Back in October 2024, I was sitting in our small office with a stack of equipment quotes on my desk and a boss who kept asking the same question: "So, are we getting a laser or not?"
I handle purchasing for a 12-person metal fabrication shop. My job isn't to buy cool machines—it's to figure out whether a piece of equipment will earn its spot on the floor or end up gathering dust. When a repeat customer asked if we could engrave serial numbers and logos onto machined parts, I had exactly zero laser experience. What I did have was a spreadsheet and a stubborn belief that every equipment decision can be reduced to math.
This is what I learned, and it cost me way more hours than I expected.
The first question: what does it actually cost to run?
I started with the two specs I cared about most: xTool F1 Ultra laser specifications and power consumption in watts. Not because I'm a spec nerd, but because both hit the budget directly. The purchase price is a one-time number. Power draw is a recurring expense, and recurring expenses are the ones that sneak up on you.
The xTool F1 Ultra is a dual-laser desktop machine—a 20W fiber laser (1064nm) and a 20W diode laser (455nm) in one unit. That sounds like marketing speak, so here's the translation I gave my boss: it's two laser types in one box, which lets us mark metal with the fiber source and engrave wood, acrylic, and leather with the diode—without buying two separate systems. (Specs per xTool's official product page, accessed January 2025. Verify current specs at xtool.com.)
But I didn't fully trust the spec sheet. I wanted to know what this thing pulls from the wall.
The listed maximum power draw is around 240W—kinda suspiciously low if you're used to seeing 1,000W+ on CO2 spec sheets. That's about what a mid-range gaming PC draws at full load, with both lasers, air assist, and the internal fan running. In normal use, the actual number sits well below that.
Power consumption and the electricity math
Here's where the numbers got interesting. I calculated our usage like this:
- Roughly 4 hours of actual laser-on time per day (the machine is idle while parts are being prepped)
- 240W × 4 hours = 0.96 kWh per day
- At our commercial electricity rate of about $0.13/kWh (EIA average for the South, December 2024; verify current rates), that's roughly $0.12 per day
- Over a 26-day working month: about $3.25
Three dollars and change a month. That's not a typo. Meanwhile, every quote I got for a traditional CO2 laser cutter/engraver came with a warning about total system draw—1,000W+ once you add the exhaust blower, a water chiller, and the air pump. A 60W CO2 tube is inefficient by design; most of the energy becomes heat rather than usable light. So the "bigger, more serious" option would have cost more to feed every single month.
That alone shifted my thinking. The F1 Ultra runs on a normal 120V outlet. No water cooling, no 220V wiring, no extra electrical work. For a small shop, that's not a luxury—it's the difference between a project we could support and a project we'd have to decline.
Here's something vendors won't tell you: spec sheet wattage and real-world draw are rarely the same. The 240W figure is a safety ceiling, not an average. But even if we maxed it out for 8 hours a day, the monthly cost would land around $6.50. It's a rounding error compared to what I was expecting to see in the budget.
The turning point: I almost bought the wrong machine
This is the part I still kick myself about. Before I landed on the F1 Ultra, I was ready to buy a cheaper diode-only desktop engraver from another brand. It was seriously tempting—about 40% less money, and the demo videos were gorgeous. Wood coasters, leather wallets, engraved cutting boards. All the stuff that makes you think "I could sell these."
Then we got a real customer request: metal nameplates for a local electrical contractor. Stainless steel tags, 2×3 inches, a few hundred pieces over three months.
I asked the diode-only vendor, "Can it mark stainless steel?" That's when the conversation got uncomfortable. Diode lasers won't do bare metal. To handle that job, I'd need a separate fiber laser, which pushed the combined cost way above simply buying the dual-laser machine in the first place.
That's the moment my spreadsheet turned on me. The "cheap" option would have required a second machine before the first one paid for itself. The F1 Ultra's 20W fiber source—sitting right next to the diode in the same box—handled those stainless tags on the first test run. No $10,000 industrial fiber laser. No second purchase. No wasted bench space.
People think you need a CO2 laser for "serious" laser engraving because that's what shops have always used. The reality is that desktop fiber and dual-laser technology has quietly changed the entry point. CO2 is still excellent for acrylic, large-format work, and certain marking applications. It's just no longer the only rational choice for a small shop.
That's the industry evolution nobody mentions when you're Googling "laser cutter and engraver" at midnight. The old best practice was: buy a CO2 machine for organics, buy a fiber machine for metals, and find a building big enough for both. In 2025, the execution has transformed even if the fundamentals haven't. Laser type still has to match the material—that part is physics. But the entry price for doing both seriously now fits in a budget that used to cover just one.
