In this hyper-connected, Cloud-based world we’re living in, we expect most of our gadgets and devices to be wireless — from speakers and phone chargers to robot vacuums and home security systems. So why should printers be any exception? Wireless printers are an obvious choice for those looking to tidy up their workstation or office. Not only do the best wireless printers eliminate the need for an extra set of wires, but they allow for the device to be placed anywhere in the room, even if not in close proximity to your computer or device.

To print, all you need to do is make sure that both the computer and printer are connected to a WiFi or ethernet connection, and then follow the printing instructions just as you usually would. Even now, many models of wireless printers have apps that you can download to your smartphone or tablet and print as conveniently as a few taps to the screen.

However, when shopping for wireless printers, you first must decide if you’d prefer an inkjet printer or laser printer — both of which come with their respective benefits and drawbacks. Or, maybe you want to skip both and just go straight for a photo printer to print your favorite snaps and selfies in vivid full color. To help you decide, we’ve put together the following list of the best wireless printers currently on the market to get you started on streamlining your home office or place of work in no time!

Best Overall: Epson EcoTank ET-3760 Supertank Printer
Best All-In-One: Canon imageCLASS MF743Cdw All-In-One Printer
Best Laser: Brother MFC-L3770CDW Laser Printer
Best for Home: HP DeskJet 3755 Wireless Printer
Best for Photos: KODAK Step Wireless Photo Mini Printer

How We Picked the Best Wireless Printers

As many printer manufacturers are making the move to wireless, there is no shortage of options on the market to help take your printing needs to the next level. As such, we evaluated over a dozen wireless printers from leading brands such as HP, Canon, Brothers, and Epson before arriving at the five that made the cut. We primarily chose printers that had not only high customer ratings but also overwhelmingly positive reviews to ensure that these printers were delivering quality results for the folks who are already using them.

Other features we looked into included cost-efficiency and sustainability — because when it comes to printers, the list price is just the start. Where it was possible, we chose models that employed cartridge-free printing or all-in-one ink cartridges and other features such as automatic double-sided printing to save paper. We also tried to choose a selection that would be indicative of a variety of different needs, from budget home office printers to high-end models better equipped for small to medium-sized businesses. Because everyone’s printing needs are different, your wireless printer should likewise reflect those distinctions.

The Best Wireless Printers: Reviews & Recommendations

Best Overall: Epson EcoTank ET-3760 Supertank Printer

Fill It Up! Epson

Why It Made The Cut: Save money with low-cost replacement ink bottles, costing as little as one cent per color printout compared to 20 cents with standard inkjet cartridges.

Specs:
— Printing technology: Inkjet
— Connectivity technology: WiFi, USB, ethernet
— Printer output: Color
— Pages per minute (PPM): 15 black; 8 color

Pros:
— Exceptional print quality
— Innovative cartridge-free printing
— Ample 250-sheet paper tray

Cons:
— Doesn’t have a touchscreen
— No USB port as backup

Eliminate the need for expensive and wasteful inkjet cartridges with the Epson EcoTank ET-3760 Cartridge-Free Supertank Printer. EcoFit ink bottles make filling ink tanks easy, cost-effective, and environmentally friendly since you’ll no longer have to dispose of inkjet cartridges which are very expensive and tend to run out fast. Compared to cartridges, you’ll get dramatic savings of up to 90 percent on replacement ink by switching to ink bottles. In fact, you can print up to 7,500 pages in black and 6,000 in color, or about the equivalent of 90 individual ink cartridges when the tanks are replenished.

But even with these impressive savings, you won’t have to worry about the print quality suffering. Claria ET pigment black ink produces text that’s exceptionally crisp and sharp, with color photos and graphics that look outstanding on virtually any type of paper thanks to the unique PrecisionCore Heat-Free Technology. Paper also won’t run out much faster than the ink with an auto document feeder that feeds from a 250-sheet paper tray. And likewise, automatic double-sided printing will save you even more money and resources.

The only drawbacks to the Epson EcoTank ET-3760 are the lack of a touchscreen and USB port, which come standard with most printers today — even wireless ones. However, it’s good to have a backup because you can’t always rely on WiFi not going down. And the touchscreen is just a nice touch that makes a printer more user-friendly, even if most of the heavy lifting is being done remotely.

Best All-In-One: Canon imageCLASS MF743Cdw All-In-One Printer

Small Business Ready. Canon

Why It Made The Cut: Designed for small and medium-sized businesses, this printer provides feature-rich capabilities, delivering high quality and minimal maintenance for optimal output.

