FANUC CRX vs Universal Robots
Pick FANUC CRX when the cell needs FANUC industrial-controller DNA, IP67 sealing across the CRX arm line, and FANUC-native vision / approved-device plugins in a plant that already runs FANUC. Pick Universal Robots when you want UR's Gen 7 platform (g-Series / e-Series / UR Series arms + CB7 Core + TP7 Core + PolyScope X) and the largest publicly documented certified-peripheral catalog (UR+, 500+ products). Both are power-and-force-limited collaborative platforms that still require a full application risk assessment. Neither publishes a clean public list price for a complete robot system.
| Point | FANUC CRX | Universal Robots |
|---|---|---|
| Pick it for | FANUC industrial-controller DNA, IP67 across the CRX arm line, and native vision plus approved-device plugins. | The Gen 7 platform and the UR+ catalog (over 500 certified products). |
| What the name covers | CRX-3iA, CRX-5iA, CRX-10iA, CRX-10iA/L, CRX-20iA/L, CRX-30iA, plus Paint and food-grade variants in the 2026 brochure. The 3-50 kg / 550-1889 mm cobot band includes the CR series (for example CR-35iB), not CRX only. | e-Series, UR Series, and g-Series on one Gen 7 platform: arms + CB7 Core + TP7 Core + SP7 Smart Panel + PolyScope X + UR+. Not a single arm family. |
| Payload and reach | CRX-3iA is 3 kg / 692 mm. CRX-30iA is 30 kg or 25 kg / 1,756 mm or 1,889 mm. The 25 kg mode expands space to 1,889 mm. A 40 kg wrist-down option is documented, orientation limited. | UR3e-540 is 3 kg / 540 mm. UR30-1300 is 30 kg rated / 35 kg expanded / 1,300 mm. Long reach is 1,750 mm on UR10g-1750 and UR20-1750. |
| Speed | Collaborative mode is typically 1,000 mm/s (CRX-3iA 1,200 mm/s). High-speed mode is commonly 2,000 mm/s (CRX-3iA 2,500 mm/s in the Japan catalog). | Up to 5 m/s on several g-Series and UR Series models. 3-4 m/s on e-Series models. |
| Repeatability | +/-0.02 to +/-0.05 mm by model (ISO 9283), from the 2026 brochure. | e-Series +/-0.03 to +/-0.05 mm. g-Series +/-0.05 to +/-0.08 mm. The UR20 / UR30 series overview says +/-0.1 mm. The UR30-1300 page also shows +/-0.01 mm. Those two UR30 figures conflict. |
| Sealing | IP67 body and wrist across CRX models in the brochure specs. | e-Series arms IP54. UR Series and g-Series arms IP65. CB7 and TP7 are IP54. |
| Controller | R-30iB Plus, including R-30iB Mini Plus for the CRX footprint. CRX on R-50iA is LIKELY and still rolling, per an April 2026 PR. Confirm the config before quoting R-50iA as standard. | CB7 Core (IP54). Launch materials say about 40% more compute and a smaller footprint than the prior generation. TP7 Core and, on g-Series, SP7 Smart Panel. PolyScope X is native on Gen 7. CB5.5 / PolyScope 5 and CB5.6 / PolyScope X are still in the field. |
| Teach hardware | Tablet Teach Pendant with hand guidance. Wrist buttons on CRX-10iA and up (standard on CRX-30iA). Dual Check Safety position and speed monitoring is named in the brochure. | TP7 Core teach pendant, and SP7 Smart Panel at the tool on g-Series. Script and node-editor detail is a different file. |
| Safety | ISO 10218-1 and ISO 13849-1 certified in the 2026 America brochure. The Japan catalog adds ISO/TS 15066. PLd Category 3: not certified. | EN ISO 13849-1 Category 3 PLd. ISO 10218-1, edition varying by model. UL 1740 is claimed for e-Series, UR Series, and g-Series. g-Series is TUV certified to ISO 10218-1 and UL 1740 per the launch release. A risk assessment is still required. |
| Ecosystem | Approved CRX devices, EOAT, plugins, Cobot & Go, and native iRVision (2D/3D) without a separate vision PC in the standard story. An audited 500-plus partner count is not published. | UR+: hundreds of partner companies and over 500 certified Marketplace products. Gen 7 is stated fully compatible with UR+. |
| Simulation | ROBOGUIDE. | Not this file. PolyScope offline programming is on the DART-Suite vs PolyScope page. |
| Maintenance | Eight years maintenance-free is a vendor claim for motors, reducers, sensors, cables, and grease. This file has no independent MTBF study. | |
| List price | CRX pages reviewed do not publish a system MSRP. | A local distributor advises on price. Financing is mentioned, with no public rates. |
This file compares platforms. Script, pendant nodes, and the PolyScope simulator stay on the DART-Suite vs PolyScope file.
