The Best Printers For Art Print In 2023

Top 5 Best Printers For Art Print 2023:

1. Canon PIXMA PRO-100
2. Canon iP8720
3. Epson Expression Premium ET-7750 EcoTank
4. HP Envy 5055
5. Expression Photo HD XP-15000 Printer

If you’re an aspiring artist with a growing fan base, chances are you are going to start printing your work. 

Each year, printer companies introduce dozens of new printer models, which makes picking the best one quite an arduous task. 

You can easily buy a model that you think is good just to realize later the print quality is shoddy. This is why we’ve done the necessary research for you so you can make the best decision when buying the best printer for your art.

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What Are Printers For Art And What To Look For When Buying The Best Printer For Art?

Before we go into what you should be looking for when buying a printer for art, we first have to define what these machines are. 

A printer for art is similar to every other printer out there, but it can print in higher resolution and with better color fidelity. This is why you can’t use an off-the-shelf office printer for your art. A regular printer just isn’t able to reproduce the fine lines, sharp text colors.

Thankfully, the market is full of printers specially designed for printing your art accurately and, most importantly, vividly. 

However, before you make a final decision, there are a couple of things you have to consider. Let’s take a closer look at those considerations.

1. Budget

Before you even start looking for the best printer for arts for your needs, you have to think about your budget.

First, think about how much are you ready to spend on the unit itself. The quality of the print usually scales with the price of the printer. This means, the more expensive the printer, the better the quality of the print. 

Thankfully, even if you are strapped for cash, there are many budget-friendly options available. Just be aware that these budget options won’t have all the bells and whistles you’ll find in a high-end printer for art.

2. Laser Or Inkjet

Making a choice between an inkjet or laser printer used to be easy. The differences between the print speed, color quality, and print resolution used to be stark. However, over the past several years, these two technologies caught up with each other making these differences quite blurry.

The problem these days isn’t about choosing between the color fidelity and image sharpness of an inkjet and print speed and ruggedness of laser – the problem these days is choosing a model that offers higher pages-per-month capacity and toner price.

The choice between inkjet or laser boils down to your personal preference. If you’re planning on printing in smaller quantities, then you should go for a laser printer since it has a lower running cost.

However, if you’re planning on making high-quality prints, then you should definitely go for an inkjet. Even a mid-range inkjet printer can produce images that are incredibly vivid and accurate to the digital source.

3. Print Quality

The quality of the print, commonly known as print resolution, is measured in DPI (dots per inch). The higher the DPI of a particular printer, the better the quality of the print.

When it comes to printers for arts, even the cheapest ones offer the resolution of 600 DPI. We recommend you don’t go below that since artwork usually involves fine lines that a printer with lower resolution simply can’t reproduce.

More expensive models can print at extremely high resolutions, such as 2400 DPI.  This spec usually scales with the price, so if you want a high resolution, you will have to spend extra.

4. Media Size And Type

One of the most essential things you should consider when choosing the best printer for arts is in what size are you going to print. If you print smaller images, there is no point in buying a printer that can print on large media. This goes the other way, too.

After you’ve figured out what size you’re going to print, it’s time to consider the media you’re going to use. If you’re going to print on paper, you should go for a laser printer.

However, if you’re planning on heavier grade paper, you will have to go for an inkjet since they can handle that type of material. 

5. Connectivity And Size

Connectivity is another aspect you’ll have to consider when choosing the best art printer for your needs. We recommend you think about which types of connection you’ll use and then see if the printer you’re interested in supports them. 

Finally, you will have to consider the size of the printer. Most art and design printers are heftier than regular printers, and they also might need space behind them depending on the type of media they print. This is why you should consider where you’re going to place it before you head out and buy it.

See Also: Best Photo Scanner; Best Disposable Camera

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5 Best Printers For Art Prints In 2023: Detailed Reviews

Now that you’re caught up on how to pick the best printer for art prints, you can check out our top five picks. We did the legwork for you, so what are you waiting for, keep on reading!

1. Canon PIXMA PRO-100

Canon is a household name in the printer world, so it’s not a surprise It managed to make its way at the top of our list. The PIXMA PRO-100 inkjet printer comes chock-full of useful features for both fledgling and professional artists. 

When it comes to printing art, having every little detail stand out is precedent. Canon understands this very well, which is why the PIXMA PRO-100 can print in amazingly high resolution. This printer can reach resolution up to 4800 x 2400 DPI.

Resolution means nothing if there’s no detail, which is why this printer features Canon’s FINE technology that produces ink droplets as small as 3 picoliters. Your art will come out in amazingly high resolution with vibrant color. 

Another thing that makes the PIXMA PRO-100 stand out from the rest of the printers on this list is its exclusive Optimum Image Generating technology. 

The OIG technology allows for this printer to analyze the image its printing and determine which is the best ink mix for the type of printing medium you’re using. The system then utilizes the 8-cartridge ink system to produce a print that is a carbon copy of your digital art.

Being able to print in a plethora of sizes and on several mediums is extremely important to every digital artist. The PIXMA PRO-100 can print in sizes of up to 13×19 inches and supports luster, matte, and glossy printing materials.

On top of all that, this printer is blazing fast. It can print an 8×10 inch image in just 51 seconds. With this printer, you’ll be able to print and send out all your art commissions in a span of one morning.

2. Canon iP8720

The second place on our list also goes to Canon. The iP87120 doesn’t come with the bells and whistles you’ll find in the PIXMA PRO-100, but it’s far more budget-friendly.

Don’t let the low price of the iP87120 fool you, it is still more than capable of printing in high-resolution. This printer for art can print in 9600 x 2400 DPI, which is impressive for such an affordable model.

