# SimplyPrint vs FlowQ

## About FlowQ

- **Website:** [FlowQ](https://infinityflow3d.com/pages/flowq-3d-printer-automation-print-farm-management-software)
- **Pricing:** [FlowQ Pricing](https://infinityflow3d.com/pages/flowq-pricing-print-farm-automation-fleet-management)

## Overview

FlowQ is the cloud print-farm software from Infinity Flow 3D, a US company best known for its 3D-printing automation *hardware* (the S1 Plus automatic filament loader, filament cutters and ejection kits). FlowQ grew out of running their own farm, and it shows: it's a tidy, genuinely multi-brand cloud dashboard for queueing prints, auto-restarting jobs and tracking filament. If you already slice on your desktop and mostly want a shared queue tied to their filament hardware, it's a smart, affordable little platform, and we mean that.

But "manage a queue" and "run a print farm" aren't the same job. A farm has to prepare its own files, catch failures before they waste a night, track filament, service machines, and stay affordable as it grows, ideally without buying anyone's hardware. That's the ground SimplyPrint has been built on since 2020, across every major printer brand. Here's a fair, sourced side-by-side.

## Pros of FlowQ

FlowQ (and Infinity Flow) have real strengths, and they're worth being honest about:**

- Automation hardware:** their standout, genuinely good kit, the S1 Plus automatic filament loader, automatic filament cutters, a PolyDryer mount and a Bed Swap ejection kit. SimplyPrint is software and doesn't make hardware.
- **Low price & a generous free tier:** a free plan with 3 printer connections, and paid tiers at just $15-$24/mo, genuinely cheap.
- **Simple setup:** no server, no code and no Raspberry Pi required, connect through a free software tunnel (Mac/Windows/Linux) or a ~$20 hub.
- **Genuinely multi-brand:** Bambu, Klipper/Moonraker, Prusa, Creality and Elegoo all connect, and there's a documented public REST API plus Zapier and Make.

## Cons of FlowQ

Where FlowQ tends to fall short for a working farm:**

- No slicer:** you slice in a desktop program and upload the finished G-code; there's no in-browser slicer or build-plate editor.
- **No AI detection:** live camera feeds only, no AI failure detection and no AI bed-check.
- **Filament tracking needs their hardware:** real usage tracking requires buying the S1+ loader; there's no software-only inventory, no NFC tags and no filament label printing.
- **Continuous printing is bring-your-own-ejection:** FlowQ "does not add or modify ejection code", the queue only advances once a part is physically removed, so you supply the ejection method (custom G-code, a third-party system, or its Bambu A1-only Bed Swap kit).
- **Narrower firmware & throttled tiers:** no OctoPrint, no Marlin-over-USB and no Duet; the cheaper tiers cap monthly jobs and pause the queue, and by FlowQ's own FAQ a paid plan is needed to connect printers to the cloud.
- **US-hosted, no EU option:** developed and hosted in the US with no EU data residency and no published DPA, plus no native mobile apps, no maintenance system and no Education plan.

## Feature Comparison: SimplyPrint vs FlowQ

### General

| Feature | FlowQ | SimplyPrint |
|---------|-----|-------------|
| Has free plan | ✓ | ✓ |
| Max cost | $24/mo (Unlimited) + ~$3-4/printer | Free, or from $4/printer/mo |
| Free cloud storage | ✗ | 1GB |
| Usage based cost | ✗ | ✗ |
| Unlimited printing | Unlimited tier only | ✓ |
| Supports all printers | 60+ models; no OctoPrint/Duet | ✓ |

### Features

| Feature | FlowQ | SimplyPrint |
|---------|-----|-------------|
| Remote access | ✓ | ✓ |
| Filament management | Requires S1+ hardware | ✓ |
| Knows your printer | ✓ | ✓ |
| Cloud files | ✓ | ✓ |
| Print queue | ✓ | ✓ |
| Livestream | ✓ | ✓ |
| Gcode analysis | ✗ | ✓ |
| A.I failure detection | ✗ | ✓ |
| AutoPrint / continuous printing | Needs external ejection | ✓ |
| Custom fields | ✗ | ✓ |
| Staggered Start (for power draw) | ✗ | ✓ |
| Print job history | ✓ | ✓ |
| Print remotely | ✓ | ✓ |
| Built-in slicer | ✗ | ✓ |
| Multi-printer friendly | ✓ | ✓ |
| Multi-print | ✓ | ✓ |
| Multi-stream | ✓ | ✓ |
| Statistics | ✗ | ✓ |
| API | ✓ | ✓ |
| Slicer smart-rotation | ✗ | ✓ |
| Smart filament change | ✗ | ✓ |
| Bed level helper | ✗ | ✓ |

### Organizations

| Feature | FlowQ | SimplyPrint |
|---------|-----|-------------|
| Multiple users | ✗ | ✓ |
| User groups / ranks | ✗ | ✓ |
| User permissions | ✗ | ✓ |
| School plan | ✗ | ✓ |
| Shared files & folders | ✓ | ✓ |
| Shared slicer profiles | ✗ | ✓ |
| Hub | ✗ | ✓ |
| Custom domains | ✗ | ✓ |
| SSO (single sign-on) | ✗ | ✓ |

### Notifications

| Feature | FlowQ | SimplyPrint |
|---------|-----|-------------|
| Email notifications | ✓ | ✓ |
| Push (mobile / app) notifications | ✗ | ✓ |
| SMS / text message notifications | ✗ | ✓ |

### Apps

| Feature | FlowQ | SimplyPrint |
|---------|-----|-------------|
| Android app | ✗ | ✓ |
| iOS app | ✗ | ✓ |
| "PWA" (installable web-application) | ✓ | ✓ |

### Security & Privacy

| Feature | FlowQ | SimplyPrint |
|---------|-----|-------------|
| Account 2-factor authentication | ✗ | ✓ |
| EU servers | ✗ | ✓ |
| Privacy-minded analytics & data-gathering | ✗ | ✓ |

### Support

| Feature | FlowQ | SimplyPrint |
|---------|-----|-------------|
| Email support | ✓ | ✓ |
| Live-chat support | ✗ | ✓ |
| Phone support | ✗ | ✓ |

### Firmware & Gateway Support

| Feature | FlowQ | SimplyPrint |
|---------|-----|-------------|
| OctoPrint install | ✗ | ✓ |
| Native Moonraker support | ✓ | ✓ |
| Mainsail install | ✗ | ✓ |
| Fluidd install | ✗ | ✓ |
| Klipper support | ✓ | ✓ |
| Duet3D integration | ✗ | ✓ |
| Direct Prusa support (MK4, XL and up / new main boards) | ✓ | ✓ |
| Direct Bambu Lab printer integration | ✓ | ✓ |
| Support for custom integrations | ✗ | ✓ |

### Enterprise & Partners

| Feature | FlowQ | SimplyPrint |
|---------|-----|-------------|
| OEM | ✗ | ✓ |
| Partner program (reseller / distributor) | ✗ | ✓ |
| Affiliate program | ✗ | ✓ |