When it comes to printers, the price of ink cartridges often becomes a major factor for home and office users. While a cartridge may seem affordable at first glance, the real cost lies in how much ink you get for your money.
The price of an ink cartridge can be deceiving: a cartridge that costs $20 can only hold 2 ml of ink, which can print about 100 pages. In contrast, a $50 cartridge could hold 20 ml of ink, allowing you to print 1,000 pages. Although the $20 cartridge seems cheaper, it could end up costing more in the long run due to the need to replace them frequently.
To help shed light on the true cost of printing, I studied 100 ink cartridges using publicly available information from the official websites of four major brands: HP, Canon, Epson and Brother.
The hidden costs of ink cartridges
To accurately analyze the cost of long-term printing, we evaluated the price per liter of ink rather than focusing on the initial cost of the cartridge. This approach gives a clearer idea of how much users will spend over time because it takes into account the volume of ink and the total number of pages each cartridge can print.
Of the 100 cartridges studied, 31% were classified as cheap (< 1 000 $ le litre), 51 % comme abordables (entre 1 000 $ et 5 000 $) et 18 % comme chères (> $5,000). Interestingly, Canon and Epson each had 35% of the cheap ink data, with HP accounting for the remaining 30%. This suggests that all three brands are making sure they have affordable options.
However, Canon emerges as the leader in affordability, offering the world’s cheapest original ink in a bottle.
THE The Canon GI-290 stands out with a price of just $171.29 per liter, making it the most affordable option on the market. Additionally, Canon’s GI-25 The series sells for just $9.99 per cartridge, which translates to a price of $270 per liter, which also makes it one of the most affordable according to the data studied. These low prices highlight Canon’s commitment to providing cost-effective printing solutions, especially for consumers who print frequently and want to minimize their ink expenses.
While HP is often perceived as a cheap brand, the data tells a different story when you consider the cost per liter of ink.
HP dominates the affordable ink category, with 53% of its cartridges falling between $1,001 and $5,000 per liter. Canon follows with 43% in this range, while Epson and Brother contribute only 2% each. Interestingly, 18% of surveyed inks are expensive and HP takes the entire 18%. This means that the American technology company produces some of the most expensive ink cartridges in the world.
Although HP cartridges often sell for between $20 and $60, the price per gallon can be extraordinarily high, making these cartridges one of the most expensive cartridges to use over time. For example, the HP 65 and 67 tri-color cartridges have a staggering price per liter of $9,995 and $9,495 respectively, the highest in the entire data set.
Although some cartridges may seem expensive at first, they can offer significant savings to users who print in high volumes.
Cartridges like the HP 32XL and Canon GI-290 have an exceptionally low price per page, bringing the cost down to $0.00 in some cases. These cartridges are ideal for consumers who need to print large quantities of documents or photos because they reduce the need for frequent cartridge replacements and save money in the long run.
High-capacity cartridges like the Epson T636100 and Canon PFI-1000, which hold between 700ml and 800ml of ink, are also great choices for high-volume users. Although these cartridges have a higher initial cost, their high capacity reduces the frequency of replacements and minimizes long-term costs.
Another interesting trend emerging from the data is that black ink cartridges generally offer a lower cost per page per liter than color cartridges.
Black ink is more commonly used for printing everyday documents, which explains its lower cost. However, consumers who need color printing, for example for photos or graphics, face a much higher price per liter. For example, color cartridges like HP 902 and Canon CL-276 have a much higher price per liter, especially for magenta, cyan and yellow inks.
Users with frequent color printing needs may want to consider brands like Epson, which offer more affordable color ink options. Epson T664220-S cartridges in cyan, magenta, and yellow, for example, cost around $177 per liter, making them a reasonable option for those who need a balance between black and color ink costs.
The analysis reveals distinct strategies between the four brands: HP offers products in all three price categories: cheap, affordable and expensive, but the high price per liter of some cartridges indicates a focus on short-term affordability at long-term detriment. savings. Canon, on the other hand, prioritizes cheap and affordable inks, making them the best choice for cost-conscious consumers. Epson primarily targets the cheap ink market, while Brother plays a smaller role overall, offering fewer options across the price range.
If you print large volumes of documents or run a small business that requires heavy printing, ink tank printers are the ideal solution. They’re designed for high print volumes, offer lower costs per page, and you don’t need to refill them regularly.