Best printer for home use
It may be time to take a fresh look at printers. If you’re like most buyers, you’re probably looking for a cheap inkjet model. While we understand the popular belief that “cheap is good,” there are actually excellent options available to most consumers, according to consumer research and Printer Lab testing.
What a printer should have in 2025
Since features can vary greatly, even within a given price range, there are a few things to keep in mind when purchasing a printer.
Our expert reviews reveal that inkjet printers have three main problems. They often perform poorly at printing text, which is the main task people expect them to do. Wireless printers
It is important to remember that the majority of modern printers typically come with a built-in scanner. As a result, the printer can also function as a copier, scanner, and sometimes even a fax machine. These printers are referred to as All-In-One printers, or simply AIOs. It is important to keep in mind that not all printers are AIOs, so if you need this type of capability, be sure to check before you buy.
The second decision is between the two main printing technologies available today: inkjet and laser. The main difference between the two is that while inkjet printers are often more expensive to operate, laser printers are usually less expensive to purchase. Additionally, laser jets are less likely to smudge ink and provide sharper print quality. Inkjet Printers
The cost per page (CCP), which is the price associated with printing each page, is the next item on the agenda. The cost of the cartridge is multiplied by the expected number of pages the cartridge will produce to arrive at this number. Remember, this is just a rough estimate because the amount of ink used can vary greatly depending on what you are printing.
Either way, we’ll give you a general idea of what to expect in terms of CCP. However, if you don’t print very often, finding the best printer may not always mean getting the lowest CCP possible. You may be better off spending a few cents more per page in exchange for faster printing, higher print quality, or just more features. Inkjet Printers
Along with the above, you should also look at the Page Per Minute (PPM), which refers to the number of pages a printer can print in a given period of time. So, 10 pages per minute means that you will receive ten pages in just one minute.
It all depends on how much you print and how patient you are with what you're good at. The more prints per minute you can achieve, the better if you usually print a lot. Refillable Ink Printers
The feature set, and more specifically the type of connectivity you can get, should be your final consideration. These days, most printers are required to include at least Ethernet ports and Wi-Fi connectivity. Some printers also come with Bluetooth and apps that let you print directly to the printer without a computer, which is quite convenient. There are certain printers that can be operated by voice as well, which is a nice little addition. The best home printers
Second, while they may be inexpensive to purchase, they sometimes come with high ink costs for expensive replacement cartridges and expensive ink maintenance cycles needed just to keep the machine running. The average user can spend up to $70 per year on ink cartridges, which can double the total cost of ownership of the printer in less than two years.
Inkjet printers aren't as reliable as laser printers, according to data from our CR member surveys. Printers for sale
When you add it all up, it's understandable why inkjet printer user satisfaction is so low, as determined by the same surveys.
For this reason, we no longer feel comfortable recommending traditional inkjet printers. A typical home printer should use a black-and-white printer. The better option is usually a laser printer.
There's a lot to consider, but don't worry - the recommendations below will take care of all the necessary research for you.
The perfect printer overall HP Envy Pro 6455e
First of all, this is an all-in-one (AIO), so in addition to printing, you can also scan, copy, and even fax—features that aren’t common for AIOs. Better yet, you can print from anywhere without even touching a button thanks to its voice activation, which works with both Alexa and Google Home Assistant. If you don’t want to tether the Envy Pro to a desktop or laptop with a cable, it also has WiFi connectivity.
Print quality is acceptable for a budget inkjet printer, and even somewhat smaller fonts are likely to be of good quality.
Image quality is also excellent, but unfortunately it lacks the same color gamut as a printer with extra cartridges because it only uses two instead of four or six. However, the quality is not subpar. It is not the greatest in its class.
Print speeds are around 10 pages per minute in color and 7 pages per minute in monochrome. The Envy Pro scanner offers a resolution of 1200 x 1200 pixels, which is really respectable quality. Although it doesn't have the ability to print on both sides of the paper, it does include an automatic document feeder.
HP ENVY 6455e All-in-One Printer with 6 Months of Instant Ink from HP+
Best Cheap Printer Epson Expression Home XP-4100
It's important to try to balance low cost with functionality when choosing a budget printer. Fortunately, the Epson Expression XP-4100 does this job admirably for under $100.
This all-in-one has a surprisingly compact footprint and is great if you don't have a lot of space to work with, similar to our best printer overall. Like the Envy Pro 6455e, it has a 1,200 dpi scan resolution, and color and black print speeds are 4 and 7 ppm, respectively. Despite the poor print speed, don't be put off by it.
As for the printing pricing, it’s a bit disappointing to learn that black pages cost about 11 cents each and color pages cost about 17 cents each. Again, though, if you rarely print things, the cost per page won’t matter as much. Plus, this assumes you buy the cartridges at $20 MSRP; if you can get them for less, the cost per page drops.
