Best photo printers for 2026: high-quality models for photographers

The best photo printers speedily turn out crisp, vibrant and realistic-looking photos, and won't drain your printer ink in the process.

You don’t want to be left waiting for 15 minutes while a print creeps out, only to see a blurry mess appear in the tray and for your photo printer to then run out of ink. This is what our tough lab tests will help you avoid.

You can see a selection of some fantastic photo printers below, plus two models to avoid further down.

Don't just want to print photos? See our pick of the best home printers

Best photo printers

Only logged in Which? members can see our best photo printer recommendations below. If you're not yet a member, you can get instant access by joining Which?. You'll also be able to access all our online reviews, from laptops and phones to electric cars and printer ink.

Some of the models we've selected aren't recent launches, but they're still some of the best printers out there. You can check our expert printer reviews for our latest new reviews.

Photo printers to avoid

If you're going to go to the trouble of printing your photos at home, you want to ensure that the results are excellent. The printers below all fail on print quality in our tough lab tests. 

Our expert testing unearths the low-scoring printers that will leave you out of pocket and frustrated, including some Don't Buys. Don't get stuck with one of these poor-quality machines.  

Only logged-in Which? members can see our recommendations below. If you're not yet a member, get instant access by joining Which?.

How to choose a photo printer

Before buying a photo printer, there are key features you should consider.

• Good photo print quality is obviously a must for a photo printer, but it's worth getting a printer with wi-fi, too. That means you can print wirelessly and potentially use features such as Apple AirPrint if you have an iPhone or iPad.
• Most photo printers also have free apps for printing from your phone or tablet, while some have built-in memory card slots to print photos stored on an SD card. They may have a USB connection for hooking up a PictBridge-compatible camera.
• A colour preview screen is a useful feature as it makes it possible to make minor adjustments to your photos before you print. If you go for an all-in-one printer, you can also scan or make copies of existing photos.

Photo printer brands

Photo printers have pros and cons, and the brand you decide to buy from will depend largely on your home printing needs and budget.

Below is some information on popular printer brands to help you choose. For more in-depth insight into the different brands, go to which printer brand to buy. 

• Canon photo printers start from roughly £50, although cheaper models do have the capability to print photos (but this may not be their specialty). The most expensive photo-orientated Canons we tested were around £250. A couple scored well in our tough tests and were cheaper than average, making them Great Value printers.
• Epson photo printers are at the higher end of the price range, with more expensive photo printers from this brand costing more than £350, while the cheapest option we tested costs around £120. While the upfront price tends to be higher, we found some Epson models made up for this with considerably lower running costs, with one model running cheaply enough to be an Eco Buy printer.
• HP photo printers have some models with decent-quality photo printing. Of those we tested, the cheapest was just below £200, while pricier options cost up to £400.
• Brother photo printers we've tested cost £150-500, but the brand sells more than 90 different models for home and office use. We've only tested a few photo-orientated Brother printers and they scored reasonably highly, with one getting our Eco Buy label.

We reveal where you can buy the best cheap printer ink cartridges.

Is home photo printing worth it?

Many modern printers can print photos in various sizes, particularly inkjet-type models. 

Printing an individual photo at home is much cheaper than using an online printing service. Print a 10x8-inch image, for example, and it could cost around 35p from a Best Buy printer. You could pay more than triple that from an online photo printing service, with delivery costs on top. 

However, online photo printing services can be much more cost effective if you want to print a lot of photos in one go, as they often offer a discount. 

So for printing the odd photo here and there, use a Best Buy home photo printer. For larger photo printing jobs, such as your holiday album, go to our guide on the best photo books.

Should I use pigment or dye ink?

Most consumer inkjet printers from all the four major brands (Brother, Canon, Epson and HP) use a hybrid set of inks. Black ink pigment is used for crisp, rich black text for documents, and dye ink for vivid colours. It's not always easy to confirm this with every printer, but sometimes the brand will make this clear by labelling the black ink as 'pigment black'.

• Pigment ink uses water-insolable ink particules that sit on the top of the paper surface when printed, so you can feel it on the surface like a painting in an art gallery. It better resists smudging when wet, and better resists ink fading - including in sunlight. This is why it's great for black ink, as text remains sharp and readable. Pigment ink is usually more expensive.
• Dye ink is water-soluable and seeps into the paper, meaning there's no roughness added to the surface of the paper. The dye mixes with the water so this can result in visible colour blending or blurring, depending on the paper used. It's the ideal choice for photo paper as the dye seeps through the glossy layer leaving an uniform shiny finish, which is why inkjets typically use dyes for the colour inks. 

Some printers have both pigment and dye blacks, with the printer using the dye black for photo printing to keep the surface looking professionally glossy (pigment black can also be 'scratched off' and leave an unprofessional finish on glossy photo paper, particularly when viewed off-angle). 

Dye inks also have a wider color gamut than pigment inks, so you get more vibrant colours. This is why professional printers that use pigment ink usually have a wider set of colours to achieve similarly vivid results.

For general printing...

Use a typical inkjet. This means it will use pigment black ink and dye colour inks. Most consumer inkjets use this setup.

For photo printing...

You want to use dye inks to print professional-looking results on glossy photo paper. Printers marketed as photo printers for glossy photo paper will use dye-based inks for photos.

For archival-quality or professional prints...

Use pigment inks for better fade-resistance in sunlight. Be aware that you can't use pigment colour ink in a printer designed for dye colour inks - the pigment particles are larger and risk clogging up your printer. Fully pigment-based printers aren't that common, although Canon and Epson do have a substantial range; they are often marked 'Pro' (Epson also uses 'SureColor') for professional and business use. Prices typically start from several hundred pounds.

What is the best photo printer - pigment or dye?

Use dye inks to print on glossy photo paper, as they seep through the glossy surface leaving a shiny surface. Dye colours are more vibrant with a typical three-colour ink printer, although they can fade faster in sunlight compared to pigment-based ink. It's best to buy a photo printer specifically marketed for printing on glossy photo paper.

If you need a photo to last in sunlight on glossy paper, the most practical option would be to use a professional photo printing service. We've reviewed photo book brands, and these providers usually offer photo printing, too.