Top 10 Best Wireless Printers for Home & Office
The ability to print documents and photos wirelessly from anywhere in your home or office has become an essential feature for many consumers and businesses. Wireless printers provide flexibility, convenience, and efficiency. This comprehensive guide discusses the features to consider when shopping for the best wireless printers, recommends top models in various categories, and provides frequently asked questions to further assist in your buying decision.
Table of Contents
Factors to Consider When Buying a Wireless Printer
When evaluating wireless printers, there are several key factors to consider before making a purchase:
Print Quality
While some lower-end models may provide passable print quality for essential everyday documents, professional photographers, graphic designers, or any users printing high-quality colour photos or images will require a printer capable of delivering excellent colour accuracy and sharp image reproduction. You'll want to understand the printer's maximum dpi (dots per inch) for black and colour prints to assess print quality.
Print Speed
If you frequently need to print long documents or large batches of files, print speed will likely rank high in importance. Print speed is measured in pages per minute (ppm). Look for faster speeds for improved efficiency for both black and colour prints.
Connectivity
Assessing connectivity includes confirming built-in wireless support and compatibility with your devices and operating systems. Most wireless printers today utilise Wi-Fi for cable-free operation, with many also offering Bluetooth, Wi-Fi Direct, Cloud, and wired connectivity.
Paper Handling
The paper tray capacity determines how many sheets you can load once before refilling. If you print high volumes, a larger capacity could help minimise downtime. You'll also want to confirm the printer handles the paper types and sizes you plan to utilise. Features like auto duplexing for two-sided prints are also worth considering.
Ink System
When it comes to replacing ink or toner, specialised ink tank systems have become popular for their ultra-high-capacity tanks and lower long-term operating costs. If affordability over time is essential, investigate ink yields and replacement costs. Laser printers tend to have higher upfront costs but cheaper ongoing costs.
Additional Features
Other features influencing your purchase include colour touchscreens for intuitive control, automatic document feeders for scanning multi-page originals hands-free, fax functionality, expandable storage, security features, photo printing from media cards and USB thumb drives, and compatibility with smart home ecosystems.
Best Wireless Printers of 2024
After extensive market research, we've identified the top wireless printer models across home office categories, including family and professional use cases. The printers below were selected based on high ratings for print performance, reliability over time, value-given features and specs, and ease of wireless connectivity and use.
Best Overall: Brother MFC-J5330DW XL Inkjet
For most households and home offices, the feature-rich Brother MFC-J5330DW XL hits the sweet spot, combining exceptional print quality, fast speeds, robust connectivity and impressive paper handling into a single moderately-priced multifunction machine.
- Built for business performance. Spend less time waiting on printouts for when you need your documents fast.
- 250-sheet paper tray capacity accepts up to 11″x17″. single sheet bypass tray for printing on envelopes and card stock for added convenience
- 2.7″ touchscreen display. Easily navigate to powerful features.
- Help increase productivity with up to 50 sheet ADF and automatic duplex 2 sided printing
- Great ink produces great results. Sharp black text and High impact color documents on plain paper
With the ability to deliver vivid borderless photographic prints up to 8.5 x 14 inches and sharp colour documents at resolutions up to 4800 x 1200 dpi, it satisfies most print quality demands. Using its 250-sheet main paper tray and high-yield ink cartridges, you can expect speeds of 22 ppm for black prints and 20 ppm for colour. An auto-duplexer takes care of efficient two-sided printing.
It's well-connected with built-in Wi-Fi, Ethernet, Wi-Fi Direct, USB and mobile device linkage. Conveniences include a 35-page auto document feeder for scanning and copying stacks of pages hands-free, fax capability, and a large colour touchscreen. Expanded XL ink cartridges keep replacement costs low.
Best Laser Printer: HP Color LaserJet Pro M454dw
For those desiring a more affordable colour laser printer with wireless networking, the HP Color LaserJet Pro M454dw makes an excellent choice. It produces sharp, professional documents at resolutions up to 600 x 600 dpi, utilising HP's Toner system with colours that resist fading. With a first page print time of just 8.8 seconds, it reaches speeds of 27 ppm for black and 23 ppm for colour.
