That said, having so many choices can make choosing one particular model something of a chore. But we’ve curated a list of some of the best HP printers currently available to help streamline the process. Just make sure to read our guide to multifunction printers if you’re looking to get the most out of your new printer.
If you’re on the hunt for a powerful and feature-packed printer, look no further than HP’s OfficeJet 200. Boasting an output resolution of up to 1200dpi and a monthly duty cycle of up to 500 pages, it features a built-in rechargeable battery that allows you to print just about anywhere. The mobile printer is rated for print speeds of up to 10ppm/7ppm (black/color) with AC power, and up to 9ppm/6ppm (black/color) on battery. It’s compact and lightweight (about 4.85 pounds) enough to be carried around in a backpack or a briefcase, and uses two (one black, one tri-color) cartridges. In addition to documents, everything from cards to envelopes can be printed. HP OfficeJet 200 includes Wi-Fi 802.11bgn and USB 2.0 as primary connectivity options, and also supports direct printing (via wireless and HP ePrint) from mobile devices like smartphones and tablets. Some other notable features include USB charging, Auto-Off technology (for power conservation), and a 2.0-inch mono display on the front that lets you easily monitor/control the printer’s operation.
Best Overall
HP OfficeJet 200
Compact and premium design
High print yield per cartridge
Some networks connectivity issues
Offering a bevy of useful features at an affordable price, HP’s Envy 6055 is easily one of the best printers available out there. It’s rated for print speeds of up to 10ppm (black) and up to 7ppm (color), and has a monthly duty cycle of up to 1,000 pages. Apart from documents, you can print envelopes, flyers, and even high-quality borderless photos, with almost no effort. Being an “all-in-one” (AIO), the HP Envy 6055 also includes scanning and copying functionalities. Its integrated flatbed scanner can scan documents to a variety of popular file formats (e.g. RAW, JPG, and PDF), and has a resolution of up to 1200ppi. On the other hand, the copier can copy black/color documents at a resolution of up to 300dpi. It includes support for dual-band Wi-Fi so you can easily connect to it and print from your phone, tablet, or other mobile devices, and the Wi-Fi connection is “self-healing,” so a broken connection should never be an issue. There’s also built-in support for connectivity solutions such as Apple AirPrint and Bluetooth 5.0, and the HP Smart app is an incredibly easy, user-friendly way to connect to the printer and start pumping out pages. HP Envy 5055 is backed by a one-year warranty.
Best Features
HP Envy 6055 All-in-One Printer
Automatic duplex printing
Configurable shortcuts for faster workflow
Driver installation isn’t exactly intuitive
These days, everyone loves taking pictures with their smartphones and sharing them on different social networking platforms. And while that’s indeed fun, wouldn’t it be amazing if you could print “real” photos and share them with friends and family, anytime and anywhere? Turns out you can actually do that, thanks to HP’s Sprocket. Measuring around 3.1 inches x 4.6 inches x 0.9 inches, this pocket-sized printer lets you print out small pictures (similar to those captured by instant cameras) in a jiffy, directly from your smartphone. The photos have an output resolution of 313x400 dpi, and are printed on a special sticky-backed paper with HP’s “ZINK” (Zero Ink) technology. Using the printer is an exceedingly simple task. Just get the companion “Sprocket” app (available for both iOS and Android), pair the device to your smartphone, click a photo (or choose an existing one), and you’re good to go. The app can also be used to customize photos with overlays (e.g. frames, stickers), before they are printed. HP Sprocket uses Bluetooth 5.0 for connectivity, and also comes with an automatic paper sensor.
Best for Instant Photos
HP Sprocket Portable Photo Printer
Extremely easy to use
Customizable LED status lights
Printed photos don’t always have accurate colors
“Available in four colors—Luna Pearl, Noir, Lilac, and Blush—and with no identifying logos other than a small fabric tab in the corner, the HP Sprocket 2nd Edition is sure to pique people’s curiosity when you take it out at a party or family event.” — Theano Nikitas, Product Tester
Far smaller than most traditional desktop printers, the HP won’t fit comfortably into a backpack, but if you’re on a road trip and want something powerful without compromise, the 4155 is perfect for sticking into your car, setting up at a hotel or coffee shop and printing before that big meeting. Additionally, printing using a smartphone or tablet is offered through a variety of methods, including Wi-Fi, HP’s Smart app, Apple Airprint, or via USB.
