4 min read
Where to Sell STL Files Online (And Why Your Own Site Wins Long-Term)
Cults3D, MyMiniFactory, MakerWorld, Patreon, Etsy, your own site — a no-fluff comparison of every platform and the cut they take, from a creator who's tried them all.
By SuperAwesome Team
If you've designed a 3D model worth charging for, your next problem is where to list it. There are about a dozen options, and they're not equivalent. Here's the breakdown — fees, audience, limitations, and what we actually use.
The honest comparison
| Platform | Their cut | You keep | Audience | Brand control |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cults3D | 20% | 80% | ★★★★ | ★★ |
| MyMiniFactory | 25% | 75% | ★★★★ (tabletop) | ★★ |
| MakerWorld (Bambu) | Varies (points) | Varies | ★★★★★ (growing) | ★ |
| Printables Premium | Varies | Varies | ★★★★ | ★★ |
| Thangs | 8% direct / 50% bundle | 92% / 50% | ★★★ | ★★ |
| Patreon (subscription) | 8-12% + payment fees | 88% | Yours | ★★★★ |
| Etsy (digital downloads) | ~6.5% + listing fee | ~93% | ★★★★★ (gift buyers) | ★★ |
| Gumroad / Lemon Squeezy / Payhip | 5-10% + payment fees | ~90% | None (you bring it) | ★★★★★ |
| Your own site (Stripe) | 2.9% + 30¢ | ~97% | None (you bring it) | ★★★★★ |
Marketplaces in detail
Cults3D
The most established paid 3D model marketplace outside the printer-OEM world. 80% revenue share, no subscription, no transaction fees beyond Cults' cut. Decent built-in audience. Best for: independent creators with no audience yet who want a "set it and forget it" channel.
Downside: discoverability is mostly luck. The featured carousel drives most sales; if you're not curated you'll struggle.
MyMiniFactory
The biggest tabletop / miniatures marketplace. If you design D&D, Warhammer, or wargaming models, this is your channel. 75% revenue share but their audience is the most willing-to-pay we've seen — average order values are higher than Cults.
Downside: not the place for non-tabletop content.
MakerWorld (Bambu Lab)
The fastest-growing platform of 2025-2026. Bambu's storefront, integrated directly into Bambu Studio. Free model uploads earn "points" exchangeable for cash, and paid models are a newer addition. Audience is mostly Bambu owners, which is now a big cohort.
The catch: tightly integrated with Bambu's ecosystem. If your customers are on non-Bambu machines, MakerWorld alone won't reach them — pair it with a marketplace-agnostic channel like Cults3D or your own storefront.
Patreon (subscription model)
Works incredibly well for creators who drop new models monthly. Pricing tiers run $5-15/month and subscribers expect 2-5 new models per tier per month. Top tabletop creators (Loot Studios, Cinderwing3D, Archvillain Games) make six figures monthly.
Downside: you're on a treadmill. Miss a month and subscribers churn.
Etsy
Underrated. Etsy's audience is gift buyers and casual makers who don't know what an STL marketplace is. Markup is normal — the vibe of Etsy lets you charge more for the same file than Cults will.
Downside: Etsy keeps changing the rules on digital products and the fees compound (listing + transaction + processing). Plan on giving up ~10-13% all-in.
Why your own site wins long-term
For your first 12 months, marketplaces are the right call — they have audience, you don't. By month 6, switch the priority to your own site.
Three reasons:
- Email list compounds. Every customer at Cults is Cults' customer. Every customer at your own site is your customer, on your list, who you can email about your next drop.
- Higher margin. Stripe takes 3% vs marketplace 20-25%. On a $15 STL, that's $13 vs $11.25. Across 1000 sales, that's a $1,750 difference.
- Brand permanence. Marketplaces change rules, change algorithms, deplatform creators, get acquired. Your domain is yours.
The math on a print-design business that sells 200 STL bundles/month at $15 average:
- All marketplace (Cults / MMF mix, 22% effective fee): $2,340/mo
- Hybrid (50% marketplace, 50% own site): $2,640/mo (+$300/mo, +$3,600/yr)
- 80% own site, 20% marketplace for discovery: $2,820/mo (+$5,760/yr)
What we recommend (the playbook)
Months 1-3 — list on Cults3D + MakerWorld (free), spin up an Instagram + TikTok with print videos. Goal: 100 sales total to validate the concept.
Months 3-6 — build your own site. Add a free model behind email signup (like ours). Goal: 500 emails on your list.
Months 6-12 — keep marketplace listings active for discovery; promote your own site to your list and social. Add a Patreon if you can ship 2-4 models/month consistently. Goal: 50% of revenue from your own channels.
Year 2+ — own site is the primary store, marketplaces are billboards.
What to charge
Most independent creators underprice. Common pricing in 2026:
- Functional small parts: $5-10
- Decor / vases / displays: $7-15
- Articulated / print-in-place: $10-20
- Bundles (3-10 models): $20-50
- Subscription (Patreon): $5-15/month
We've never seen a creator regret raising prices. We have seen many regret pricing too low.
The single most important thing
Build the email list. Whatever marketplace you sell on, have a path to capture an email — a free model, a newsletter, a behind-the-scenes update. The list is the asset. Everything else is a channel.
That's the whole reason we built our freebies section — every download gets you on a small, focused list of people who actually print.