Reference specs, per-sheet math, and laser settings for 3mm MDF — the budget standard for prototypes, stencils, and paintable craft parts. Punch in your sheet price below for an instant per-part quote.
MDF's whole appeal on a laser table is that it has no grain to fight — the cut edge looks identical no matter which direction you run it, which makes it the material of choice for stencils, prototypes, and anything getting painted or veneered afterward where you don't want wood grain telegraphing through.
The tradeoff is char and dust. MDF burns darker and fuzzier at the edge than plywood, and the fine fiber dust it produces is worth extra filtration or a dedicated exhaust setup — it's a different (and in some views worse) health consideration than wood dust, since it's bound with formaldehyde-based resins in most commodity boards.
The same math the calculator above runs — worked out longhand, so you can sanity-check it against your own numbers.
MDF is usually the cheapest sheet good in the shop, which makes it the material most quoting tools under-price by forgetting the scrap line entirely — at these per-sheet costs, a missed 10% allowance is a rounding error per part but adds up fast across a production run.
This is the material line only. A full shop quote adds machine time, labor, and finishing — KraftyQuote's cost engine rolls all of it into one number automatically.
Ballpark settings for a through-cut in one pass — MDF chars more readily than plywood at the same power, so err toward faster speed over more power if you see excess blackening. Always run a test strip first.
MDF's resin binder ignites and smolders more readily than solid wood fiber, so even a well-tuned cut leaves a darker edge — this is normal, not a sign of bad settings. A light sand or a strip of painter's tape over the surface before cutting reduces surface soot.
Yes, and it's one of MDF's strengths — the uniform density with no grain means engraved detail comes out crisper and more consistent than on real wood, which is why it's popular for stencils and detailed line art.
Not exactly — "laser-grade" or "laserable" MDF is usually a lower-formaldehyde or more uniform-density board manufactured specifically for consistent laser cutting. Standard construction-grade MDF works fine for prototypes but can vary more sheet to sheet.
KraftyQuote's full cost engine handles materials, machine time, labor, and margin in one quote — free to build, no card required.