- Single-Function: Print only. Work faster and smarter and grow your business with the Color LaserJet Pro M454dw from HP.
- Featuring automatic duplex printing and a fast color print speed of 28 ppm for letter-size documents, this printer has a 600 x 600 dpi print resolution for sharp text and documents.
- A 2.7″ color touchscreen enables smartphone-like operation from the front of the printer, and the unit comes with 50-sheet multipurpose tray and a 250-sheet input tray for letter and legal-size paper.
The printer offers dual-band Wi-Fi, direct Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and Ethernet network interfaces for flexible wireless or wired connectivity from phones, tablets, and computers. A 2.7-inch colour touchscreen provides convenient control and previewing. Automatic two-sided printing helps conserve paper. With a 250-sheet input tray, a 50-sheet multi-purpose tray and several intelligent security features, it reliably handles the demands of most small offices and workgroups.
Best Portable: Canon PIXMA TR150
For a lightweight printer to take anywhere, Canon's popular PIXMA TR150 wireless printer weighs under 7 pounds with the battery installed yet delivers impressive performance. It can print and scan pages through USB, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connections up to outstanding resolutions of 9600 x 2400 dpi.
- Wireless Single Function (Print Only)
- 9 / 5.5 ipm Print Speed
- Compact and Portable
- Save Up To 5 Custom Templates
- Optional Battery Available
The rechargeable battery allows up to 330 colours or 400 black and white prints per charge. An easy one-touch operation panel with indicator lights keeps it simple for all environments. Measuring just 14.6 x 7.3 x 2.6 inches when closed, it conveniently transports in bags. It easily fits in tight spaces, making it an ideal choice for students, family vacations and business trips where portability is critical.
Best Photo Printer: Epson Expression Premium XP-7100
Capable of exhibiting museum-quality photographic prints worthy of framing, Epson's Expression Premium XP-7100 sets the bar for serious home photo printing using its advanced 5-colour Claria ink system. It can achieve resolutions up to 5760 x 1440 dpi to recreate even subtle tones and textures with impressive accuracy on various fine art and photo paper stocks.
- Epson printing system is designed to be used exclusively with Epson Genuine Cartridges. Use of non-genuine ink could cause damage not covered under the printer’s ltd. wnty.
- Superior photo quality print stunning photos Plus Sharp text for eye catching documents
- Designed for productivity at home 30 page auto document feeder; Auto 2 sided Print/copy/scan; Multiple media feeds
- Creativity made easy print on specialty paper (1) and DVDs; Plus, borderless photos upto 8 inches X 10 inches
- Convenient, hassle free features use the large, intuitive 4.3 inches touchscreen to view, edit and Print photos directly from USB or SD card slot (2)
With wireless networking and Wi-Fi Direct, you'll enjoy cable-free printing from smartphones, tablets and computers. Conveniently print directly from memory cards and even enlarge 4 x 6-inch prints on the fly up to poster size for large format artistic projects. An auto document feeder and a large tilting touchscreen further bolster functionality. While catering more towards photography, it handles everyday document printing adeptly as an exceptional all-in-one printer for images.
Best Eco-Friendly: HP ENVY Pro All-in-One
For the environmentally conscious looking to reduce paper waste, HP designed its ENVY Pro 6458 as an eco-friendly printer built from 30% recycled plastics that consumes less energy while enabling easy recycling of ink cartridges. Operating costs stay low thanks to the Instant Ink subscription service for replacement cartridges starting at just $1 monthly.
Despite its green status, performance still shines with impressive 1200 x 1200 dpi colour resolution, 15 ppm black and ten ppm colour print speeds, a 35-page auto document feeder for unassisted copying and scanning, and fax and Wi-Fi direct capabilities. Conserve resources by leveraging its automatic two-sided printing while monitoring tasks and supplies remotely through the intuitive HP Smart app.
Best Security: Brother HL-L2460DW Laser Business Printer
With integrated encryption, authentication, and security settings, Brother's HL laser printer provides reliable protection for confidential documents and compliance with privacy regulations – perfect for sensitive business environments. It offers several layers of defence while remaining simple and convenient in everyday operation.
