In February 2026, Cricut launched two brand-new cutting machines. Alongside the Cricut Explore 5 is the new Cricut Joy 2.
For anyone already familiar with the original Joy (check our review out), the Joy 2 comes with one significant upgrade that changes what the machine is capable of. Its Print Then Cut feature means you can now create full-colour stickers, printed decals, and custom temporary tattoos — all the fun stuff that was previously out of reach — using nothing more than your home printer.
Specs & Unboxing
Cricut Joy 2 Unboxing Video
The Cricut Joy 2 maintains its signature portability, perfect for small spaces. At just 1.2kg, it is significantly lighter than its predecessor (1.75kg), whilst maintaining the 4.5 in (11.4 cm) cutting width and compatibility with over 75 materials, making it ideal for smaller, everyday projects.
The standard version of the Cricut Joy 2 includes a regional plug adapter for wider compatibility. In the Tools & Accessories Box you’ll find: a Premium Fine Point Cutting Tool (pre-installed in the machine), Scoring Tool, Dual-tip Marker, Light Grip Mat, Mini Weeder, and Paper Ruler. The Materials Envelope contains: Smart Vinyl Matless Permanent Vinyl (great for phone cases, notebooks & labels), Transfer Tape (to move cut vinyl designs onto a surface), Smart Iron-On Matless Heat Transfer Vinyl (great for T-shirts & bags), and Value Cardstock (great for gift tags, bookmarks & banners).
In Australia, the Cricut Joy 2 is available as the Machine + Essential Bundle only. In addition to the above, the Essential Bundle comes with a larger Weeder, Portable Trimmer, Card Mat, Scraper, and Spatula, plus several additional materials: an Insert Card Set (great for quick cards) and Printable Vinyl (great for full-colour stickers). The Essential Bundle is a solid starting kit — the inclusion of Printable Vinyl is especially relevant now that Print Then Cut is on the table, and having the additional tools in the box saves you a separate purchase.
Setting Up With the Cricut App on iPhone
Setup is refreshingly painless. Download Design Space from the App Store, log into your Cricut account, and let the app walk you through connecting to the machine via Bluetooth. It’s all a seamless, step-by-step process.
One thing to note before you place the machine: you’ll want at least 10cm of clearance behind it so the mat can slide in and out during cutting. Once that’s sorted, the app guides you through a test cut to make sure everything is working.
Design Space App
The new guided flows in Design Space make onboarding beginner-friendly — walking you through what to load, which settings to use, and when to press go. There’s no manual load button or power button to worry about, either; the machine activates automatically when you hit Make in Design Space.
The app has also had a solid overhaul, with guided step-by-step project flows, a refreshed design canvas, live project previews on real-world items, and AI image generation via Create AI (available with a paid subscription).
Print Then Cut
Print Then Cut is arguably the Joy 2’s biggest upgrade over its predecessor — and it’s a game-changer for a machine this size. The way it works is straightforward: you design something in Design Space, print it on your home inkjet, and the Joy 2’s new optical sensor reads the registration marks on the sheet and cuts precisely around your design automatically. Full-colour stickers, temporary tattoos, printable labels, custom decals — all of it is now possible in a machine that fits in a bag.
That said, there’s a real-world constraint worth knowing before you get too excited. The Joy 2’s cutting width is 4.5 inches, while a standard A4 or Letter sheet is around 8.3–8.5 inches wide — nearly double. So while you can absolutely print onto a full-size sheet from any home printer, the machine can only cut within that 4.5-inch lane. Anything wider either won’t fit or needs to be split across two passes. In practice, Print Then Cut on the Joy 2 works best for smaller sticker sheets, individual designs, and compact printables.
If you’re planning to fill a full A4 sheet with stickers and cut the whole thing in one go, you’d be better served by the Cricut Explore 5 or Cricut Maker 4, both of which handle Print Then Cut on full Letter, A4, and even A3 sheets without any of these workarounds.
Cricut Access Subscription
The Joy 2 doesn’t require a subscription to use, and Design Space itself is free — more than enough to get you started.
While Cricut Access isn’t currently available with Australian dollar pricing, it’s still worth a look, especially if you use your machine regularly. For a monthly or annual fee, Cricut Access unlocks a seriously large content library: 200,000+ images for cut and print projects, 700+ fonts for cutting and writing, and thousands of professionally designed, customisable projects. You also get exclusive Design Space features — things like unlimited collections and other enhancements that aren’t available on the free tier. On the savings side, subscribers get 10% off purchases on cricut.com, plus access to subscriber-only deals and exclusives.
Cricut Joy 2 Review Conclusion
The Cricut Joy 2 is a great fit if you’re after a compact, beginner-friendly machine for everyday crafting — cards, labels, stickers, decals — and don’t need anything large-format. If you’re new to Cricut and want something easy to set up without taking over your desk, or if you want to dip your toes into Print Then Cut without a big upfront investment, this is a solid starting point. It’s also a handy second machine for anyone who already has a larger Cricut but wants something quick and portable for smaller day-to-day projects.
As an entry point to the Cricut ecosystem, the Joy 2 is really good — approachable, capable, and compact enough to go anywhere. Just go in with clear expectations about what that 4.5-inch cutting width means in practice, especially for Print Then Cut.
The Cricut Joy 2 retails at AU$249, currently comes in blue only, and is available at select stores across Australia.
Disclosure: Cricut Joy 2 review sample was supplied for reviewing
