It’s a battle that’s been going on for centuries… ink vs. toner! Who will emerge victorious from this war?
Toner and ink are like gasoline and diesel fuel. Both are types of fuel, but are used in different engines.
Toner cartridges and ink cartridges are used to print text and images, but are designed for different types of machines.
The table below helps break this down:
| Toner cartridge | Ink cartridge |
| Used in laser printers | Used in inkjet printers |
| Contains fine powder | Contains liquid ink |
| Higher page yields | Lower page yields |
| Doesn’t dry out or clog up | Can dry out and clog up |
| Long, unlimited shelf life | Short, limited shelf life |
| Low cost per page | Higher cost per page |
| Higher initial cost | Lower initial cost |
Without getting too complicated, laser printers use a different printing process than inkjet printers.
Inkjet printers, as the name implies, spray droplets of liquid ink onto paper to form an image. Laser printers etch the image onto a rotating drum that attracts charged dry toner particles. The winding drum transfers the image to the paper, and the toner is fixed on the paper by heating and pressure rollers. That’s why the printouts coming out of laser printers are warm.
Let’s break it down this way:
- Laser printers use toner cartridges
- Inkjet printers use ink cartridges
- Toner cartridges contain dry powder
- Ink cartridges contain liquid ink
- Toner cartridges are larger than ink cartridges
- Toner cartridges typically have a yield in the range of 2,000 to 20,000 pages
- Ink cartridges usually have a yield of about 500 pages
- Toner cartridges do not expire
- Ink cartridges expire
- Toner does not dry out due to infrequent use
- Ink can dry out and clog due to infrequent use
Which is better? Toner or ink?
That’s a good question! Let’s quickly compare ink and toner based on the two (probably the most important overall) factors below:
Durability
We believe that toner’s durability and lower overall printing costs make laser printers the best choice.
Inkjet cartridges carry the risk of malfunctioning if the heads dry out or become clogged. This risk increases the longer inkjet printers are not used, so it is important to use inkjet printers weekly.
In contrast, toner cartridges do not expire and do not clog if they are not used.
Cost
Toner cartridges have a higher initial cost than inkjet cartridges.
Toner cartridges are physically larger, which means they hold more supplies and print more pages. If you print a lot, toner cartridges are more cost-effective.
However, if you don’t print very often, cheap ink cartridges may be more cost-effective.
So, ink or toner? Which is better for you?
High-end commercial inkjet printers are used for posters, marketing materials, advertisements and more.
Laser printers and color copiers used to be too large and expensive for home and small business use, but that’s all changed with compact printer designs and cheaper laser technology.
Prices for laser and inkjet printers are now almost the same. New toner cartridges will cost more than new inkjet cartridges, but you’ll get a much higher page count by comparison.
FAQ
How do I know if my printer needs toner or ink?
You can check your printer’s manual, but as a rule you need toner for laser printers and ink cartridges for inkjet printers.
How often do you need to replace ink with toner?
Toner usually has a higher page yield, which means you need to replace it less often compared to ink. In addition, as mentioned above, ink cartridges can expire, dry out and clog if not used enough or on time. This means that sometimes you will have to replace ink cartridges, even if they have not been used 100%.
At the same time, toner cartridges do not dry out or expire.
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