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       Looking for the best, most affordable printer cartridges? Our annual surveys of thousands of printer users show that leading third-party inks rank higher than genuine ones. Our research shows that third-party inks are generally the least expensive.
       Printer manufacturers prefer to use their own brand of ink. However, our research shows that to save money on cartridges, it is better to choose cheaper third-party ink. Our extensive research ensures that we only recommend brands with high-quality compatible cartridges.
       This assumes you know which third-party brand to choose – so you’ll need to check out the results of our in-depth research.
       We can help you not only save on ink, but also save on your next printer, allowing you to reduce your ink costs even further. Check out our expert recommendations for affordable printers worth buying and using.
       We’ve surveyed thousands of inkjet printer owners and lab tested leading brands to bring you the most comprehensive results.
       We combine ease-of-installation ratings from thousands of real users with lab compatibility testing so you can buy with confidence.
       Only brands that pass our assessment become Which? Recommended Suppliers – these are the best ink cartridge brands.
       Print quality for all types of prints from leading brands, as well as the number of pages each cartridge can print and the ink consumption per printed page.
       We surveyed thousands of Which? customers using third-party cartridges, asking them to rate print quality, ease of use, value and overall satisfaction. We ran additional lab tests on inks from four major brands, and three of them performed exceptionally well, making them Which? recommended. Use our test results to find affordable printer cartridges from premium brands.
       Whether it was HP, Canon, Epson, or Brother, genuine ink ranked near or last on our list based on real-world user ratings, suggesting that most printer owners in our survey would be happy to switch to cheaper third-party ink.
       Only registered Which? users can view each brand’s ratings. If you’re not registered, you’ll see the brands in alphabetical order but no results. We link to each brand’s website. By joining Which?, you’ll instantly get access to our best printer ink deals and all our reviews, covering everything from printers to batteries and laptops.
       Table notes: Sample sizes are in parentheses. Print quality: Based on our customer satisfaction surveys (not our subsequent lab testing to verify this quality). Customer ratings: Satisfaction and likelihood to recommend the brand. Online survey of 7,094 Which? Connect members (March 2025). Cartridge sample size: 4,985.
       If you’re in the market for a new printer, check out our experts’ picks for the best home printers and see which models impressed us the most in our independent lab tests.
       We conducted extensive surveys of thousands of third-party cartridge users to identify the low-cost printer inks that real users recommend. We also subjected the highest-rated cartridges to rigorous lab testing.
       We sent cartridges from the four leading brands in our study to our lab, where we conducted further rigorous testing using two representative printers, comparing the quality of each ink directly to genuine Epson inks.
       We test the full range of print colors, from black text to color office graphics and album-worthy photos on matte and glossy photo paper. We also evaluate the yield of each cartridge.
       Every ink cartridge recommended by Which? delivers at least 171 more pages than the Epson cartridge (1,012 pages), and the best cartridge delivers 256 more pages for just 6% of the cost. That means you’re saving real money while still getting excellent print quality. Our expert tests show that in most cases the extra cost of genuine ink doesn’t justify the small difference in performance.
       Refresh Cartridges sells a wide range of compatible, remanufactured and genuine cartridges. All cartridges and toner sold on the Refresh Cartridges website come with free shipping and a three-year warranty.
       Stinkyink offers both genuine and third-party inks for a wide range of printers. The Stinkyink website is easy to use, and all cartridges come with a 12-month warranty. Additionally, if a cartridge causes irreparable damage to your printer during the warranty period, Stinkyink will repair or replace it.
       Ink Factory is a family-owned company founded in 1999. All cartridges come with a lifetime warranty and are returnable or exchangeable. For more information, visit the Ink Factory website.
       First Call Inks offers a wide range of compatible and remanufactured cartridges on their website Firstcallinks.co.uk. All products are guaranteed and unopened orders are fully refundable.
       Inkredible’s online store offers a wide selection of cartridges, including its own brand of compatible inks. Inkredible provides a standard one-year warranty covering faults, defects, and damage. If a cartridge is found to be defective within 12 to 36 months of purchase, Inkredible will provide a replacement or bonus credit.
       Internet Ink is a Nottingham-based shop that also sells compatible cartridges via its website. Delivery is included in the price of the ink and there is a one-year warranty on defective products.
