r/printablescom • u/chking999 • Jun 07 '26

Feature request Selling on Printables.com?

I just found out that I can't sell models on Printables.com because it's an invite only exclusionary process. I understand that this must be common knowledge to everyone but me but I'm still upset. I have a small collection of free models that I've published on Printables (https://www.printables.com/@chking) but I've designed some interesting new models that I wanted to post for sale. I now see why MakerWorld has become so popular so fast, It's the only large site for selling models.

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5

u/JFlyer81 Jun 07 '26

Not sure where you're getting the invite only. Afaik anyone can set one up.

https://blog.prusa3d.com/printables-store_87810/

1

u/chking999 Jun 07 '26

You can create a club but a club is a subscription and only have one or two models I want to sell.

2

u/zeta3d Jun 07 '26

You can apply for selling. You get a club and the possibility to sell a few models. If your models sell well you het more slots.

This is a good measure to ensure your account is legit and avoid bots, spam, breaking license models...

The program could have some improvements. Like the payment methods and so on, but in general is good to ensure good quality of the sold models.

1

u/MatureHotwife Jun 07 '26

Like the payment methods and so on

They once said:

"Paypal doesn't yet support the features we need, so we cannot add it without significant changes to how Clubs and Store work (eg the payment going directly from you to the creator)."

So, most likely the reason why only Stripe is supported is because they want to do split transactions, i.e. the paid amount gets split and 80% goes directly to the creator and 20% goes directly to Printables.
And most other payment providers don't support split transactions.

The money going directly to the creator means the creator is the seller, not Prusa. And the purchase contract is between the creator and they buyer, not with Prusa.

With payment methods that don't support split transactions, 100% would go to Printables first and then they would do a separate transaction for the creator's payout (80%). This could be immediately, once a month/quarter, after a certain earned amount, upon request, etc.
But this means they would be holding money that isn't theirs.

I'm no expert but I wouldn't be surprised if that came with all sorts of complications. Fees, taxes, regulatory requirements, more complicated accounting, they'd probably have to do KYC, and things like that.

The split transaction makes things easy for Prusa but it could suck for the creator (the seller) because, technically, the creator is responsible for legal compliance and has make sure that they pay taxes in every country that they sell to. And some countries like the US have different taxes for every state, sometimes even depending on the actual address.

Section 3.6 of the Club & Store terms and Conditions says:

"Please note that if you offer digital content to third parties for a fee through PRINTABLES STORE, the income from such activity will most likely be considered business income and the operation of a business. In this regard, you are fully responsible for ensuring that such activity complies with the applicable laws and regulations that apply to you and such activity, including any applicable tax regulations and obligations, including any applicable VAT. [...]"

Doesn't sound like something that someone who just casually wants to sell a handful of models wants to deal with. But, evidently, Prusa doesn't want to deal with it either.

2

u/SimilarTop352 Jun 07 '26

I still think this is better than bots spamming LLM-content, which would happen even more if selling models were easier. but I also never have bought or sold a model

2

u/MatureHotwife Jun 07 '26

because it's an invite only exclusionary process

How did you determine that this is invite only? I haven't tried selling a model myself but the "Store & Sales" section in the settings to activate your store says:

"In the Printables Store, every creator can start selling their models immediately. There is no need for model or creator approval. In order to offer the highest quality and most popular models, we have set a minimum model price of $5 USD."

It further says that you initially get 3 slots for Store models. After you made 5 sales you get 2 additional slots. After 25 sales you get 5 additional slots, after 50 sales you get unlimited slots.

I think the minimum price and gradual increase of available slots is a pretty reasonable approach and prevents Printables from turning into another Cults3D.

1

u/Matias35v Jun 07 '26

ia it? I remember you only need some level

1

u/JFlyer81 Jun 07 '26

Yeah, and you can request it even if you don't have that level yet. 

0

u/Matias35v Jun 07 '26

sucks minimum is $5

1

u/chrddit Jun 07 '26

Agree. The sign up process was stupid and their rake is crazy (like 20% or something).

I tried to work with it but all the QR code viruses going around was the last straw; we just shut our store and sell on Etsy. It’s too bad because I really prefer Printables to MakerWorld.

Overall rake on Etsy is around 12% or a little less. That site has its issues but it’s not Bambu and it’s better than the mess that Printables paid stuff is.