Before you start considering getting a new printer that comes with cheaper ink, check the settings on your current printer. Oftentimes there are three different print settings you can choose from: Best, Normal, and Draft. These will determine how much ink is used when you print in order to get the quality chosen. The Best setting will print very clearly with solid colors all around, but it uses the largest amount of ink in order to do this. The “Normal” setting uses less ink than the “Best” setting, but still results in fairly high quality printing. The “Draft” setting uses less ink than any of the other options, but the print quality will be low. It’s still generally fine for everyday use, though.

Using the Draft mode will generally produce acceptable results unless you’re printing really important papers or photos. Doing so will save you a lot of ink over time, extending the life of your cartridges as well as your wallet. You should confirm your settings before you print every so often because sometimes the printing settings will change back to pre-specified defaults in-between prints.

A different way to go about it is to use a local refill station that will refill empty ink cartridges. Instead of purchasing brand new cartridges each time you need ink, you can keep using the original cartridge and simply pay a small amount of money to get it injected with more ink. This way, you can reduce the cost of an ink cartridge by $10, sometimes more, when compared to buying a brand new ink cartridge. Something to point out, though; some printers will think the cartridge is still empty even after you’ve used an ink refill service to refill it. In rare instances, a printer will warn you about your “empty” ink cartridges every time you try to print but will otherwise work just fine. In rarer instances, the printer will refuse to print at all until it thinks there’s ink in the cartridges. It doesn’t happen very often, but it does occasionally happen.

Another way to go about it is to buy new cartridges only after thoroughly shopping around first. Many online retailers that specialize in ink offer a huge range of ink cartridges at much lower prices than at typical electronics or office supply stores. You can generally save even more money by passing on “official” ink cartridges and buying refurbished cartridges as an alternative. Rumors have long floated around about the reliability of refurbished cartridges, but if you buy your ink from reputable sources, they are just as good as the originals. (As a matter of fact, this author has bought many refurbished ink cartridges for his old Canon printer, circa 2001, and has never had any problems with it).

You can spend less of your money on ink than you might think. Forget about buying from high-priced retailers and brand new cartridges each and every time. You can save both money and ink when you use refurbished or alternative ink cartridges, use only the ink you need to, and shop around for lower prices. And by shopping around to find the best prices on whatever products or services you decide to use, you can save even more.