Huge TerraPrinter update: Way better output, 23 worlds, 16 gift makers
Hey everyone! It's been a busy couple of weeks. TerraPrinter has had more updates since mid-October than in the whole year before, so here's a roundup. Everything is still 100% free at terraprinter.com.
Search → model in one step
Type a place and pick it from the list, and the model just gets made. Mountains get a circle sized to the peak, cities get a square around the whole city, and a street address gets a detailed close-up. If it's not what you wanted, hit Undo. New visitors also get a quick "What are you making?" picker (wall art, terrain, puzzle, gift…) that sets good defaults.
Print-ready check
The download window now checks your model against your printer: bed size, build height, nozzle size and number of filament slots. It warns you about:
\- roads thinner than your nozzle \- tall, skinny buildings that might snap \- tiny speck buildings \- a base thin enough to warp \- more colours than your printer has slots
Each warning has a one-tap fix that rebuilds the model. You can also compare before/after with a slider, and your last 10 models are saved on your device, no account needed.
Way better models
Laser-scanned (LiDAR) terrain at 1–3 m detail for small models in the US, Canada and much of Europe
\- Close-up detail mode for areas up to \~1.5 km: proper roof shapes, windows, hedges, kerbs \- Real trees from OpenStreetMap, plus better building heights and real bridges \- 3D landmarks: famous buildings like the Eiffel Tower and the Empire State Building get swapped for hand-built models instead of blocky boxes \- Colours from free Sentinel-2 satellite imagery
23 worlds
On top of Earth, Mars and the Moon, you can now print Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, Pluto, Charon, Ceres, Vesta, Io, Europa, Ganymede, Callisto, Mimas, Enceladus, Tethys, Dione, Rhea, Iapetus, Titan, Triton and
Phobos. All the elevation data is now on our own map server, so it's faster and more reliable.
16 gift makers
Under Gifts, each with a live 3D preview:
\- Globes: any of the 23 worlds, with magnets or pins, hollow, up to 4 colours \- Lithophanes and lamps: panels, round ones, or a Moon/Mars/Earth lamp \- Wall maps (3D-printed plaque, laser-cut, or poster), keychains, ornaments, jewellery, race medals, contour layers, coasters & tiles, star maps, shadow boxes \- Mountain ball runs, cookie cutters, and chocolate/soap/candle molds of real terrain
Quality of life
\- A redesigned, much clearer settings panel and a fresh look across the whole app \- "Open in your slicer": send the 3MF straight to your slicer \- On your phone? "Send to my computer" rebuilds the model on your PC \- Friendlier error messages that tell you what to do next, with a Try again button \- Sea-level time machine, Minecraft style + .schem export, puzzle mode, and large projects split across multiple print beds \- Free commercial license: you can sell prints and files as long as you credit [terraprinter.com](http://terraprinter.com), and there's a seller dashboard to track products and orders
There's a full tour with pictures at terraprinter.com/features/.
I'd love to see what you make! Post your prints here, and if something breaks or you have an idea, use the 💡 button in the app or comment below.
If TerraPrinter has been useful to you, there's a ☕ Buy me a coffee link that helps cover hosting and keeps it free.
Happy printing! 🖨🌍