Is The OMTech K40+ The Best CO2 Laser Engraver Under £1000?

OMTech Laser Updated on October 29, 2026

If you have been looking into getting a K40-style laser engraver, you have now doubt come across mixed opinions in the laser engraving community on the subject of whether they are good machines and/or are worth the money.

While many people will emphasize the quirks and tinkering required for a K40 machine, there are very specific, dedicated hobbyists who are convinced that the OMTech K40+ is the absolute best laser cutter under £1000.

The argument for the K40+ as the best laser engraver under £1000 centers on the fact that it is a true CO₂ laser that comes out of the box with major quality-of-life upgrades over the legendary "classic" K40 chassis. In this guide, we will be exploring 5 main factors that make the OMTech K40+ Laser Engraver totally worth the title of “best laser engraver under £1000.

1. It Provides Genuine CO₂ Power, Much More Than a Diode Laser Can Provide.

At a price point typically between £600 and £800, the K40+ competes directly with premium desktop diode lasers (like xTool or Creality models), and there are a lot of people who ask: why not simply buy a premium diode laser rather than a beginner Co2 laser engraver?
Here is where the OMTech K40+ stands out: its CO₂ wavelength (10,640 nm ) provides capabilities diodes simply cannot match. Being a true CO2 laser engraver, it offers you two main advantages over a diode laser within the same price range:

i. You can cut and engrave clear acrylic.

The K40+ uses a 10,640 nm infrared wavelength that is fully absorbed by clear acrylic. In other words, you can make perfectly clean, glass-like cuts on clear acrylic with the OMTeck K40+. Diode lasers use visible blue light, meaning the beam passes straight through clear, white, or translucent acrylic without marking it.

ii. It Offers Superior Cutting Capacity:

2. It is a plug-and-play laser engraver

The OMTech K40+ is also much better than the older generic "K40" laser cutters. The main problem with older K40 laser cutters has always been that they are not usable right out of the box; in fact, they require dangerous and tedious DIY modifications to be safely usable.

The K40+ solves these issues straight out of the box with three key features.

Integrated air assist: It features built-in air assist to blow away smoke and debris, preventing scorch marks on your projects and dramatically reducing fire hazards.
Red dot guidance: A pre-installed red dot pointer projects onto the workbed, making framing and project positioning incredibly simple.
A detachable honeycomb workbed: Rather than a clunky built-in spring clamp, it features a proper honeycomb bed that provides excellent airflow beneath materials.

Along with this plug-and-play setup, you also get step-by-step guides and video training to help you start engraving in minutes.

3. Native LightBurn Compatibility (No Board Swap Required)

The OMTech K40+ is also compatible with LightBurn, which is a major upgrade from the older model, the OMTech K40.

For a little bit of context, the most painful drawback of the classic, legacy K40 was its M2 Nano motherboard, which basically forced users to use clunky software like LaserDRW or spend an extra £100+ on a drop-in replacement board just to use industry-standard software. The K40+ completely fixes this by coming standard with an upgraded GRBL board that supports LightBurn and LaserGRBL right out of the box. The LightBurn package for the OMTech K40 (machine + LightBurn software) is currently on sale at £729.00.

So, in the OMTech K40+, you have an affordable laser engraver that allows you to work on clear acrylic, delivers decent cutting performance, and does not subject you to the massive headaches of proprietary, clunky, or cloud-dependent manufacturer software. These are significant pros for a laser engraver under £1000.

3. It Has All Upgraded Out-of-the-Box Essentials

One of the things that makes the OMTech K40+ the best budget choice under £1000 is that OMTech pre-installed many of the recommended modifications that were put forward by users of the previous model.
Veteran OMTech users often share laundry lists of mandatory modifications for a basic K40. Here are some recommended upgrades that were built into the machine in response to community feedback:

Built-in air assist: It features a factory-installed nozzle that blows air directly at the focus lens. This feature reduces flare-ups and keeps cuts scorch-free.
A detachable honeycomb bed: This model also includes a functional honeycomb bed that reduces backscatter and a pull-out debris drawer. The debris collection makes the engraving process much cleaner, and cleanup much more convenient.
More safety features: The OMTech K40+ includes dual lid-interlock safety switches that kill the laser beam automatically if the door is opened during a job, and it also has an explicit physical Emergency Stop button.

So, in summary, the OMTech K40+ comes with user-recommended advanced features that make the engraving process much more effective, versatile, and safer. There are not many laser engravers under £1000 that you can say the same for.

4. The OMTech K40+ Remains The Ultimate Maker "Rite of Passage" Machine

As noted in maker community analysis, one of the reasons why a lot of enthusiasts love the K40+ is precisely because it teaches you how industrial lasers work.

The K40+ is the perfect laser engraver for a beginner who hopes to later advance into commercial or industrial laser engraving. Since it uses a real water-cooled glass tube, mirrors, and focal lenses, it serves as an affordable, enclosed sandbox for learning beam alignment, cooling configurations, and depth optimization.

If you intend to scale up to a massive 60W–150W commercial laser later, learning the ropes on a sub-£1000 K40+ is considered the perfect educational stepping stone.

The OMTech K40+ vs. Other Laser Engravers Under £1,000

While machines like the Creality Falcon2 40W or the Longer Laser B1 36W offer larger open working spaces, they are still diode lasers. The OMTech K40+ remains the definitive best laser engraver under £1000 if your primary goal is working with clear acrylics, glass, or maximum cutting speed on wood without spending thousands of dollars.

Get The OMTech K40+ Laser Engraver

Unleash your DIY potential with the OMTech K40 laser engraver. It is currently on sale starting from £650 for the standard package. You can choose between the LightBurn Package, the water chiller package, or even the rotary+chiller package. In total, the comprehensive OMTech K40+ package includes LightBurn, a 9L water cooling system, a 60W fume extractor, and LightBurn software is currently available too.

Final Thoughts on the OMTech K40+

In conclusion, there is very good reason to argue that the OMTech K40+ is indeed the best laser engraver under £1000. First, it provides more material compatibility than the diode laser engravers you would usually find at this price range, and much more cutting power. Also, it comes with upgraded features that make it much better than the previous K40 machine, which was on the market before, and some of these features are recommended by users of previous models.

If you are interested in laser cutting, working with clear acrylic, as well as getting the best-performance laser engraver for this price range, the OMTech K40+ should be, at least, near the top of your list!