Of course, you can always lower the printing resolution if you don’t have to reproduce every single detail on your digital image.

The surprises don’t end at the fantastic resolution. Besides having the regular cyan, magenta, yellow, and black inks, it also comes with two shades of gray. This allows you to print images in grayscale, which might come in useful to those who are planning on printing photos.

For such an affordable printer, the iP87120 supports an impressive range of printing sizes. With the largest print size of 13 x 19 inches, you’ll be covered for all your projects. 

The good stuff doesn’t end there. This art printer also supports an impressive range of print media. The iP87120 can handle everything from plain paper to photo paper and even CDs. The feeding tray can hold up to 150 sheets of paper or 20 sheets of photo paper, so don’t worry about having trouble printing in batches.

The last ace up the PIXMA’s sleeve is its remarkable connectivity. Not only can you print via high-speed USB, but you can also use AirPrint and Google Cloud Print to send off your designs directly from your phone to the printer. 

3. Epson Expression Premium ET-7750 EcoTank

Epson is another household name in the world of printers, but that is not the reason why the ET7750 EcoTank ended up on our list. No, the reason why we put it on this list is that it’s a real godsend for artists that print in bulk.

While a printing resolution of 5760×1440 DPI is nothing to scoff at, it’s still much lower than most art-focused models offer. 

Your prints won’t be quite as detailed as with the other two printers we reviewed. However, they’ll undoubtedly be miles better than anything a regular printer can churn out.

When it comes to ink capacity, the Epson ET-7750 blows all its competitors out of the park!

Out of the box, this art printer comes with enough ink to last you for almost a year. This is enough for 14 thousand grayscale prints or 9 thousand full-color prints.

If you’re an artist that likes to print art in a plethora of sizes, the ET-7750 has got you covered. With it, you’ll be able to print on paper that’s up to 11 x 17 inches big.

Epson’s print media support is just as excellent since it can support even the heaviest of papers, up to 300 g/m. With this printer, you won’t be afraid to experiment.

Having a printer with a scanner might not be the most important thing for artists. However, it doesn’t hurt to have it. You never know when you’ll have to convert an analog piece of art to digital form.

4. HP Envy 5055

You can’t talk about printers without mentioning HP. The Envy 5055 makes the fourth place on our list because of its excellent price-to-performance ratio. 

When compared to other art printers on our list, 4800 x 1200 DPI resolution Envy 5055 offers seem quite underwhelming. However, this doesn’t stop it from producing detailed and vibrant prints.

Don’t let the affordable price fool you; your art prints will come out vibrant with the ink spread thoroughly on the page.

Although art doesn’t involve a lot of scanning or faxing, it doesn’t hurt to have those features since you never know when you’re going to need them. 

If anything else, the scanner will come in handy if you ever end up needing to convert traditional art into digital form. 

Even though Envy 5055 has a high-speed USB connection, you will mostly utilize its wireless capabilities. Besides supporting traditional WiFi connection, it also supports printing from your smartphone via Google Cloud Print and Apple AirPrint.

Our only gripe with this printer for art is the lack of a memory card port or a USB memory port.

Although the HP Envy 5055 doesn’t come with all the bells and whistles of a premium art printer, it is more compact than such a printer. 

Measuring only 17.52 x 14.45 x 5.04 inches, you won’t have any trouble finding a place for it.

5. Expression Photo HD XP-15000 Printer

The last place on our list goes to an excellent printer best suited for avid photographers. The Expression Photo HD XP-15000 printer will make your photos come to life, all thanks to its exquisite output.

Before we start with the praise, first some critique. One thing you can’t expect from the XP-15000 is speed.

With the print quality set to max, this art printer will churn out 9 monochrome pages per minute in the best of cases. The print speed falls down considerably when printing in color, being able to print around 4 pages per minute. This is why you should avoid this product if you’re planning on printing in bulk.

Although inkjet printers print photos very well, a photo-centric printer like this one produce incredibly vivid prints. And when it comes to this type of printers, the more colors it has at its disposal, the better. 

The XP-15000 features six separate ink cartridges that enable it to print in such high quality. You won’t be able to distinguish between the digital image and the physical copy that came out of this machine.

Printed photos come out vibrant, with correct levels of both blank and color ink.

High-quality prints, unfortunately, has its cost. This becomes apparent when you do the math to see how much money you’re spending per page. 

We used the standard cost-per-page calculation and came up with 13.9 cents per colored page. This might not be much for someone who’s doing art commercially, but it can set back someone who’s just starting their business.

When it comes to connectivity, the XP-15000 comes with every connection option you’ll ever need. Besides the standard USB and Wi-Fi connection, it also supports Ethernet and Wi-Fi direct connections.

If you’re an avid smartphone user, this printer is a godsend. Not only can you use the Epson Connect portfolio, but you can also use Apple’s AirPrint and Google’s Colud Print apps to send your photos directly to the printer for production.

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Conclusion – Our Top 3 Picks:

#1 Canon PIXMA PRO-100 – Comes equipped with a range of technologies and features that will make your art come alive. Not only that, but thanks to its wide medium support, you will be able to make your artistic mark on everything from a sheet of paper to a DVD.

#2 Canon iP8720 – Don’t let its affordable price fool you, its high-resolution printing capabilities will leave you stunned at how well it reproduces every fine detail contained in your digital art.

#3 Epson Expression Premium ET-7750 EcoTank – This printer should be your go-to choice if you print in bulk. Not only will it save you money thanks to its gigantic ink tank, but it will also make your clients happy thanks to its superb print quality.