<p>This study presents the design, optimization, and manufacturing of a lightweight, broadband microwave absorber metasurface consisting of an insulator substrate, conductive ink and a metallic ground plane for the X-band frequency range (8–12 GHz). To address the challenges of achieving low weight and high absorption, a bitmap-type metasurface was developed using a genetic algorithm to optimize its 16 × 16 pixels geometry. The insulator substrate was machined flat and smooth using ultrafine planing, and desired bitmap-type patterns were engraved by micro end-milling processes under optimized machining conditions for achieving high precision and uniformity. A novel method for filling conductive ink into machined patterns proposed in this study ensured that all corners of machined patterns were perfectly filled by ink. The manufactured metasurface having 12 × 12 unit cells and 200 mm × 200 mm area demonstrated a density of 0.82 g/cm³, approximately 9.5 times and 5.9 times lighter than carbonyl iron and ferrite, respectively. Experimental results confirmed over 90% absorption in the 9.5–12 GHz range, aligning closely with simulation data, with slight discrepancies attributed to material and geometric factors. This work highlights the potential of lightweight metasurfaces for the applications at weight-critical fields.</p>