Best Printer for Crafting 2024: Arts & Crafts Has Never Been Easier

Having the right tools for your arts and crafts – whether as a hobbyist or a business owner – can make all the difference, but it’s hard to know what exactly you need. The best printer for crafting is a multimedia beast, allowing you to print out designs and detailings on an array of materials in a variety of sizes. So if you’re looking to upgrade the quality of your craft, check out our selections for the best printer for crafting!

We’ve selected an array of printers from across the market, factoring in a variety of features, that are all worthwhile printer investments. So whether you’re a hobbyist crafter or looking to take your arts venture to new commercial heights, we’re sure to have the printer for you.

How We Picked the Best Printer for Crafting

We prioritized two critical factors when deciding on the best printer for crafting: media support and color quality. Crafting often involves a lot of materials, from glossy paper and cardstock to vinyl and fabric. To ensure your creativity remains boundless, we included printers with highly versatile media support. As for color quality, we included printers with innovative color printing technologies. On top of these, we looked for suitable printing speeds, a wide range of prices to accommodate all budgets, and compact designs to fit anywhere.

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Epson Expression XP-15000

4.5 /5

Editor’s Rating

How We Review

Specifications

• Printer Output: Color
• Printer Type: InkJet
• Connectivity Technology: USB, WiFi Direct, Cloud Printing
• Duplex Printing: Yes

What We Think

This printer’s reputation precedes it: the XP-15000 has been topping of our lists of top printers even before we reviewed it hands-on.

Reasons to Buy

• High-resolution printing – the XP-150000 is capable of printing with an effective resolution of 5760 x 1440 DPI.
• Compact design – smaller than it’s predecessor models whilst still being capable of 13″ x 19″ prints, this printer is ideal for those not wanting an overly-bulky photo printer.

Reasons to Avoid

• Slow print speeds – at 9 prints per minute, the XP-15000 isn’t the slowest, but it’s still quite time-consuming.

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A versatile and reasonably-priced printer, Epson’s Expression XP-15000 is a great addition to any crafting station! Packing a grab-bag of features into a small design, the XP-15000 is easily the best printer for crafting!

With a print speed of 20 pages-per-minute, the XP-15000 is one of the fastest printers on our list, alongside all the other features. The rear tray supports all kinds of specialist media such as cardstock and can print up to 13″ x 19″ – with borderless printing of any size below that. Using a six-color Claria ink system, you are guaranteed accurate colors and vivid detailing. And with multiple wired and wireless ways to print your designs, you’ll never struggle to create with the XP-15000!

If we had to pick a flaw in the XP-15000, it would be that the print speed is sacrificed on the altar of print quality, with slow print speeds even for standard documents. Regardless, as one of the more affordable craft printers on the market, we think that this printer just manages to strike the right balance.

HP ENVY 6055e Wireless Inkjet Printer

Specifications

• Printer Output: Color
• Printer Type: InkJet
• Connectivity Technology: Bluetooth, WiFi Direct
• Duplex Printing: Yes

What We Think

For a craft printer under $200, the 6055e is a great median option: always a lower price, never cheap.

Reasons to Buy

• Versatile print options – with an 8.5″ x 11″ print size across cardstock and other specialist media, you can create high-quality and varied designs with ease.
• Multipurpose unit – as an all-in-one printer, you have everything you need for your home or business in an affordable package.

Reasons to Avoid

• Poor design features – a terrible status light and poor ink economy ironically limit the 6055e’s value.

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For crafting on a tight budget, the HP ENVY 6055e is a great print solution. With support for a wide array of media and a small footprint, this is a cheap-and-cheerful option for entry-level craft enthusiasts!

As we discussed in our dedicated look at the best printers for greeting cards, this printer manages to do a lot with little! With a versatile multimedia tray, the 6055e is capable of producing deliverables up to 8.5″ x 11″ in size. With options to print via WiFi, Bluetooth or USB connection, you’ll be able to print your designs no matter what you design them on!

However, there are some potentially deal-breaking drawbacks to this printer. Despite the compact design, most of its place-anywhere benefits are negated by an awful status light that bathes any room that the 6055e sits in with ugly light. What’s more, like our top pick, this printer isn’t very ink-efficient – which is made worse by how difficult it is to even get hold of HP’s exclusive ink range. If you are just getting started with crafts, however, and want a low-investment option to experiment with, then the HP ENVY 6055e is still the best budget printer for crafting available!

Canon TS9521C

Specifications

• Printer Output: Color
• Printer Type: InkJet
• Connectivity Technology: USB, WiFi Direct
• Duplex Printing: Yes

What We Think

This Canon printer is capable of stellar print resolutions, making for highly detailed prints in a variety of craft scenarios.

Reasons to Buy

• High-quality prints – Canon’s ChromaLife ink prevents images from failing, for long-lasting keepsakes.
• Dedicated craft printing – the TS9521C’s rear tray is dedicated to thick specialist media such as heavy cardstock and DVDs.

Reasons to Avoid

• Slow print speeds – at 10 pages per minute, the TS9521C is faster than the XP-15000, but not by much.

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Designed with crafters in mind, the Canon TS9521C can meet all your printing needs with its blend of ease of use, precision, and versatile media support. Though slower-than-average for a printer, the range of options means that this shouldn’t prove an issue for most crafters or hobbyists!

The TS9521C can print deliverables up to 12″ x 12″ in size, with support for a host of media options. Another highly-efficient ink tank printer, this has a low cost-per-print and produces great color gamuts and detail. Alongside wired and wireless connectivity options, there’s also a handy SD card slot which is perfect for photographers or designers.

