How to start a print in SimplyPrint

SimplyPrint gives you several ways to start a print, from a single click on one printer to launching a whole farm at once. This guide covers every way to start a print - through SimplyPrint (recommended) and from outside it - and helps you pick the one that fits your setup.

In this guide

• Before you start: connect a printer
• Printing through SimplyPrint vs outside it
• Ways to start a print through SimplyPrint
• Starting prints from outside SimplyPrint
• Why aren't there more slicer integrations?
• Which way should you use?
• Why so many ways to start a print?

Before you start: connect a printer

Most of the methods below need a printer connected to SimplyPrint. If you have not done that yet, the setup guide walks you through it for 600+ printer models across 130+ brands. SimplyPrint connects to your printer as a bridge, so adding it does not stop you printing any other way you already do.

If you only signed up to use the online slicer or the filament manager and do not plan to connect a printer, jump to starting prints from outside SimplyPrint.

Printing through SimplyPrint vs outside it

The single most useful thing to understand is the difference between a print that goes through SimplyPrint and one that does not.

When the file passes through SimplyPrint (you upload it, slice it in our slicer, send it from a connected slicer, or start it from your cloud files), our servers can analyze the G-code. That unlocks a lot:

• Filament usage tracking. We know how much material the print uses, so it is automatically deducted from your filament inventory.
• G-code analysis. Estimated print time, temperatures, materials, layer count and cost. See all about the G-code analysis feature.
• Skip object. We know which objects are on the plate, so you can cancel individual ones mid-print.
• A saved file you can preview, download and reprint, plus full statistics.

This is why we recommend starting prints through SimplyPrint, and why we work hard to make it as easy as possible. It is not about control - it is that when the file passes through us, we can help you far more.

Ways to start a print through SimplyPrint

There are many, because different setups call for different workflows. They all start the print through SimplyPrint, so you get the full set of data above.

Start print on a printer

The most direct way. On the Printers page, each printer has a Start print button. Click it, pick a file from your cloud files or upload one, then confirm. If the file is a 3D model that has not been sliced yet (for example an STL or a 3MF), it opens the built-in slicer first.

Best for: one printer, or starting a specific printer on demand.

From your files

Your files in SimplyPrint are a cloud storage space for everything print related, a bit like Dropbox or Google Drive but for 3D printing. Open the Files page, choose a file, click Start print, and select one or more printers to start it on.

Best for: starting the same file across several printers at once.

From the built-in slicer

SimplyPrint has a full slicer that runs in your browser, no install needed. Slice a model and click Print to start it straight away (or send it to the queue, or save it to your files). You can import profiles from your existing slicer so your settings carry over.

Best for: going from a 3D model to a print without leaving SimplyPrint.

From the print queue

Add files to the print queue to line up what you want to print, then start any item manually with Start print and pick a printer. Many people use the queue just to keep track of what is next, even on a single printer. See adding items to the print queue.

Best for: planning what to print and keeping an organized backlog.

1-Click Print

Once items are in the queue, 1-Click Print starts them across all your available printers at once. It uses Smart Routing to match each file to a printer that can actually run it, based on bed type, material, nozzle size and tags. That is how a farm starts 100 prints on 100 printers in a couple of clicks.

Best for: starting many printers fast and letting SimplyPrint do the matching.

AutoPrint

AutoPrint lets printers start the next queued job on their own, so you do not have to press anything. It works in two ways:

• Automatic clearing. With supported automation hardware, the printer clears the finished part off the bed itself and the next matching job starts hands free. See AutoPrint clearing methods.
• Manual clearing. No hardware needed: you remove the part and press Clear bed, and the next matching job from the queue starts automatically.

A nice side effect: with AutoPrint on, idle printers pick up newly queued jobs on their own. You can fill an empty queue and walk away, and your printers start themselves.

Best for: continuous, hands-off printing on a farm.

