Creality layer height: Ender 3, K1 and K2 limits, presets and first layer

Use 0.20 mm layers and a 0.20 mm first layer on a Creality printer with a 0.4 mm nozzle. Creality’s own slicer, Creality Print 7.3, defaults every Ender-3, K1 and K2 profile to it. With that nozzle, Creality Print accepts 0.08 mm at the thin end and 0.20 to 0.36 mm at the thick end, depending on the printer.

Layer height limits for each Creality printer

Each Creality Print printer profile sets a Min and Max layer height per nozzle, and its default process preset sets the layer and first layer height.

Printer	Nozzle	Min	Max	Default	First layer	Source
Ender-3	0.4 mm	0.08 mm	0.36 mm	0.20 mm	0.20 mm	Creality Print 7.3
Ender-3 Pro	0.4 mm	0.08 mm	0.36 mm	0.20 mm	0.20 mm	OrcaSlicer 2.4.2
Ender-3 V2	0.4 mm	0.08 mm	0.20 mm	0.20 mm	0.20 mm	Creality Print 7.3
Ender-3 V3 SE	0.4 mm	0.08 mm	0.36 mm	0.20 mm	0.20 mm	Creality Print 7.3
K1, K1C, K1 Max	0.4 mm	0.08 mm	0.30 mm	0.20 mm	0.20 mm	Creality Print 7.3
K1, K1C, K1 Max	0.6 mm	0.12 mm	0.42 mm	0.30 mm	0.30 mm	Creality Print 7.3
K1, K1C, K1 Max	0.8 mm	0.16 mm	0.56 mm	0.40 mm	0.40 mm	Creality Print 7.3
K2, K2 Plus	0.2 mm	0.04 mm	0.14 mm	0.10 mm	0.10 mm	Creality Print 7.3
K2, K2 Plus	0.4 mm	0.08 mm	0.32 mm	0.20 mm	0.20 mm	Creality Print 7.3
K2, K2 Plus	0.6 mm	0.12 mm	0.42 mm	0.30 mm	0.30 mm	Creality Print 7.3
K2, K2 Plus	0.8 mm	0.16 mm	0.56 mm	0.40 mm	0.40 mm	Creality Print 7.3

• Ender-3 Pro: Creality Print has no profile for this printer. OrcaSlicer and UltiMaker Cura give it the Ender-3’s 0.20 mm default.
• 0.36 mm on the Ender-3 and Ender-3 V3 SE is 90% of the nozzle. OrcaSlicer, Prusa and UltiMaker Cura put the ceiling at 80%, or 0.32 mm. The layer height calculator gives that range for any nozzle.
• Spec sheets disagree: Creality lists 0.1 to 0.35 mm for the K1C and 0.05 to 0.3 mm for the K2 Plus. Creality Print checks your value against its profile limits instead.
• OrcaSlicer 2.4.2 caps the K1 family and K2 Plus at 0.30 mm and defaults the K2 Plus to 0.16 mm.

What layer height should you use on an Ender 3?

Use 0.20 mm layers and a 0.20 mm first layer on an Ender-3, Ender-3 Pro, Ender-3 V2 or Ender-3 V3 SE with a 0.4 mm nozzle, the default in Creality Print, UltiMaker Cura and OrcaSlicer. Use 0.12 or 0.16 mm for fine detail and 0.24 or 0.28 mm for drafts. All five are whole Z motor steps.

The presets each slicer ships for the Ender-3 family:

Slicer	Layer height presets	First layer	Max in the profile
Creality Print 7.3	Ender-3: 0.20 mm. Ender-3 V2: 0.08, 0.16, 0.20 mm. Ender-3 V3 SE: 0.12, 0.16, 0.20 mm	0.20 mm in every preset	0.36 mm, but 0.20 mm on the Ender-3 V2
UltiMaker Cura 5.13	0.12 mm Super, 0.16 mm Dynamic (adaptive layers), 0.20 mm Standard (the default), 0.28 mm Low, on all four printers	Same as the layer height, but 0.20 mm in Dynamic	No limit; warns above 0.32 mm (80%)
OrcaSlicer 2.4.2	Ender-3 and Ender-3 Pro: 0.12, 0.16, 0.20, 0.24, 0.28 mm. Ender-3 V2: 0.12, 0.15, 0.20, 0.24 mm. Ender-3 V3 SE: 0.12, 0.16, 0.20, 0.24 mm	0.20 mm in every preset	0.36 mm on the Ender-3 and Pro, 0.32 mm on the V2 and V3 SE

Cura has no separate Ender-3 V2 entry: pick “Creality Ender-3 / Ender-3 v2”.

Full-step layer heights on the Ender 3

The Ender-3, Ender-3 Pro, Ender-3 V2 and Ender-3 V3 SE all move Z 0.04 mm per full motor step. Klipper’s example configs for the first three set rotation_distance: 8 (8 mm per turn, 200 full steps by default: 8 ÷ 200 = 0.04 mm). Creality’s Ender-3 V3 SE firmware runs Z at 400 steps per mm with 16 microsteps: 16 ÷ 400 = 0.04 mm.

