By skyforbes 
Illustration: Forbes / Photo: Retailers
If the long-term cost of maintaining your next all-in-one printer is a priority, the more affordable Brother INKvestment Tank MFC-J4335DW should be your go-to choice. From speedy double-sided printers to monochrome devices like the HP LaserJet Tank MFP2604sdw, the best all-in-one printers can help streamline your document creation and handling needs; I’ve done plenty of research and testing myself, and I’ve worked with several other Forbes Vetted staffers who helped with additional evaluations as well. (And, if you’re looking for a printer specifically for a home office, check out our guide to the best home printers, too.)
Best for:
- Homes and small offices
- Rapid printing, scanning and copying
Skip if:
- You don’t print enough to get value from the ink subscription
- You have no patience for glitches, like pages sometimes being out of order
The HP OfficeJet Pro 9125e is easy to set up and, based on our testing, offers speedy print speeds. For the average single-sided six-page job, the printer took around 35.6 seconds. It has a slew of features, from copying, scanning and mobile connectivity via the HP Smart App (which is available for Windows, Mac, Android and iOS, so you can print and scan so long as you have an internet connection). The HP Smart App comes in handy for another reason: It can connect to Google Drive, Microsoft OneDrive and HP’s Scan Cloud, so you can scan, upload and send documents hassle-free.
The HP OfficeJet Pro 9125e is a sturdy printer. It has a useful, albeit small, 2.7-inch touchscreen display for easy access to commands.
Victoria Hess for Forbes
Our tester noted that the 2.7-inch touchscreen display felt a little claustrophobic. Those with larger hands may prefer a device with a larger touchscreen so you’re they’re accidentally pressing buttons they don’t mean to.
The Ink Cartridges Aren’t Cheap, But They Last
The tank uses a set of four EvoMore cartridges: black, cyan, magenta and yellow. If you find yourself needing to replace all four, expect to pay $239. They deliver 2,500 monochrome pages and 1,650 color pages, so they do last a while before it’s time to invest in more. But chances are slim they’ll run out simultaneously, and if you just need one, a black cartridge will cost you $80 and a color one around $53. You can opt into the HP Instant Ink subscription, which automatically orders ink for you when you’re low. It starts at $1.49 per month, though we recommend against it unless you plan to print heaps of paper.
The paper tray holds 250 sheets, which is plenty for most print tasks.
Victoria Hess for Forbes
Our tester also noted that every so often, the printed pages came out in a different order than printed. If you’re printing massive jobs, that may be an issue. But if most of your print jobs are 10 pages or less, it shouldn’t be a dealbreaker—though you’ll want to keep this in mind before you staple them together. We also named this printer our best home printer after rigorous testing.
Best for:
- Printing without spending a fortune on a printer and paper
- Students and teenagers who need a printer for the occasional paper due
Skip if:
For a supposedly “no frills” printer, the HP Envy 6555e comes with printing, scanning, copying and faxing, so it can do everything that the HP OfficeJet 9125e can. There are a few differences between the two models—and one of them is price. It retails for $180, but you can find it on sale for around $100 pretty frequently. As such, its our choice for the best value option on this list, given its blend of features and cost.
The HP Envy 6555E suits nicely for cramped spaces, according to our tester.
Brinda Ayer for Forbes
The device is pretty large, which surprised our tester; compared to the other options on the market, however, it still has a lower profile and would fit nicely even in a cramped office space. In order to install the cartridges correctly, our tester notes that “you have to push upward instead of downward,” which they felt was confusing and prolonged the setup just a bit. Outside of that glitch, though, setting up the printer was straightforward.
With A Low Price Comes A Slow Print Speed
While this printer can complete the same major tasks that most others on this list can, its price means there are some caveats to consider. For one, print speed feels glacial: Our tester timed a 10-page double sided test, and it took 70 seconds for the first page to hit the paper tray and three minutes to complete the job.
The tray capacity is also the smallest we tested, holding just 60 sheets. Still, if you’re a student, for example, who only prints the occasional paper, this printer is more than enough for your needs. But if you’re a business owner or someone who’s printing more than 10 pages per day, you may want to consider another option on this list.
