You know the saying – cheap is expensive but are cheap laser engravers any good? Is the statement cheap is expensive always true? While this adage might be true in most cases, there is always the exception.
Price should be a determinant when buying anything but it should never be the only determinant. Sometimes, there are some cheaper alternatives that are just as good or even better than the expensive alternatives.
Although laser engravers can cost as much as $6,000, there are lots of cheap laser engravers (less than $800) that are just as good. If you are a DIY enthusiast or an entrepreneur looking to start a home-based laser engraving business, a cheap laser engraver may be good enough.
Table of Contents
The expensive laser engravers are usually extremely sophisticated and ideal for industrial applications but for those just getting started in laser engraving then a cheaper laser is a viable option. Read on to find out why it’s perfectly fine to purchase a cheaper laser engraver.
Are cheap laser engravers any good?
Understanding Cheap Laser Engravers
Cheap laser engravers, typically priced under $800, are usually diode-based machines with lower power outputs.
These machines are designed for hobbyists, small businesses, and beginners who want to explore laser engraving without a significant financial commitment.
Pros of Cheap Laser Engravers
Despite their low price, budget laser engravers offer several advantages:
- Affordability – Ideal for beginners or those with a limited budget.
- User-Friendly – Many come with plug-and-play functionality and simple software.
- Compact & Portable – Small footprint makes them suitable for home workshops.
- Capable of Engraving Various Materials – Can engrave wood, leather, paper, and acrylic (but not metals without special coatings).
- Good for Learning – Allows users to practice laser engraving before investing in an advanced machine.
Limitations of Cheap Laser Engravers
While they offer value, cheap engravers come with trade-offs:
- Limited Power – Usually between 1.6W to 10W, which may struggle with deep engraving or cutting thicker materials.
- Slow Processing Speed – Lower-powered lasers require multiple passes for effective engraving.
- Restricted Material Compatibility – Cannot engrave metals or high-density materials without additional coatings or pre-treatment.
- Shorter Lifespan – Lower-quality components may wear out faster compared to industrial-grade machines.
- Smaller Work Area – Typically designed for small projects, limiting large-scale work.
What to Look for in a Cheap Laser Engraver
If you decide to buy a budget laser engraver, consider the following factors:
- Laser Power – A higher wattage (5W or more) improves engraving speed and quality.
- Work Area Size – Choose a model that fits your project requirements.
- Software Compatibility – Ensure it supports popular software like LightBurn or LaserGRBL.
- Safety Features – Look for emergency stop buttons, protective shields, and eye protection.
- Customer Support & Community – A brand with active support and a user community is beneficial for troubleshooting.
Are Cheap Laser Engravers Worth It?
Cheap laser engravers are a great entry point for hobbyists and beginners. They are ideal for small projects, learning, and testing different materials. However, if you need precision, speed, and the ability to engrave a wide range of materials, investing in a mid-range or high-end laser engraver may be a better choice.
Who Should Buy a Cheap Laser Engraver?
- Hobbyists exploring laser engraving
- Beginners wanting an affordable starting point
- Small business owners with low-production needs
Who Should Avoid Cheap Laser Engravers?
- Professionals requiring high precision and speed
- Users needing deep engraving or cutting thick materials
- Businesses focused on metal engraving without coatings
So can you start a business with a cheap laser engraver?
Yes, you can start a small business with cheap laser engravers, especially for engraving wood, leather, acrylic, and coated metals. While budget models may have limitations in speed, power, and material compatibility, they are great for custom gifts, small crafts, and personalized products.
As your business grows, upgrading to a more powerful laser can improve efficiency and expand your capabilities.
Comparison Table: Best Cheap Laser Engravers
Feature | xTool F1 Lite | Longer RAY5 5W | Creality Falcon A1 10W |
|---|---|---|---|
Laser Type | Diode | Diode | Diode |
Laser Power | 10W | 5W | 10W |
Max Engraving Speed | 4000 mm/s | ~3000 mm/s | 600 mm/s |
Engraving Accuracy | Ultra Galvo (0.00199mm) | High precision frame | 0.05mm |
Working Area | Compact (portable-focused) | Large open frame | 460 × 346 mm |
Camera / Positioning | Live preview | LightBurn camera included | HD camera with auto material recognition |
Portability | Highly portable (4.45kg) | Desktop / semi-portable | Desktop enclosed unit |
Safety Class | Class 4 | Class 4 | Class 1 fully enclosed |
Air Assist Included | Optional | Included (10–30 L/min) | Integrated airflow system |
Metal Engraving | (spray required) | (spray required) | (spray required) |
Software Support | xTool Creative Space | LightBurn, LaserGRBL | Falcon Design Space, LightBurn |
Ease of Use | Beginner-friendly, plug & play | More hands-on setup | Beginner-friendly, no assembly |
Best For | Speed & portability | Budget workshops & batch work | Safety-focused home users |
Price Range |
Quick Recommendations
- Best Overall Cheap Laser Engraver (Portable): xTool F1 Lite
Ideal for creators who want ultra-fast engraving and portability. - Best Budget Open-Frame Option: Longer RAY5 5W
Great for workshops, batch engraving, and users who want air assist included. - Best Beginner & Home-Safe Laser: Creality Falcon A1 10W
Perfect for beginners who want a fully enclosed, safe, and easy-to-use system.