So 0.08, 0.12, 0.16, 0.20, 0.24, 0.28 and 0.32 mm end every layer on a full step. Creality’s wiki explains why that matters: a layer height off the Z step makes some layers thicker than others, and the print shows stripes. OrcaSlicer’s 0.15 mm Ender-3 V2 preset is 3.75 steps, so use 0.16 mm. After a Z screw or motor swap, get the new step from the steps per mm calculator.

Ender-3 V2 in Creality Print stops at 0.20 mm

Creality Print’s Ender-3 V2 profile (and the Ender-3 Neo, Max and Max Neo profiles) sets Max to 0.20 mm. Type 0.24 or 0.28 mm and it opens “Layer height exceeds the limit in Printer Settings -> Extruder -> Layer height limits”. Adjust resets the value to 0.20 mm; Ignore keeps yours. To stop the warning, raise Max to 0.32 mm under Printer settings > Extruder 1 > Layer height limits. The layer height limit error guide covers the dialog in full.

What layer heights do Creality K1 and K2 printers support?

Creality Print 7.3 allows 0.08 to 0.30 mm on the K1, K1C and K1 Max and 0.08 to 0.32 mm on the K2 and K2 Plus with a 0.4 mm nozzle, and defaults all five to 0.20 mm. A 0.6 mm nozzle allows 0.12 to 0.42 mm and a 0.8 mm nozzle 0.16 to 0.56 mm.

Printer	Creality Print 7.3 presets, 0.4 mm nozzle	OrcaSlicer 2.4.2 presets, 0.4 mm nozzle
K1, K1C, K1 Max	0.08, 0.16, 0.20, 0.24 mm	0.08, 0.12, 0.16, 0.20, 0.24 mm
K2, K2 Plus	0.08, 0.12, 0.16, 0.20, 0.24, 0.28 mm	0.08, 0.12, 0.16, 0.20, 0.24, 0.28 mm

The minimum on a K1C, K1 or K1 Max with the stock 0.4 mm nozzle is 0.08 mm in both slicers. Only the K2 and K2 Plus with a 0.2 mm nozzle go down to 0.04 mm. Below Min, Creality Print shows the same Adjust or Ignore dialog; Ignore slices anyway, with a print quality warning.

Full steps on the K1 and K2

Creality’s Klipper configs for the K1, K1C, K1 Max and K2 set rotation_distance: 8 with gear_ratio: 64:20, a 20-tooth motor gear driving a 64-tooth one. That is 8 ÷ (64 ÷ 20) = 2.5 mm per motor turn and 2.5 ÷ 200 = 0.0125 mm per full step, under a third of the Ender-3’s 0.04 mm. Any multiple of 0.0125 mm is a whole step, such as 0.10, 0.15, 0.20 or 0.25 mm. Of the K1 and K2 presets, only 0.20 mm lands on a whole step; 0.16 mm is 12.8 steps.

The K2 Plus config has no gear ratio. Its Z moves 0.04 mm per full step, as on the Ender-3, so all six of its 0.4 mm presets are whole steps.

What first layer height should you use on a Creality printer?

Use 0.20 mm with a 0.4 mm nozzle, half the nozzle diameter. Creality Print 7.3 and OrcaSlicer 2.4.2 use it in their standard presets for the Ender-3 family, the K1 family and the K2 and K2 Plus. Larger nozzles follow the same rule: 0.30 mm on a 0.6 mm nozzle and 0.40 mm on a 0.8 mm.

The exceptions:

• Creality Print’s 0.08mm HueForge presets for the K2 and K2 Plus use a 0.16 mm first layer.
• OrcaSlicer’s 0.12mm Fine presets for the K1 family use 0.12 mm.
• UltiMaker Cura’s Creality presets for a 0.4 mm nozzle match the first layer to the layer height (0.12 mm in Super, 0.28 mm in Low), except Dynamic, which keeps 0.20 mm.

Before raising the first layer:

1. Stay at or under 65% of the nozzle, OrcaSlicer’s recommended maximum: 0.26 mm on a 0.4 mm nozzle. Its wiki suggests 0.25 mm.
2. Stay inside the printer’s Min and Max. Creality Print checks the initial layer against them too (above 0.20 mm warns on the Ender-3 V2). A first layer thicker than the nozzle stops slicing with “Layer height cannot exceed nozzle diameter”.
3. Redo your Z offset. Prusa’s knowledge base says a new first layer height will most likely need the first layer calibration redone.

How do you change the layer height in Creality Print?

In Creality Print, pick a process preset named for the height you want (such as 0.16mm Standard) or type a value in Layer height on the Quality tab of the Process settings. Initial layer height, the first layer, sits directly below it. Creality Print warns when either value falls outside the printer’s Min and Max limits.

1. In the Printer section, select your printer and nozzle size. The presets and limits change with the nozzle.
2. In the Process section, open the preset list and pick a height, such as 0.20mm Standard.
3. For any other value, open the Quality tab and set Layer height (mm), then Initial layer height.
4. If a dialog says the layer height exceeds the limit, click Adjust to snap it to the limit or Ignore to keep your setting. The limits live under Printer settings > Extruder 1 > Layer height limits. Min and Max are advanced options and may stay hidden until you show advanced parameters.

The same two settings in other places:

• OrcaSlicer: Layer height and First layer height, under Process > Quality.
• UltiMaker Cura: Layer Height and Initial Layer Height, under Print settings > Quality.
• Older Creality Print versions: both sit in the Quality parameters, per Creality’s wiki.