If you want to buy your first Cricut machine, this can be a very tough issue for beginners.
Should you go with the most affordable, basic Cricut Machine? Or is the most popular one the right option to buy?
Everyone’s first experience with a Cricut Machine needs to be magical or functional. If you do not get off on the right floor and buy the wrong Cricut machine, you will likely see it gathering dust in a corner or, worse: in its box.
Some Cricut machines focus on transferring designs to mugs, clothes, and other items. This article has carefully selected the best Cricut machines available today. We explain each machine and give you detailed information to choose the best Cricut machine model.
So, we have collected a list of the beginner-friendly best Cricut machines if you are starting.
1. Cricut Maker 3 – The Best Cricut Machine For Smart Materials
The recently launched Cricut Maker 3 machine is the best option if you want to work with Smart Materials. (If you think there is no Cricut Maker 2, the company has only dropped one version.)
The Cricut Maker 3 machine is similar to Cricut Maker (3rd on our list). The major difference is that it can cut Smart Material without a mat, meaning you can cut up to 12 feet (3.6 m) at a time. In the Cricut Maker 3 machine, we found it incredibly rewarding, and once you try it, you cannot think of being without the option of snapping off long, unbroken rolls of cutting craft projects.
Also, the Cricut Maker 3 machine is twice as fast as Cricut Maker when working with your Smart Materials. On top of that, you will get a large portable trimmer and two extra accessories of a roll holder that can help you feed your Smart Materials into the Cricut machine. So, while it’s a bit more costly than a Cricut Maker, the extra price will be worth it if you work on larger craft projects.
2. Cricut Explore 3 – Cheapest Cricut Machine for Large Craft Projects
The Cricut Explore 3 machine is the successor to the Cricut Explore Air 2 (see below). While the Cricut Explore 3 machine will allow Smart Materials, Cricut’s new Smart Material means you can cut craft projects without your cutting mat. Like the Cricut Maker 3 machine, you can cut 12 feet (3.6 m) long at a time. Also, you get a large portable trimmer and roll holder.
The main benefit of the Cricut Explore 3 over the Cricut Maker 3 model is that it is more affordable. So, if you want to work with Smart Materials but don’t want professional features, this is the best Cricut machine for your needs.
The first Cricut Explore 3 cut 100 materials, while the Cricut Maker 3 and its older model, the Cricut Maker, could cut 300 materials. Also, for the design fan customers, the Cricut Explore 3 machine only has a mint green color, but more colors are expected to come.
Overall, the Cricut Explore 3 is the perfect machine in Cricut’s cutter line-up. It can cut enough Smart Materials to be competitive while supporting smart devices. The Cricut Explore 3 machine is a worthy number 2.
3. Cricut Maker – The Best Cricut Machine For Most People
The Cricut Maker model is the best Cricut cutting machine for most people. If you are planning to work with smart materials, in this case, back to the top machine on our list, the new Cricut Maker 3. Otherwise, if you are looking for the best Cricut machine for vinyl, then the best Cricut machine for fabric materials, or the best Cricut machine for most purposes, this is for you.
The Cricut Maker machine will enable you to accurately cut over 300 materials, including everything from delicate fabrics and paper to tough materials like leather and matboard. You will get 13 tools that precisely cut, score, write, deboss, engrave or add other decorative effects. These have a rotary blade for cutting fabric materials, a knife blade for material up to 2.4 mm thick, a scoring wheel for making creases and folds, and a foil transfer tool for foil decoration.
We found it incredibly adaptable in use, and the bespoke Cricut Design Space app is great for all craft projects, although we did this if you’re a skilled artist or want to explore other software for Cricut Machine that you can do with the Design Space App.
So, while it’s not the cheapest Cricut machine, it’s not the most expensive either, and given the variety of functions and regular offers you can find, the Cricut Maker is the best value overall.
4. Cricut Explore Air 2 – The Best Cricut Machine For Newbies
New to the Cricut cutting machine? Then we would highly recommend the Cricut Explore Air 2 machine. It is not as versatile and powerful as the first two Cricut machines on our list. But for a beginner, it’s a good one, as it makes the software easy to follow. And it still delivers many features that a newbie would want.
To be specific, the Cricut Explore Air 2 machine cuts over 100 different types of a smart material, including vinyl, iron-on, and HTV vinyl, adhesive foil, faux leather, cardstock, specialty paper, and poster board, and you’ll get 5 tools for Writing, Cutting and Scoring.
It’s a great option for home-based, small-scale craft projects, like making custom gifts or stickers, greeting cards, and personalized decorations. So, while it isn’t suitable for retail cutting, it is the best Cricut machine for someone at the start of the Cricut journey.
5. Cricut Joy – The Best Cricut Machine For Travel
Want to craft projects on your travels? Then the best Cricut Joy machine is perfect for you, which is amazingly portable and compact. With smaller dimensions of 21.4 x 13.8 x 10.8cm, it is noticeably smaller than other Cricut models, and with a lightweight of 1.75kg, it is easy to store and carry from one place to another. It makes it a perfect option for small crafting projects.
This small, portable craft Cricut cutting machine was perfect for making stickers, cards, and vinyl heat ink transfer – the kind pressed onto shirts and bags. It works quite well and is mainly created for making homemade card projects, which we found easily used from within the new Cricut Joy mobile app.
Still, the Cricut Joy machine is capable of big things. You can use the Cricut Joy machine without a cutting mat for continued cuts up to 20 feet long and 4 inches wide. More commonly, it can be used to cut more than 50 types of materials, including cardstock, iron-on, vinyl, paper, and smart materials. Remember that while you can connect this Cricut machine to your computer through Bluetooth, it does not have a USB connection (unlike the devices listed so far).
Conclusion
With the perfect cutting of a wide range of smart materials and incredible accuracy, these Cricut machine model options are beginner-friendly to make die-cutting fun and easy. But finally, the best Cricut Machine option depends entirely on your intended use and needs