Best for:
- Those looking for flexibility—it can print documents up to 11 x 17 inches
- Fast print speeds
Skip if:
- You want auto duplex scanning
- You don’t want to worry about connectivity issues
The Brother MFCJ5855DW can print on documents up to 11 x 17 inches, a unique feature that makes it useful for school projects or business flyers. On average, our testing showed this model can print up to 30 pages per minute, which is slightly faster compared to the HP OfficeJet Pro 9125e. In addition to printing, scanning, copying and faxing, it has a USB-C port to print documents from a flash drive. It also comes with an Ethernet port so you can get a wired connection, though most will likely use the dual-band wireless capabilities to set it up and print documents. This printer includes access to a host of cloud storage services, as well, like Google Drive, OneDrive, Evernote, OneNote and more.
The Brother MFC-J5855DW can print up to 30 pages per minute, based on our testing.
Alexandra Garrett for Forbes
The device features a 3.5-inch color touchscreen with menu icons that can help you navigate it for commands, updates and more.
The Included Ink Supply Is Generous
This printer comes with a one-year supply of ink, and can print 3,000 monochrome pages and 1,500 color pages—which means the ink can last for months if you don’t print very frequently. As a heads-up, it doesn’t offer auto duplex scanning. And while we didn’t have this issue during our testing, we’ve seen reports of internet connection issues, particularly with the Wi-Fi Direct feature.
Type: Inkjet | Features: Print, copy, scan, fax | Color: Yes | Two-sided printing: Automatic | Tray capacity: 250 sheets | Wireless: Yes
Best for:
- Color pages with accurate, vivid colors
- Those who want to use their phone to operate their printer
Skip if:
- You need a larger automatic document feeder
- You have spotty internet
Many excellent all-in-one printers are laser printers, which can deliver sharp text and be more cost-efficient in the long-term since you don’t have to worry about ink drying out. Colors on inkjets, however, tend to be more accurate and vivid comparatively—which may sway you toward this type of printer. If you plan to print a lot of color pages, the HP Smart Tank 7301 is our top pick for an inkjet all-in-one printer.
Although our tester felt the display was small and wasn’t intended to be especially user-friendly, that’s where the HP Smart app came in. The app made it easy for her to “initiate controls, diagnose issues and check printer levels,” and she thought that the ability to control all of the printer’s functions from her phone made it especially handy.
Fast Prints That Look Sharp
HP claims that the Smart Tank 7301 can print up to 15 pages per minute in black and nine pages in color, though we actually found it to be slightly faster during our testing; a 10-page color print job took our tester 57 seconds from start to finish. She commented that it was “the fasted printer I’ve ever tested” and also noted that photo prints looked lovely and rich.
It’s worth mentioning that the automatic document feeder is smaller and can only hold 35 pages. And one of our tester’s biggest gripes was with regard to connectivity issues: When she had an internet outage, the printer disconnected and didn’t automatically reconnect when service was restored. If you have spotty internet, be prepared to keep an eye on the printer’s connection.
Best for:
- Getting a high print yield from low-cost toner cartridges
- Those looking for a better-than-average print speed
- Anyone who prioritizes easy refilling of paper
Skip if:
- You don’t want to manually duplex scan
If you don’t need or care to print in color, when it comes to monochrome printing, the HP LaserJet-Tank MFP 2604SDW is a great economical option. It’s easy to refill the tank with a hassle-free, mess-free design, but odds are you won’t have to worry about that for some time since the tanks can last up to two years. During testing, we calculated we could get up to 5,000 pages from a single fill. Toner cartridges are $17 for 2,500 pages and $30 for 5,000 pages, making this one of the most affordable cost-per-page ratios we tested. We also observed that it can print up to 23 pages per minute, so while it’s slower than our top pick overall, it’s still pretty speedy.
On-Board Controls Can Be Frustrating
This printer has a small LCD display with even smaller buttons that we didn’t find very useful during testing. For copying and scanning, we recommend using the accompanying HP Smart App to make changes before starting the job. And while it can scan both sides of a document, it’s not automatic full duplex; you need to scan the first side, feed it through and then scan the flip side.
Why Trust Forbes Vetted
Our editorial team consists of tech experts who live to research, test and write about all things digital. (Executive editor Dave Johnson, for instance, has authored multiple books on the subject.) We’ve built a robust library of tech guides for setting up your optimal home office, including the best laptops for working from home and the best modem-router combos.
- This story was authored by consumer tech editor Rebecca Isaacs, who oversees tech content for Forbes Vetted. She’s been writing about tech for over six years. Staff writer Steven John also made contributions to the updated version of this article.