Best Budget
HP DeskJet Plus 4155 All-in-One Printer
Wallet-friendly price
All-In-One functionality
High savings for ink costs
Not as portable as some compact models
As an all-in-one, the 4155 allows you to easily print, copy, scan, or fax with minimal fuss. Setup out of the box is a snap, too. Just pull the printer out, power it on, connect to a device and print away, and the Smart app will guide you step-by-step to connecting to additional devices. As for prints itself, the 4155 offers a respectable eight pages per minute for black and white prints, as well as 5.5 pages per minute for color copies.
Best with Smart Features
HP Tango
Smart home integration
Good printing speeds
Connectivity problems with restricted wireless networks
Having several useful functionalities (i.e. printing, scanning, copying, and faxing) rolled together, HP’s OfficeJet Pro 9025e is definitely among the finest “all-in-one” (AIO) printers you can buy. It’s rated for print speeds of up to 24ppm/20ppm (black/color), and delivers sharp prints at an output resolution of up to 1200dpi. Thanks to a massive monthly duty cycle of up to 30,000 pages, the unit can handle even the most demanding of usage scenarios without breaking a sweat. Its integrated scanner lets you scan documents to a variety of popular file formats (e.g. PNG, BMP, and PDF), while the copier can produce up to 99 copies at a resolution of up to 600dpi. The unit has a fax memory of up to 100 pages, and takes as little as four seconds to fax a page. HP OfficeJet Pro 9025 packs in a plethora of connectivity options, including Wi-Fi 802.11abgn, USB 2.0, RJ-11, and Ethernet. Printing directly from mobile devices is no issue either, with solutions like Mopria and Apple AirPrint fully supported. Other goodies worth mentioning include dual input trays (each with a capacity of 250 sheets), and a 2.7-inch display with capacitive touch input.
Best All-In-One
HP OfficeJet Pro 9025e
Lots of connectivity options
High-capacity monthly duty cycle
Annoying paper jamming issues
Considering the sheer number of images most of us capture on a regular basis, getting a photo printer certainly makes a lot of sense. There are quite a few available in the market, with HP’s Envy Photo 7155 being another excellent choice. It allows you to print vibrant and richly detailed pictures from a diverse range of sources, including social media platforms and your smartphone’s camera roll. And that’s not all! Using the device’s 2.7-inch color display (with touch input), you can view/edit photos stored on external SD cards before printing them. As it’s an “all-in-one” device, HP Envy Photo 7155 incorporates the ability to scan and copy documents (and photos) too. Scanning to many digital file formats (e.g. RAW, JPG, and PDF) is supported, while up to 50 copies can be produced at a resolution of up to 600dpi. It’s also rated for print speeds of up to 14ppm (black) and 9ppm(color), and sports a monthly duty cycle of up to 1,000 pages. For connectivity, everything from Wi-Fi 802.11bgn and USB 2.0, to Bluetooth LE and SD card slot is included in the mix.
Best for Photos
HP Envy Photo 7155
All standard connectivity options included
Direct printing from SD cards
Ink subscription service isn’t exactly affordable
When it comes to certain use cases (e.g. brochures, address labels) that involve bulk printing, black-and-white printers tend to be more economical than colored ones. If that’s something you’re looking for, check out HP’s LaserJet Pro M102w. Boasting a monthly duty cycle of up to 10,000 pages, it has a print speed of 23ppm. You also get superior print quality (compared to that of inkjet printers) because of laser printing technology. The single black toner cartridge can print up to 1,000 pages, and there’s support for multiple print languages/standards like PCLmS, URF, and PWG. Connectivity options include Wi-Fi 802.11bgn and USB 2.0, and you can directly print from mobile devices (via Mopria, Google Cloud Print, and more) as well. Sporting a 150-sheet input tray and a 100-sheet output bin, HP LaserJet Pro M15w is compatible with a wide array of media types (e.g. A4, A5, C5 envelopes). The printer also supports many security management features (e.g. SNMP v1 community password change), and is backed by one-year warranty.
