Question for people who print DIY; What is your cost for a 16x24 print?

[earlybird]

Hi,
 I am wondering how the cost of using a print service compares to the cost of ink and paper when printing on your own.

 To keep it simple, I am not asking about factoring the cost of the printer, work space or energy with the cost of paper and ink. I am specifically curious about the cost of paper and ink.

 Can some of you share the cost of the paper and ink you use per print for formaats such as 16x24? How about 24x36?

 Thank you.

 

[Peter McLennan]

Paper costs are readily available online.  Low price for a 17X22 is about two dollars a sheet.  Ink cost per print is less than half that, but there are hidden costs.  Many printers appear to waste as much ink as they put on the page.

[earlybird]

Thanks for your answer.

I have only owned smaller Epson photo printers and have been very disappointed at the price of ink versus the number of prints I could produce. There seemed to be no way to cover an 8x11 sheet with full color for $1.00... sometimes it seemed like it cost $10.00. I started using a variety of print services as an alternative.

I've been wondering what larger format printers, especially those that can use refillable ink reservoirs, cost in terms of ink use.

 

[Mark D Segal]

Paper and ink costs vary widely depending on what paper, what printer, what inkset. How much printing do you intend to do? Depending on your volume the amortization of the printer cost and an allowance for maintenance can be substantial, even though you say you aren't asking about that. Refillable cartridges with third party inks introduces other risks unless you really have a collection of credible, reliable experience from other users on the same model and inks of interest that points to good performance over a sustained period of time.

[AFairley]

Printing on papers like Epson Exhibition Fiber or Canson Bayrta Photographique with an Epson 3880.  I figure my cost at around $10 per 17x22 print (roughly 50-50 paper and ink).  That includes a couple 7x8.5 work prints and background ink wastage over time (printer cleaning cycles, e.g.), but does not factor in printer cost (if I am remembering right, it's been a while since I did the calculation).

But I really enjoy printing myself, so it's not a pure money consideration for me.

[Some Guy]

Red River has some data on their site, but they only go up to 13x19 inches.

Printing costs by Red River Paper

Jon Cone recently mentioned in a post on his forum that about a third of the ink is wasted just in maintenance.  Seems high, but does seem with the amount of clogs I get it could be true, as well as the wasteful Epson PK/MK ink switch.  Also, with some of the boot-up auto cleans I don't know how much ink goes to waste, but the sound is sort of wallet crunching at times while I watch the maintenance tank's LCD indicator drop.

SG

[Ken Bennett]

I'm sure it costs more than $10 for a finished 16x24 print from my Epson 3800, especially if I figure in work prints (but not the printer cost).

Here's the thing, though -- don't print your own to save money. Print your own because you want complete control over the process. You will not save money unless you make a LOT of very large prints and compare the cost to a custom print shop, not Costco or wherever.

That said, the per-ml cost of ink is much lower with the larger printers and their larger cartridge capacities.

[dgberg]

Epson 9900
Ink .56 a square foot.
Most papers range from $1.00 to $1.50 a square foot.
At 2.5 square feet I average just under $5.00 for a 16x24.
Not including any of that other stuff which is a much bigger number. Like the $4000 taxes and the $2000 insurance and the $2000 heat and the $2000 electric etc.....

[earlybird]

Thank you to everyone for the detailed answers.

[Jimbo57]

Using an Epson R3000 printer, I reckon about £15 (say US$23) per finished A3 print.

Seem a lot?

The reason I print my own is that:

(a) I want total control of my photographs from the moment I compose the image in the viewfinder until I mount the print.

(b) I am careless.

No matter that my monitors and printer are perfectly cross-calibrated, a print can never look exactly the same as a screen image. But, more than that, after examining a print, I will inevitably find a wee flaw that I didn't notice on the screen. Or on the first print.....or the second..... Or I just see something that I would like to make a little different.

The result is that I usually end up making 3 or 4 prints before I am completely satisfied. If I was ordering them from a commercial lab, I probably wouldn't do that.

[enduser]

We started out thinking only about paper and ink costs.  After printing for a few months other costs became more apparent and worrying. These include printhead costs (Canon), extended warranty, and (heaven forbid), tech person visits, maintenance tank costs and more.

These will bug you over time.

[Kiwi Paul]

With my Epson P800 I reckon it costs me about $4.50 for paper and ink for a 16 x 24 inch print at max print resolution.
That's using Epson Premium gloss or Lustre paper.
I do soft proofing on LR before printing and what I see on screen is what prints out so very rarely do I need to print more than once now.

Paul