PrusaLink vs Prusa Connect: local vs cloud control

PrusaLink is the local web interface of a Prusa printer and works with no internet or Prusa Account. Prusa Connect is Prusa’s cloud service at connect.prusa3d.com and needs both; it adds remote control, camera feeds and phone alerts. You do not have to choose, because a printer registered in Prusa Connect keeps serving PrusaLink on your network.

Facts below come from Prusa’s knowledge base, blog and policies as of November 7, 2026.

What is the difference between PrusaLink and Prusa Connect?

PrusaLink runs on the printer, or on a Raspberry Pi for the MK3 and MK2.5, and serves a web page on your local network with no internet or Prusa Account. Prusa Connect runs on Prusa’s servers and needs both. It works from anywhere and adds cameras on every model, notifications, print queues and multi-printer management.

Sorted by feature:

What some rows mean in practice:

• Logging in to PrusaLink. On printers with PrusaLink built in, the username and password are on the printer under Settings > Network > PrusaLink, and the IP address under Settings > Network > IPv4 Address. On the MK3/S/+, you create the credentials in the PrusaLink setup wizard. Prusa recommends Chrome or Firefox because Safari and Edge can have login trouble. Full steps are in how to set up PrusaLink.
• Printing. On printers with PrusaLink built in, both need a USB drive inserted and an empty print sheet on the bed. The printer must also sit on its home screen: Prusa says a prompt on the display can make it reject remote commands.
• Firmware. Printers with xBuddy electronics need firmware 6.4.0 or newer to connect to Prusa Connect, which can then offer over-the-air updates. Without Prusa Connect, updates go on a USB drive.
• Several printers without the cloud. For the MK3/S/+ and MK2.5/S, PrusaLink’s multi-instance image runs one PrusaLink per USB-connected printer on a single Raspberry Pi. Its release notes say cameras attach to the first instance unless you move each camera’s settings over by hand. Setup is in PrusaLink on a Raspberry Pi.

Can you use PrusaLink and Prusa Connect at the same time?

Yes. Prusa’s January 2024 overview says its printers that support Prusa Connect “use the PrusaLink system”, which connects them to Prusa Connect “and also provides a simple web interface, accessible within your local network”. On the MK3/S/+ and MK2.5/S, Prusa says to set up PrusaLink first to use Prusa Connect at all. The newer Prusa Pro HT90 is the exception: Prusa lists it with Prusa Connect and no PrusaLink.

• Printers with PrusaLink built in. PrusaLink works once the printer is on your network. Prusa Connect is a separate switch under Settings > Network > Prusa Connect: set it to Enabled and select Add printer to Connect. The printer then shows a code to enter at connect.prusa3d.com.
• MK3/S/+ on a Raspberry Pi. The last wizard step offers “Save printer and link with Connect”. Prusa says to choose “Save printer” instead to run PrusaLink “over the local network only”.
• Files on each side. In Prusa Connect’s Printer files view on an MK3/S/+, one tab holds the cloud copies and another the PrusaLink G-codes stored on the printer’s Raspberry Pi.

If cloud storage worries you, Prusa’s own advice is to use the PrusaLink web interface for files, with Prusa Connect “just for remote monitoring or not used at all”.

Where your files and data go

Prusa says that with PrusaLink alone, “your files and data will never leave your local network”. For Prusa Connect, Prusa states:

• Files. You upload only the G-code, “without any model source file”. Files are shared only with members of your team, with the roles you set.
• Connection. The printer talks to Prusa Connect over TLS (Transport Layer Security) 1.2 with elliptic-curve cryptography (ECC). Two-factor authentication is available for your account.
• Storage. The free 1 GB holds G-codes and telemetry and is shared with EasyPrint, Prusa’s cloud slicer. Deleting a file from the printer’s USB drive does not free cloud space.
• Personal data. Prusa’s Connect data policy, effective October 1, 2026, calls Prusa Connect a cloud service “within which personal data pass through the Operator’s servers”. The operator is Prusa Research a.s. in Prague. It controls account data and access logs with IP addresses, and it processes print files and camera streams for organizations that use the service. Security logs are kept “as a rule up to 12 months”.

Which one fits your setup

• PrusaLink alone fits if the printer must stay off the internet or files must stay local, and you print from a computer or phone on the same network.
• Prusa Connect fits if you start or watch prints away from home or want phone alerts. It is also the camera route on built-in PrusaLink models, and the way to queue jobs or share printers with a team.
• Both fit if you want PrusaLink for everyday files at home and remote monitoring when you are out.
• One local dashboard for several newer printers is what Prusa Connect Local is for. It is a self-hosted version of Prusa Connect that Prusa offers free in early access as of November 2026. It runs on your own hardware, from a Raspberry Pi Zero to a NAS (network-attached storage) box, and Prusa says it “works without internet”. It supports the MK4/S, MK3.9/S, MINI, XL, CORE One and CORE One L on firmware 6.4.0 or newer, not the MK3 family.

How PrusaLink compares with a Raspberry Pi running OctoPrint is in PrusaLink vs OctoPrint.

Does PrusaLink work without internet?

Yes. Prusa says PrusaLink allows monitoring, file uploads and print control without internet access. You open it by typing the printer’s IP address into a browser on the same network. What needs internet is everything that runs through Prusa Connect: access from outside your network, cloud storage, print queues, notifications and most camera options.

