Business Printers and Scanners: What to Buy
Printers are one of the least exciting purchases a small business makes, and one of the easiest to get wrong. The cheap machine on the shelf can become the most expensive device in the office once you add ink, paper jams and wasted time. This guide shows you how to choose a printer and scanner that fit the way you actually work.
Key takeaways
- Start from what you print and scan each month, not from the price tag on the box.
- Laser printers usually suit text-heavy, higher-volume work; inkjet printers often suit lower volumes and color photos.
- Compare the total cost per page, including ink or toner, paper and maintenance, before you compare purchase prices.
- A printer is a networked computer: update its firmware and change the default admin password.
Many businesses print far less than they did a decade ago, yet almost all of them still need to print something: invoices for clients who insist on paper, shipping labels, signed contracts, menus, price lists or forms for customers to fill in. Scanning has grown more important at the same time, because receipts, IDs and signed documents need to end up in cloud storage and accounting software.
This guide is brand neutral. Models, features and prices change constantly, so treat the advice here as a framework and check current specifications and reviews before you buy.
Start with your real printing and scanning needs
Before you look at any models, spend ten minutes answering a few questions. The answers will narrow your choice more than any spec sheet.
- How much do you print? Look at last month's paper use or count the reams you buy. A few pages a week and several hundred pages a week lead to very different machines.
- What do you print? Mostly black text, such as invoices and letters, or color marketing material, photos and labels?
- How much do you scan? Occasional single pages, or stacks of receipts and multi-page contracts every day?
- Who prints? One person at one desk, or a team across several rooms, some of them on phones and tablets?
- Where will it live? A shared office, a shop counter or a home office with limited space and noise tolerance?
Common mistake
Buying the cheapest printer available and assuming running costs will be similar to the expensive models. Low-priced printers often rely on small, costly cartridges. If you print regularly, the machine with the higher purchase price can work out cheaper within a year or two.
Inkjet vs laser: the core decision
The biggest choice is the printing technology. Inkjet printers spray tiny drops of liquid ink onto paper. Laser printers use toner, a fine powder that is fused onto the page with heat. Each has strengths.
| Factor | Inkjet | Laser |
|---|---|---|
| Typical sweet spot | Lower volumes, color documents and photos | Text-heavy documents, regular or higher volumes |
| Text quality | Good, can smudge on some paper | Crisp, dry immediately |
| Color and photos | Usually stronger | Color laser exists, photos are less vivid |
| Infrequent use | Ink can dry out or clog if left idle | Toner tolerates long idle periods |
| Speed on long jobs | Often slower | Usually faster |
| Footprint | Often compact | Can be bulkier, especially color models |
Some inkjet printers use large refillable ink tanks instead of cartridges. These "tank" or "supertank" models usually cost more upfront but are designed to lower the running cost per page. They can be a good middle ground for small offices that print a fair amount of color.
A rule of thumb many owners find useful: if most of what you print is black text and you print every week, look first at a monochrome laser. If you need color regularly, or print rarely and want photos, look at inkjet or ink tank models.
Multifunction or separate printer and scanner?
A multifunction printer, often called an MFP or all-in-one, combines printing, scanning and copying, and sometimes faxing, in one device. For most small businesses it saves space, money and setup time.
Multifunction printer
- One device to buy, place, update and maintain
- Copying works without a computer
- Usually includes scan-to-email or scan-to-cloud
Things to weigh
- If the printer breaks, you lose scanning too
- Built-in scanners can be slower than dedicated ones
- A busy shared device can create queues
A dedicated document scanner makes sense when scanning is a daily job: an accountant digitizing client paperwork, a clinic handling forms, or a business going paperless. These scanners feed stacks of pages quickly, scan both sides in one pass and often handle receipts and business cards well. Many sit happily next to a separate printer.
Features that matter for a small business
Spec sheets list dozens of features. These are the ones that tend to make a real difference day to day.
Printing features
- Automatic duplex printing: printing on both sides of the page without flipping paper by hand. It saves paper and makes contracts and reports look more professional.
- Paper capacity: a larger tray means fewer refills. If you print envelopes or labels, check for a separate feed slot.
- Connectivity: wired Ethernet for reliability, Wi-Fi for flexibility, and support for printing from phones and tablets.
- Duty cycle and recommended monthly volume: manufacturers publish how many pages a model is designed to handle. Pick a model whose recommended range comfortably covers your usage.
Scanning features
- Automatic document feeder (ADF): a tray that pulls pages through one by one, so you can scan a multi-page document without lifting the lid each time.
- Duplex scanning: scans both sides of a page in one pass, ideal for forms and contracts.
- OCR: optical character recognition turns a scanned image into searchable, copyable text. Many scanners and cloud storage services offer it.
- Scan-to-cloud and scan-to-email: sends scans straight to a shared folder, cloud storage or an inbox without a computer in the middle.
Pro tip
Set up one scan destination per job type: one shared folder for receipts that your bookkeeper picks up, another for signed contracts. When the button on the printer always sends to the right place, staff actually use it instead of leaving paper in a pile.
