Best Cheap-to-Run Home Printers UK 2026: Ranked by Running Cost

Most "best printer" guides rank by upfront price. That misses the point. A £40 printer costing £90/year in ink is far more expensive than a £150 printer costing £10/year to run.

This guide ranks home printers by total running cost — what you will actually spend to keep printing.

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Tier 1: Lowest running costs (under 1p/page)

Epson EcoTank ET-2850 — ~0.5p/page all-in

Refillable ink tanks using Epson 102 bottle ink. Best running costs of any home inkjet.

• Hardware: ~£280-£320
• Best for: 100+ pages/month, families, photo printing

Takes 2-4 years to pay back vs a standard inkjet. Worth it if you spend over £80/year on cartridges or print 100+ pages/month.

Full ET-2850 breakdown ->

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Tier 2: Very low running costs (1-3p/page)

Brother HL-L2350DW — ~1.0-1.5p/page (black only)

TN2425 high-yield toner. Exceptional mono laser economics.

• Hardware: ~£80-£110
• Best for: Document-heavy households, home offices, no colour needed

Full HL-L2350DW breakdown ->

Brother HL-L2375DW — ~1.0p/page (black only)

Same toner as the HL-L2350DW plus automatic duplex.

• Hardware: ~£120-£150

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Tier 3: Reasonable running costs (3-7p/page)

HP LaserJet Pro M15w — ~2-3p/page (black only)

Compact mono laser with low toner costs.

Canon PIXMA TS8350 — ~5.5p/page (black XL, PGI-580XL)

Five-ink system for excellent photo quality. More expensive for documents.

Full TS8350 breakdown ->

HP DeskJet 2720e / 2730e — ~4-5p/page (HP 305XL)

Good value at XL yield; expensive at standard.

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Tier 4: Higher running costs — light use only

HP ENVY 6020e — ~7-8p/page (OEM HP 67XL)

HP Instant Ink subscription significantly improves the economics.

Canon PIXMA MG3650S / TS3450 — ~6-9p/page

Good only for very occasional printing.

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How to choose

Browse all printers with running cost data -> Use the upgrade calculator -> Calculate your current cost per page ->