When it comes to printers, Epson is one of the first names that jumps to mind. And with good reason: The company offers every type you're likely interested in, from a dedicated photo printer for snapshot prints on up to models with much bigger output. Some focus on all-around output, like our top recommendation, the Epson Expression Home XP-5200. Others specialize in photo or label output. Some offer low initial prices, and some offer low-cost ink instead. In short, whatever you need from a printer, Epson probably has it.

The challenge is to pinpoint the right one. That's where PCMag's testing and expertise come in. In this overview, we'll highlight both what application and what sort of user each of Epson's family sub-brands is meant for. We'll also review the specs, strengths, and weaknesses of each model we recommend. Our choices are based on rigorous testing standards and strict editorial ethics, so you can trust us to help you find the right Epson printer. (We've been around since 1984, and testing printers using PC Labs methodology for almost as long.)

Epson Printers 101: How to Distinguish the Families

Since the last time we took on the task of mapping out Epson printer choices, the company has significantly changed the way it categorizes them on its website. The printer families—and even the vast majority of the printers—are all the same, with as many as 25 distinct printer category names, depending on how you parse them. However, they're now grouped in a way that makes it much easier to find the model that best suits your needs. Even if you plan to buy the printer elsewhere, this is a strong argument for using the Epson site to pick which one to buy.

Many of the 25 category names are barely mentioned here or skipped entirely. The ones we're largely ignoring—except to mention family names where appropriate—range from floor-standing, enterprise-level inkjets that compete with lasers to commercial and production printers for garments, graphics, signage (what you and I call "signs"), and high-volume label printing, some of which cost more than your average car. Epson also offers point-of-sale (POS) printers, some (necessarily noisy) 9- and 24-pin dot matrix models, and even models for commercial printing of labels on CDs and DVDs, some of which burn the discs as well as print the labels.

If you group related families together and leave out the ones mentioned above, you're left with just six that matter for most folks: Expression, EcoTank, WorkForce, PictureMate, SureColor, and LabelWorks. To make it easier to find the right printer, Espon's new site design conveniently lets you choose Printers, from the options across the top of the page, then pick from one of four categories on the left side: Home & Home Office, Office Printers & Copiers, Professional Imaging, and Label Printers & Presses.

(Credit: Epson)

All the printers we're interested in for this overview are in the first category, Home & Home Office, which despite the category name, also includes models of interest to small and medium-size offices, as well as to professional photographers and graphic artists.

Epson Tank, Cartridge, and Photo Printers, Explained

You'll notice three categories under Home & Home Office: EcoTank Supertank Printers, Ink Cartridge Printers, and Photo Printers. Some overlap exists between the categories, so that most of the models in Photo Printers also show up in either the EcoTank or Ink Cartridge category (depending on which type of ink system each printer uses). In theory that lets you narrow down the choices by tank or cartridge ink systems first, then look for the photo printers in the category. Or, you could choose Photo Printers to browse all the photo printer choices in a single group. In practice, however, it's best to look in the Photo Printers category, since some models aren't included in either of the other two groups.

(Credit: Epson)

Once you choose the sub-category you want, you'll see a choice of printers, which is the point where it helps to know the differences between the printer families. If you know which family or families you're interested in, you can choose the filters on the left side of the page to narrow down the list to just the families you want to consider.

Below is a look at each printer family in each of the three categories. Note also that instead of choosing a subcategory, you can pick the Shop All link to see the full list of printers in all three groupings plus a handful of EcoTank models—just six at this writing—that don't show up if you go to the EcoTank category. Epson says these additional printers are available only at select retailers. However, they still fit neatly into the EcoTank family as described below.

Expression and WorkForce Series: Photo, Home, and Office Printing

Although all the printers in this category use ink cartridges, they differ in features. What the three Expression sub-brands have in common is that they offer a low initial price and are aimed at home users with moderate print needs. For those who don't print a lot, the total cost of ownership can be lower than for higher-priced tank printers with lower running costs.

Expression Home printers all print, scan, and copy; offer flatbed scanning only; and are meant primarily for everyday home printing needs. Expression Premium models are aimed at essentially the same sort of user, and are also three-function AIOs, but they offer a boost in photo quality by adding photo black ink to the usual cyan, magenta, yellow, and black (CMYK) inks. They also offer the choice between getting one with a flatbed scanner only, or one with an auto-duplexing automatic document feeder (ADF) for two-sided copying and scanning.

Expression Photo printers like the XP-8700 Wireless All-in-One are aimed at crafters and photo enthusiasts as well as home users in general, and they use six-color ink systems for even better photo quality. The choices include both letter-size and tabloid-size (11-by-17-inch) three-function AIOs, plus one single-function printer, which prints at up to supertabloid size (13 by 19 inches).

