How to Choose the Best Printer for Your Money

Despite decades of technological progress, printers remain one of the most universally frustrating pieces of IT equipment. Every IT professional has dealt with them — jammed paper, dried ink, mysterious errors, or users shocked that replacement cartridges cost more than the printer itself.

The problem isn’t that printers are inherently bad. The problem is that people buy the wrong printer for their usage, usually based on upfront price alone.

From an IT perspective, the “best printer” is rarely the cheapest model on the shelf. It’s the one that:

• Matches real print volume
• Has predictable running costs
• Is reliable over years, not months
• Doesn’t create constant support tickets

This guide cuts through marketing noise and focuses on how to actually get value for money, based on real-world usage rather than spec sheets.

Step One: Understand Your Actual Printing Needs (Not Your Assumed Ones)

Before comparing brands or models, you need clarity on how the printer will be used.

What Are You Printing — and How Often?

This single question should drive your entire decision.

• Mostly black-and-white text (reports, invoices, contracts)?
• Colour documents and charts?
• Photos or image-heavy work?
• Occasional use, or hundreds of pages per month?

In many environments, print volume is overestimated. Buying a high-capacity printer for occasional use often leads to wasted money and dried-out consumables.

How Critical Is Output Quality?

Not all “quality” is the same.

• For contracts and legal documents, sharp text and clean edges matter more than colour accuracy.
• For marketing or photography, colour reproduction and paper compatibility matter more than speed.
• For general office use, consistency matters more than perfection.

Be honest about what actually matters — not what marketing brochures highlight.

Speed and Workflow Considerations

Print speed matters most when:

• Printing large documents
• Printing double-sided
• Multiple users share the printer

If printing is time-sensitive or business-critical, first-page-out time and duplex speed matter more than raw pages-per-minute numbers.

Understanding the Main Printer Types (With Honest Trade-Offs)

Monochrome Laser Printers

Best for: High-volume black-and-white printing

Strengths

• Extremely fast for text
• Very low cost per page at scale
• Toner doesn’t dry out
• Reliable over long periods

Limitations

• No colour
• Poor photo/image quality
• Higher upfront cost

Real-World IT Insight
For offices printing lots of text, a mono laser is often the least problematic printer you can buy. Fewer moving parts, fewer consumables, fewer tickets.

Colour Laser Printers

Best for: Business documents, charts, presentations

Strengths

• Faster than inkjets
• Good colour consistency
• Solid reliability

Limitations

• Toner sets are expensive
• Not ideal for photo printing
• Larger footprint

Reality Check
Colour lasers look cheap until you replace four toner cartridges at once. They make sense in shared environments — not for casual home use.

Standard Inkjet Printers

Best for: Low-volume home use, occasional colour printing

Strengths

• Low purchase price
• Excellent photo quality
• Compact and multifunction options

Limitations

• High cost per page
• Ink dries if unused
• Frequent cartridge replacement

IT Opinion
Most consumer frustration with printers comes from cheap inkjets with expensive cartridges. They’re fine for light use — terrible for regular printing.

Ink Tank / Continuous Ink Systems

Best for: Frequent colour printing with low ongoing cost

Strengths

• Extremely low cost per page
• High page yield
• Good photo and colour output
• Fewer consumable changes

Limitations

• Higher upfront cost
• Slightly slower startup
• Requires careful ink handling

Why IT Pros Recommend Them
Ink tank printers fix the single biggest problem with inkjets: consumable cost. For households or small offices that print regularly, they’re often the best long-term value.

Features That Actually Matter (And Those That Don’t)

Duplex Printing and Scanning

Automatic duplex printing saves paper, time, and manual effort. Duplex scanning (via ADF) is invaluable if you deal with contracts or multi-page documents.

Once you’ve used it, you won’t go back.

Paper Handling and Tray Capacity

Small trays mean frequent refilling — a nuisance in shared environments. Also check support for:

• Envelopes
• Heavyweight paper
• Photo paper
• Labels

Ignoring this leads to jams and poor output.

Connectivity Options That Make Sense

From an IT perspective:

• Ethernet = reliability in offices
• Wi-Fi = convenience for homes
• Mobile printing = useful, but not critical
• USB-only printers = increasingly limiting

Avoid printers that rely solely on flaky wireless setups in shared environments.

Multifunction vs Single Function

All-in-one printers (print/scan/copy) often provide better value and reduce device sprawl. Just ensure the scanner quality and ADF are adequate — cheap scanners can be worse than having none.

Total Cost of Ownership: Where the Real Money Goes

This is where most buyers get it wrong.

Cost Per Page (CPP)

Calculate it:

• Cartridge or toner cost ÷ rated page yield

This matters far more than printer price.

High-yield or XL cartridges usually provide significantly better value.

Consumable Availability and Pricing

Check:

• Are cartridges easy to find?
• Are third-party options available?
• Do firmware updates block refills?

Vendor lock-in on consumables is where printers quietly drain budgets.

Reliability and Longevity

A printer that lasts five years costs less than replacing a cheap one every 18 months — even if the upfront price is higher.

Read long-term user reviews, not just “out of the box” impressions.

Common Mistakes IT Pros See Over and Over

• Buying the cheapest printer available
• Ignoring ink or toner pricing
• Oversizing for occasional use
• Underestimating print volume growth
• Assuming specs equal real performance

Printers punish poor planning.

Quick Decision Guide

Final Thoughts: Value Comes From Fit, Not Price

The best printer for your money is the one that:

• Matches your real usage
• Has predictable running costs
• Doesn’t become a support nightmare
• Lasts longer than its warranty period

As with most IT purchases, paying a little more up front often saves a lot later — in money, time, and frustration.

If you approach printer selection like infrastructure planning instead of consumer shopping, you’ll end up with fewer regrets and fewer angry users.

Daniel Lutton

From my early days on the helpdesk through roles as a service desk manager, systems administrator, and network engineer, I’ve spent more than 25 years in the IT world. As I transition into cyber security, my goal is to make tech a little less confusing by sharing what I’ve learned and helping others wherever I can.