A printer is one of those pieces of technology you don’t think you need (or want), that is until you really do. Photographs, legal documents, and backup files sometimes require physical prints, and, sure, you could go to the public library or a print shop, but wow, what an inconvenience. Even if you only use it a few times a year to print out shipping labels, permissions slips, or tax documents, it’s convenient to own your own printer, especially one with the option to print photos, scan documents, make copies, or even send faxes. And you can totally get one without spending a ton.
Here at PCMag, our printer expert, M. David Stone, has been evaluating all manner of printers for nearly four decades. His reviews underpin our picks, helping you make an informed buying decision. At PC Labs, printers are tested on many aspects of their functionality, including value, print quality, speed, ease of hardware setup, and the software installation process. If you need more help finding the right type of printer, check out our mega-guide for all the details, plus links to deep-dive reviews of the top models. If you’re ready to shop, check out some of the best printer deals we’ve found this month.
This Canon all-in-one is best suited for personal or home-office use, and with a huge $70 price cut, it’s a fantastic value for a reliable printer. It supports wireless connectivity via the Canon Print App and Apple Air Print support, so it’s convenient to print whether you’re sitting at your desk or rushing out the door. In our review, we applauded the Canon Pixma TS6420a’s solid output quality, print, scan, and copy functionality, and the automatic two-sided printing, which saves paper. Our printer expert states, “The TS6420a is a solid choice for home use, particularly if you want to print your own photos, or as a home and light-duty home office printer.” If you intend to print photos frequently, the Canon Pixma TS6420a has an advantage thanks to dual trays that can be loaded with both printing and photo paper, so you don’t need to change the paper when you change document types.
If you’re looking for a reasonably priced home-use all-in-one printer, this Epson Expression Home XP-5200 should suffice. We rated it “Excellent” in testing. Our review states: “With high-quality output and fast print speeds at default settings, plus remote printing support, Epson’s Expression Home XP-5200 All-in-One printer is at home in a home office.” With wireless connectivity for both PCs and mobile devices, a paper tray with a 150-sheet capacity, and paper-saving automatic two-sided printing, this color printer can handle documents and photos with aplomb. Its compact size means it can easily fit on your desk or a side table, making it a great option if you have limited space.
The Canon Color ImageClass MF656CDW can support small-office use, but it could also be used at home as your personal printing workhorse. This laser printer supports duplex scanning at up to 53 images per minute, and printing with a quick speed of 22 pages per minute—whether the prints are in monochrome or color. A built-in USB port lets you print directly from a flash drive or your computer if Wi-Fi isn’t available. You can even print from your mobile device via the Canon Print Business app or Apple AirPrint.
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For more basic printing/scanning/faxing needs, the HP DeskJet 2855e wireless all-in-one inkjet printer is a cost effective solution. Setup is easy with the HP Smart app and you can also print directly from your mobile device. The top loading tray holds up to 60-sheets of paper and 3 months of ink are included with your purchase. You can opt to subscribe to HP’s Instant Ink delivery service starting at $1.49/month to have ink sent directly to your door when your printer detects its low on ink, which is a good value depending on how often you’ll be printing. Bear in mind that HP printers typically don’t play nicely with non-OEM ink cartridges, so that will factor into the cost of ownership.
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What Kind of Printer Should I Buy?
The right printer for you depends on your typical use case. Some printers are better than others for photographs versus monochrome text. A subcategory of models, dubbed “multifunction” or “all-in-one” printers, can also scan, copy, and fax. Typically, more supported features mean a higher up-front price.
In a nutshell, monochrome lasers are generally better for users who print mostly multipage text documents, with the occasional noncritical graphic inline. (You tend to save on the cost per page with mono lasers versus an equivalent inkjet for this kind of printing.) In most cases, color lasers tend to be economical only for businesses that need bulk printing with spot color in graphics, due to the cost of their four separate color toner cartridges.
As for inkjets, almost all inkjets are color models nowadays. With inkjets, low-cost cartridge-based models tend to have a high cost per page but can be adequate for homes that print just a handful of pages per month. Heavier-printing homes that need the color an inkjet affords might want to weigh the advantages of a bulk-ink tank-based inkjet. Look for models like those in Epson’s EcoTank or Canon’s MegaTank series.
Why Are Laser Printers More Expensive Than Inkjets?
It’s not quite that simple; there are cheap lasers and expensive inkjets, after all. It’s true that, in general, you get more overall functionality at a given price with an inkjet versus a laser. But if you print in high volume, the cost per page of a laser printer often ends up being less than that of an inkjet, saving you money in the long run.
That said, color lasers and their four required toner cartridges can be costly to maintain if you don’t print in volume. We recommend inexpensive monochrome lasers for folks who print lots of text documents, and color lasers only for businesses that need bulk printing, occasional color, and smear-proof output for things like newsletters, proofs, and internal communications. You can check our total cost of ownership guide to decide what’s right for you.
How Do We Test Printers?
When testing printers, our experts assemble multiple sets of document collections to print, depending on the printer model. One is a business suite that includes documents created in and printed from Adobe Acrobat and Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Some contain only text, while others include embedded charts and photos. We look here at both print speeds and quality, as well as font legibility at various sizes.
Another set of test files is a photo suite comprising 300dpi-resolution photographs in two sizes: 4 by 6 inches and 8 by 10 inches. We use 10 photos in total: nine color and one monochrome. The color images are chosen to include skin tones, a wide range of shading from dark to light, and “memory colors” (real-world colors people tend to remember), such as sky blue. When testing photo printing, we use the paper the vendor recommends; if there is no recommendation, we instead use a high-quality plain paper for lasers or a generic photo paper for inkjets. Photos are printed at the highest quality available without using custom or advanced settings. With photo output, we are looking here mostly at print quality, as opposed to speed.
For more on our rigorous, objective testing process, see our How We Test Printers explainer.
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