To run a Prusa printer with PrusaLink and no internet:

• Connect the printer to your local network. Use Ethernet, or Wi-Fi on 2.4 GHz only; the printer’s Wi-Fi module does not work with 5 GHz networks. Enter the Wi-Fi credentials on the printer’s screen, from a phone by NFC (near-field communication) on models that have it, or from a file PrusaSlicer writes to the USB drive.
• Leave Prusa Connect off. On printers with PrusaLink built in, it is a separate setting under Settings > Network > Prusa Connect. On the MK3/S/+, finish the wizard with “Save printer”, not “Save printer and link with Connect”.
• Keep the IP address stable. Your router assigns the address, and it can change when the printer reconnects. Prusa suggests reserving an address in the router for the printer’s MAC address, or setting a static address in the printer’s prusa_printer_settings.ini file.
• Update firmware from a USB drive. Download the firmware from Prusa’s GitHub, put it on the USB drive, then press Reset on the printer and select Flash on the display. Prusa’s April 2026 announcement says “you don’t ever have to connect your printer to the internet, not even once, even when you want to e.g. update the firmware.”

For a printer that never touches a network, Prusa’s offline workflow article says the Wi-Fi module can be disconnected or left out, because “any software option is essentially just a promise”.

For access from outside your home, Prusa’s PrusaSlicer guide names two routes: “PrusaConnect or VPN connection”. A VPN (virtual private network) connects a phone or laptop on the road to your home network, where PrusaLink is reachable.

On the MK3/S/+, Prusa’s setup guide says the PrusaLink wizard “verifies your printer’s serial number with Prusa servers” and does not say how that step behaves with no internet. Running the wizard while your network still has internet avoids the question. The wider case for local-only printing is in offline 3D printing.

Does PrusaLink support a camera?

Only on the Raspberry Pi version. PrusaLink on a Raspberry Pi, used with the MK3/S/+ and MK2.5/S, shows a Raspberry Pi CSI camera or a USB webcam in its Cameras tab. Prusa says the PrusaLink built into the MK3.9, MK4 and XL supports no cameras. On those printers, and other built-in PrusaLink models, cameras go through Prusa Connect.

PrusaLink camera and webcam on a Raspberry Pi

Prusa’s camera compatibility list, for PrusaLink on a Raspberry Pi 3, 3+, 4, Zero W or Zero 2 W:

• CSI (Camera Serial Interface) cameras. These plug into the Pi’s ribbon-cable camera port, and PrusaLink accepts only whitelisted sensors: Raspberry Pi Camera 1.3 (OV5647), Camera 2 and 2.1 (IMX219), and Camera 3 (IMX708), including the NoIR and Wide versions. A camera that identifies as any other sensor “won’t show up in PrusaLink”.
• USB webcams. Prusa lists tested models including the Logitech HD Pro Webcam C920, Arducam B0200, B0202, B0205 and B0233, and Trust Exis. It marks the Logitech C270 as “Doesn’t work properly”. On a Pi Zero, connect the webcam through a USB OTG (On-The-Go) adapter on the port labeled USB, not PWR_IN.
• Pi Zero limit. Prusa says resolution may be limited to 1920 px in both axes on the Raspberry Pi Zero.
• Wiring. Connect a camera only with the printer off, never while PrusaLink is running.
• Setup. Open PrusaLink, go to the Cameras tab, and turn on Link camera to Connect if you also want the image in Prusa Connect.

On an MK4, MK3.9 or XL, Prusa notes that the same Raspberry Pi camera setup works with OctoPrint instead of PrusaLink.

Cameras in Prusa Connect

Prusa Connect can take a camera for any printer it supports:

• Phone or computer webcam. In Prusa Connect, open the Cameras page, click Add new camera, open the QR code link on the phone and press Start camera. Prusa’s blog suggests an old smartphone.
• Buddy3D camera. Prusa’s own Wi-Fi camera, 1920 × 1080, on 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi. You pair it from the printer’s Camera tab in Prusa Connect or in the Prusa app, then show it a QR code. Prusa Connect shows snapshots every 10 to 90 seconds; live video plays in the Prusa app. The CORE One and HT90 can power it.
• ESP32 boards. Prusa’s guide covers the ESP32-S3-EYE board; it is written for experienced users and flashes the board with Windows tools. The camera firmware comes from Miroslav Pivovarsky, whose repository also lists the Ai-Thinker ESP32-cam and Freenove ESP32-Wrover.
• Anything else. The Prusa Camera API lets third-party cameras upload snapshots to Prusa Connect with a camera token.

Since Prusa’s April 8, 2026 update, remote live streaming is free for everyone, at up to 1080p and 24 fps on a direct connection. When the stream has to run through Prusa’s relay servers, the free tier drops to standard definition (SD) at 12 fps; paid plans buy HD.

The Buddy3D camera also has a local option. Prusa’s Buddy3D page says it streams unencrypted RTSP (Real Time Streaming Protocol) video on your network at rtsp://<camera IP>/live (port 554), which plays in VLC but not in the Prusa Connect web page. Pairing still runs through Prusa Connect or the Prusa app, and the camera updates itself after it first reaches the internet.