5 Best Printers for College Students in 2022 (Top Picks)

Printers form an essential part not only for businesses and working professionals, but they are also one of the key electronic equipment for a college student. All kinds of study materials, homework, project documents, and many more can be printed only with the use of a reliable printer model.

If you are a college freshman, a parent, or even a guardian, you need to search for the best printers for college students in order to enhance their study experience. Just like any other purchase, even this one involves a lot of factors.

The stream of study, the requirements of the student, future requirements, etc. all play a major role in determining the right printer for a student. Budget and performance are two of the key criteria, and as a student, it is essential to find the best performing device which is a great value for money too.

Printers are a must, as you can eliminate the need for your kid to go in search of a net cafe or internet center to get print outs. Costs involved in purchasing, maintaining, ink refilling, and printer quality should be right up in the factors to consider for selecting the right printer for college students.

We shall discuss these factors later in this article once we finish our examination on some of the top printers for college students available in the market.

List of Top 5 Best Printers for College Students in 2022

1. Epson EcoTank ET-3760 All-in-one Supertank Printer

Epson EcoTank ET-3760
Source: Rtings.com

The first on our list is the All-in-one Inkjet technology-based printer for college students from Epson, EcoTank ET-3760. This is by far one of the best printers for college students and its super tank feature makes it a perfect choice for students who have large volumes of printing demand.

The upfront cost might be higher, but the maintenance and ink-refill costs are not going to be a burden, which is great for students with this particular demand. Wi-Direct connect feature enables the student to print their documents right from their smartphones and tablets without much stress.

The Supertank ink mechanism can be refilled within minutes and is extremely user-friendly. The tanks have to be refilled very rarely since the printer is known for its high yield and strong black and color tank performance.

Apart from photo printing, all other types of printing are complete at very good speeds. ET-3760 has some convenience features, such as a sheetfed scanner, 2.4” LCD display, flatbed, mobile printing, and automatic 30-sheet document feeder.

Students who are into graphic design and other artistic study programs might be disappointed due to its poor color precision. The lack of a duplex scanner might be missed by some users too.

As a package, this one delivers worry-free high-quality printing without having to change the ink containers for almost 2 years, making it one of the top printers for college students.

Pros:

  • The cost per print ratio is very low.
  • High-speed printing.
  • The print page yield is also very good.

Cons:

  • Lack of the duplex scanning feature.
  • Color precision is lacking.

2. Brother MFC-J995DW All-in-one Inkjet Printer

Best Printers for College Students
Source: Tomsguide.com

The MFC-J995DW inkjet all-in-one printer is rated to be one of the leading choices for college students because of its whole package. It is kind of designed to meet the demands and all the requirements of a college student, thus fall into that demographic perfectly.

If you are a college student living with your parents, then this should be a perfect choice, as it is a complete family printer in many ways.

Trademark INKvestment tank of the brand, Brother, is the main highlight of this model and the performance delivered from it is truly outstanding. This ink cartridge mechanism allows the student to print a whole range of documents without spending much money i.e., the cost to print ratio is really low, which is a key factor for college students and parents.

Design is modern, with the solid build quality, 2.6” touchscreen display unit is easy to use, document feeder is automatic, great photo printing quality, and it can be used for printing, scanning, and copier, so there is nothing much to falter about this model.

Apple AirPrint, mobile connectivity, Wi-Fi direct, USB, and Ethernet enable efficient printing connectivity, but the lack of Bluetooth is kind of a miss.

Pros:

  • Ink cartridge mechanism.
  • Excellent photo prints.
  • The cost per print ratio is very low.
  • Connectivity options.

Cons:

  • Black prints are slow compared to the colored ones.
  • No Bluetooth connectivity

3. Canon Color imageCLASS MF644Cdw

Canon Color imageCLASS MF644Cdw
Source: Rtings.com

The imageCLASS MF644CDW from Canon is one of the customer choice printer models from the brand, and it should fit perfectly into the requirements of a college student too. This one uses laser technology and is an all-in-one printer too, so should be an ideal choice for students living with their family or friends.

This is a duplex laser printer and the ink cartridges are of high yield, which means refilling interval is long, resulting in a low cost to print ratio.

The speed of printing is also quite good, so students can print out their homework within minutes. Photo print quality is not that great, but that is quite the norm with most of the laser printers. College students might not have a problem with that aspect.

The costs involved in replacing 3 colored toners are quite high, which is one of its main drawbacks. If you have no problem with this cost, then this is definitely one of the best printers for college students you can invest in.

The design and build quality are excellent, 5” touchscreen display control is user-friendly, has automatic doc feeder, and has a lot of great features. AirPrint, Mopria print, USB, and ethernet support are provided, but Bluetooth and Wi-Fi direct are missing.

Pros:

  • The cost per print ratio is low.
  • Solid build quality and design.
  • High-speed prints.
  • Multiple connectivity options.

Cons:

  • Toner is expensive.
  • Bulky.
  • The touchscreen displays can be glaring at times.
  • Poor quality photo prints.
  • Lack of Bluetooth and Wi-Fi direct.

4. Canon Pixma TR7520 All-in-one

Canon PIXMA TR7520
Source: Canon.ca

The Pixma series of printers from Canon are quite popular, and here we have the super compact and stylish looking TR7520, making it a perfect choice for college students. It is a wireless all-in-one inkjet printer from Canon and is a decent buy.