Specs:
— Printing technology: Laser
— Connectivity technology: Wireless, Wi-Fi
— Printer output: Color
— PPM: 28 

Pros:
— Five-inch intuitive color touchscreen
— High-capacity, all-in-one ink cartridge
— Security features protect confidential information

Cons:
— Printer is heavy and difficult to use
— Toner is expensive with no aftermarket options

If your small or medium-sized business needs a workhorse of a laser printer that produces high-quality output with minimal maintenance, look no further than the Canon imageCLASS MF743Cdw All-In-One Printer. With capabilities to print, scan, copy, and fax, you can accomplish all your necessary office tasks with just one impressive machine. In addition, to reduce costs and help the environment, toner comes in an all-in-one cartridge along with standard, two-sided printing and the ability to print multiple pages onto one sheet.

An impressive five-inch color touchscreen with smartphone-like usability delivers an intuitive user experience and can be customized to access the functions you use the most and simplify daily tasks. Additionally, it also supports mobile solutions for printing and scanning so that you can convert documents to searchable digital files through a one-pass scan and duplex document feeder. However, as a security feature, documents are only stored in short-term memory to help mitigate the risk of confidential information loss.

But before purchasing, be warned that this is a large and heavy machine. Not only does it require two people to move, but it needs a minimal 20- by 20-inch surface to access the front and back of the printer. And despite the all-in-one cartridge, the compatible toner is still very pricey, and unfortunately, does not currently have aftermarket options to swap out.

Best Laser: Brother MFC-L3770CDW Laser Printer

Laser Performance. Brother

Why It Made The Cut: Print professional-quality, rich, vivid color documents affordably yet with the impressive quality and performance of a laser printer.

Specs:
— Printing technology: Laser
— Connectivity technology: WiFi, USB, ethernet, NFC
— Printer output: Color
— PPM: Up to 25

Pros:
—Lightning-fast print speed at 25ppm
—250-sheet adjustable paper tray
—Connect to popular Cloud apps

Cons:
—Instructions are difficult to interpret
— Print quality lacking for large photos

Ideal for home offices and small businesses, the Brother MFC-L3770CDW Laser Printer offers a compact, digital, all-in-one performance for color printing, copying, scanning, and faxing. Help increase productivity with print speeds of up to 25 pages per minute and scan speeds up to 29 impressions per minute in black — or 22 impressions per minute in color. It also boasts versatile paper handling with a 250-sheet adjustable paper tray and an up to 30-sheet multi-purpose tray. 

Choose from standard or high-yield toner to affordably add vivid images to your documents and make color printing even more economical. You can also choose the “toner save mode” to help save even more on toner costs. And for added versatility, you can even print and scan using popular Cloud-based apps such as Dropbox, Google Drive, Evernote, OneNote2, and more right from the convenience of your mobile device.

But while the printer does have the capability to print full-color photos and images, if that’s your primary purpose for buying a printer, then this may not be the machine for you. While it excels at printing documents, some users report that the image quality is lacking when printing large graphics. Some customer reviews also noted that the instructions were somewhat challenging and may require a learning curve for less tech-savvy individuals. 

Best for Home: HP DeskJet 3755 Wireless Printer

Compact And Affordable. HP

Why It Made The Cut: Perform all of the functions you usually would with a high-end printer with a compact, space-saving, and affordable option perfect for home offices.

Specs:
— Printing technology: Inkjet
— Connectivity technology: WiFi
— Printer output: Color
— PPM: 19

Pros:
— Compact size that fits anywhere
— The HP Smart app to control from the Cloud
— Various paper sizes supported

Cons:
— Does not print double-sided automatically
— Loud operation while printing

Save space while accomplishing all your necessary tasks with the HP DeskJet 3755 Wireless Printer, a small all-in-one printer designed to fit where you need it — taking up minimal real estate in your home. The scroll-scan feature helps you easily handle most scan jobs, from plain paper to stiff media. Additionally, it supports a wide variety of paper sizes, including letter, legal, custom sizes, and No. 10 envelopes for any job you can throw at it. 

With wireless printing, you can get connected quickly and easily print anything from the Cloud from most smartphones and tablets using the HP Smart app. Then, simply manage all your jobs right from apps such as iCloud, Dropbox, and Google Drive. And with the HP Instant Ink program, you’ll never run out of ink while saving up to 50 percent on replacement cartridges, which can also be conveniently ordered from the app.

Some minor drawbacks include awkward paper feed loading, and to print two-sided pages, you must manually feed the sheets into the printer. If excess noise presents a distraction, you also may want to think twice about purchasing this printer, as multiple customer reviews complained of its “ridiculously loud” operation. But for the printer’s overall low cost and compact size, it’s an overall small price to pay.

