<p>Point-of-care (POC) devices offer a considerable opportunity to tackle epidemics through rapid, sensitive and specific screening. Microporous nitrocellulose membranes are the most widely used substrate for POC devices due to their high affinity with biological reagents such as proteins and oligonucleotides. However, nitrocellulose has several disadvantages: it is produced through an environmentally unfriendly chemical process, and it is converted with a subtractive process. In addition, nitrocellulose hydrophobicity requires surfactants to increase membrane wettability. The aim of this work is to manufacture a microfluidic paper-based analytical device (µPAD) composite of a microfibrillated cellulose matrix (MFC) embedded with microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) and silicon oxide particles (SiO₂) to manage water uptake and fluid flow kinetics within the fluidic strip. Several composite inks were formulated by varying the MFC, MCC and SiO₂ mass fractions, and the impact of particle size and mass fraction of the composite on water uptake was compared. An additive manufacturing technique was assessed using a fluid dispenser mounted on a 6-axis robot to manufacture the cellulose-based strips. One key objective was to develop a µPAD as an alternative to nitrocellulose-based POC devices. The µPAD composite was assessed with a migration test in a lateral flow configuration. Promising results were obtained by producing strips with a water capillary rise of 4&#xa0;cm in 5&#xa0;min, comparable to the performance of nitrocellulose. Finally, the µPAD strips were spotted with proteins and sealed with MFC in order to produce a functional cellulose-based POC proof of concept.</p>