Color and photo printing are the main highlights of this printer, but the black color runs out easily, which is a drawback. The ink performance is great, resulting in a better cost per print ratio and this keeps the operating costs under control.

Automatic document feeder adds convenience, but the lack of duplex scanning is a miss, and there are printers that come with both these features; which means, if you are going to handle 2-side printing on a regular basis, this might not be the right printer.

The 3” LCD touchscreen display enhances the overall printing experience. The 5 individual ink storage system ensures that you get a decent printing lifetime. All kinds of connectivity options like AirPrint, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, USB, and Canon mobile application-based printing facility are standard, so students can complete their printing duties efficiently.

Although there are a few drawbacks, TR7520 is one of the top printers for college students.

Pros:

  • The cost per print ratio is low.
  • Connectivity options.
  • The photo print quality is excellent.

Cons:

  • Lack of duplex printing feature.
  • The black color print yield is not up to the mark.
  • Printing speed is slow

5. Canon Pixma TS5320

Canon Pixma TS5320 printer for college students
Source: Rtings.com

The Pixma TS5320 is a stunning-looking printer for college students. Design and build quality are exceptional and you have the option of choosing between a wide range of color options, such as white, black, green, and pink.

The design looks stunning on all of these color options. The TS5320 is an all-in-one inkjet wireless printer, but may not make the top of the list. The multiple features packed in this model are great but they do not deliver strong performance.

Photo printing quality is amazing; thus, photography and other arts-based students can opt for this model.

Both color and black print yield are not great and the slow printing speed only makes the experience more cumbersome. The scanner also is below par, since long pages cannot be scanned effectively.

There is no automatic document feeder either, so it does miss out on some valuable features. The OLED 1.44” display unit is too small to be visible from a long distance but the LED status bar provides a signal on the printing process.

Frequent ink refills can be a headache, so it is certainly not suitable for those with high volume printing demands. Graphics designers, artists, and students involved in streams involving photos can certainly go for this one, as this is one of the top printers on that aspect.

Pros:

  • Multiple connectivity options.
  • Premium photo printing finish.
  • Canon print app

Cons:

  • Limited scanning features.
  • Ink cartridge.
  • Low print yield.
  • No automatic document feeder.
  • Not suitable for high volume printing

Buying Guide

In this section, we are going to talk about all the different factors you need to consider when searching for some of the top printers for college students. The requirements of every single student would be different, so shortlist the printers only according to your personal expectations.

The demand for your course, your future endeavors, personal interests, budget, etc. all play a major role. This section should be a perfect guide for students and will help them find the best printers.

Price

When it comes to shortlisting a set of printers for college use, the most important factor that acts as a pillar in determining the right product is the price of the printer.

Only in very few cases, like the student is independent and can make the purchase all by themselves and so, mostly it is the parent or guardian who is making the decision for the student, so the price is a huge factor.

We strongly recommend parents or guardians to consider the performance factor of the printer too. Printers that come with low upfront costs might be expensive in the long run due to ink replacement and maintenance costs.

This is where an expensive high-performance printer can turn out to be valuable, as it could run for a considerable period of time without ink replacements and the maintenance costs would also be lower.

In such a scenario, opting for one such printer might be a wise choice. A cost-efficient high-performance printer for college students is a sweet deal for sure.

Performance and Quality

The printing speed delivered by the printer might not be a major factor to play in the decision-making process, because students generally don’t have the rush like business professionals do. A slow printing printer might be able to deliver a strong printing quality too, which is again a benefit for the student.

Quality is key since it involves studies, and for students who are involved in courses specializing in graphics design, CAD, and other streams, this factor is more vital than others. Some of the best models out there are known for their wide range of high-quality printing capabilities, with the option of being able to print all types of documents.

Remember to evaluate the performance and quality of the printer when you sort out the best printers for college students.

Volume

The volume of printing required for a college student will also depend on their study course, their personal interests, etc. Some of you might have an extensive printing demand, whereas some should be using the printer only once or twice a month.

Knowing this information is vital in shortlisting the best printers for college students. It is quite simple, if you have a huge demand in terms of print volume then you should go for a dye efficient printer.

Some of the models come with large ink tanks, individual cartridges or containers for storage, which are going to be efficient and print for a long period of time over any ordinary inkjet printer. College students with less demand need not worry about ink refills, as they are not going to refill them often.

We recommend you to go for an ink-efficient model since you never know when you might have to print high volumes.

Space

College students also have the restriction of space because most of the dorm rooms are not large and they only have enough space to accommodate a certain set of equipment.

A printer that is compact in dimensions and has lightweight properties should be the ideal choice since it won’t take up a lot of space, and at the same time, won’t be hard on you when you are trying to shift places.

A college student might not have the need for using a large, bulky, high performance, heavy-duty printer too, so stick with a compact one.

These are the crucial factors to consider for a college student in finding the most reliable and apt printer for their study program.

Conclusion

By now, you might have selected the right printer for your college. Each and every single one of the above-discussed printers has their own USPs, so select the one that best fits into your personal requirements.

All our suggestions are entirely based on price, features, performance, and overall quality in the current market conditions. We hope to have reduced your burden of finding some of the best printers for college students.

Need printer recommendation for home use? Read on this article: Best Printers For Home Use With Cheap Ink. And if you need a sublimation printer recommendation, read our recommendations in here: 10 Best Sublimation Printer For Beginners (Top Picks).