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Updated May 2026

Best Printers Under $1,000

Top-scoring printers you can buy for under $1,000. Independent benchmarks, no sponsored picks.

Ranked by the weighted Specdex score — 0-100 composite of real-world and synthetic benchmarks.

  1. #1
    Brother

    Brother HL-L2460DW

    Mono laser · Wi-Fi · Duplex · subscription-free

    The boring printer you want. Fast, cheap per page, no subscription traps.

    90
    $239
    Read review →
  2. #2
    Epson

    Epson EcoTank Photo ET-8550

    Photo EcoTank inkjet

    Epson's Epson EcoTank Photo ET-8550 — Photo EcoTank inkjet.

    90
    $699
    Read review →
  3. #3
    Brother

    Brother MFC-L2820DW

    Mono laser AIO

    Brother's Brother MFC-L2820DW — Mono laser AIO.

    88
    $329
    Read review →
  4. #4
    Epson

    Epson EcoTank ET-4850

    EcoTank inkjet AIO

    Epson's Epson EcoTank ET-4850 — EcoTank inkjet AIO.

    88
    $549
    Read review →
  5. #5
    Brother

    Brother MFC-L3780CDW

    Color laser · 27ppm · Duplex · ADF

    The home-office workhorse. Color laser MFP with single-pass duplex ADF — toner economy beats inkjet within 6 months for any volume of printing.

    88
    $549
    Read review →
  6. #6
    Epson

    Epson EcoTank ET-2850

    Inkjet · Refillable tanks · AIO

    Epson’s refillable AIO — huge savings per page if you print frequently.

    86
    $299
    Read review →
  7. #7
    Brother

    Brother HL-L3280CDW

    Color laser

    Brother's Brother HL-L3280CDW — Color laser.

    86
    $449
    Read review →
  8. #8
    Epson

    Epson EcoTank ET-2850

    EcoTank inkjet AIO

    Epson's Epson EcoTank ET-2850 — EcoTank inkjet AIO.

    86
    $299
    Read review →
  9. #9
    Epson

    Epson SureColor F170

    Dye-sub · 2021

    Epson's Epson SureColor F170 — Dye-sub.

    86
    $699
    Read review →
  10. #10
    Canon

    Canon PIXMA G7020 MegaTank

    Color inkjet · refillable tanks · AIO

    Canon’s refillable ink-tank AIO — low per-page cost for families who print photos without the cartridge racket.

    85
    $449
    Read review →
  11. #11
    Brother

    Brother HL-L2405W

    Mono laser

    Brother's Brother HL-L2405W — Mono laser.

    84
    $179
    Read review →
  12. #12
    HP

    HP Color LaserJet Pro 4301fdw

    Color laser AIO

    HP's HP Color LaserJet Pro 4301fdw — Color laser AIO.

    84
    $649
    Read review →
  13. #13
    Brother

    Brother HL-L3290CDW

    Color laser AIO · 2022

    Brother's Brother HL-L3290CDW — Color laser AIO.

    84
    $499
    Read review →
  14. #14
    Brother

    Brother QL-1110NWB

    Label · 2019

    Brother's Brother QL-1110NWB — Label.

    84
    $299
    Read review →
  15. #15
    HP

    HP Smart Tank 7301

    Inkjet EcoTank · 2022

    HP's HP Smart Tank 7301 — Inkjet EcoTank.

    84
    $399
    Read review →

Head-to-head

The two highest-ranked products compared side-by-side.

Brother
Brother HL-L2460DW
90
VS
Epson
Epson EcoTank Photo ET-8550
90
Full comparison →

Frequently asked

What is the best printer right now? +

Brother HL-L2460DW leads our Best Printers Under $1,000 list with a Specdex score of 90/100. The boring printer you want. Fast, cheap per page, no subscription traps.

How is the Specdex score calculated? +

The Specdex score is a 0–100 weighted composite of category-specific sub-scores (e.g. CPU/GPU/camera/battery/display for phones). Weights are published on our methodology page and reviewed quarterly.

How often is this list updated? +

The ranking is regenerated on every page load from our live D1 database. Scores re-calibrate whenever we add new products or firmware updates change benchmark results.