You may not have considered a laser printer before as they’ve previously been the domain of big offices, but if you print large documents with few photos they may well be the most economical option, especially for home use. There are many quality black and white and colour options, with features from duplex printing to a built-in scanner, but which is best for you?
Whether you use a PC or Mac, our handy guide will help you narrow down which suits your business or home office, plus we've trawled sites like Amazon to compare laser printers from brands such as HP, Brother, and Samsung. With some surprisingly cheap choices under £100 and several that offer all in one capabilities, there's something for every budget!
Quick List - Top Laser Printers
Lexmark
The Best Budget Pick Laser Printer That Doesn’t Compromise on Speed or Quality
Xerox
The Complete Small Office Machine: Printer, Copier, Scanner, Fax and Emailer
HP
Fast, High-Performance Black and White Printer, Ideal for High Print Volumes
Brother
An Affordable, Feature-Rich Mono Printer With Scan and Copy Functions, Plus a 250 Sheet Tray
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Table of Contents
Laser printers really come into their own for razor-sharp monochrome text printing and, in colour models, for simple graphics like graphs. There are price variations on machines that print in monochrome as opposed to full colour, as well as ongoing toner expenses, so it's worth thinking about whether you really need to print in colour.
In terms of print quality, the higher the DPI (dots per inch) the better, but also the greater the amount of toner used. 600 DPI is sufficient for most documents, but if you need to print for someone you really need to impress, then look for a machine capable of at least 1200 DPI.
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It's important to consider how much you expect to print each month when choosing your laser printer. If you're likely to get through high volumes of printing, then checking the pages per minute (ppm), is a good indication of how quickly you’ll get your print jobs completed. 30 ppm and up is generally a good starting point for the busy home or small business owner.
Similarly, it's wise to check with the manufacturer what the recommended monthly print volume is. Aim for a printer that falls below this figure, as printing more than a printer is designed to cope with on a regular basis can shorten its lifespan.
How do you intend to send your print jobs to your printer? If you want to connect wirelessly or connect it to a network, you will need to ensure that it has Wi-fi or ethernet capabilities.
Most printers come with USB connections for direct computer-to-printer linkage, while others also offer printing from a mobile or smart device, so consider which would be most convenient. You may also wish to check with the manufacturers exactly what is included with each model as some offer upgrade modules that you can install, but they can be costly.
Next, consider what you most commonly print. If you need to print large A4 reports, then choose an A4 model with a large tray capacity. Some printers are capable of printing up to A3, but this will have cost implications, so unless you need this feature regularly, it may be worth investing instead in a printer with a larger paper tray.
100 sheet trays often come as standard, but if you print really bulky documents you could look for printers with 250 sheet trays or larger. Some models also come with more than one tray or additional sheet feeders, which may be a wise inclusion if you print on more than just plain A4 to avoid swapping paper regularly!
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Duplex or double-sided printing can save a lot of paper, so if you print large reports or documents this is something worth looking out for. This is a great option if you want to save on resources and even save the planet while you're at it!
On top of this, you may also wish to check for automatic duplexing, which will spare you the time and effort of always making sure you have the paper loaded the right way.
Many printers now offer more than just printing. All-in-ones (AIO) offer not just crisp, clear printing, but also scanning and faxing functions too, all in the same footprint! These AIOs do increase the price tag, but if you would find these additional features useful their space-saving impact alone is worth it. They're also often a cheaper purchase than buying each device separately!
Look out for models with automatic document feeders (ADF) as these make scanning lots of sheets quicker and easier. Also, not all printers that call themselves AIOs include fax machines, so if you do need to be able to fax documents, then check with the manufacturer before purchasing.
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Products | Image | Click to purchase | Key features | |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Lexmark Mono Laser Printer|B2338dw | ![]() | The Best Budget Pick Laser Printer That Doesn’t Compromise on Speed or Quality | |
2 | Xerox Wireless Laser Multifunction Printer|B215 | ![]() | The Complete Small Office Machine: Printer, Copier, Scanner, Fax and Emailer | |
3 | HP LaserJet Pro Mono Laser Printer|M404DW | ![]() | Fast, High-Performance Black and White Printer, Ideal for High Print Volumes | |
4 | Brother Mono Laser Printer|DCP-L2530DW | ![]() | An Affordable, Feature-Rich Mono Printer With Scan and Copy Functions, Plus a 250 Sheet Tray | |
5 | HP Black & White Wireless Printer|107w | ![]() | A High-DPI Budget Printing Option With Double-Sided Printing and a 1200 DPI | |
6 | Pantum Wireless A4 Mono Laser Printer|P2200W | ![]() | Versatile Business-Quality Printing on a Small Scale With a 150 Sheet Tray | |
7 | Kyocera Black and White Duplex Laser Printer|FS-1061DN | ![]() | Feature-Packed Printer for A4 Monochrome Printing With a Small Footprint | |
8 | Samsung Monochrome Laser Printer|Xpress M2026W | ![]() | A Pint-Sized Printer That’s Big on Print Quality With a 1200 DPI | |
9 | Brother Wireless All-In-One Mono Laser Printer|DCP-1612W | ![]() | A Wireless Laser Printer That Scans and Copies, and Still Has a Small Footprint | |
10 | Brother Wireless All-in-One Colour Laser Printer & Fax Machine|MFC-L3750CDW | ![]() | Wireless Colour Printing for Your Home or Small Business Featuring Auto Duplexing |
Big on features and small on price, this Lexmark laser printer offers incredible value at under £100, alongside a compact footprint of just 399 x 374 mm. It also boasts board report-quality 1200 x 1200 dpi monochrome printing, integrated duplexing and connectivity over Wi-fi, ethernet or via mobile.