HP Color LaserJet Pro Multifunction M479fdn Home Office Printer
Although the name of the printer, HP Color Laserjet Pro Multifunction, is a full-blown one, the printer has many features that make it ideal for a home office or small business.
For starters, this HP printer’s 300-page paper tray and 50-page feeder eliminate the need for constant supervision while printing or copying. Plus, automatic duplex printing saves time by eliminating the need to re-feed paper for double-sided documents. Since it’s a color laser printer, it’s also fairly fast, and when combined with the large capacity, you can print even more.
The Laserjet Pro has some great connectivity options, including USB, Ethernet, WiFi, and Bluetooth, which aren’t uncommon. You can also use a range of third-party apps, including Mopria, Apple AirPrint, Google Cloud Print , and the HP Smart App with HP ePrint. Plus, it has some solid encryption and security features. Additionally, the LaserJet Pro features permission controls if you want to restrict who can print in color.
The Laserjet Pro performs as well as one would expect for the money. Black print speeds are around 28ppm, and color print speeds are around 17ppm, which is about average for its class.
As you would expect from a laser printer, the print quality is excellent. With text being crisp and not distorted, it's ideal for business documents. While you shouldn't rely on it to print sharp photos, the image quality is still excellent for charts and presentations.
The reality of the operating costs, which also depend on how much you print, can be painful. Expect to pay 2.2 cents for monochrome pages and 14.2 cents for color pages. If you print tens of thousands of pages each month, the cost can add up quickly.
Epson Expression Photo XP-970 Perfect Photo Printer
The Epson Expression XP-970 excels in both color accuracy and gamut, the two most important factors when printing photos.
It opts to use five colors of ink, making a total of six when black is included, which helps achieve this goal. Unless you're willing to spend four or even five times that amount, it's simply impossible to improve the color spectrum you get.
Since there are so many different types of ink and print sizes available, the cost issue is a bit more complicated. When you calculate the cost per page, you're probably looking at up to 4.5 cents for black and up to 14 cents for color per page.
What do you think of this price range? In reality, it falls in the typical range for the printer class, which is impressive given the superior color accuracy.
The XP-970 is mid-range when it comes to other features. You get the usual array of connectivity options, including WiFi Direct, USB 2.0, and support for most SD and Micro SD cards. Additionally, you get Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa compatibility as well as voice command functionality, which is pretty good.
Despite all this, the printer's main drawback is that it's a bit slow, made worse by the fact that it can only hold one sheet of paper at a time. This means you'll need to watch it carefully, which can be a problem if you're printing in large quantities.
But the printer's excellent photo print quality more than makes up for those shortcomings.
Canon Pixma TR150 Portable Printer Perfect
There will come a day when the size of a portable printer will be compared to its printing capabilities and output quality. Rarely will something portable offer the same level of performance as a full-size printer. Fortunately, the Canon Pixma TR150 offers a good compromise.
When closed, the TR150 measures just 12.7 x 7.3 x 2.6 inches and weighs 4.5 pounds, making it small enough to slip into a purse or small bag. If you want a printer that can be used anywhere , the small weight gain with the optional battery pack is worth it.
Despite its small size, the Pixma can print on paper up to the industry standard 8.5 x 11 size. You can print anything with two ink cartridges, from straightforward text documents to sharp, glossy photos. Although the portable printer's print rates are 9 pages per minute for black and white and 5.5 ppm for color, they're still respectable.
With the Canon Print app, the TR150 is compatible with Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android. Apple AirPrint is also compatible. Although the printer has a small OLED screen next to the control buttons, changing printer settings in the app is easier than trying to do so on the 1.44-inch screen.
While it’s not the smallest portable printer on the market, the Canon Pixma TR150 is still small enough to enjoy without sacrificing too much in terms of features. The TR150 is a great option if you want high-quality wireless printing on the go without breaking the bank.
Canon Maxify GX6021 Ink Tank Printer
Long-lasting ink tank printers will allow you to print at a much lower cost. Individual black and white or color cartridges can be disposed of without wasting any ink.
The Canon Maxify GX6021 ink tank printer is our top pick. While this is a bit of an expensive alternative, if you print a lot, you’ll start saving money on it quickly. For $649, you also get a full-featured scanner and copier as well as a printer that can print up to 14,000 pages on a single set of full tanks.
It features four tanks that can each hold between 132 and 167 ml of ink, which may not seem like a lot until you consider that a regular ink bottle holds 8 ml.
While the Maxify GX6021 isn’t a small printer, it’s small enough to fit into a small office or home office without taking up too much space. The paper tray can also hold 100 sheets of A4 paper. Although it drops to 15.5ppm when printing in colour, the maximum print speed of 24ppm is still very impressive.