Cricut Joy 2 Review

The Joy 2 is a good machine with one hard limit: 4.5 inches. Inside that, it cuts vinyl, heat transfer vinyl, cardstock and paper properly, does matless runs up to 20 feet, and puts away in a drawer. Outside it, there is no workaround — adult shirt designs simply will not fit, and it has no print-then-cut.

What it is genuinely good at

It is easy to be dismissive about a small machine, and that would be wrong here. Within its width, the Joy 2 does real work.

• Labels and organization projects. Pantry jars, storage bins, cables, folders. The long matless cutting means you can run a whole sheet of labels in one go without touching a mat.
• Cards and paper craft. Card fronts, envelope liners, tags, small boxes. A 4.5 inch working width is generous for a card.
• Small decals. Water bottles, laptops, phone cases, mugs, tumbler accents. Most decals people actually apply are well under 4.5 inches.
• Long banners. With Smart Materials it cuts up to 20 feet in a single run, which larger machines on mats cannot match without joins.

The two limits, stated plainly

Cut width is 4.5 inches and cannot be extended. A typical adult shirt front design runs 10 to 11 inches. At 4.5 you are making a chest logo or a pocket print. Some designs work beautifully at that size; most shirt designs people have in mind do not.

There is no print-then-cut. The machine cannot scan a registration mark and cut around artwork from your printer, so full-color printed sticker sheets are impossible. It cuts single-color vinyl decals perfectly well — that is a different thing. If printed stickers are part of your plan, the Joy Xtra is the cheapest Cricut that does them.

The materials question

The Joy line uses narrower material formats than the full-size machines. Cricut's Smart Materials for Joy come in the right width for matless cutting, and they are less widely stocked than standard 12 inch rolls — often meaning you order rather than pick them up locally, and frequently at a higher cost per square inch.

You can cut ordinary vinyl on the Joy mat by trimming it to size, and plenty of people do. It is an extra step on every project, and worth factoring in if a low running cost is part of why you are considering the cheapest machine. The full cost picture is here.

Who should buy it

Three groups, genuinely. People whose projects really are small — labels, cards, planner work, small decals. People with no dedicated craft space, for whom a drawer-sized machine is the difference between using it and not. And people testing whether they enjoy the hobby at all, for whom a low-cost machine is a rational way to find out before committing properly.

The verdict

Good at what it does, and entirely honest about what it does not. The mistake is buying it as a stepping stone to shirts, because that route ends with you owning two machines and having spent more than the Explore would have cost. Match it to your actual project list and it is a genuinely low-regret purchase. The cheapest Cricut, in context, and how it compares to the Joy Xtra.

1. Best for labels, cards and small spaces

Cricut Joy 2

Cricut · Currently sold · Verified 2026-09-27

The lowest cost of entry in the current line, and genuinely capable inside its 4.5 inch cut width. Long matless cuts up to 20 feet make it unusually good at labels and banners, and it stores in a drawer. The width limit is absolute, and no accessory changes it.

What works

• The lowest cost of entry in the current Cricut line
• Genuinely portable and storable, which matters if you have no dedicated craft space
• Long matless cuts make it excellent for labels and long decals
• Simple enough that the learning curve is close to flat

What does not

• 4.5 in cut width is the hard limit — most adult shirt designs will not fit
• No print-then-cut, so printed stickers are out
• Takes the narrow Joy-format materials, which are less widely stocked

Not for you if

You want to make shirts. A 4.5 in design reads as a small chest logo, not a front print, and there is no workaround.

Key specs

Cuts

Vinyl, heat transfer vinyl, cardstock, paper, Smart Label material

Max cut width

4.5 in

Max cut length

Up to 20 ft with Smart Materials

Footprint

Small enough to store in a drawer

Mat required

Optional — cuts matless with Smart Materials

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