However, we don’t recommend it if you need a high turnover for your work: the TS9521C prints at a measly ten prints per minute in color, which is painfully slow compared to others on this list. And given the maximum print size, it isn’t as compact, either. These are all manageable tradeoffs, however, and we like the TS9521C as a highly versatile printer for crafting!

Brother MFC-J895DW

Specifications

• Printer Output: Color
• Printer Type: InkJet
• Connectivity Technology: USB, Ethernet, WiFi Direct, Bluetooth
• Duplex Printing: Yes

What We Think

As small as the 6055e but packing much more crafting capabilities, the MFC-J895DW is a stellar mid-range printer for crafting.

Reasons to Buy

• Highly compact – measuring only 6.8″ x 13.4″ x 15.7″, the MFC-J895DW is able to keep its footprint small.
• Varied connectivity options – with the choice between a broad range of wired and wireless connections, it’s easier than ever to print.

Reasons to Avoid

• Poor build quality – the overall design of the MFC-J895DW is somewhat underwhelming, and some design choices leave a lot to be desired.

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With the Brother MFC-J895DW, your limited living space won’t stand in the way of your passion for crafting anymore. It’s an insanely compact and lightweight printer that will cover your crafting needs if you work on a small scale!

With plenty of printing options and a maximum print size of 8.5″ x 14″, the MFC-J895DW makes the most of its small footprint. With a compact ink tank design, you also get a relatively low cost-per-print. Along with the now-standard WiFi and wired connection options, the MFC-J895DW also has Near-Field Communication (NFC) support – meaning you don’t need to set the printer or device to the same network for sending over designs, a quick and handy solution.

However, there are some reservations with the MFC-J895DW. The build quality is a little poorer than some other models reviewed here, and some features such as the input tray are inconveniently placed. The small size of this printer does seem to hamstring it slightly, as on top of these quirks, the printer can only produce 12 prints per minute. However, a small printer results in small disappointments, and the MFC-J895DW is still a capable printer for those working on a limited budget and space – another great printer from Brother!

Epson EcoTank ET-8550

Specifications

• Printer Output: Color
• Printer Type: InkJet
• Connectivity Technology: USB, WiFi Direct
• Duplex Printing: Yes

What We Think

Our final pick, the ET-8550 is a tremendous addition to any business-level craft project, boasting tremendous print quality and versatility – last, but certainly not least.

Reasons to Buy

• Low cost-per-print – thanks to the economic ink tank system and efficient printheads, ongoing costs are kept low with the ET-8550.
• Detailed prints – with highly accurate droplet placement, graphics are both accurate and vibrant.

Reasons to Avoid

• Slow print speeds – like the XP-15000, the ET-8550 suffers in terms of overall print speeds.

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As mentioned in our guide on the best printer for graphic design, the Epson EcoTank ET-8550 is a dark-horse candidate for a cartridge-free crafting solution. If you want a low-hassle printer with great ink economy and a large printing format, then this is definitely the choice for you!

With a maximum print size of 13″ x 19″, the ET-8550 is great for designers looking to create sizeable works. It can support the printing of borderless photos, glossy pictures, CD and DVD covers, cardstock, and more. And with highly economic ink tanks rather than cartridges, this printer is far more efficient than a great many of its competitors.

However, the ET-8550 is notably slower than a great many other craft printers, which will alienate business-minded designers after speed as well as efficiency. It is also quite heavy despite the small footprint, and with some strange design choices that can make the ET-8550 cumbersome to use at times. We’d much rather have a little longer to wait for a better and more economic print solution, though. Taking away the hassle of ink cartridges and giving back a wide range of printing options, we think the Epson EcoTank ET-8550 is a great printer for crafting at any skill level!

Features and Considerations

When shopping for the best printer for crafting, there are a few essential factors you should keep in mind to ensure the right choice for your needs:

Media Support

Making sure that your printer can produce your designs on whatever materials you need it to is essential. There are a variety of available materials that are cable of being run through a printer – from glossy photo paper to wafer sheets for edible ink. Most of the best printers we’ve listed here are rated for materials such as cardstock, envelopes or stickers as standard – for anything more specific, you’ll need to check with the manufacturer in question.

Print Quality

For the most aesthetically-perfect designs, you’ll want a printer with a high print resolution. In general, InkJet printers produce more vivid color accuracy without losing sharpness – though this can vary from model to model. Resolution is measured in Dots per Inch (DPI), same as many graphic design applications, so make sure that your printer can match your high-clarity and colorful designs.

Ink Economy

They say that most printer companies are really ink companies: though many manufacturers produce quality printers at great prices, this can be a smokescreen for the long-term cost of running them – the “razor and blades” business model. To know whether a printer’s running costs are reasonable, check the price of ink cartridges or bottles that it utilizes before you commit to purchasing. You can generally find an average cost-per-print factor either from the manufacturer or customer reviews – though this can vary for printers for crafting, as the ink usage and cost of specialist materials can vary.

FAQs

Verdict

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Epson Expression XP-15000

4.5 /5

Editor’s Rating

How We Review

Specifications

• Printer Output: Color
• Printer Type: InkJet
• Connectivity Technology: USB, WiFi Direct, Cloud Printing
• Duplex Printing: Yes

• Shop on Amazon

For a great quality of print no matter what you’re printing on, the Epson Expression XP-15000 is our top pick for the best printer for crafting! Whether you’re a journeyman crafter or looking to take your hobby to new heights, this printer is sure to impress you with its speed and resolution. Though the cost of ink can build up, all is forgiven as soon as you see your designs in the flesh – or card.

Looking to turn your designs into fully-fledged art installations? We have a great guide on some of the best canvas printers available now!