How to Save Money on Printer Ink: 10 Ways to Cut Costs

Printer ink costs more per millilitre than champagne, perfume, and even some medicines. Manufacturers sell printers cheaply and make their profit on ink — but there are legitimate ways to significantly reduce what you spend. Here are 10 strategies that actually work.

1. Switch to an EcoTank or MegaTank Printer

The single most effective way to save on ink long-term is to switch to a refillable ink tank printer. Epson EcoTank, Canon MegaTank, and HP Smart Tank printers use bottles of ink instead of cartridges. A set of EcoTank bottles ($35-50) provides the equivalent of 30+ cartridge replacements at a fraction of the cost. The upfront cost is higher but the savings are dramatic for anyone who prints regularly.

2. Use Compatible or Remanufactured Cartridges

Third-party compatible cartridges from reputable brands like LD Products, Inkjet Club, and CompAndSave cost 50-70% less than OEM cartridges and produce comparable quality for everyday documents. Avoid the cheapest no-name cartridges — they often clog print heads and deliver inconsistent quality. Mid-range compatible brands offer the best balance of cost and reliability.

3. Subscribe to HP Instant Ink or Epson ReadyPrint

If you use OEM cartridges, subscription services dramatically reduce costs. HP Instant Ink ($0.99-$5.99/month) monitors your ink levels and ships cartridges before you run out — billing by pages printed rather than cartridges used. At 50-100 pages per month this saves 50% or more versus buying cartridges individually. Epson ReadyPrint offers a similar model for Epson printers.

4. Print in Draft Mode

Draft mode uses approximately 50% less ink than standard quality. For everyday documents — emails, reference materials, internal documents — draft quality is perfectly readable. Set draft mode as your default and only switch to standard or high quality for important documents. This single change halves your ink consumption immediately.

5. Print in Grayscale by Default

Colour ink cartridges are significantly more expensive than black. For any document that doesn't require colour, print in grayscale. Set this as default in printer preferences so you have to actively choose colour rather than accidentally printing every email in colour.

6. Use Print Preview

Wasted prints waste ink. Always use print preview before printing to catch formatting errors, confirm page count, and avoid printing pages you don't need. Printing a 10-page document when you only needed pages 3-5 wastes 7 pages of ink and paper.

7. Choose Ink-Efficient Fonts

Some fonts use significantly less ink than others. Century Gothic and Ecofont use up to 30% less ink than Times New Roman or Arial at the same point size. For high-volume document printing, switching fonts makes a measurable difference.

8. Don't Let the Printer Sit Idle

Inkjet printers clean their print heads automatically when turned on after a period of inactivity — using ink in the process. If you print infrequently, print at least one page per week to prevent nozzle clogging and reduce cleaning cycles. Alternatively, switch to a laser printer which has no ink drying issues.

9. Buy Cartridges in Multipacks

Multipack cartridges (typically 2-5 cartridges together) cost 15-25% less per cartridge than buying individually. XL cartridges (high capacity versions) cost more upfront but deliver a lower cost per page than standard capacity. Always calculate cost per page rather than cost per cartridge.

10. Consider a Laser Printer for Documents

If you primarily print black and white documents, a laser printer eliminates ink costs entirely. Toner cartridges for budget Brother and Canon laser printers cost $25-35 and last for 1,000-3,000 pages. No ink drying out, no print head cleaning, no colour cartridge costs. The economics of laser printing are dramatically better than inkjet for document-heavy households.