Understand the true cost per page
The purchase price is only the start. The total cost per page is the amount you spend to print one page once you include consumables and upkeep. It is the number that decides whether a printer is cheap or expensive to own.
To estimate it for any model you are considering:
- Find the page yield. Manufacturers state how many pages a cartridge or toner is expected to print under standard test conditions. Your real yield may be lower if you print dense graphics.
- Check the consumable price. Look up the current price of replacement ink or toner from a reputable seller, including high-capacity versions.
- Divide price by yield. That gives you a rough consumable cost per page. Do it separately for black and color.
- Add other parts. Some laser printers need replacement drums or maintenance kits. Add paper and any service plan you would buy.
- Multiply by your monthly volume. Compare the yearly running cost across models, then add the purchase price.
Hypothetical example
Imagine two printers. Printer A is cheap to buy but uses small cartridges. Printer B costs three times as much but uses high-yield toner. For example, if Printer A works out at 5 units of currency per 100 pages and Printer B at 2 units, and you print 1,000 pages a month, Printer A costs 50 a month to run and Printer B costs 20. The gap pays back the difference in purchase price quickly. These numbers are made up to show the method; do the calculation with real figures for the models you are comparing.
Ink subscriptions
Several manufacturers offer ink or toner subscriptions that ship supplies automatically when the printer reports it is running low. They can be convenient and sometimes cheaper for steady usage. Before signing up, read the terms carefully: check what happens if you exceed your page allowance, whether unused pages roll over, how cancellation works and whether the printer still works with your existing cartridges if you cancel.
Also check whether a printer accepts third-party or refilled cartridges. Some printers use firmware that may reject non-original supplies. That is a business decision for you to weigh, but it is better to know before you buy.
Printer security: the forgotten device on your network
A modern network printer is a small computer. It has an operating system, a web admin page, stored settings and sometimes stored copies of documents. If it is left on default settings, it can become a weak point on your network.
- Change the default admin password on the printer's web page or control panel and store the new one in your password manager.
- Turn on automatic firmware updates or check for updates regularly. Firmware is the software built into the device, and updates often fix security problems.
- Disable features you do not use, such as old protocols, remote access or fax, if the settings allow it.
- Put printers on a separate device network if your router supports it, away from the network that handles payments and sensitive files.
- Use secure release for sensitive documents. Some business models let users enter a PIN at the printer before the job prints, so payslips or contracts do not sit in the tray.
- Wipe before disposal. Printers with internal storage may hold scanned or printed documents. Use the factory reset or secure erase option before you sell, return or recycle one.
Common mistake
Setting up scan-to-email with a personal email account and password typed into the printer. If that account changes its password or security settings, scanning breaks, and the password sits on a shared device. Use a dedicated account or the scan-to-cloud connectors your provider supports, and check the current setup guidance from your email or cloud provider.
Buy, lease or managed print?
For most small offices, buying a printer outright is simplest. As volumes grow, two other options appear:
- Leasing: you pay a monthly amount for a larger business-grade machine, often with service included. It can make sense for high-volume copiers, but read the contract length, minimum volumes and end-of-lease terms carefully.
- Managed print services: a provider supplies the devices, monitors them, ships consumables and handles repairs, often charging per page. This suits businesses with several devices and no one who wants to look after them.
Whichever you choose, keep your own record of the model, serial number, purchase date, warranty end date and admin login. When something goes wrong, that information saves time.
Your printer and scanner buying checklist
- Estimate your monthly print and scan volumes, black and color separately
- Decide between inkjet, ink tank and laser based on what you print
- Choose multifunction unless scanning is a heavy daily job
- Require automatic duplex printing and an automatic document feeder if you scan multi-page documents
- Calculate total cost per page for each shortlisted model
- Read ink subscription terms before signing up
- Change the admin password and turn on firmware updates on day one
- Set up scan destinations for receipts, contracts and other common jobs
- Record the serial number, warranty date and admin login in one place
Frequently asked questions
Do I still need a printer if my business is mostly digital?
Many digital businesses keep a small printer for the occasional contract, label or form. If you print only a few pages a month, a compact monochrome laser or a local print shop may be enough. A scanner, or a good scanning app on your phone, is often more useful than a printer.
Is a phone scanning app good enough?
For occasional receipts and single pages, phone apps with automatic edge detection and OCR work well. If you scan stacks of documents or need consistent quality for records, a scanner with a document feeder is much faster.
How long should a business printer last?
It depends on the model, how heavily you use it and how long the manufacturer supplies firmware updates and consumables. Check the warranty, the recommended monthly volume and whether supplies are widely available before you buy.
Should I keep a fax function?
Only if your clients, suppliers or regulators still require fax. Many businesses now use online fax services or secure file sharing instead. If you do not need fax, disable it to reduce the device's exposure.
Related reading
The bottom line
A good business printer or scanner is one you barely think about. Start with your real volumes, choose the technology that fits them, and compare models on cost per page rather than shelf price. Then treat the device like any other computer on your network: secure it, update it and set it up so scans land exactly where your team needs them.
