The best printers for 2021: 4 printers for every need (and budget)

A printer is one of those things that you don’t always need. But when you do need one, it’s important to have it available. More important, you need the printer to work. But here’s the dirty secret we all know but never talk about. Home printers all tend to be, well, pretty terrible. And they always have been. Let’s list the headaches. Expensive ink that runs out too fast. Confusing menus. Cryptic error messages. Paper jams. Still, with so many home printers from which to choose, some are a lot less terrible than others. We picked the best printers for 2021 to suit your printing needs and your budget. One of these should give you what you need without too much of a headache.

BEST ALL-AROUND COLOR INKJET PRINTER

The Epson EcoTank ET-2720 Wireless All-in-One Inkjet Printer is a decent color inkjet printer for its moderate price of $199.99. One of the features that sets this printer apart from others like it is its ink tanks. Instead of expensive, prefilled ink cartridges, it has permanent ink tanks. So instead of buying new cartridges, you pour more ink into the tanks when they’re empty. And the tanks hold more ink than typical cartridges too. That means you refill them less often than you’d have to replace most cartridges. This printer prints five pages per minute in color and 10 pages per minute in black and white. It has a 100-page-capacity paper tray, and itt prints at a high quality and low cost. And you can print from anywhere in your home via WiFi.

BEST BUDGET COLOR INKJET PRINTER

If you want to spend a little less money on a color inkjet printer, the Canon Pixma MG3620 is a great budget option. You get a good set of features and good print quality for less than $80. And this printer spits out paper at a decent clip. It prints 10 pages per minute in black and white and six pages per minute in color. It doesn’t have a display screen, but it still prints, copies and scans.

The MG3260 offers several options for wireless printing. That includes the ability to print from your mobile devices. It employs a hybrid ink system that uses dye ink for color and black pigment ink for text. This optimizes for the best quality print both ways. When scanning, the MG3620 detects the type of document, applying the correct settings. This makes scanning a breeze. Quiet and easy to use, the MG3620 really is a bargain for the price.

BEST ALL-ROUND LASER PRINTER

The HP Color LaserJet Pro M255dw is a solid choice if all you ever need is to print. It can’t scan, copy or fax. But it’s a laser printer, so it offers great speed and quality. And there are a few extra perks, all for the moderate price of $299.99.  This model has a 250-page capacity paper tray and an easy-to-use color touchscreen. It prints fast, about 19 pages per minute for both color and black-and-white. And everything, text and images, come out looking crisp and vibrant. It’s easy to print via WiFi, but this printer also has the ability to print from a USB memory key. It’s great for basic home use or even low-level office use.

BEST BUDGET LASER PRINTER

If all you need is to print black-and-white documents, the Brother HL-L2350DW is for you. The speed and quality at which this model prints is a steal at its low price (for a laser printer) of $119.99. It’s faster than comparable printers at 32 pages per minute, and it has a generous 250-sheet capacity. We especially like its high-yield replacement cartridges. They provide about twice the standard volume of ink. So you’ll end up saving even more in the long run. It also has a manual feed slot allowing you to print on a variety of paper types and sizes. And yes, you can print from your desktop or mobile device using WiFi. For a basic laser printer at a budget price, the Brother HL-L2350DW delivers well on what it is promises.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Using a printer has always been a hassle. But even though mobile devices have cut down on how often we print, sometimes you still need to deal with printers. That’s more true now that we’re working from home more than ever. So outfitting your home or home office with a decent printer is a good idea. If you have to have a printer, these really are the best printers, for 2021 at least.