Printers are mid-priced and easy to buy wrong on sale: a cheap inkjet with expensive ink, a laser for someone who needs photos, a tank printer for a household that prints twice a month. This page lists what is worth watching, grouped by how you print, and what to check first. Click through to see the current price on each product.
Quick answer
The best Black Friday buy for most homes that print every week is a refillable ink tank printer such as the Epson EcoTank ET-2400, because the savings on ink repay the higher price. If you print only occasionally, a compact monochrome laser such as the Brother HL-L2460DW is usually the better deal.
Best Black Friday buy for most homes
A compact cartridge-free tank printer that prints, copies and scans. The usual starting point for a home that prints every week.
Check price →What is worth buying on Black Friday
Eight picks across the categories below, from budget to premium. Each name links to Amazon, where you can see the current price.
- Budget: HP Smart Tank 5003, a tank printer with ink included for plain-page printing.
- Budget: Canon PIXMA TS3720, a basic inkjet all-in-one for light use.
- Mid-range: Epson EcoTank ET-2400, a compact EcoTank for most homes.
- Mid-range: Brother HL-L2460DW, a compact mono laser for infrequent printing.
- Mid-range: MUNBYN Bluetooth Thermal Label Printer, a thermal printer for shipping labels.
- Premium: Epson EcoTank ET-4850, a tank all-in-one with a document feeder.
- Premium: HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP 4301fdw, a colour laser multifunction for a small office.
- Premium: Canon PIXMA PRO-200S, a professional photo printer.
Black Friday ink tank printer deals
Ink tank printers are the category sale shoppers search for by name, and the one where the sticker price tells you least. A tank printer costs more than a cartridge printer up front and much less to run, so it pays off for anyone who prints every week. If you print a few pages a month, the savings never arrive and a cheaper machine is the better buy.
The HP Smart Tank 5003 and the Epson EcoTank ET-2400 are the starting point for home use, the EcoTank ET-4850 adds a document feeder for an office, and the Canon MegaTank GX7120 is the heavy duty option. For photos, look at the Canon PIXMA G620 or the EcoTank ET-8550. Read best ink tank printer and EcoTank vs cartridge printer, then work out your own running cost with the ink cost calculator.
Ink tank printers worth watching
An HP ink tank all-in-one with ink included in the box, for people who print a lot of plain pages.
Check price →A compact cartridge-free tank printer that prints, copies and scans. The usual starting point for a home that prints every week.
Check price →The same refillable-tank idea with a small colour display, for a home with a mix of documents and school work.
Check price →Adds an automatic document feeder and a faster print engine for a home office or a small business.
Check price →A step up with a document feeder and automatic two-sided printing.
Check price →A six-colour tank printer aimed at photos, with refillable bottles.
Check price →A business-class tank all-in-one with fax and a larger screen, for heavier office volume.
Check price →A wide-format photo tank printer that handles borderless prints up to A3 plus.
Check price →Black Friday laser printer deals
Laser printers are the quiet bargain of sale week for anyone who prints text. Toner does not dry out, so a laser sits unused for weeks and still prints. Monochrome lasers are small and cheap to run, colour lasers cost more up front and make sense for a home office that prints flyers or forms in colour.
The Brother HL-L2460DW is the compact mono pick, the Brother HL-L3295CDW and MFC-L3720CDW cover colour, and the HP LaserJet Pro 4001dn and HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP 4301fdw suit a busy office. See best laser printer, best color laser printer, inkjet vs laser and toner vs ink cost per page.
Laser printers worth watching
A compact monochrome laser with duplex and Wi-Fi. Toner lasts a long time between replacements, which suits an infrequent printer.
Check price →A compact colour laser with duplex for a home office that prints documents and the odd flyer.
Check price →A colour laser all-in-one with a scanner, copier, fax and automatic duplex.
Check price →A fast monochrome business laser with a wired network port, built for volume.
Check price →A colour laser multifunction for a busy small office, with a document feeder.
Check price →Black Friday all-in-one and budget inkjet deals
A basic inkjet all-in-one is the cheapest way to get a printer, scanner and copier in one box. The trade-off is the ink: cartridges for a budget inkjet can cost more over a year than the printer did, so check the cartridge price before you buy and consider an ink subscription only if you understand the terms.
The Canon PIXMA TS3720 is the low-cost option, the Canon PIXMA TR8620a adds a document feeder, and the HP Envy Photo 7975 leans toward photos. Compare them in best all-in-one printer, best budget printer and best printers under $100.
