AstroPrint vs IceSL
AstroPrint
astroprint.comIceSL
icesl.inria.frSide by side
| Figure | AstroPrint | IceSL |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | $9.90/mo | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | — |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| iOS | Yes | — |
| Android | Yes | — |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | — |
| Plans published | 3 | 1 |
| Spec score · 3D Printing Software | 8.8 (#2) | 8.2 (#8) |
| Founded | 2013 | 1967 |
| Headquarters | San Diego, California, United States | Le Chesnay, France |
| Integrations | AstroPrint’s mobile app can search Thingiverse designs and start printing them. | IceSL documentation describes a plugin system, printer profile documentation, and Python bindings called pyicesl; the download page offers pyicesl packages for Windows and Linux. |
| Support | The Premium plan includes priority email support, while Business & Education includes priority single point-of-contact phone support. | The EULA says the licensor does not offer installation or implementation assistance or software maintenance. |
Plans
In their own words
AstroPrint
AstroPrint is a platform for managing 3D printers and printer fleets. Its cloud library stores STL and G-code files, and users can slice designs in a browser. A cloud dashboard tool generates printable models from text prompts. Users can monitor prints and remotely pause, resume, or cancel them from a computer or smartphone; analytics cover filament use, printer operating hours, and print success rates. Printers can connect through AstroBox Touch, AstroBox Gateway, a self-built AstroBox, or the OctoPrint plugin. The mobile app can search Thingiverse designs and start prints. AstroPrint Desktop is listed for Mac OS X, Windows, and Linux, alongside Android, iOS, web, API, and self-hosted platforms. Klipper is supported for slicing only, and live video streaming is not available in the mobile app; a browser is needed for that. The free Basic plan includes 2 printers, 1 user, and 1GB file storage. Premium costs $9.90/mo and includes the first 5 printers, with each additional printer costing $5.
IceSL
IceSL is a free set of 3D modeling and slicing tools for customizable shape fabrication. IceSL-forge combines modeling and slicing through a Lua language that describes Boolean combinations of triangle meshes, voxels, implicit surfaces and shaders. IceSL-slicer turns models or geometry scripts into G-code, DLP printer images and laser-cutter paths. SliceCrafter provides browser-based slicing, while WebPrinter previews G-code by emulating a 3D printer. Available slicing methods include cubic and tetrahedral infills, bridge supports, adaptive layer thickness, progressive infills, efficient offsetting, protective shields and self-supporting cavities. Polyfoam and Phasor infillers expose local density, orientation, direction and randomness controls. Layer thickness, infill density and printing speed can vary by layer. Documentation covers plugins, printer profiles and pyicesl Python bindings. IceSL requires a GPU with full OpenGL 4.3 support. Its free license is limited to internal research and academic use; commercial and production use are forbidden.