect translucency so your photos look crisp when the lamp is switched on.

Other types of 3d printing use resins or powders that offer different properties, like being "flexible" or "food safe." It really is a massive ecosystem where the machine and the material work together to solve a specific problem.

What type should you choose?

If you are just getting into this as a hobby, go with FDM. It’s the most forgiving, the cheapest, and there is a massive community of people online to help you if things go wrong. Most of the objects people want to make—desk organizers, headphone stands, or cool geometric art—are perfect for FDM.

If you are an artist looking for perfection in small things, resin (SLA/DLP) is your best bet. Just be ready for the extra work involved in cleaning and curing.

For the rest of us, who just want to enjoy the benefits of this technology, it’s about finding brands that use these types of 3d printing effectively. At Aivanha, we’ve spent years figuring which methods work best for home decor. We chose FDM for our lamps because it’s the most cost-effective and fastest way to deliver high-quality products to you. It allows us to iterate quickly and keep our designs fresh.

Picking your path with various types of 3d printing

The world of 3D manufacturing is moving incredibly fast. What was impossible five years ago is now sitting on someone's nightstand today. Understanding the different types of 3d printing helps you see the effort and tech that goes into every piece.

Whether you’re interested in printing your own spare parts or you just want to buy a unique, high-tech gift like a custom lithophane, it’s clear that additive manufacturing isn't just for car factories anymore. It's in our homes, our dentist's offices, and our favorite decor shops.

Which of these technologies sounds the most interesting to you? Does the idea of a laser melting powder sound cooler, or are you more into the perfection of light-cured resins? Regardless of the tech, the goal is always the same: bringing an idea to life in three dimensions. Why not start your journey today by seeing what these printers can really do?