World's largest 3D printer maker discusses tariff impact on its buisness, passing costs on to customers — Creality is the first consumer 3D printer maker to IPO

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Creality IPO
(Image credit: Tom's Hardware)

Creality, considered the world’s largest consumer 3D printing company, is set to become publicly listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. This would make it the first manufacturer of consumer-grade 3D printers to gain public funding. Creality is known for bringing budget 3D printers to the mainstream with the basic Ender 3 in 2017 and more recently with the Creality Hi and K2 Plus.

Flipping through Creality’s Application Proof with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, which is a preliminary draft of its prospectus, reveals the Chinese company’s mindset. Though American consumers might worry about tariffs, Creality is not. The draft prospectus states:

“Although we received a substantial proportion of revenue from North America during the Track Record Period, the additional U.S. tariffs imposed on us did not have a material adverse effect on our business operations or financial condition during the Track Record Period and up to the Latest Practicable Date, as evidenced by our continuous growth.”

In 2024, Creality reported RMB 615.1 million ($85.8 million USD), which is approximately 27% of its total revenue, primarily from North America. The company credits its “proactive pricing strategy” for passing on the increased tariffs to its customers, coupled with strong market demand in the US.

A geographic breakdown of where Creality sells its products states that in the first quarter of 2025, nearly 63% were to Western countries, but even that number is skewed. A footnote further details that a “vast majority” of its revenue from within China is to e-commerce traders who resell Creality products overseas. This would place over 90% of Creality sales in non-Asian countries.

Creality

(Image credit: HKEXnews)

The document outlines its revenue model: “We generate revenues from the sales and provision of 3D printers, 3D printing consumables, 3D scanners, laser engravers, accessories and other 3D printed products and services primarily representing membership subscription fees, proceeds and commissions from 3D model transactions and sales proceeds of 3D printed products.” The “sales proceeds of 3D printed products” would be from its new e-commerce platform, Nexbie.

Creality stated that it had gross profits of RMB 707.8 million (approximately USD 98.7 million) in 2024.

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Period

Gross Profit (RMB)

Gross Profit (USD ≈)

Margin

2022 (Full year)

387.8 million

~$54.1 million

28.80%

2023 (Full year)

599.5 million

~$83.6 million

31.80%

2024 (Full year)

707.8 million

~$98.7 million

30.90%

Q1 2024

186.9 million

~$26.1 million

34.00%

Q1 2025

249.5 million

~$34.8 million

35.20%

(USD conversions use ~1 RMB = 0.1395 USD, Aug 2025 rate.)

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Creality sells its machines through both direct sales on its website and through distributors, such as Matterhackers or MicroCenter. The document claims to have a wide sales network spanning 140 countries and 74 online stores. It further explains that its customers are individual users, distributors, and enterprise users.

If you’re interested in reading more of the Creality document yourself, grab a cup of coffee; it’s a 561-page PDF. The “redacted” portions are not exactly “secrets,” but rather details left out to ensure the draft proposal is not mistaken for a final prospectus that can be used to market or solicit investments.

Denise Bertacchi is a Contributing Writer for Tom’s Hardware US, covering 3D printing. Denise has been crafting with PCs since she discovered Print Shop had clip art on her Apple IIe. She loves reviewing 3D printers because she can mix all her passions: printing, photography, and writing.

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