Best Cheap Laser Engravers Reviews
1. xTool F1 Lite Laser Engraver
The xTool F1 Lite is one of the most impressive cheap laser engravers available today, combining ultra-fast engraving speeds with true portability and beginner-friendly features.
Designed for creators who want quick, high-quality engraving without a large investment, it delivers excellent results on common materials like wood, leather, acrylic, and coated glass.
Pros
- Extremely fast engraving – Up to 4000mm/s, making it one of the fastest budget laser engravers on the market
- Highly portable design – Weighs just 4.45kg with a built-in carry handle; perfect for craft fairs and mobile use
- Ultra HD engraving quality – Advanced Galvo system delivers photo-level detail and exceptional precision
- Beginner-friendly setup – Pre-assembled, auto-focus, and live preview minimize mistakes and material waste
- Compact footprint – Smaller than an A4 sheet, ideal for small workspaces
- Reliable software – Works seamlessly with xTool Creative Space (XCS)
Cons
- No direct metal engraving – 10W diode laser cannot engrave bare metals
- Limited cutting capability – Best for engraving and light cutting only
The xTool F1 Lite is one of the best cheap laser engravers for beginners, hobbyists, and mobile creators. Its lightning-fast speed, exceptional engraving detail, and true portability make it an outstanding value—especially if your focus is engraving rather than heavy cutting or metal work.
2. Longer RAY5 5W Laser Engraver
The Longer RAY5 5W is a feature-packed, cheap laser engraver that punches well above its price point. With built-in air assist, a LightBurn-compatible camera, touchscreen controls, and strong safety features, it’s an excellent option for beginners, small businesses, and light commercial use.
The RAY5 is also available in 10W, 20W, and 40W options for those who require increased speed and power.
Choose 5W → Light engraving and entry-level projects
Choose 10W → Balanced engraving + moderate cutting
Choose 20W → Strong cutting performance for small businesses
Choose 40W → High-speed production and thicker material cutting
Pros
- Great value for money – One of the most fully equipped budget laser engravers available
- Powerful ESP32 chipset – Faster and more responsive than older 8-bit controller machines
- Built-in touchscreen – Easy control without needing a computer at all times
- LightBurn camera support – Accurate positioning and live preview for professional results
- Integrated air assist – Adjustable airflow improves cut quality and reduces burn marks
- Multiple connection options – USB, TF card, WiFi, and app support with offline engraving
- Solid safety features – Emergency stop, motion detection, and thermal protection included
Cons
- 5W diode power is limited – Slower cutting and shallower engraving on thicker materials
- Not for bare metal engraving – Requires marking sprays or coatings for metal work
- Open-frame design – Needs additional enclosure for better fume control and safety
The Longer RAY5 5W earns its place as one of the best cheap laser engravers thanks to its impressive feature set, reliability, and ease of use. If you want built-in air assist, camera alignment, and touchscreen control without spending much, this machine delivers excellent performance for the price.
3. Creality Falcon A1 10W Laser Engraver
The Creality Falcon A1 10W is one of the best cheap laser engravers thanks to its fully enclosed Class 1 design, smart camera-assisted workflow, and strong cutting performance for a diode laser. It’s an excellent choice for beginners who want safety, convenience, and clean results without complicated setup.
Pros
- Fully enclosed Class 1 safety – No safety glasses required; ideal for home and classroom use
- 10W diode with strong cutting ability – Cuts up to 6mm wood in a single pass
- Smart HD camera positioning – Auto-recognizes materials and applies optimal settings
- Fast engraving speeds – Up to 600mm/s with a stable CoreXY motion system
- Pre-assembled and beginner-friendly – Ready to use straight out of the box
- Wide software compatibility – Works with Falcon Design Space, LightBurn, and LaserGRBL
- Clean and quiet operation – Enclosure reduces smoke, dust, and noise
Cons
- Cannot engrave reflective materials – Mirror-finished metals and mirrored acrylic are not to be engraved
- 10W diode limits metal engraving – Requires marking spray for metal surfaces
The Creality Falcon A1 10W is an outstanding budget laser engraver for users who prioritize safety, ease of use, and reliable performance. With its enclosed design, smart camera system, and no-assembly setup, it’s one of the most beginner-friendly and polished cheap laser engravers currently available.
Reasons Why It’s Okay To Buy a Cheap Laser Engraver
There is no denying that expensive laser engravers are built better and can, therefore, take on any laser engraving and laser cutting project. But not everyone can afford to cough thousands of dollars for a laser engraver.
And that explains why there is a growing demand for cheap laser engravers. Here are a couple of reasons why I believe that a laser engraver doesn’t necessarily have to be expensive for it to be good.