       We excluded Colour Direct from our lab testing this year. Colour Direct primarily sells ink for older printers—you can find a list of compatible models next to each cartridge. The number of respondents who used Colour Direct in our survey was also quite small, down from last year. Unlike many other third-party brands, Colour Direct does not have its own website and sells its products exclusively through its Amazon store.
       However, if your printer is compatible and you enjoy using Amazon, Colour Direct is worth a look.
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       It is much easier to buy cartridges online than in a regular store, and many third-party cartridges can only be purchased online at lower prices.
       That’s why our survey of printer ink users was designed to rank online retailers. Amazon and eBay are popular online shopping platforms, but neither scored highly in our survey of thousands of Which? users. Genuine printer ink manufacturers’ websites were again ranked last – not considered the best place to buy genuine ink by real users.
       We checked and found that one of our recommended suppliers offers ink for 94% less than the original. And that’s without taking into account the option to buy cheap printer ink in bulk and save even more.
       We’ve compiled a list of the best online printer ink sellers, sorting them by ease of navigation, value for money for members, and excellent customer service. Our results hold true even if you’re using genuine ink from your printer manufacturer, as third-party sellers often sell genuine ink.
       Only registered Which? members can see which retailers have the highest ratings. If you’re not already a member, signing up to Which? will give you instant access to our search results and all our online reviews, covering products such as printers, mobile phones and electric cars.
       Table notes: Sample sizes are in brackets. Customer ratings are based on satisfaction and likelihood to recommend the seller. The Which? Connect online survey (March 2025) had 7,094 participants. The sample size for online cartridge sellers was 4,985.
       Cartridge Save offers free next day delivery on all products listed on their website cartridgesave.co.uk. In the event of an ink problem, Cartridge Save branded cartridges come with a three-year warranty. In the unlikely event of damage to the cartridges, the company will repair or replace your printer free of charge.
       First Call Inks offers a wide range of remanufactured cartridges on their website: Firstcallinks.co.uk. All products come with a warranty.
       Ink Factory claims that ink purchased from Inkfactory.com “will not void your printer’s warranty” and offers free delivery on orders over £10.
       Nottingham-based Internet Ink also sells compatible cartridges via its website. There is no delivery charge, it is included in the price of the ink, and there is a one-year guarantee against defects.
       This retailer lives by its motto: “Just Ink and Paper.” Just Ink And Paper sells ink from four major printer brands: Brother, Canon, Epson, and HP. These inks are genuine, so they may cost more than third-party inks.
       Refresh Cartridges offers a Best Price Guarantee on Cartridges promotion where you can find a lower price on the Refresh Cartridges website before or after your purchase (within 7 days). Refresh Cartridges offers cartridges for a wide range of printers. Simply search for your printer model to easily find compatible ink.
       Stinkyink offers both genuine and third-party inks for a wide range of printers. The Stinkyink website is easy to use, and all cartridges come with a 12-month warranty. Additionally, if a cartridge causes irreparable damage to your printer during the warranty period, Stinkyink will repair or replace it.
       Need a new budget printer? Check out our recommendations for the best budget printers.
       Printer manufacturers like HP, Canon and Epson want you to use their own ink, and they use everything from nagging to warnings to encourage you to do so.
       HP takes an even more aggressive tactic: its Dynamic Security system prohibits the use of third-party “remanufactured” (refilled) cartridges, while its optional HP+ service prohibits the use of third-party cartridges entirely (and cannot be undone).
       Not only will switching to cheaper third-party inks save you a lot of money, but our customer surveys show that most customers are generally happier with third-party inks than with the printer manufacturer’s inks. What’s more, our lab tests show that in most cases the difference in quality is unnoticeable even with the best third-party inks.
       When installing third-party cartridges into your printer, your printer model may try to stop you with a message like “You have not installed genuine cartridges” – just accept the message and the ink will usually work fine.
       Every year in the UK, millions of cartridges are unnecessarily dumped in landfill. Although most major brands offer free recycling, they often do not accept third-party cartridges.
       However, some retailers, such as Stinkyink, offer recycling services for all ink and toner cartridges they sell, including both genuine and third-party cartridges.
       Some large supermarkets and office supply stores have special containers for collecting printer cartridges – look out for these when shopping. If all else fails, your local recycling centre will likely accept your used cartridges.
       Our independent professional printer tests take running costs into account, so you can use our results to avoid overpaying in the long run. Check out all our printer reviews.
       Download our app to get the full Which? experience and easily access our reviews anytime, anywhere.