Printer Comparison

Inkjet vs Laser Printers

Two of the most common printer technologies, compared.

Overview

Inkjet and laser printers use fundamentally different technology, which affects everything from print quality to running costs. Here is how they stack up.

Inkjet vs Laser: Feature by Feature

A side-by-side look at how inkjet and laser printers compare across the factors that matter most.

Factor	Inkjet	Laser
How it works	Sprays microscopic droplets of liquid ink onto the page	Fuses toner powder onto the page using heat and pressure
Best for	Photos, color documents, and low-to-medium volume home use	Text-heavy documents and high-volume office printing
Print quality	Excellent for photos and color graphics	Sharp, crisp text; less suited to photo-realistic images
Speed	Slower, especially for large multi-page jobs	Fast, built for high-volume output
Cost per page	Higher, particularly for color printing	Lower, especially for black-and-white pages
Upfront cost	Generally lower	Generally higher
Maintenance	Print heads can clog if the printer sits unused	Toner has a long shelf life and rarely clogs

Which Should You Choose?

If you print mostly photos, colorful documents, or don’t print often, an inkjet printer is usually the better fit. If you print large volumes of text documents regularly, a laser printer will cost less to run and keep up with the pace.