Specialized Laser Engravers
Laser engravers are typically designed to engrave certain materials. Some engravers are best suited for metals for example Fiber Laser Engravers other’s for wood, glass, etc like Diode and CO2 Lasers. Even though most engravers can be used on a variety of materials, there isn’t a single engraver that is perfect for all materials.
So, let’s say you started a laser engraving business specializing in acrylic and leather items, and one of your clients asked you to help them make branded items for their restaurant.
You would need to engrave their signs, logos, wooden menus, china, and wine glasses. You take the gig only to discover that the laser machine you have cannot handle engraving the wine glasses or the china as well as it handles the wooden menus. What to do?
So, you decide to purchase another laser engraver that is specially built for engraving glass and porcelain. And this is where cheap laser engravers come in handy. It wouldn’t make sense to buy a very expensive laser engraver for doing a single job, without any assurance that you will get similar gigs in the near future.
Besides, it wouldn’t make any business sense to buy a second laser engraver if the one you have had already cost you an arm and a leg. If you are looking for a laser engraver for a home-based business, you are better off with cheap laser engravers.
The intended purpose
Before you make a purchase decision, it is a good idea to, first of all, establish the intended purpose of your laser engraver.
Whether you are a craftsman, a DIYer, or an entrepreneur, the best laser engraver for you should not be based on price but based on function.
Which materials will you be working on? Who are your target clients? How much do you intend to charge for your services? Will you be making custom items for clients?
Understanding your business model beforehand will go a long way in helping you determine if a cheap laser engraver is any good.
Here is the question you should answer: Can a cheap laser engraver enable me to meet my business objectives? If the answer to this is a definite yes, then it makes no sense to go for the pricey options on the market.
Product Quality
Price is not always indicative of product quality. Sometimes, pricing is more of a branding technique. Some companies actually overprice their products because they want to appeal to the masses who always assume that expensive is synonymous with quality.
There are actually some pretty neat laser engravers that cost less than 600 dollars. So how do you know if cheap laser engravers are any good? Here are two things you can look out for.
- Customer support
Some of the cheap laser engravers, like most other cheap products, have crappy customer support. The last thing you want is to get stuck in the installation of a laser engraver while customer support doesn’t respond to your SOS.
The easiest way to tell if a company has good customer support is to shoot them a couple of questions before you even make your purchase.
Find out how quickly they respond, and if they do, find out if they answer your question satisfactorily. You might pleasantly be surprised to find cheaper laser engravers that have even more reliable customer support than the expensive models.
- Customer reviews
The best place to check for customer reviews is Amazon. Amazon doesn’t allow any Tom, Dick, and Harry to review products on their website. You can only review a product that you have actually bought. So when you read reviews from Amazon, there is a very good chance that you are actually reading honest, unbiased reviews of other users.
If you check out some of the cheap laser engravers, you will notice that most of them have lots of positive reviews from other satisfied customers.
Changing Technology
Like most other technological devices, the configuration options of laser engravers have drastically increased in the last decade, while the size and price have continued to go down.
A couple of years ago, all laser engravers were so expansive that they were only used by industries for engraving serial numbers. Logos and other branding on manufactured products.
But cheaper technology has made it possible to manufacture cheaper laser engravers that actually have even more sophisticated controls than the old expensive laser engravers. For instance, some of the cheap laser engravers now come with Bluetooth capabilities which makes it easy to control them from a mobile device.
Because of the changing technology, laser engravers have gotten cheaper over the years but this shouldn’t necessarily be taken as proof of their bad quality.
What Can You Make With a Cheap Laser Engraver?
Despite the low cost, budget laser engravers can produce:
- Wooden signs
- Coasters
- Leather patches
- Personalized gifts
- Jewelry boxes
- Engraved slate
- Painted metal tags
- Acrylic nameplates
For many creators, that’s more than enough to start a business or hobby.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are cheap laser cutters worth it?
Yes, cheap laser cutters can be worth it for beginners and hobbyists, offering decent engraving capabilities on wood, acrylic, and some metals. However, they may lack power, precision, and durability compared to higher-end models, making them less suitable for professional use.
What type of laser engraver is the cheapest?
Diode laser engravers are the cheapest type. They are great for beginners and hobbyists, suitable for engraving wood, leather, and some coated metals, but have lower power compared to CO₂ or fiber lasers.
Are cheap laser engravers good enough to start a business and make money?
Cheap laser engravers can be good enough to start a small business, especially for engraving wood, leather, and acrylic. However, they have limitations in power, speed, and material compatibility. If you plan to scale your business, investing in a more powerful Diode, CO₂ or fiber laser may be necessary for higher efficiency and quality.
Final Thoughts
Cheap laser engravers can be a valuable tool for beginners and hobbyists, offering affordability and ease of use. However, they come with limitations in power, speed, and material compatibility.
If your needs align with what a budget laser engraver can offer, it can be a worthwhile investment. Otherwise, consider mid-to-high-end alternatives for greater versatility and efficiency.