- BEST FOR HOME OFFICES & SMALL TEAMS – Engineered for consistent, premium print quality, the Brother HL-L2460DW Monochrome (Black & White) Laser Printer produces documents that are clear, crisp, and easy to review and share, all at an affordable price
- COMPACT, CONNECTED, EXCEPTIONALLY EFFICIENT– Connect with built-in dual-band wireless (2.4GHz/5GHz), Ethernet, or to a single computer via USB interface. Prints at speeds up to 36ppm(2), plus automatic duplex printing saves time and reduces paper waste
- BROTHER MOBILE CONNECT APP – Manage your wireless printer remotely and print from your mobile device anytime, from almost anywhere. Order Brother Genuine Supplies, track toner usage, and complete more work on-the-go(3)
- VERSATILE PAPER HANDLING – Tackle high-volume black & white printing with the 250-sheet capacity paper tray.(4) The manual feed slot enables printing on envelopes and specialty paper
- BROTHER IS AT YOUR SIDE – Backed by Brother with a 1-year limited warranty and free online, call, or live chat support for the life of your printer
Wireless 802.1x with WPA2-PSK secures communications while IPSec enables encryption of print jobs sent over networks. Setting locked print jobs accessible only via PIN codes further prevents data leaks. You can even restrict operations and features by user. It reliably delivers professional full-colour prints up to 1200 x 1200 dpi at impressive speeds, reaching 31 ppm for black, all while guarding your critical documents and data.
Best All-In-One Inkjet: HP OfficeJet Pro 9015e
The HP OfficeJet Pro 9015e delivers exceptional performance for a moderately-priced inkjet geared towards high-production home offices. With GPU acceleration, it prints professional two-sided colour documents at 20 ppm and crisp black text at 24 ppm – speeds rivalling costlier laser printers. It reliably renders images and graphics up to 4800 x 1200 dpi print quality. A convenient 50-sheet reversing auto document feeder simplifies scanning and copying stacks.
- Sold as 1 Each.
- UPGRADED FEATURES: Faster color print, copy, automatic two-sided printing and scanning, mobile and wireless printing, an automatic document feeder, and print from USB.
- NEVER RUN OUT OF INK : Enroll in Print Plans built on Instant Ink to get ink
- ADDED VALUE WITH HP+: With 6 months of ink delivered by Print Plans built on Instant Ink, an extended 2-year HP warranty, and advanced HP Smart app features . Choose HP+ at printer setup to activate benefits. HP+ requires an HP account, connection to the internet, and exclusive use of Original HP ink cartridges to operate.
- 6 MONTHS OF INK: Print up to 700 pages a month free when you activate your trial of Print Plans built on Instant Ink. After 6 months, continue with Print Plans or purchase Original HP 962 ink cartridges. Cancel or change any time.
Dual-band Wi-Fi with self-healing allows flexible cable-free printing from anywhere, while Wi-Fi directly enables peer-to-peer connections. Easily monitor performance remotely via the HP smart app. Some standout productivity features include a scheduled quiet mode to eliminate disruptions, up to 35,000-page monthly duty cycle, dual 250-sheet trays for high capacity throughput, and cost-efficient XL high-yield ink bottles with page gauge status – making it ideal for home offices or small businesses.
Best Budget All-In-One: Canon PIXMA TR4520
If you are seeking an affordable home printer for family use covering the basics, Canon's PIXMA TR4520 wireless all-in-one delivers reliable performance below $100. It handles everyday monochrome and colour document printing up to 1200 x 4800 dpi resolutions at speeds of 13 ppm for black and 6.8 ppm for colour. Conveniently scan, copy and fax multipage documents hands-free utilising the 20-sheet auto feeder.
