# Zapier, n8n & AI automation for 3D printing **Minimum Plan:** Pro Automate your 3D printing workflow: connect SimplyPrint to Zapier, n8n and Activepieces, or let AI assistants run your fleet via MCP. No code required. **Categories:** core, smart *Connect your printers to the tools you already use* ## Workflow automation When a print finishes, something else usually has to happen: a message in the team chat, a row in a spreadsheet, an order marked as fulfilled, the next job queued. SimplyPrint connects to **Zapier**, **n8n** and **Activepieces** so those steps run themselves - no code required - and to AI assistants like **ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini** through our MCP server. All of it rides the same REST API, webhooks and per-user permissions as the rest of SimplyPrint. ## One event, any tool SimplyPrint is a cloud platform for managing 3D printers of any brand - and every automation here follows the same shape: a **trigger** fires in SimplyPrint (print finished, print failed, AI failure detected, queue item added), and an **action** runs somewhere else - or the other way around, where an event in your other tools queues a job or starts a print here. You build the recipe once, in the platform you prefer, and it runs every time. ## The busywork you never do again Think of every small thing you do after a print - the message, the spreadsheet row, the order update. Each one is a recipe you set up once, in a drag-and-drop editor, and never think about again: - **A print finishes** - the team channel gets a message, the job logs itself to Google Sheets, the order line flips to produced. You never opened a tab. - **An order lands in your storefront** - it drops straight into the print queue, and the moment the job completes your fulfilment flow hears about it. - **A print fails at 2 AM** - a ticket opens, the operator gets pinged, the queue holds on that printer. You find a handled problem, not a surprise. - **Spare part stock runs low** - the supplier email writes itself, or a line lands in the procurement sheet. - **Every morning at 8** - yesterday's stats post themselves as a digest to the team channel, before your coffee is done. *"A centralized cloud hub with integrated slicing, printer control, API integration, inventory management... to control any brand and number of 3D printers."* Print farm owner, 39 printers - 2026 print farm survey ## Two clicks to connect - no code, no API keys You never touch code or paste a key. Click **Connect**, sign in to SimplyPrint, approve what the workflow is allowed to do - done. The connection can only do what you approved and only what your own account can do, and one click in your account settings unplugs it again. Recipes react within seconds of the event, not on some polling timer. (Developers: underneath it's the same REST API and webhooks the panel uses - [dig in here](/features/api).) ## Let an AI assistant run the busywork Beyond fixed recipes, SimplyPrint runs an official **MCP server** - the open standard AI assistants use to call outside tools. Connect ChatGPT, Claude (including Claude Code) or Gemini CLI once, and ask in plain English: "queue five copies of the bracket", "which spools are below 100 grams?", "approve the pending items from Sarah". Around 70 tools, scope-gated, revocable any time. ## Looking for hands-off continuous printing? This page is about **workflow** automation - moving data between SimplyPrint and your other tools. If you want the printers themselves to run hands-off, that's **AutoPrint**: the bed clears (or an operator confirms it), and the next queued job starts on its own. The two pair well - AutoPrint keeps the machines busy while your workflows keep the paperwork honest. ## Frequently asked questions ### Which plan do I need for Zapier or n8n? The automation platforms are included from the **Pro** plan and up - they ride your API access, so there's no separate automation fee. See [pricing](/pricing) for the full comparison. ### When is the Make integration coming? The SimplyPrint app for Make is built and currently under review on Make's side. The [Make integration page](/integrations/make) shows the live status - once it clears review, it works like the other platforms. ### Can my Etsy or Shopify orders queue prints automatically? Yes, via the **REST API** and **webhooks**: push orders from your storefront into the print queue and fire a webhook back when each job finishes - with code, or no-code tools like Zapier, n8n and Activepieces. Several farms run their store straight into their fleet this way. ### Zapier, n8n or Activepieces - which should I pick? **Zapier** if you want the biggest catalogue of connected apps with the least setup. **n8n** if you like node-based workflows or want to self-host. **Activepieces** if you want open source and self-hosting with a simpler builder. The SimplyPrint triggers and actions are the same on all of them. ### Can I self-host the automation engine? Yes - both **n8n** and **Activepieces** can run on your own infrastructure, so workflow data stays inside your network while the connector talks to the SimplyPrint API over OAuth2. A good fit for workshops and organizations with data-residency requirements. ### Is this the same as AutoPrint? No. [AutoPrint](/features/autoprint) automates the *printing* itself - starting the next queued job when a bed is cleared. Workflow automation moves *data* between SimplyPrint and your other tools. They pair well together. ### What can the AI assistants actually do? Almost everything you can do in the panel: operate printers, manage the queue and approvals, browse files, track filament, pull statistics - around 70 tools, granted per scope on the OAuth consent screen and revocable any time. Full details on the [MCP feature page](/features/mcp). ### How do I revoke an automation's access? Open your account settings' connected apps list, find the connection and click revoke. It stops working immediately and would need to run through OAuth again to reconnect. ## Step-by-step setup guides Start with the [integrations overview](https://help.simplyprint.io/en/article/the-simplyprint-integrations-connect-your-cad-slicer-and-automation-tools-1980dmd/) in the helpdesk, or the [AI assistant walkthrough](https://help.simplyprint.io/en/article/connect-simplyprint-to-any-ai-assistant-via-mcp-u5j4bw/) for MCP setup on Claude, ChatGPT and Gemini CLI. Each platform's own page under [integrations](/integrations) has the connect steps. --- **Learn more:** [Help Article](https://help.simplyprint.io/en/article/the-simplyprint-integrations-connect-your-cad-slicer-and-automation-tools-1980dmd/)