The specs that matter for your wallet
Since I'm not a laser enthusiast, I had to learn which specs actually influence cost. Here's the short version.
Laser type and wavelength
If you want to mark metal, you need a fiber laser (1064nm) or a MOPA fiber laser for colored markings. A diode laser (455nm) can do a ton of jobs, but bare metal isn't one of them. The F1 Ultra combining both meant we didn't have to choose. For a laser engraver used as a business tool, that flexibility was the deciding factor.
Work area
The F1 Ultra's standard work area is 4" × 4", which sounds painfully small. With the rotary attachment, we can handle tumblers and longer cylindrical pieces. But I'll be straight with you: if your plan is engraving big wooden signs all day, this isn't the machine for you. That's still CO2 territory—and xTool makes the P2 for exactly that reason. Match the tool to the job, not the other way around.
Power consumption in watts
If you searched "xtool f1 ultra power consumption watts," you're probably like me—wondering if the operating cost kills the business case. It doesn't. A few hundred watts at max draw makes the F1 Ultra one of the cheapest lasers to run in its category, especially compared to chiller-equipped CO2 systems that can eat 1,000W before you even start engraving.
So, can you actually make money laser engraving?
That was my boss's question, and it's probably yours too. After three months of real orders, my honest answer is: yes, but only if you treat it like a business instead of a very fun hobby.
We're running three revenue streams with the F1 Ultra:
- Serial number and logo engraving on manufactured parts—the original customer request. This alone justified the purchase.
- Stainless identification tags for contractors and maintenance shops. Small, repeatable, and they order weekly once they know you exist.
- Custom engraved tumblers and wood boards sold wholesale to two local gift shops. Lower margin, but steady and predictable.
Let me show you the math on that nameplate job, because this is where "how to make money laser engraving" stops being theory.
We charge $4.50 per tag. Each tag costs about $0.60 in material. A 2×3" stainless tag takes roughly 4 minutes to engrave with our settings. So in a 5-hour block, we can produce about 70 tags:
- Revenue: 70 × $4.50 = $315
- Material: 70 × $0.60 = $42
- Electricity: about 1.2 kWh total, which is about 16 cents
That's $273 of gross margin before labor and overhead. I'm not going to tell you it's passive income—loading parts and checking quality takes real time. But the machine's operating cost is so low that it basically disappears from the equation. Sixteen cents of electricity. That's the entire energy cost of a $315 order.
There's something satisfying about seeing 70 nameplates come out of the machine after all those weeks of spreadsheet anxiety. The laser didn't just "pay for itself" in the abstract. It produced a real invoice on a real Friday afternoon, and it did it quietly enough that nobody in the shop even noticed the power bill.
The honest review part
If you're comparing the F1 Ultra to other laser cutter and engraver options, here's where it wins and where it doesn't.
Where it wins: dual-laser flexibility in a desktop footprint, low power draw, no water cooling, no special electrical requirements, and a fiber source that genuinely marks metal well. If your revenue mix is still uncertain—which it is when you're starting out—having both laser types in one machine is a real hedge.
Where it doesn't win: the 4"×4" work area limits batch sizes and large-format jobs. For big acrylic sign panels or long-format wood engraving, a CO2 laser with a larger bed is still the right call. And for heavy industrial use—deep engraving on thick metal, 8 hours a day, five days a week—a dedicated fiber laser will outlast and outpace it. The F1 Ultra is a precision instrument, not a production workhorse.
What I'd tell my past self
Six months ago, I knew nothing about lasers. I assumed CO2 laser marking was the professional standard and everything else was a hobby toy. That framework was outdated. The desktop dual-laser category has evolved to the point where it's a legitimate procurement choice for a small manufacturer.
But the fundamentals haven't changed. Ventilation and air assist still matter. Material compatibility still matters. And buying a machine is only step one—you still have to go sell the work. The real difference in 2025 is that the entry cost for serious capability is low enough that one recurring contract can carry it.
If you're sitting where I was, staring at spec sheets and wondering whether the math works, do the calculation on total cost, not just the sticker. Compare power consumption in watts. Factor in the accessories you'll actually use. And, most importantly, line up the repeat customer before you hit "buy."
For what it's worth, I don't regret the F1 Ultra. I just wish I'd started with the math instead of ending with it.
