Finding the best printer for Mac is now much easier than it used to be, and most models will work with your Mac straight out of the box. With worries about compatibility out of the way, then, what makes the best printer for Mac?
To kick things off, there is no Apple Printer, but AirPrint support is a very nice feature to have. If a printer offers that, you're guaranteed easy wireless printing from the get-go, not only from your iMac or MacBook but from an iPhone and iPad too. If you're a creative, you'll want high-end print quality and colour reproduction, but you'll probably also want a printer that can scan and copy, and different sizes of paper – not just A4. Another thing to consider is the design of the printer. And if you're a MacBook owner, you might want something compact and lightweight so that you can take it with you when traveling.
With those elements in mind, we've picked together a selection of the best printers for Mac, at a range of prices and with all the different features you might need. We've chosen each model based on the specs as well as reviews from our network of contacts. If this isn't quite what you need, take a look at our guides to the best printers for photos (opens in new tab), the best art printers (opens in new tab) and the best home printers (opens in new tab), many of which will also work perfectly alongside your Mac.
The best printer for Mac
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The Epson Expression Premium XP-6100/6105 (the number varies depending on your country – expect to find a lot of this minor annoyance throughout this roundup) is an excellent choice when looking for the best printer for a Mac. It's wireless capabilities make it super-easy to use, and it comes with a variety of other functions including scanning, copying and automatic duplex printing too.
For a mid-range printer operating over a wireless network (which we all know can cause issues), it's hard to fault. In fact, we were so impressed with this unassuming little printer, that we rated it 4.5 out of 5 stars in our full Epson XP6100 review (opens in new tab). If you're after a printer for Mac that's capable of high quality prints and do a little bit more, this is a solid option.
If you're looking for great print quality without spending a fortune (scroll further down the page if you're actually looking to spend a fortune), this Canon Pixma would be our first choice. It's thoroughly Mac-friendly with AirPrint connectivity ready to go, but what really marks it out is its use of six ink cartridges. We've found that, combined with the 4800 x 1200 DPI resolution, they give impressive colour fidelity and prints that really pop.
There's also an SD card slot so that you can print photos from your camera without having to get a computer involved. This Pixma can also do duplex printing and it'll scan and copy as well. It'll look great on your desk, too!
Designed with Mac users in mind, the HP Deskjet 2720e All-in-One Wireless Printer is a delightfully minimal and compact printer that'll complement the MacBook Pro (opens in new tab) and iMac M1 (opens in new tab), but should also appeal to anyone who wants a printer that won't take up too much desk space. It has full AirPrint compatibility, which makes it a breeze to print from any Apple device, and there's no need to fiddle with drivers or plug-in cables.
It's a cheap option, and it won't offer the best quality for high-end design work or photos. However, it is versatile, with the option to scan and copy as well as print. Its connectivity means that you can get high-quality scanning and sharing – plus easily make copies – from your smartphone using the HP Smart App. There are also built-in wireless capabilities and Bluetooth, which gives you another way to print fast from iPhone or iPad.
Aimed more at small businesses rather than individuals, this Epson WorkForce Pro is a good choice if you're after a printer that everyone in a studio can share, and which can do all those extra things you're likely to need such as scanning and copying. It boasts AirPrint compatibility for printing from any Apple device, as well as an Ethernet port so that anyone on your office network can print with ease. With a decent print speed and lots of room for paper, nobody should be kept waiting for their prints.
It's also cheaper to run than most inkjets since it uses Epson's XL cartridges that can go for up to 2,600 pages. They offer a lot more value for money than standard cartridges, making this printer almost as cheap to maintain as a laser printer.
If you love the smell of hot toner in the morning and absolutely must have a laser printer to go with your Mac, we'd recommend the Brother DC-PL3550CDW All-in-One Wireless Laser Colour Printer. It's big and heavy but spits out pages at a fair old lick, and it can do colour prints as well, with separate cyan, magenta and yellow toner cartridges bringing decent colour results.
It'll connect wirelessly as well as via a network or USB, and like many of the printers listed here it can also be used for scanning and copying. It'll also hold up to 250 sheets of paper, so if you need lots of pages printed really fast, this is an option to go for.
Need the best printer for Mac that'll do justice to your photography skills? If you don't have a massive budget but want gorgeous glossy prints of your photos, this Canon Pixma should serve you well. Colour prints on glossy paper are where it really excels, delivering fantastic colour reproduction and a super-smooth finish, but it can also do a fantastic job with matte and fine art media.
There's AirPrint support for straightforward printing from your Mac, iPhone or iPad, as well as USB and Ethernet connections, and it also comes with Canon's own software to help you get your prints looking their best.
This is our pick as the best printer for Mac if you're a serious designer who needs quality prints larger than A4. There's no denying that the Epson SureColor SC-P5000 is very expensive, not to mention incredibly heavy. But if you need to print at poster size, we reckon it's worth every penny. It goes up to A2, and in terms of print quality it beats every other printer in this roundup, as you might reasonably expect.
The SureColor SC-P5000 uses a set of 10 Epson UltraChrome HDX pigment inks that enable it to reproduce 99 per cent of the Pantone solid coated colour range. Combined with an internal colour calibration sensor, this means that anything that comes out of it is going to look absolutely stunning.
Look at the price of this Canon Pixma and you might not think it counts as budget, but, as you probably know, with cheap printers the cost of ink cartridges can often quickly add up. And that's where this printer comes into its own; instead of cartridges, it uses refillable ink tanks, and it comes with enough ink for 6,000 black and white pages and 7,700 colour pages.
It's also AirPrint compatible and it can scan and copy as well as print. It's not the fastest printer in the world, but if you have an eye on the bottom line, we think it's well worth considering.
Related articles:
- The best laser printer
- How to choose a high-end printer
- Print anywhere with the best portable printers
