Cricut Maker 5 Review

Buy the Maker 5 only if you can name the material that made you consider it. The rotary blade cuts unbacked fabric and the knife blade cuts basswood and thick leather — genuinely useful, genuinely unavailable on any Explore. On vinyl, iron-on, cardstock and paper it cuts exactly like the cheaper machine.

What the extra blades actually do

The Maker's adaptive tool system takes blades no Explore can accept, and two of them are the entire argument for the machine.

The rotary blade is a tiny rolling wheel that cuts fabric without a stabilizer behind it. That is the part that matters: an Explore can cut fabric if you first fuse a backing to it, which is an extra step, an extra material and an extra cost on every project. The rotary blade cuts plain quilting cotton straight off the bolt. For anyone who sews, that is a real workflow change rather than a marketing bullet.

The knife blade is a deep, retractable blade that makes multiple passes to work through thick material — basswood, chipboard, thick leather. It is slow. A detailed basswood cut can run well over an hour, and it is not a tool you use casually. But it opens a product category nothing else in the line touches.

What it does not do better

This is the part most reviews skip, and it is the part that decides whether you should buy one. On the materials a beginner uses every week, the Maker offers no advantage at all.

It is not faster on vinyl, not more precise on small text, and not more reliable. The premium buys two blades and nothing else that a beginner will notice.

Who it is for

Quilters and sewists, first and foremost — the rotary blade is a genuine time-saver if you already cut fabric by hand. People making wooden signs, ornaments or layered basswood pieces. Anyone working in thick leather for bags, keyrings or patches. And people who already know they want to grow into those materials and would rather not buy a machine twice.

Who it is not for

Anyone whose project list is shirts, decals, stickers, cards and tumblers — which is most first-time buyers. Every one of those cuts identically on an Explore 5, and the price difference is roughly a serious pile of vinyl, mats and blades. "I might want to cut fabric someday" is the reasoning that most often leads to a rotary blade still sealed in its packaging a year later.

Maker 5 or Maker 4?

Both are current and both take the rotary and knife blades. The 5 is faster on long cuts; the 4 is frequently the cheaper way into the same capability and is fully supported in Design Space. If you want Maker capability and the 4 is meaningfully less expensive, take it. The full comparison is here.

The verdict

A very good machine that is the wrong purchase for most of the people who consider it. The test is simple and worth applying honestly: name the material. If the answer is quilting cotton, basswood or thick leather, buy it without hesitation. If the answer is a vague sense that more capability must be better, buy the Explore and spend the difference on materials you will definitely use.

1. Best for fabric, leather and wood

Cricut Maker 5

Cricut · Currently sold · Verified 2026-09-27

The only mainstream Cricut that cuts unbacked fabric with a rotary blade and basswood with a knife blade. If either material is genuinely on your project list, this is the machine and there is no cheaper route to it. If neither is, an Explore cuts your projects identically.

What works

• Rotary blade cuts quilting cotton with no backing, which no Explore can do
• Knife blade opens basswood, chipboard and thick leather
• Adaptive tool system takes every Cricut blade and tip
• Same matless Smart Material workflow as the Explore line

What does not

• Materially more expensive than an Explore for capability most beginners never use
• The knife blade is a separate purchase on top of the machine
• Knife-blade cuts are slow — a thick basswood cut can run well over an hour

Not for you if

Your project list is shirts, decals, stickers and cards. Every one of those cuts identically on an Explore 5, and the difference in price is roughly a full starter set of materials.

Key specs

Cuts

300+ materials including unbacked fabric, leather, basswood

Max material width

12 in (11.5 in cut width)

Matless cutting

Yes, with Smart Materials

Rotary blade

Yes — cuts fabric without a stabilizer backing

Knife blade

Yes — sold separately

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