Best Printers of 2026: Ink Tank, Laser & Photo
Most printers are not sold to make money on the hardware — they are sold to lock you into cartridges. Before you replace a failing machine, run a free CMYK test page to confirm the problem is the printer itself. If it is, use the guide below to pick a model by real running cost rather than sticker price.
A. Best Overall for Low Ink Cost
Refillable supertank printers replace cartridges with bottles you pour into built-in reservoirs. The upfront price is higher, but a single set of bottles commonly prints thousands of pages, which brings colour printing well under a cent per page. Best for families, students, and anyone printing regularly in colour.
B. Best for Text & High-Volume Reliability
Laser printers fuse dry toner onto the page, so nothing dries out between jobs and nothing smudges afterwards. If your printing is mostly documents, invoices, and forms — and especially if weeks pass between print jobs — a monochrome laser is the most trouble-free choice you can make.
C. Best for Crafters, Photographers & 6-Colour Printing
Dedicated photo printers add light cyan and light magenta tanks so highlights and skin tones render without visible dot grain. Crafters converting tanks for sublimation should also look for models with easily refillable reservoirs. Verify the light channels with our 6-colour test page.