From your slicer (slicer integrations)

Some desktop slicers can send a sliced file straight to SimplyPrint. In OrcaSlicer, set SimplyPrint as the print host, and the Print button uploads the file to SimplyPrint where you start it, queue it or save it. See the OrcaSlicer SimplyPrint integration. Cura has the same thing through the SimplyPrint Cura plugin.

Because the file still flows through SimplyPrint, you keep all the data above while slicing in the app you prefer.

Best for: people who want to keep slicing in OrcaSlicer or Cura.

Through the API

Developers can start prints and add items to the queue through the SimplyPrint API. Connect one integration to your whole fleet (600+ models from 130+ brands) and start prints however you like, from your own tools or scripts. Items added through the API can also be picked up automatically by AutoPrint. The print queue article covers adding to the queue via the API.

Best for: automation and custom workflows.

In the mobile app

Every method above is also in the SimplyPrint mobile app for iOS and Android. You can start a single printer, run 1-Click Print, manage the queue and slice on the go.

Starting prints from outside SimplyPrint

Having SimplyPrint connected does not stop you printing any other way. The printer usually does not even know SimplyPrint is attached, so nothing about your normal printing changes. You can keep starting prints from:

• A USB stick or SD card plugged into the printer.
• USB (serial) for older printers connected directly to a computer.
• The printer's own screen.
• A local interface like OctoPrint, Mainsail or Fluidd.
• The manufacturer's own app or cloud, such as Bambu Handy, Elegoo's app, or Prusa Link and Prusa Connect.

SimplyPrint does not block any of these. It detects the print and tracks it for you. Here is what you do and do not get for a print started outside SimplyPrint:

You still get:

• The print recorded in your history, flagged "Started outside SimplyPrint".
• AI failure detection, as long as the printer has a camera SimplyPrint can see and detection is enabled. It is camera based, so it does not need the file.
• Live status and notifications.

You miss out on:

• Filament automatically deducted from your inventory (we do not know how much the print used).
• G-code analysis: print time, temperatures, materials, cost.
• A saved file you can preview, download or reprint.
• Skip object, unless your printer reports its own objects (for example Klipper printers do, so skip object can still work there).

Why aren't there more slicer integrations?

Two reasons this comes up, and both have good answers.

First, you do not need a desktop slicer at all. SimplyPrint has a full slicer built in (running the OrcaSlicer, PrusaSlicer, Bambu Studio, ElegooSlicer and Creality Print engines in your browser), so you can slice and print without installing anything.

Second, for people who do want to slice on the desktop, native "send to SimplyPrint" is available today in OrcaSlicer and Cura. We built the same integration for other slicers and submitted it to them, but the pull requests have not been accepted yet: Bambu Studio, PrusaSlicer and SuperSlicer all have open requests their maintainers have not merged. Until they do, we cannot ship it there.

ElegooSlicer used to include it, because it is based on OrcaSlicer, but Elegoo removed all third-party "send to" options from ElegooSlicer (including SimplyPrint, OctoPrint and Mainsail), so it is no longer available in that slicer.

Either way, you are never stuck: slice in our Cloud Slicer, or export your profiles from any slicer and slice in SimplyPrint.

Which way should you use?

You can mix and match, but as a rough guide:

The more printers you run, the more you will lean on the queue plus 1-Click Print, AutoPrint or the API.

Why so many ways to start a print?

Because a hobbyist with one printer and a workshop with 200 printers need very different things. Some platforms give you exactly one way to start a print. We deliberately do not. We want you to be able to build the workflow that fits you, and to mix approaches: start one print by hand, batch the next twenty with 1-Click Print, and let AutoPrint handle the rest overnight.

Related articles

• Getting started with SimplyPrint and common use cases
• The print queue: manage, schedule and automate your prints
• 1-Click Print: batch start prints across your printers
• AutoPrint: put your printers on autopilot
• All about the G-code analysis feature
• How does SimplyPrint track filament usage?
• The "Skip object" feature
• The OrcaSlicer SimplyPrint integration

Updated on: 26/06/2026