- 【An All-In-One Wireless Printer】 Fast printing, copying, scanning and faxing, plus double-sided printing, scanning and faxing shouldn't require a huge printer to get the job done, and with the PIXMA TR4520 you'll see how a compact office printer stands up to the bulkier printers
- 【Simple to Use】 With features like AirPrint, Mopria Print Service, auto power On/Off, a built in ADF, and Wi-Fi it's easy to see why Pixma printers are so simple to use
- 【Standard Connection】 USB. Printer technology: Inkjet. Mobile Operating Systems- iOS, Android, Windows 10 Mobile, and Fire OS (Amazon Fire) devices
- 【Wireless Connect】 Setting up your wireless printer has never been easier. Grab your mobile device, download the Canon Print App and press the Wireless Connect button to begin
- 【Works with Alexa】 Ask Alexa to print your shopping list, to-do list, crosswords, coloring pages, and more
Built-in Wi-Fi allows wireless printing from smartphones, while the PIXMA Printing Solutions app enables creative projects like posters and greeting cards. An integrated ink tank system generates thousands of pages between infrequent ink refills, helping offset long-term costs. Operation is straightforward, with a 1.5-inch LCD and handy buttons. Auto power on/off and quiet mode maintain efficiency. For a budget-friendly family printer covering essential needs, the Canon PIXMA TR4520 is tough to beat.
Best Mobile Printer: HP OfficeJet 250 Mobile All-in-One Printer
Frequent travellers who need to print on the go will appreciate the compact portability of HP's battery-powered OfficeJet 250 Mobile printer. Despite weighing less than 4 pounds, it packs full-sized performance. It prints up to 600 x 1200 dpi quality at speeds reaching ten ppm black and seven ppm colour. Duplex printing enables professional two-sided documents. You can quickly scan documents and receipts to email, cloud services or USB drives using the colour touchscreen and 50-page sheet feeder.
- Main functions of this HP all-in-one portable printer: scan, copy, easy portable printing wherever you need it, wireless Print from your laptop or mobile devices, 2. 65″ Color touchscreen, auto document feeder, and more
- Mobile printing: print from anywhere using your smartphone or tablet with the free HP ePrint app, easily connect to your printer with Bluetooth smart technology and Wi-Fi Direct
- Easy portable printing wherever you need it. This durable, compact printer fits in your car, backpack, and more, for convenient printing anywhere. Start printing right out of the box with quick and easy setup
- Reduce charging interruptions with a long-lasting battery. Charge from home, in your car or office, and more. Plug in your AC power source to charge within 90 minutes while the printer is off
- Use Original HP 62 ink & HP 62XL cartridges for great results Print after print. Original HP ink prints up to 2x the pages as refilled cartridges
With Wi-Fi Direct and Bluetooth, you can print wirelessly from anywhere, even without connecting to Wi-Fi networks. Impressive ink yields enable up to 500 pages between changes. For ultimate mobility with the convenience of printing just about anywhere, the HP OfficeJet 250 brings reliable performance on the road.
Best High Volume: Brother MFC-L8900CDW Business Laser All-in-One Printer
Businesses managing high print volumes will benefit from the robust paper capacity, fast speeds and low running costs of Brother's MFC-L8900CDW colour laser printer. It features an adjustable 500-sheet capacity split between two trays to minimise reloading and a handy 50-sheet multipurpose tray. Print and copy speeds reach 33 ppm for black and 30 ppm for vivid colour output at true 1200 x 1200 dpi resolutions.
The network is ready out of the box; it directly connects over Wi-Fi, Ethernet, or USB interfaces. A built-in wireless interface lets you print from mobile devices through Brother iPrint&Scan. XL toner cartridges keep replacement costs affordable through extended page yields. This workhorse is designed for demanding business environments and reliably powers through heavy printing loads at budget-friendly volumes.
Choosing the Best Wireless Printer for Different Use Cases and Needs
Selecting a printer tailored for your intended uses provides optimal results. The key categories of use cases include:
General Home Use Printers
For families seeking an affordable all-purpose printer, compact inkjet models like the Canon PIXMA TR4520 deliver wireless connectivity for cable-free printing, scanning, and copying capabilities to handle most everyday needs. These low-cost home printers may lack some business-centric functionality but provide outstanding essential performance for students working on papers, printing photos from vacations, copying school handouts, scanning documents to email and similar general activities. Their lower ppm print speeds pose less concern for moderate home volumes.
