How to Reduce Your Printing Costs

Businesses spend large amounts of money printing documents each year. According to Reduce.org, the average office worker uses 10,000 sheets of copy paper each year. Because organizations usually pick up the whole tab, there's a lot of waste in the office when it comes to printing.

Some printers are more cost-efficient than others. Many consumers purchase low-end printers (less than $100) to save money on the front end. This is a costly mistake.

Low-end printers often increase printing costs in the long-run because each cartridge may print no more than 200 or 300 pages. Printers that cost $200 or more may yield over 2,000 or 3,000 pages per cartridge.

Many businesses print draft versions of important documents. However, you can save paper by using the blank side of used sheets in the recycling bin.

Used paper sheets are often thrown out with the trash. Use the blank side and your business wouldn’t need to buy as many sheets.

Use gray scale when printing draft documents or other non-critical content, such as driving directions. Gray scale settings use less ink and toner.

There are many ink cartridge websites that allow you to compare printers and cartridges for considerations on cost and performance. You can bring your used cartridges to retailers such as Walgreens and Costco and have them refilled for less than $20 each. A cartridge can be refilled several times.

You may also buy remanufactured cartridges that are compatible with your printer. Remanufactured ones are available online and are much cheaper than name brands.