Whether you're printing off photos to save in your scrapbook or want some glossy prints of your best pictures to display around your home or work, a good photo printer can make a huge difference in properly reproducing these all-important images. While most printers can print images, the best ones will accurately and vividly reproduce colors while still retaining detail from your original photo. Inkjet printers also tend to be better suited for printing photos, and some inkjets even include special photo cartridges to give you an even better color reproduction.
Below are our recommendations for the best photo printers you can buy. For other options, check out our picks for the best home printers, the best inkjet printers, and the best all-in-one printers.
The best photo printer we've tested is the Epson EcoTank Photo ET-8500, a variant of the Epson EcoTank Photo ET-8550 we tested. It performs identically to the flagship ET-8550 but can only print on paper up to 8.5" x 11" in size. The ET-8550 is also an excellent choice if you need wide format printing (up to 13" x 19"), but it costs more. As far as performance goes, this printer produces detailed and colorful photos. It tends to oversaturate colors to make them more vibrant, which isn't necessarily bad; just don't expect the pictures to look exactly like the originals.
Print quality aside, what makes this printer stand out is its low ownership costs. It uses a refillable ink tank that yields thousands of prints, and replacement ink is cheap, making this printer an amazing choice for high-volume printing. Connectivity options include the usual Wi-Fi, USB, and Ethernet; plus, you can print directly off a USB flash drive or SD card. You also get a scanner that produces excellent scans, great for digitizing your old photos or to make copies. The ET-8500 sports an 8.5" x 11.7" flatbed scanner, while the ET-8550 can accommodate sheets up to 8.5" x 14".
For a more modest mid-range pick for casual at-home use, check out the Epson EcoTank ET-2400. Like our upper mid-range pick above, the Epson EcoTank Photo ET-8500, this is also a supertank model, so it's a great option for those with a large print load of photos or documents. The ET-2400 features a more traditional setup with cyan, magenta, yellow, and black ink. Its color range isn't as good but is still excellent; it just struggles with bright, saturated tones, meaning some bright highlights won't come out as well compared to more expensive photo printers like the ones above. Printed pictures still look detailed and are fairly color-accurate, albeit slightly grainy.
You can connect to the printer via USB or Wi-Fi; just know that it doesn't support Apple AirPrint or Mopria Print Service, so you may need to download the Epson Smart Panel companion app to get full functionality on mobile devices. The app lets you print, scan, and perform maintenance tasks. It also gives you easy access to Epson's image gallery, which contains patterns you can use for crafts, like house decorations and greeting cards. Unfortunately, its printing speed is pretty slow, taking almost a minute and a half to produce a 4x6 photo.
Our best budget pick is the Canon PIXMA TS7720, a cheaper, ADF-less variant of the Canon PIXMA TR7820 we've tested. Surprisingly, this model has better color accuracy than our upper mid-range and mid-range picks, but it has a lower print resolution than the other printers mentioned, resulting in less detailed photos. It supports borderless printing and paper sizes up to 8.5" x 11". The drawback with budget models is usually page yield, and that's absolutely the case here. It's not too bad if you only print once in a while; just know that you'll have to pay more for replacement ink than the models mentioned above if you print often. Also, it uses only a tri-color cartridge, so you'll have to replace it even if only one color runs out.
A note on pricing: while this printer's MSRP is $150 USD, its price has dropped steadily since its release. The median price looks to be around $99 USD, though it's occasionally on sale for a bigger discount; it may be worth waiting for a sale if you don't need a printer right away.
If you only print photos once in a blue moon and want to spend as little as possible, check out the Canon PIXMA MG3620. Except for its lower capacity 100-sheet input tray and lack of Wi-Fi Direct support (ability to generate its own wireless signal), it's very similar to the Canon PIXMA TS7720 above feature-wise. As for the print quality, printed photos look detailed, but they are noticeably darker due to the printer's narrower color range. There's also a perceptibly warm tint, which may not be to everyone's preference. It still performs better than many office-oriented inkjet printers, even models costing significantly more. It uses a two-cartridge system like the Canon above, but thankfully, the cartridges are cheap.
If you're looking for the best printer for printing photos on the go, check out the Canon PIXMA TR150, a portable print-only inkjet model with a built-in rechargeable battery. It has USB and Wi-Fi connectivity and supports Apple AirPrint and Mopria Print Service. Printed photos look detailed and colorful, albeit slightly grainy. You'll have to replace the ink cartridges often, as they yield only about 190 color prints; however, they're relatively cheap, so you won't have to spend much on replacement ink over time. The internal battery supplies enough power for around 330 prints and takes about two hours to charge fully.
The Canon PIXMA PRO-200S is a good alternative to the Epson EcoTank Photo ET-8500. It has better color accuracy than the Epson, but it isn't as good at reproducing small details. Unfortunately, it doesn't have a scanner, and it yields fewer prints, which means you'll have to spend more on replacement ink in the long run.
See our reviewFor capturing the moment at parties or important life events like weddings, consider the Fujifilm instax Link WIDE as a great alternative to the Canon PIXMA TR150. This small printer is more portable and produces portraits with a retro aesthetic, but its print quality isn't as good. It can only print one photo size, and it uses proprietary paper that can get very expensive if you print a lot.
See our reviewIf you want a more compact photo printer that can easily fit in a handbag or small backpack, the Polaroid Hi-Print Generation 2 is a great alternative to the Canon PIXMA TR150. It has the best color gamut amongst small photo printers that we've tested, but its recurring costs are very high, even for portable printers, and its battery is only good for about 20 prints.
See our reviewApr 10, 2025: We removed the Canon PIXMA PRO-200 because it's discontinued, making the Epson EcoTank Photo ET-8550 the top pick. We added the CanonPIXMA PRO-200S as a Notable Mention.
Jan 22, 2025: Owing to availability, we've replaced the Canon imagePROGRAF PRO-300 with the Canon PIXMA PRO-200 as the 'Best Photo Printer' and made small edits for clarity throughout.
Nov 25, 2024: We've added the Canon PIXMA PRO-200 as an alternative for the 'Best Photo Printer' pick; it's cheaper and offers similar overall performance but slightly worse color accuracy. We've also verified that our other recommendations are available.
Oct 04, 2024: We've verified all our recommendations are available and added the Polaroid Hi-Print Generation 2 and Fujifilm instax Link WIDE to the Notable Mentions as great portable photo printer alternatives.
Aug 08, 2024: We've completely revamped this article, introducing a new format, new performance usages, and changes in recommendations to better represent the best choices available.
Our recommendations above are what we think are currently the best printers for pictures. In addition to test results, we factor in the price, feedback from our visitors, and availability.
If you would like to do the work of choosing yourself, here's the list of all our printer reviews. Be careful not to get too caught up in the details. While no printer is perfect for every use, most are good enough to please almost everyone, and the differences are often not noticeable unless you really look for them.
What do you think of our picks? Let us know below.
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