Situation
This brief compares cobot platforms: mechanical families, controllers, teach UI at platform level, claimed safety certifications, and partner ecosystems. It is not a brief on which node editor or script language is better. FANUC's CRX series sits inside FANUC's broader collaborative lineup (CRX plus the heavier CR series such as CR-35iB). Universal Robots' current story is Gen 7 as a platform, with three arm families (e-Series, UR Series, g-Series) sharing UR+ and converging on CB7 / TP7 / PolyScope X for new shipments. Journalism comparisons are lead only; specs below prefer OEM product pages, FAQ, and datasheet / brochure PDFs.
Facts
Core CRX models in the 2026 FANUC America CRX brochure: CRX-3iA, CRX-5iA, CRX-10iA, CRX-10iA/L, CRX-20iA/L, CRX-30iA, plus CRX-10iA/L Paint and food-grade variants. FANUC America collaborative page also states 14 cobot model variations across the full cobot portfolio with payloads 3-50 kg and reaches 550-1889 mm. That wider band includes the CR series (for example CR-35iB at 50 kg), not CRX-only.
Three arm families sit under one Gen 7 platform story. e-Series (lighter / shorter): active named models UR3e-540 (3 kg / 540 mm), UR7e-920 (7.5 kg / 920 mm), and UR12e-1300 (12.5 kg / 1300 mm). The product page still lists UR16e (16 kg / 900 mm) and older CB5-named variants. UR Series (heavier industrial): active UR20-1750 (20 kg, 25 kg expanded / 1750 mm) and UR30-1300 (30 kg, 35 kg expanded / 1300 mm). UR8 Long, UR15, and UR18 were succeeded by g-Series but remain supported. g-Series (Gen 7 arms, 2026): UR10g-1750 (8 kg rated / 10 kg extended / 1750 mm), UR17g-1300 (15 / 17.5 kg / 1300 mm), and UR18g-950 (18 kg / 950 mm). Gen 7 is a platform (arms + CB7 Core + TP7 Core + SP7 Smart Panel + PolyScope X + UR+), not a single arm family.
2026 brochure specs table, max load at wrist and reach: CRX-3iA 3 kg / 692 mm; CRX-5iA 5 kg / 994 mm; CRX-10iA 10 kg / 1,249 mm; CRX-10iA/L 10 kg / 1,418 mm; CRX-20iA/L 20 kg / 1,418 mm; CRX-30iA 30 kg or 25 kg / 1,756 mm or 1,889 mm. The 25 kg mode expands CRX-30iA operating space to 1,889 mm. The FANUC America CRX-30iA page documents a 40 kg wrist-down payload option (orientation limited). Collaborative-mode linear speed is typically 1,000 mm/s (CRX-3iA 1,200 mm/s); high-speed mode is commonly 2,000 mm/s (CRX-3iA 2,500 mm/s per the Japan catalog). Brochure repeatability is +/-0.02 to +/-0.05 mm by model (ISO 9283).
UR platform span is roughly 3 kg / 540 mm (UR3e-540) through 30 kg rated / 35 kg expanded / 1,300 mm (UR30-1300), with long-reach options at 1,750 mm (UR10g-1750, UR20-1750). Max TCP speed claims: up to 5 m/s on several g-Series / UR Series models; 3-4 m/s on e-Series models. Repeatability on series pages: e-Series +/-0.03 to +/-0.05 mm; g-Series listed +/-0.05 to +/-0.08 mm; UR20/UR30 series overview +/-0.1 mm. The UR30-1300 product page table also shows repeatability +/-0.01 mm, which conflicts with the series overview +/-0.1 mm. Do not treat either UR30 figure as settled until the datasheets are reconciled.
Standard FANUC controller family: R-30iB Plus, including R-30iB Mini Plus for the CRX footprint. Tablet Teach Pendant with drag-and-drop / New User Interface and iPendant-style UI; hand guidance / lead-through teaching; wrist buttons on CRX-10iA and up (standard on CRX-30iA). Dual Check Safety (DCS) position/speed monitoring is named in the brochure. April 2026 FANUC America PR: CRX also becoming available on R-50iA (Python scripting, higher-frequency ROS 2 / streaming motion, cybersecurity, positioner support). Treat R-50iA CRX availability as likely and still rolling. Confirm the config before quoting it as standard. Simulation: ROBOGUIDE.
Gen 7 controller and teach hardware, at platform level only: CB7 Core (IP54; three 1GbE ports; about 40% more compute and a smaller footprint versus the prior generation, per launch materials), TP7 Core teach pendant, and SP7 Smart Panel at the tool on g-Series. Software environment: PolyScope X native on Gen 7; older CB5.5 / PolyScope 5 and CB5.6 / PolyScope X are still in the field. Programming-stack depth is a different file.
2026 America brochure: ISO 10218-1 and ISO 13849-1 certified; contact stop; push-to-escape; retract-on-hard-contact; customizable speed/safety; without the need for external safety devices, in accordance with a risk assessment. Japan CRX catalog: safety certified to ISO 10218-1 (including ISO/TS 15066). PLd Category 3 is not stated in the primary brochure or catalog text reviewed. Secondary sites assert it. Treat CRX PLd Category 3 as uncertain until a certificate or datasheet line is cited. IP67 body and wrist across CRX models in the brochure specs. Eight years maintenance-free is a vendor claim for motors, reducers, sensors, cables, and grease on the FANUC America collaborative page and brochure.