Best Black-and-White
HP LaserJet Pro M102w Printer
Great print quality
Automatic paper sensor
Frequent connectivity problems
Considering how they are used almost 24x7, business-grade printers need to be very robust, fast, and capable of regularly handling high-volume printing jobs. HP’s LaserJet Enterprise M554dn ticks all of these boxes, and then some. Powerful yet efficient, it can print from sleep mode in just nine seconds. The printer uses smart media-sensing technology to reduce its energy consumption and comes with the fastest two-sided printing in its class.
Best for Organizations
HP Color LaserJet Enterprise M554dn Printer
Incredible printing speed
Upgradeable memory for better performance
No Wi-Fi connectivity
With two standard input trays having a combined capacity of 650 sheets and a 250-sheet output bin, the LaserJet Enterprise M554dn is truly meant for heavy-duty printing tasks. It has a print speed of up to 35ppm (color and black) and a monthly duty cycle of up to 80,000 pages.
Using the companion ‘JetAdmin’ web app, network administrators can manage networked printers, set printing policies, and do a lot more. HP LaserJet Enterprise M554dn uses USB and Gigabit Ethernet for connectivity, with support for mobile printing solutions like HP Roam for Business included in the mix as well.
About Our Trusted Experts
As a technology editor with more than six years (and counting) of experience in the field, Rajat Sharma has tested/reviewed dozens of printers (among other gadgets) so far. He has been with Lifewire for more than two years now. Before that, he worked as a senior technology editor with The Times Group and Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited, two of the biggest media houses in India.
As feature-laden as all of the above-detailed printers are, we recommend HP’s OfficeJet 200 as our top recommendation. It’s small enough to be carried anywhere, has decent print quality, and its rechargeable battery allows you to get hard copies anywhere and everywhere. You also get handy features like USB charging and easy wireless setup. If you’d rather have an “All-In-One” device, go for HP’s Envy 5055, which offers three useful functionalities - printing, scanning, and copying - in one convenient package. Then there are additional goodies like mobile printing and voice assistant integration, which make the whole deal even better.
Theano Nikitas is a Maryland-based tech writer whose work has appeared on CNET, DPreview, Tom’s Guide, PopPhoto, and Shutterbug, among others.
What To Look For In An HP Printer
Printing Technology & Quality
Most of the printers available today can be broadly classified into two categories based on the printing technology they use - Inkjet and Laser. While the former uses small droplets of ink that are projected onto paper, the latter involves transferring electrically charged powdered ink to the paper’s surface. These printing mechanisms also govern the prices - inkjet printers are usually quite cheaper in comparison to laser printers. However, laser printers have better print quality than inkjet printers.
(Monthly) Printing Volume
If your printing requirements are quite basic (maybe a few dozen pages a month), you’ll have no trouble(s) with a mid-range inkjet printer. On the other hand, if you run a small/big business and need to print thousands of pages on a monthly basis, we’d suggest investing in a laser printer. For heavy-duty printing, laser printers are not only faster, but also tend to be more cost-efficient than inkjet printers
Connectivity Features
Even the most basic printers these days come with wireless connectivity options such as Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. And while that’s indeed convenient, if you need reliable connectivity, you should consider products that offer wired connectivity options like USB and Ethernet. In addition, things like the ability to print from SD cards and direct mobile printing are obviously beneficial.
Single Or Multi-Function
A vast majority of printers (including budget options) come with several different functionalities. Aptly named “All-In-One” printers, these devices include scanning and copying features as well. If you need those additional features, an “All-In-One” is undoubtedly the way to go. That said, if your only requirement is printing, it’s advisable to go for standalone printers, even if they are a bit more expensive. They may not have a dozen features, but you will get great print quality.