Printing a speedy 36 pages per minute, it's perfectly suited to churning out high volumes of printing, plus you won’t need to refill too often with its 250 sheet paper tray and 100 sheet multipurpose feeder. If you need a black and white laser printer for home or small business use, this is our top choice!
The Xerox B215V offers so much functionality as an all-in-one printer, scanner, copier, fax and emailer, packed in a footprint of just 401 x 397 mm. Printing business-quality 1200 x 1200 dpi monochrome documents is easy with auto duplexing for double-sided printing and 30 pages per minute speeds.
A generous 250 sheet paper tray also saves the need to constantly refill it, while a manual feed allows you to print on other media quickly and easily. And with the simple touchscreen user interface, we'd recommend it for small offices and beginner home use alike.
This LaserJet Pro is designed for fast, large-scale black and white A4 printing. Capable of printing up to 4800 x 600 dpi at 38 pages per minute, it comes with two pages for a total capacity of 350 sheets. An additional 550 sheet tray can also be purchased to increase the storage capacity.
Wi-fi, network, and direct connection through the USB socket gives the printer versatility, as does the ability to print straight from your mobile device. Automatic duplexing makes double-sided printing a breeze too.
Although this is a chunky machine, it packs in a lot of useful features for a very reasonable price, including wireless or USB connectivity and crisp mono printing at up to 30 pages a minute. The generous 250 sheet paper tray means that you won’t be filling up the machine all the time, too.
This printer also has automatic duplexing for easy double-sided printing, and the scanning and copying functions offer added functionality, making it a feature-packed office machine. A fantastic choice for a budget-conscious home or small business user.
At under ninety pounds this mono laser printer from HP is great value for money. Print from your mobile device, wirelessly via Wi-fi or direct through the USB cable for quality mono printing you would be proud to show your MD.
Though its paper-saving double-sided printing is not automatic, it more than makes up for it with the small footprint, tiny price tag and, most importantly, board-level 1200 x 1200 dpi printing.
This cheap and cheerful printer is perfect for home use where there is no pressure to print high volumes quickly. It offers business quality 1200 x 1200 dpi prints on up to A4 paper over Wi-fi or directly via USB, and holds a reasonable 150 sheets.
While you’ll need to load up the pages manually for double-sided printing, the small footprint and even smaller price tag make it easy to overlook these slight drawbacks. If slow, steady and value for money win the race for you, then this is your pick.
The Kyocera Ecosys offers quality monochrome printing of up to 1800 x 600 dpi on up to A4 sized paper. It stores up to 250 sheets in its main tray as well as a single-sheet feed for adding other media and enables duplex printing and wireless capabilities.
While its print speeds are not too remarkable, it's another one that does come with a small footprint and a reasonable price tag, making it a useful addition to small offices and homes tight on space.
Print report-quality black and white documents with this A4 printer, capable of 1200 x 1200 dpi resolution printouts. With a respectable 150 sheet paper tray and a tiny footprint, it's a good option for placement on a desk or in a compact office.
While it does offer many great features, the slow printing speed of 20 pages per minute and manual duplexing do mark it down slightly. It also doesn’t offer wireless printing, so you will need to connect your printer directly to your computer via the USB port to print.
This wireless AIO laser printer offers a range of capabilities, including scanning and copying, all from a relatively small footprint. Its 150 sheet A4 paper tray allows you to store a reasonable amount of paper to stop constant top ups, and you can print remotely via its Wi-fi interface or directly via USB.
It offers good quality black and white print capable of up to 2400 x 600 dpi, but this printer is slow, printing just 20 pages a minute. This fact and the lack of automatic duplexing mean that it ranks a little than others.
Ideal for a home or small office setting, this all-in-one colour laser printer offers a raft of features to help your printing jobs run smoothly. With a generous 250 sheet paper tray and auto-duplexing capabilities, the Brother allows you to scan, copy and fax and it has a pretty decent 50 sheet automatic document feeder, too.
Connect via Wi-fi or directly using the USB to print your documents, or send them from your mobile device for ultimate convenience. This printer packs in a lot of features, however, its relatively slow printing speed and larger footprint mean that it ranks lower on our list.
Written and researched by Sonata Winchester
No. 1: Lexmark|Mono Laser Printer|B2338dw
No. 2: Xerox|Wireless Laser Multifunction Printer|B215
No. 3: HP|LaserJet Pro Mono Laser Printer|M404DW
No. 4: Brother| Mono Laser Printer|DCP-L2530DW
No. 5: HP|Black & White Wireless Printer|107w
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