FAQ and the Gen 7 launch: EN ISO 13849-1 Category 3 PLd; ISO 10218-1 (edition can vary by model and config; some Gen 7 features reference the 2025 edition); UL 1740 compliance claimed for e-Series and UR Series / g-Series. g-Series: TUV certified to ISO 10218-1 and UL 1740 per the launch release. Teradyne Robotics certified to IEC 62443-4-1 ML3 (cybersecurity process). A risk assessment is still required for every application. IP: e-Series arms IP54; UR Series and g-Series arms IP65; CB7 / TP7 IP54.
Official UR+ program: hundreds of partner companies; over 500 certified products on UR Marketplace; components, software, and solutions/kits; URCaps / URCapX integration into PolyScope; Gen 7 stated fully compatible with UR+.
FANUC America: approved CRX Device Partners, EOAT, accessories, and plugins; Cobot Devices catalog; Cobot & Go pre-engineered solutions; native iRVision (2D/3D) on the FANUC controller / Tablet TP without a separate vision PC in the standard story. Plugin devices are listed on FANUC regional sites. Partner count is not published as a single audited 500-plus equivalent on the primary pages reviewed. Describe an approved-device / plugin ecosystem. Do not invent parity with UR+.
Neither OEM publishes a clean public list price for a complete robot system. UR's FAQ says a local distributor advises on price. FANUC CRX pages reviewed do not publish a system MSRP. Journalism price tables are not used here. UR mentions financing / leasing (DLL partnership) without public rates.
Assessment
We assess, with high confidence on published hardware and certification labels and moderate confidence on buyer fit outside a named cell, that this is an industrial-ecosystem and environment decision more than a payload horse-race.
Payload and reach bands largely overlap in the collaborative 3-30 kg class. The durable splits are sealing, controller heritage, ecosystem shape, and speed envelope. Sealing: CRX IP67 line-wide versus UR IP54 (e-Series) / IP65 (UR Series, g-Series). Controller heritage: FANUC R-30iB Plus (and emerging R-50iA) versus UR CB7 / PolyScope X Gen 7. Ecosystem shape: UR+ certified Marketplace scale versus FANUC-approved devices plus controller-native iRVision. Speed envelope: UR publicly claims higher TCP speeds (up to 5 m/s) while CRX collaborative literature centers about 1 m/s collaborative and about 2 m/s high-speed modes. Risk assessment still governs usable speed on both. The eight-year maintenance-free line is a FANUC claim backed by accelerated-life marketing, not an independent MTBF study in this file.
Do not collapse CRX into FANUC's CR-35iB 50 kg story, and do not treat Gen 7 as only g-Series arms. Programming UX depth (Tablet TP icons versus PolyScope nodes) belongs on the separate programming-stack file.
Implications
- Harsh coolant, washdown, or dust cells: weight CRX IP67 and food-grade / paint variants heavily. Confirm UR IP65 only covers UR Series / g-Series arms, not e-Series.
- Existing FANUC install base: CRX shares the R-30iB Plus / DCS / iRVision / ROBOGUIDE mental model with industrial FANUC robots.
- Fastest certified EOAT / kit shopping: the UR+ Marketplace is the clearer public catalog.
- Heavy collaborative palletizing: compare CRX-30iA (30/25 kg, optional 40 kg wrist-down) against UR30-1300 (30/35 kg expanded) and UR20-1750 reach, then run payload curves. Do not pick from the nameplate alone.
- Budget: quote via distributors. Keep list price blank in the model.
- Safety copy: both claim ISO 10218-1 and ISO 13849-1 family compliance. Only the UR primary pages reviewed here explicitly state Category 3 PLd. Always keep risk assessment required.
Action
Shortlist one CRX model and one UR model in the same payload and reach band for the actual part mass, tool mass, and envelope. Ask each OEM or authorized integrator for the current controller SKU (R-30iB Mini Plus / Plus vs R-50iA; CB5.x vs CB7), the applicable ISO 10218 edition and safety certificate PDF, the IP rating for arm + controller + EOAT as a system, the approved devices for the gripper and vision you will actually buy, and the maintenance interval claim in writing. Run the same risk assessment template on both. Do not decide on journalism price tables or on programming-stack preference alone.
What to watch
- FANUC R-50iA CRX general availability and which CRX SKUs ship on it by default.
- UR Gen 7 field-upgrade path and pricing for installed e-Series / UR Series arms.
- Whether FANUC publishes an audited CRX Device Partner count comparable to UR+ "500+."
- ISO 10218:2025 / 3PE teach-pendant requirements rippling through both OEMs' standard configs.
- CRX-30iA 40 kg wrist-down option adoption limits (orientation, reach, safety settings).
Programming stacks: Doosan DART Suite vs Universal Robots PolyScope.