PETG vs PLA for Functional Parts: Heat, Impact, and Print Settings
Functional Parts Need Heat and Impact Numbers, Not a Material Stereotype
A clip, a bracket, or a housing fails in two boring ways: it softens under heat, or it cracks when something hits it. This guide compares PETG and PLA on those two axes using manufacturer-published settings and, where a TDS provides them, Anycubic typical values for PETG and PLA Basic [1][2]. It does not recap ABS. For the three-way PLA / PETG / ABS overview see /guides/pla-vs-petg-vs-abs-filament-comparison. For why heat-deflection numbers are the ones that matter on printed PLA, see /guides/pla-heat-resistance-glass-transition-vs-melting-point.
Brand windows are not interchangeable. Anycubic PETG, eSUN PETG, Creality CR-PETG, and Creality Hyper Series PETG publish different nozzle, bed, speed, and drying lines [1][3][4][5]. The library entries for this comparison are /library/124, /library/122, /library/38, /library/115, and /library/109.
Heat Deflection: Anycubic PETG vs Anycubic PLA Basic
Anycubic is the only brand in this set that publishes matching Vicat and HDT typical values for both PETG and PLA Basic on the cited TDS documents [1][2]. Those are the numbers used here for heat.
| Product | Library | Vicat | HDT (0.45 MPa) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anycubic PETG | /library/124 | 72°C [1] | 69°C [1] |
| Anycubic PLA Basic | /library/122 | 55°C [2] | 54°C [2] |
On this pair, PETG's HDT typical value is 69°C against PLA Basic's 54°C, and Vicat is 72°C against 55°C [1][2]. That is a same-brand, same-document-family comparison. eSUN PETG, Creality CR-PETG, and Creality Hyper Series PETG do not publish Vicat or HDT on the cited pages, so this guide does not assign them a heat number [3][4][5].
If the part will sit near warmth — a warm enclosure, a sunlit indoor shelf, a device that runs warm — Anycubic's published HDT gap is the concrete reason to prefer that brand's PETG over that brand's PLA Basic [1][2]. It is not a claim about every PETG on the market.
Impact and Tensile: Same Anycubic Pair
Anycubic's PETG TDS also lists tensile, elongation, and Izod typical values (X-Y) next to the PLA Basic TDS [1][2].
| Property (Anycubic TDS V3.0, X-Y) | PETG [1] | PLA Basic [2] |
|---|---|---|
| Tensile strength | 52±1 MPa | 48±5 MPa |
| Elongation | 13±1% | 8±1% |
| Izod impact | 45±2 kJ/m² | 22±1 kJ/m² |
Izod is the large gap: 45±2 kJ/m² for PETG versus 22±1 kJ/m² for PLA Basic [1][2]. Elongation moves from 8±1% to 13±1% [1][2]. Tensile typical value is also higher on PETG (52±1 MPa vs 48±5 MPa), with a tighter published tolerance [1][2]. For a functional part that may be dropped, clipped, or flexed, Anycubic's own Izod and elongation figures are the reason to pick that PETG over that PLA [1][2].
The eSUN and Creality sources in this guide are print-setting pages, not mechanical TDS tables [3][4][5]. They are used below for temperatures and speeds only.
Print Settings Across Brands (Do Not Copy One Row to Another)
PETG print windows vary more across brands than the Anycubic PLA / PLA+ pair does. Creality Hyper Series PETG even lists a single bed temperature (45°C) and a wide 190–260°C nozzle range [5]. eSUN PETG lists a hotter bed (75–90°C) and a slower speed cap (<150 mm/s) [3]. Creality CR-PETG lists 40–80 mm/s and a 60–100°C bed [4].
| Product | Library | Nozzle | Bed | Speed | Fan | Drying |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anycubic PETG | /library/124 | 230–250°C [1] | 60–70°C [1] | 50–250 mm/s [1] | 90% [1] | 55–65°C, 6–8 h [1] |
| Anycubic PLA Basic | /library/122 | 190–230°C [2] | 55–65°C [2] | 50–200 mm/s [2] | 100% [2] | 45–50°C, 6–8 h [2] |
| eSUN PETG | /library/38 | 240–260°C [3] | 75–90°C [3] | <150 mm/s [3] | 100% [3] | 60°C, >8 h [3] |
| Creality CR-PETG | /library/115 | 230–250°C [4] | 60–100°C [4] | 40–80 mm/s [4] | 50–100% [4] | 60–65°C, 4–6 h [4] |
| Creality Hyper Series PETG | /library/109 | 190–260°C [5] | 45°C [5] | 50–300 mm/s [5] | Not listed [5] | Not listed [5] |
Notes that stay inside the sources: Anycubic PETG uses 90% fan versus 100% on Anycubic PLA Basic [1][2]. Anycubic PETG drying is 55–65°C for 6–8 h versus 45–50°C for 6–8 h on PLA Basic [1][2]. Creality Hyper Series PETG's cited store page does not list fan or drying [5].