- Our team spent hours printing, copying, scanning and faxing hundreds of pages to test each printer, as well as dived into the software features to get a sense of how each accompanying app worked. We research any new releases or newly upgraded models of bestsellers and compare the aspects to ones we’ve tested. Our editors also seek firsthand insights from Forbes Vetted staffers who’ve used these printers in their own home and comb through reviews to identify the perks and quirks of each model.
- We consulted with John Yensen, president of Revotech Networks Ltd., and Shelby Nicholas, owner of SNF Web Design Services, for expert insights on what makes a good all-in-one printer.
- We know that new printers become available from time to time, that older units go out of stock and that prices change—so we regularly revisit this article to keep it relevant. It was most recently updated in August 2025.
How We Tested The Best All-In-One Printers
To find the best all-in-one printers, we narrowed our choices to the top, most reliable brands, including Canon, HP and more. From there, we reviewed real customer reviews and each printer’s features. We considered the following:
- Build quality: All of our picks needed to feel sturdy and well-made. We carefully reviewed various printer displays, taking into account the size and ease of use for touchscreens. For printers we tested, we also considered printer tray hinges and mechanisms to determine how well they held up after opening and closing multiple times.
- Print speed: For print speeds, we tested in two ways. We timed the printing duration from pressing the print button to the last page landing in the tray; and we timed the print duration from when the first page came out until the last page did. We reviewed it against the company’s listed print speeds to make sure each printer aligned with its claimed print speed. In addition to print speeds, we also considered scanning and copying speeds to cross-check company claims.
- Print and scan quality: We printed hundreds of pages, checking for ink blotting, color accuracy and more. We compared printed pages to make sure the printers we chose printed accurate, detailed documents and images consistently. We also scanned printed pages to see how coloring and detail held up during the conversion.
- Extra features: Many of the printers on this list come with useful extra features, like app extensions, phone integrations like scanning from your phone and printing a document and more. We rigorously tested these to make sure they were intuitive and worth a potentially higher price tag.
What To Consider When Shopping For The Best All-In-One Printer
Even the most affordable all-in-one printer is still going to cost you a decent chunk of change, so it’s important to make sure you buy a piece of hardware that will serve all your particular needs.
Functions
The most important thing to consider when shopping for an all-in-one printer is, ironically, whether or not you require this type of device at all. Do you actually need a high-quality scanner, or is your phone’s camera good enough? Will you need to send and receive faxes? How often do you make copies? Thinking about what your needs are will help you avoid buying a printer with four or five distinct capabilities when you really only need one or two.
Print Quality
Too often, multifunction pieces of tech hardware become “jacks of all trades, but a master at none,” says Shelby Nicholas, owner of SNF Web Design Services, who notes buying a printer that can do everything you want may come at the cost of its print quality. Make sure to check the stats on its DPI (or dots per inch, which is a measure of resolution), to determine if its printouts will be up to snuff.
Monochrome Vs. Color
“This one is simple,” says Nicholas. “If you don’t print in color often, skip the color printer.” Sure, color printouts may be more exciting, but Nicholas says that monochrome printers are often better for home offices, students or small businesses that print a lot of text. They tend to be faster, use less ink, and have a lower cost per page. And besides, she notes, color printers are only really necessary for “graphic designers, photographers, and anyone who prints a lot of images or charts.”
And yes, this question will usually solve the issue of inkjet vs. laser printer, with the former being better for color prints, the latter for black and white.
Print Speed
Consider how quickly you want documents to print if you are worried about print speed, knowing that laser printers are almost always faster when it comes to pages per minute. For most homes or small businesses, print speed won’t matter much, but if you often need to produce large documents for customers or clients in real time, then opting for faster print speeds may be important.
Paper Size And Type
If you only need to print basic 8.5- by 11-inch papers, then really any printer will be able to handle that. If you need to accommodate larger documents, like legal-sized pages or bigger, then seek out an AIO printer with that in mind. And also note how well a printer can (or can’t) handle gloss paper, photo paper and more.
Printer Size
It can be easy to overlook the basic logistics of printer size when you are considering this type of hardware. Many all-in-one printers are significantly larger than the more basic models typically used at home. Check out all the measurements of any AIO printer you are considering and evaluate how it will fit into the space in which you intend to use it. Too often, it might not really fit well at all.