Tank Printers vs. Laser Printers: What's the Difference?

Inkjets and laser printers have strengths and weaknesses that mark each out as best for specific situations. The picture is less clear when we looked at ink tank printers versus laser printers because ink tank printers offer much higher page yields at lower costs than traditional inkjets. Ink tank and laser printers still have important differences and unique strong and weak points, but it is a complicated distinction.

Overall Findings

We found that both printers offer lower per-page costs than traditional inkjets, and both do well in high-volume printing environments. The tanks in ink tank printers have much larger volumes than conventional ink cartridges, which is why they can print so many more pages between refills compared to traditional inkjets. Laser printers are in that same territory, as their cartridges often have enough toner to print thousands of pages.

Laser printers tend to be more expensive than tank printers up front, but both categories are more expensive than traditional inkjets. Laser printers have lower ongoing costs on average due to less maintenance and somewhat higher page yields, and they also print faster and require less maintenance.

Ink tank printers excel in photo printing and are more flexible in terms of the types of paper they can use. Color laser printers can print photos and color documents, but they aren’t as good as ink tank printers in that area.

Performance and Quality: Ink Tank Printers Are Better for Photo Printing

Ink tank and laser printers are capable of excellent print quality and high performance, but there are some significant differences. Ink tank printers start printing immediately, while laser printers take some time to warm up, so the former is better at intermittent small jobs. Laser printers offer much higher page-per-minute rates, making them well-suited to high-volume environments (like ours) that require a lot of printing.

Laser printers are known for precise and crisp text reproduction, but high DPI ink tank printers can produce similar results. Ink tank printers offer much more flexibility, though, with the ability to print on more sizes and types, like glossy photo paper.

Some laser printers accept a range of paper sizes, but they usually don’t have as many options as ink tank printers. Laser printers aren’t as good at printing photos, either. While color laser printers can turn out high-quality full-color prints, ink tank printers tend to offer more color depth for photo prints that appear more vivid with a better color gamut.

Initial and Ongoing Costs: Laser Printers Are More Expensive but Affordable To Operate

Ink tank printers and laser printers are more expensive than traditional inkjets, but laser printers tend to be the more expensive between laser and tank. Both are also costly to refill when the ink or toner runs out, but that’s because they both have high page yields due to the amount of ink that a tank printer can hold and the toner that’s typically included in toner cartridges.

These categories are more affordable than traditional inkjets, but laser printers have lower ongoing costs due to larger page yields and less necessary maintenance. We like tank printers, however, because they are very easy to fill once and forget about for quite awhile.

Maintenance: Laser Printers Require Little to No Maintenance

Ink tank printers require the same type of ongoing maintenance as traditional inkjets, like regularly cleaning the printheads. While the ink isn’t as likely to dry out because the tanks are airtight, the printheads can still dry out and clog. The tubes that feed the printheads can also clog, which requires additional maintenance.

When an ink tank printer isn’t used regularly, it’s important to purge the system regularly to avoid clogs and drying out; that process can waste a significant amount of ink over time. Laser printers require significantly less ongoing maintenance, primarily because the toner can’t dry out, and there aren’t any nozzles or tubes to clog.

Final Verdict: What Kind of Printing Do You Need?

Ink tank and laser printers are well-suited to high-volume printing environments, but they address slightly different needs. If you need to print many monochrome documents, and speed is key, then a laser printer will suit your needs.

If you print a mix of color and monochrome documents or want the flexibility to print photos on various paper sizes and types, then an ink tank printer is the better choice.