From the beginning of Wirecutter’s existence, we’ve been testing printers, totaling nearly 550 hours of research and trying dozens of models.

In general, we’ve found that a black-and-white, print-only laser machine is the way to go for most people, and the Brother HL-L2460DW is the best one you can get. This printer is reliable, cheap to buy and run, and simple to operate. And unlike an inkjet printer, it won’t clog if you leave it sitting idle for weeks or months at a time.