Budget and all-in-one printers worth watching
A basic wireless all-in-one inkjet for light printing and scanning.
Check price →An all-in-one inkjet with a document feeder and fax, for a home office.
Check price →A home all-in-one inkjet tuned for photos and everyday documents.
Check price →Black Friday photo printer deals
Photo printers split into two jobs. A compact dye-sublimation printer makes small prints at home with no ink waste, and a professional inkjet makes large, colour-accurate prints for framing or selling. Buy for the print size you actually want, and remember that paper is a running cost.
The Canon Selphy CP1500 is the compact choice, while the Canon PIXMA PRO-200S and imagePROGRAF PRO-310 are for serious prints. Read best photo printer and the photo paper printing guide.
Photo printers worth watching
A compact dye-sublimation photo printer for 4x6 prints, sold here with paper.
Check price →A home all-in-one inkjet tuned for photos and everyday documents.
Check price →A professional 13 inch photo printer with eight dye inks for gallery-style prints.
Check price →A 13 inch pigment-ink printer for fine art and photographers.
Check price →Black Friday label printer deals
If you ship orders or label a lot of things, a thermal label printer is worth more than a laser. Thermal printers use no ink or toner, only label rolls, and a 4x6 model prints shipping labels in seconds. A desktop label maker is better for filing and small labels.
The Rollo USB shipping label printer and the MUNBYN Bluetooth printer cover shipping labels, and the Brother P-touch PT-D610BT is the connected label maker. See best label printer and thermal label printer vs inkjet.
Label printers worth watching
A 4x6 thermal printer for shipping labels. No ink or toner, just label rolls.
Check price →A 4x6 thermal label printer with Bluetooth, for sellers who print from a phone.
Check price →A connected label maker for organizing, filing and small-business labels.
Check price →Black Friday printer ink deals
Ink is the one thing you will buy again, so a sale is a good time to stock up on the exact cartridges or bottles your printer uses. Check the model number on the cartridge, not just the printer brand, and read the guide to ink types before you try a third-party brand.
The HP 962 set, the HP 67 black and tri-color cartridges and the Epson 502 bottle are common examples. See printer ink types and third-party ink vs OEM.
Ink worth watching
A full set of cartridges for HP OfficeJet Pro models that use the 962 series.
Check price →The cartridge pair for the DeskJet and Envy models that use the 67 series.
Check price →A high-capacity refill bottle for Epson EcoTank printers that use the 502 series.
Check price →Is Black Friday a good time to buy a printer?
It can be. Printers are the kind of mid-priced gear sale shoppers tend to watch, and last year's models are where deals most often show up. The printer is only part of the cost, though: ink or toner is what you keep paying for. Work out the running cost with the printer cost calculator, check the type of printer you need with the printer selector quiz, and test the new printer with the free printer test pages while it is still returnable.
Shop Amazon's Black Friday deals
Amazon's deals page shows what is live right now. These searches jump straight to each category:
Frequently asked questions
Is Black Friday a good time to buy a printer?
It can be. Printers, and especially tank printers and office lasers, are the kind of mid-priced gear sale shoppers tend to watch, and last year's models are where deals most often show up. Check the current price on the product page, and check the ink or toner cost before you buy.
When does Black Friday start on Amazon?
Amazon usually runs its Black Friday event over the week of Thanksgiving through Cyber Monday, and some early deals appear before that. Open the deals page to see what is live.
Should I wait for Cyber Monday to buy a printer?
Not usually. Deals tend to run across the whole week, so buy when you find the right printer at a price you are comfortable with. Keep the return window in mind so you can run a test page and check the print quality.
Are printers cheaper on Black Friday?
Some may be, but deals depend on the model and the seller. A cheap printer with expensive ink is rarely a good deal, so compare the cost of ink or toner before the headline reduction.
Is an ink tank printer worth it on Black Friday?
If you print every week, yes: a tank printer costs more up front and much less to run, so a sale shortens the payback. If you print only a few pages a month, a laser printer is usually the better buy because toner does not dry out.
How do I test a new printer?
Print a test page the day it arrives. The free color, black and white, and nozzle check test pages on this site show missing colours, streaks and alignment problems while you can still return it.
As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Products are researched from manufacturer specifications and owner reviews; nothing here was tested in person. Amazon shows the current price.