Cricut Maker vs Cricut Maker 3

When working with vinyl and other materials that need precise cutting, Cricut machines might be your best friends! They will ensure you the cleanest cuts on many different materials.

Depending on what use you want to give them, you can choose one of the different types of cutting machines Cricut has to offer. However, it’s important to understand the differences among them, in particular between generations of the same model.

Let’s take a look at the features we can find in Cricut Maker vs Cricut Maker 3, two version of the same Cricut cutter.

Cricut Maker 3 vs Cricut Maker

Why are Cricut maker machines better than others?

Cricut has different types of cutting machines to offer. You may want to get the Cricut Explore, Cricut Joy or Cricut Maker, and at the same time, there are different varieties of each to choose from.

The truth is, none of them is better, but they may be more or less versatile. The least versatile option is the Cricut Joy, but it’s perfect for those users who want to work with the most common materials such as vinyl, paper, or sticker sheets.

It can be best if you are just starting with this kind of project and want to give Cricut a try before jumping into something bigger.

The Explorer is an intermediate alternative, which will allow you to work with more materials and tools, and even write instead of just cutting. In third place, Cricket maker machines are the most complete option. But what makes them special?

Cricut Makers are compatible with more than 300 materials to cut on, from fine, delicate fabric to balsa wood and thick leather.

They can be used with many more housings and blades than the Joy and Explore machines and they have a better general performance to finish your projects faster, besides being compatible with Smart materials.

But what’s the difference between Cricut maker and Cricut maker 3?

Cricut Maker vs Cricut Maker 3

Cricut maker vs Cricut maker 3

Considering the fact that these machines are two different versions of the same model, it’s normal not to have too many variations or changes that are not so vital.

However, if you work with Cricuts for a small business or you need to get a new Cricut to replace your old one, it’s a good idea to get the latest one and know what differences you are going to encounter.

The three biggest differences are:

  1. Weight
  2. Speed
  3. Compatibility with smart materials
  • The least important difference between Cricut maker and Cricut maker 3 is the weight. Although this is not clearly stated on the Cricut website, Cricut users have reported that the Cricut maker 3 is considerably heavier than the former version.

    Although it may not be of importance for most users, you may want to keep this in mind if you need to take your Cricut to different locations.
  • In the second place, the speed is another difference between Cricut maker 3 and Cricut maker in its original version.

    Both Makers have a Fast Mode that will allow you to finish projects faster, but the new version will work particularly faster than any other Cricut cutting machine in the market.

    Some users claim that sometimes their old Cricut maker works faster than the new one, but it has to do with whether the Fast Mode is activated or not.
Cricut Maker
  • The third and most important difference between both versions of the Cricut Maker is their compatibility with Smart materials from Cricut. But, what are Smart materials?

    These materials are special types of vinyl, paper, and iron-on that have been specially designed to allow you to them without using a cutting mat.

    This will also shorten how long a project will take, as you don’t need to assemble the materials onto a cutting mat and feed it to the machine, but simply insert the material as if it were a printing machine.

    Besides, these materials come in rolls, so you can simply let them roll into the machine as needed.

    The best of these smart materials is that, as you don’t need to cut them off the roll before using, you can make a long cut along a single piece of vinyl or paper instead of assembling it with several smaller pieces.

    You can use Smart materials with other Cricut machines, but the brand does not recommend that as these materials are specially designed for the Cricut maker 3.

    In any case, you may want to cut a piece and place it onto a cutting mat as any non-Smart one, but that wouldn’t be of any special use.

    The best part of the compatibility between Cricut Maker 3 and Smart materials is that you can buy an exclusive Roll Holder to place the roll of any smart material you want to keep in place while cutting and ensuring all your work is neat.

    This Holder can be used with rolls of up to 75 ft long, but you can use bigger rolls in case you don’t mind not using the Roll Holder.
Cricut Maker 3
  • The last difference between the original and the newest versions of the Cricut maker is that the original one comes in three colors, while the newest, only in one.

    But the truth is that with such nice new features, the color is the least important.

We hope that this article about the differences between Cricut maker vs Cricut Maker 3 has helped you see which is the best for you and decide whether to make the change or stick to the old.