How to Get the Best Prints at Home

How to get the best prints at home is something I love talking about. It doesn’t have to cost a lot, and I’m here today to share all my tips with you. It all comes down to print settings and paper.

For years I had affordable bottom of the line printers, but because I used the right paper and print settings I was able to get great prints. This old and embarrassing video I made years ago will show you that I have been using the same methods with cheaper printers for a long time and it’s still working.

Ink:

Let’s talk about ink first. Why is it soooo much money??? When I made the video 7 years ago I used to use the cheapest Canon printer. The print quality was great, but the replacement ink cardtridges were about $50 or more. I remember thinking it would be cheaper to just buy a whole new printer that came with ink than to buy replacement cartridges. This is what used to stop me from printing at home until I discovered HP Instant Ink program.

HP Instant Ink program has been the best! It’s a subscription that sends you ink when your printer is low. You don’t pay by how much ink you use, but the number of pages you print. So you can print full color pages without worrying about the price of ink. They have several different plans to choose from and you can switch at any time. I generally use the plan that allows me to print 100 pages per month for $6.99. When I am printing a lot for back to school booklets and lessons I switch plans to the 300 pages per month. They also offer plans for more and less pages.

Your printer is connected to the internet and alerts HP when you are running low on ink. It automatically mails you the ink in time to have some on hand when it’s time to switch cartridges. Shipping is included in your subscription so there are no additional fees there. Because your printer has to connect to HP to read ink levels, you can only use certain printers with the HP Instant Ink program. They have a big selection though, so you should be able to find one that works for you.

As I’m typing this and referring back to their subscription plans I just noticed they now have toner plans too. This means they now have ink subscriptions for inkjet AND laser printers. It looks like the toner pricing is even lower than the inkjet. Shoot! Looks like I’m going to need to try out their laser printers next. Haha!

If you want to try HP Instant Ink and get 1 month free, use this link.

Printer:

I have had several printers over the years. They have all been bottom of the line inexpensive printers from Canon and HP until my latest one. The quality on all the printers have been great, but I needed a faster printer that could print to the edge and also print double-sided. I upgraded to the HP OfficeJet Pro Premier a few years ago and have loved it. If you don’t print a lot, I would recommend one of the cheaper printers. Just pick whichever price point works for you. If you print often and hate waiting on slow printers, this one has been so great. It seemed like all I needed until I just learned about that laser subscription. Ha! Now I want to try out one of their laser printers too.

I know a lot of people use and love the Epson EcoTank printers, but I have never personally used them. I have a friend that shared about hers, so I will link it here for you to read about it. HP Instant Ink and Epson EcoTank are both great options for inexpensive printers that give great print quality.

Print Settings:

Now that we know a great way to save money on ink, we aren’t afraid to use it. This is one of my biggest tips for getting great prints at home. Your print settings make a huge different in your print quality. I always adjust my print settings to “best” or “highest quality” when printing. This will use more ink and will give you richer color. You can see samples of this in the video above.

Paper:

High print settings is only part of the equation. The second most important part of great prints at home is the paper you are using. I have since discovered a paper I love even more than the Epson one I shared about in the video. I have recommended this Canon paper hundreds of time since I first started using it. I print all of my party packs on it. It’s the perfect weight for paper projects. One side is coated and it holds the ink beautifully. Your prints will no longer have that muddy look when you use this paper. It can be a little tricky to see which side is coated, so hold it up in good light and print on the whiter side.

I also love this light weight paper from Epson. I use it to print quotes, pictures and other inserts for my scriptures. It’s thinner than the Canon paper and is also coated to hold great color.

I don’t want you thinking I only use nice paper. I’m way too cheap for that. When I’m just printing everyday stuff, I use the Pen and Gear copy paper from Walmart. It’s nothing fancy, but is priced great and gets the job done.

I know this post was long and had very little pictures to break up all the text. Good job making it this far. I hope you found some helpful tips for great prints. If you have a question don’t be afraid to ask. I could talk about printers and paper for days. :)