Best for Photos: KODAK Step Wireless Photo Mini Printer

Photo Clarity. Zink

Why It Made The Cut: Print your most ambitious photo projects from anywhere with a palm-sized photo printer that can pop right into bags, purses, and pockets.

Specs:
— Printing technology: ZINK “Zero ink”
— Connectivity technology: Bluetooth
— Printer output: Color
— PPM: 1

Pros:
— Innovative zero-ink technology
— Free app featuring a full editing suite
— Fits in the palm of your hand

Cons:
— The photo paper is a bit expensive
— Only five sticky-back photos included

Print gorgeous photos in breathtaking full color in just seconds with the KODAK Step Wireless Mobile Photo Mini Printer. It’s easier than ever to turn your favorite selfies, portraits, and other other images into physical photographs at the press of a button with this convenient, palm-sized mini photo printer that goes wherever you do. And you won’t even have to drop a small fortune on ink since the zero-ink “ZINK” technology operates without the need for pricey cartridges and toners, which can add up fast.

The innovative printing process uses embedded dye crystals to produce affordable and beautifully detailed prints. They’re also resistant to moisture, rips, and tears, thanks to an extra layer of protective smudge-proof coating. As an added bonus, you can download the free Kodak App to customize your photos and create collages with filters, borders, stickers, and other fun personalizations just like you would on social media, only in real life. Then, just edit images in your camera roll and let the printer take care of the rest.

However, while you will save on ink, some users have noted that the photo paper itself can be a bit pricey. That shouldn’t come as a shock for those of us who grew up using Polaroid cameras, though. And although the printer comes included with five sticky-back photos — perfect for decorating scrapbooks, refrigerators, laptops, and more — purchasing additional stock may be on backorder and require a wait. 

Things to Consider Before Buying a Wireless Printer

When choosing the best wireless printer, first, you must ask yourself what your essential printing needs will be. For example, do you own your own small business, or are you looking to supplement your home office setup with printing, scanning, and faxing capabilities? Or, perhaps you’re more interested in printing photos and other colorful images. Certainly, there is not a “one size fits all” approach when it comes to printers, which can range wildly depending on which features you’re looking for and what your budget can accommodate.

So, if the extent of your needs is only the occasional printing and scanning of documents, you’d probably be OK with a budget-friendly all-in-one option that tends to run under $100. On the other hand, business owners who have professional needs may want a higher-end model that can print at high rates of speed and accommodate unusual-sized documents such as shipping labels and envelopes.

The type of printing is another consideration you’ll need to determine. While typically more expensive, laser printers use toner ink cartridges, which tend to likewise be more costly from the get-go but yield a longer cartridge life and higher output. However, inkjet printers are generally cheaper and use inkjet cartridges, which are initially cheaper (and often have compatible aftermarket solutions) but will run out of ink faster and also have a shorter shelf life. Or, again, maybe you’ll want to skip both and just go with a photo printer.

FAQs

Q: What is the difference between a wireless printer and a WiFi printer?
Essentially, there is no difference between a wireless printer and a WiFi printer. Wireless printers, which are also known as WiFi printers, work by connecting to a network without the need to be hard-wired or cabled into that network. Once a wireless printer is successfully connected to a WiFi network, you can sync most computers, smartphones, and tablets to print wirelessly.

Q: Can I use a wireless printer without the internet?
You can use a wireless printer without the internet, but only if the printer is WiFi-enabled and the router is still able to handle communication between the devices on the local network and both the router and network’s wireless adapters are functioning correctly. Alternatively, if the wireless printer features a USB port, you may be able to connect manually.

Q: How much does a wireless printer cost?
The cost of a wireless printer can range considerably, depending on features and printing output. For basic home desktop publishing, you should easily be able to pick up a wireless printer for under about $100, with professional options reaching up into the thousands.

Final Thoughts on the Best Wireless Printers

With its mid-range price and money-saving cartridge-free printing, it should come as a bit of a surprise that our top pick for the best wireless printer is the Epson EcoTank ET-3760 Cartridge-Free Supertank Printer. Because ink is typically the most significant expense for desktop publishing, you can save up to 90 percent on refillable ink bottles compared to expensive and wasteful cartridges. That said, if you’re running a small to medium-sized business, the Canon imageCLASS MF743Cdw All-In-One Printer is also a great option. With a high-capacity output and minimal maintenance, you’ll save time on both printing and troubleshooting.

This post was created by a non-news editorial team at Recurrent Media, Futurism’s owner. Futurism may receive a portion of sales on products linked within this post. 


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