Comparison

FilaMan vs BamBuddy

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

FilaMan

Manage your 3D printing filament inventory from your smartphone. Track spools, materials, and locations with detailed metrics and quick actions. Supports barcode and NFC scanning for efficient inventory management.

Highlights
  • Filament spool tracking
  • Inventory value dashboard
  • Low stock alerts
  • Barcode scanning
  • NFC tag support
  • Location organization
  • Multilingual support
Features
Read full description

FilaMan – Your Filament Management for 3D Printing FilaMan is the companion app for your self-hosted FilaMan system. Keep track of your entire filament inventory – right from your smartphone. Dashboard All key metrics at a glance: total number of spools and filaments, inventory value, low stock alerts and empty spools. Always know when it's time to reorder. Spool Management Create, edit and track every spool in your inventory. Record weight, location, purchase data and status. Use Quick Actions to take measurements, adjust weight, change status or move spools to different locations – all with just a few taps. Filaments & Manufacturers Manage your entire filament library with full details: material, diameter, colors, density and price. Set up manufacturers with default values for spool weight and dimensions that are automatically applied to new spools. Barcode Scanner Scan filament barcodes directly with your smartphone camera. Quickly find filaments in your database or conveniently create new entries. NFC Tag Support Write NFC tags on your filament spools and read them at any time. Assign spools and locations via NFC tags – simply hold your smartphone to the spool and instantly access all information. Important note for Apple users: Bambu Lab spools use Mifare Classic NFC tags. This technology is fundamentally not supported by Apple/iOS – neither for reading nor writing. This is an Apple limitation, not a limitation of this app. Locations Organize your spools by location – whether different shelves, rooms or printers. Assign NFC tags to locations for quick identification. Multilingual The app is fully available in English and German. Your Data Stays Yours FilaMan connects exclusively to your own self-hosted FilaMan instance. No data is transmitted to external servers, analytics services or third parties. No tracking, no ads, no cloud dependency. Requirement A running FilaMan instance on your network is required to use this app. More information at https://www.filaman.app By subscribing, you agree to our Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

BamBuddy

Monitor and control your 3D printers remotely with live status updates, camera feeds, and print management. Offers advanced features like AI assistance and smart notifications for a seamless printing experience.

Highlights
  • Live printer status and camera feed
  • Remote print control (pause, resume, stop)
  • Filament and error message monitoring
  • Print statistics and history
  • Live Activity and Lock Screen widgets
  • AI Print Assistant for error codes
Features
Read full description

BamBuddy is the companion app for your self-hosted Bambuddy server. Monitor and control your Bambu Lab 3D printers from iPhone and iPad: over your local network at home, via your remote address on the go. The app switches automatically. LIVE ON YOUR LOCK SCREEN • Live Activity with progress, finish time and a pause button, also in the Dynamic Island and StandBy • Widgets for your Home Screen and Lock Screen, with pause and chamber light without opening the app • Chamber light and BamBuddy in Control Center and on the Action button • Ask Siri: "How's my print in BamBuddy?" MONITOR EVERYTHING LIVE • Real-time status: progress, layers, time remaining and finish time • Live camera view, with a snapshot you can share instantly • Temperatures, fans and AMS units with filament colors • Filament overview: every spool on one screen, including what's running low • HMS error messages right in view CONTROL WITH CONFIDENCE • Pause, resume or stop prints • Print speed and chamber light • Manage the queue: start, reorder, cancel • Archive with favorites and print history STATISTICS • Success rate, print hours, filament usage, cost and energy • Charts by filament type and by printer FREE AND PRO The free version controls one printer, including widgets, Siri and all the features above. BamBuddy Pro (subscription or one-time purchase, 7-day free trial) adds: • Unlimited printers: your entire print farm in one app • Live Activity and Dynamic Island for every print • AI Print Assistant: explains error codes and gives advice on failed prints, fully on-device with Apple Intelligence • AI Insights: analysis of your print statistics with practical tips • Smart notifications: print finished or failed, printer error, filament running low PRIVACY FIRST No account, no cloud, no tracking. The app only talks to your own server. Your server token is stored securely in the Keychain. Available in English, Dutch, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Japanese and Chinese. Requires a running Bambuddy server (open source, free). SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION BamBuddy Pro is available as a monthly subscription (EUR 1.99 per month) or an annual subscription (EUR 14.99 per year, with a 7-day free trial). There is also a one-time lifetime purchase (EUR 29.99). Prices may vary by country; the App Store shows the price in your currency. Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase. A subscription renews automatically unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current period; your account will be charged for renewal within 24 hours before the end of the period. You can manage and cancel your subscriptions in your Apple Account settings. Any unused portion of a free trial is forfeited when you purchase a subscription. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://wemeekit.nl/privacy/bambuddy/

Screenshots

FilaMan4 screens
BamBuddy4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: FilaMan at 100% against BamBuddy's 0%. On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. FilaMan sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $0.99 per month and BamBuddy sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

FilaMan ships an update every 3 weeks, BamBuddy every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 5, 2026 and October 16, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard1 real difference · 9 level
FilaMan versus BamBuddy: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterFilaManBamBuddy
PriceFreeFree
Rating—5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews — better0.0% of reviews
Number of ratings—1 — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksEvery 2 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS1717.0
Further details — not scored
Size23 MB20 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperManuel WeiserWeMeekIt

Customer experience

FilaMan

Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

BamBuddy

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive0.0%
Neutral100.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

1 purchases

FilaMan

Subscriptions1
  • FilaMan Pro7 Days trial$0.991 Month
3 purchases

BamBuddy

Subscriptions2
  • Pro Monthly$1.991 Month
  • Pro Yearly7 Days trial$12.991 Year
One-time1
  • Pro Lifetime$24.99

Questions

Is FilaMan free?
FilaMan is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is BamBuddy free?
BamBuddy is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do FilaMan or BamBuddy have ads?
Neither FilaMan nor BamBuddy shows ads.
Which is updated more often, FilaMan or BamBuddy?
FilaMan ships an update every 3 weeks, and BamBuddy every 2 weeks. Most recently, FilaMan was updated on October 5, 2026 and BamBuddy on October 16, 2026.

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