Home Office Printers
If operating a home-based business or telecommuting, reliance on a dependable home printer escalates along with expectations for professional-quality output. For most SOHO environments, versatile inkjet all-in-ones like the HP OfficeJet Pro 9015e prove ideal with faster speeds, higher print resolutions, robust paper handling and finishing features like auto duplex printing. Avoid frustrations from a cheap, underperforming consumer model and invest in a quality printer equipped to efficiently power through proposals, invoices, reports, newsletters, client presentations, and other business documents.
Professional / Commercial Printers
Those producing high page volumes via continual demands from multiple office users need a reliable workhorse capable of uninterrupted service – making colour laser printers like Brother's HL-L9310CDWT great options for their higher duty cycles, faster speeds, lower operating costs and workflow-enhancing options. Commercial-grade durability reduces downtime and costly disruptions when livelihoods rely directly on maintaining nonstop printer productivity.
Photo Printers
Casual users' content using online print shops will baulk at prices professional photographers and creative hobbyists willingly pay for flawless customisable photo printing from the comfort of home. Advanced photo-centric printers like Epson's Expression Premium XP deliver exhibition-quality colour accuracy or large-format fine art imagery. Their comprehensive colour gamut ink systems, higher resolutions and artistic media flexibility let artists fully realise their creative visions through prints worthy of the framing rather than quick convenience copies.
Setting Up A Wireless Printer on Home Networks
Printers connected over WiFi provide the ultimate flexibility for in-home use, so more models than ever now have wireless capability built-in. Here is an overview of critical steps to set up your new wireless printer on standard home WiFi networks:
- First, ensure your wireless home router is powered and connected to the internet as expected. Make a note of your WiFi network name and password info. Connect your printer power cable to turn the device on.
- Refer to printer manufacturer setup instructions for that specific model to initiate WiFi setup mode – often by pressing a WiFi connect button or menu using the device control panel.
- The printer will provide a WiFi network name that uniquely identifies it. Go to the WiFi settings on the computer/mobile device you want to print from and have it join/connect to the printer's WiFi signal.
- Once connected directly to the printer, you can launch its setup wizard, typically accessible via a web browser pointed at a default IP address documented in the user manual.
- The setup wizard will guide you in selecting and connecting the printer to your regular home WiFi network by entering your SSID and password credentials.
- After connecting to home WiFi, install any recommended software drivers and apps to enable wireless printing from devices on the network.
And that's it! With those steps completed, your wireless printer will persistently connect to the home network like any other device and be accessible for printing from any computer, phone, or tablet connected to the same network.
5 FAQs About Wireless Printers
Wireless printing can seem overwhelmingly complex given the sheer range of printer types, technologies, settings and troubleshooting issues that could arise. These common questions provide helpful insights:
Do I need a Wi-Fi router for wireless printing or Wi-Fi direct printing?
Which is better – inkjet vs laser printer?
Inkjets have lower upfront costs but pricier ink over the long term, while monochrome lasers have higher initial prices but cheap toner costs through high page yields. Lasers excel with crisper results for frequent text printing, but inkjets boast superior photo printing quality.
My wireless printer keeps disconnecting – how can I improve connectivity?
Minor obstruction or interference causes some Wi-Fi printing problems. Try relocating the wireless router and printer closer together, away from potential sources of signal issues like microwave ovens. Wi-Fi extenders help fill dead zones; newer dual-band routers may also enable more reliable wireless operation.
Can you print from an iPad wirelessly?
Apple's AirPrint technology enables wireless printing from iPads and iPhones to compatible printers without any setup or drivers. Additionally, many printer manufacturers provide iOS apps allowing wireless printing through a shared Wi-Fi network.
Is cloud printing better than a regular printer?
Cloud printing routes jobs through internet servers, so you don't need printer drivers locally installed. This permits printing from anywhere to remote printers in other locations. But for everyday home use, directly connected local printers provide faster speeds without relying on internet connections.
Conclusion
Evolving wireless printing technologies empower more flexible and mobile printing capabilities than ever – but can overwhelm buyers struggling to select perfect models matching their needs and budgets. By weighing critical factors like speed, resolution, ink costs, paper handling and connectivity options, and intended use from photos to high-volume office documents, the showcased printers provide proven solutions that allow you to leverage reliable wireless printing, bringing new freedom and convenience to any home or business.
Last update on 2024-06-04 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