Comparison Table (Heat, Impact, Settings)
Mechanical columns are filled only where the cited Anycubic TDS documents publish them [1][2].
| Anycubic PETG [1] | Anycubic PLA Basic [2] | eSUN PETG [3] | Creality CR-PETG [4] | Creality Hyper PETG [5] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Library | /library/124 | /library/122 | /library/38 | /library/115 | /library/109 |
| Nozzle | 230–250°C | 190–230°C | 240–260°C | 230–250°C | 190–260°C |
| Bed | 60–70°C | 55–65°C | 75–90°C | 60–100°C | 45°C |
| Speed | 50–250 mm/s | 50–200 mm/s | <150 mm/s | 40–80 mm/s | 50–300 mm/s |
| Fan | 90% | 100% | 100% | 50–100% | Not listed |
| Drying | 55–65°C, 6–8 h | 45–50°C, 6–8 h | 60°C, >8 h | 60–65°C, 4–6 h | Not listed |
| Tensile (X-Y) | 52±1 MPa | 48±5 MPa | Not listed | Not listed | Not listed |
| Elongation | 13±1% | 8±1% | Not listed | Not listed | Not listed |
| Izod | 45±2 kJ/m² | 22±1 kJ/m² | Not listed | Not listed | Not listed |
| Vicat | 72°C | 55°C | Not listed | Not listed | Not listed |
| HDT (0.45 MPa) | 69°C | 54°C | Not listed | Not listed | Not listed |
Which should you buy?
Pick the part's failure mode first, then the spool whose published numbers speak to that mode.
- Choose Anycubic PETG (/library/124) for functional parts when you want that brand's published HDT 69°C, Vicat 72°C, Izod 45±2 kJ/m², and tensile 52±1 MPa, and you will print at 230–250°C / 60–70°C with 90% fan [1].
- Choose Anycubic PLA Basic (/library/122) when the part stays cool, you want the easier 190–230°C / 100% fan window, and you accept HDT 54°C and Izod 22±1 kJ/m² [2].
- Choose eSUN PETG (/library/38) when you will run eSUN's hotter 240–260°C nozzle and 75–90°C bed and can live with <150 mm/s [3]. Do not paste Anycubic's Izod or HDT onto this spool.
- Choose Creality CR-PETG (/library/115) for Creality's 230–250°C nozzle, 60–100°C bed, 40–80 mm/s, 50–100% fan, and 60–65°C / 4–6 h dry [4].
- Choose Creality Hyper Series PETG (/library/109) when you want that product's 190–260°C / 45°C bed / 50–300 mm/s window [5]. Fan and drying are not on the cited page.
For glass-transition versus melting-point language on PLA, use /guides/pla-heat-resistance-glass-transition-vs-melting-point. This page stays on manufacturer HDT, Vicat, Izod, and print settings.
Related Guides
This article is the functional-parts cut: heat deflection and impact on PETG versus PLA, plus the print settings for the five library SKUs above. It does not walk through ABS print difficulty, fumes, or enclosures.
- /guides/pla-vs-petg-vs-abs-filament-comparison — the broader three-material overview
- /guides/pla-heat-resistance-glass-transition-vs-melting-point — why a PLA melting-point figure is the wrong heat-resistance number
Sources
- [1]Anycubic, "TDS PETG V3.0" — nozzle 230–250°C, bed 60–70°C, speed 50–250 mm/s, fan 90%, drying 55–65°C for 6–8 h; typical X-Y tensile 52±1 MPa, elongation 13±1%, Izod 45±2 kJ/m², Vicat 72°C, HDT (0.45 MPa) 69°C. https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0698/1235/5357/files/ANYCUBIC_TDS_PETG_V3.0.pdf?v=1757584046
- [2]Anycubic, "TDS PLA V3.0" — PLA Basic nozzle 190–230°C, bed 55–65°C, speed 50–200 mm/s, fan 100%, drying 45–50°C for 6–8 h; typical X-Y tensile 48±5 MPa, elongation 8±1%, Izod 22±1 kJ/m², Vicat 55°C, HDT (0.45 MPa) 54°C. https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0698/1235/5357/files/ANYCUBIC_TDS_PLA_V3.0.pdf?v=1757585748
- [3]eSUN, "PETG product page" — nozzle 240–260°C, bed 75–90°C, speed <150 mm/s, fan 100%, drying 60°C for >8 h. https://www.esun3d.com/petg-product/
- [4]Creality Wiki, "CR-PETG" — nozzle 230–250°C, bed 60–100°C, speed 40–80 mm/s, fan 50–100%, drying 60–65°C for 4–6 h. https://wiki.creality.com/en/3d-printer-accessories/CR-PETG
- [5]Creality Store, "Hyper Series PETG" — nozzle 190–260°C, bed 45°C, speed 50–300 mm/s. Fan and drying are not listed on the cited page. https://store.creality.com/products/hyper-series-petg-3d-printing-filament-1kg