The WorkForce umbrella covers a lot of territory, including some models that use a tank-based ink system. However, the only ones included in this section of the website use cartridges and are identified (by the filter options) as WorkForce, WorkForce Pro, or WorkForce WF-Series. They're sold primarily through consumer channels and are aimed at small and home offices.

(Credit: Epson)

Most printers in the WorkForce and WorkForce Pro categories are identified as WorkForce WF or WorkForce Pro WF, followed by a model number, as in WorkForce WF-1234. (You'll find some exceptions to this naming rule, but most are reserved for models sold through business channels.) Both the WorkForce and WorkForce Pro printers are aimed at small and home offices that are looking for a low initial price. As already mentioned, this can make good sense if you print little enough that the low printer price combined with relatively expensive ink cartridges will give you a lower total cost of ownership than a higher-cost tank printer with lower-cost ink.

All of these WorkForce and WorkForce Pro models offer two-sided printing. Most are four-function AIOs (meaning they print, copy, scan, and fax), and most have an ADF for scanning, with the more expensive models offering two-sided scanning. Some WorkForce Pro models can handle paper as large as 13 by 19 inches.

One print-only model, the WF-110 Wireless Mobile Printer, is listed as a WorkForce WF-series printer, and is appropriate for anyone who needs a printer on the go.

EcoTank SuperTank Printers: Low Running Costs

The EcoTank SuperTank Printers category under Home & Home Office takes you to a page with subcategories for the entire range of EcoTank printers, not just the ones actually intended for home and home-office use. EcoTank printers in general are designed to give home, home-office, and small-office users a low running cost, with inexpensive ink that comes by the bottle. For those who print enough pages over the printer's lifetime, the lower running cost can mean a lower total cost of ownership than for less-expensive printers with pricier ink. The sub-brand choices for EcoTank printers are EcoTank, EcoTank Photo, EcoTank Pro, and EcoTank Monochrome.

(Credit: Epson)

The first category, straight-up EcoTank, offers three-function AIOs at the low end, with flatbed scanning only, but adds faxing and an ADF as you move up the price scale. EcoTank Photo printers are aimed at scrapbookers, crafters, and creative professionals, and can handle printable optical discs. They offer six-color printing for better-quality photos and graphics, and can print at up to letter size (for the ET-8500) or up to supertabloid size (for the ET-8550).

EcoTank Pro models are designed for the range from home office to small businesses or workgroups. They all offer Ethernet and Wi-Fi for network connections; most can fax, print, copy, and scan; and the top models can print at up to 13 by 19 inches and scan at up to 11 by 17 inches. Finally, the EcoTank Mono sub-brand (also referred to on Epson's site as EcoTank Mono and EcoTank Black & White) is Epson's answer to mono lasers. It's designed for small and home offices that print lots of documents and don't need color. The models in this category range from a single-function printer to a four-function AIO with an ADF. All come with two years of unlimited ink, with no subscription needed.

PictureMate and SureColor: Your Personal Photo Lab

In addition to the Expression Photo and EcoTank Photo printers already covered above, the Photo Printers category includes PictureMate and SureColor models. These two sub-brands are at the two extremes of the Epson printing spectrum. PictureMate offers what Epson calls a "personal photo lab" and is limited at this writing to a single model, the PictureMate PM-400, which has been on the market for a long time now. It's meant primarily to print small-format photos, up to 5 by 7 inches, and can print from a variety of sources, including memory cards.

In contrast, the SureColor moniker goes with several categories: The SureColor P-, F-, T-, S-, R-, and V-Series. These are mostly floor-standing, large-format printers, and each series is designed for a different application, from gallery-level photos, to architectural and engineering drawings, to commercial printing like outdoor signage.

(Credit: Epson)

The only SureColor models that matter for this overview are the least-expensive SureColor P-Series models, which are both included in the Photo Printers subcategory under Home & Home Office. Although they're designed for printing professional-quality photos, fine art, and graphic design output, the low end of the line is inexpensive enough that serious photo enthusiasts may want to consider them. The two of interest are the SureColor P700, which prints on paper up to 13 inches wide, and the SureColor P900, which prints at up to 17 inches wide. Both use a 10-color ink system with archival pigment ink.

Professional Series: For Businesses That Depend on Printing

The three other main choices for printers—Office Printers and Copiers, Professional Imaging, and Label Printers & Presses—are well outside the scope of this overview. Office Printers & Copiers, for example, covers dot matrix printers and floor-standing copiers and printers. There are also some desktop printers that offer some variation of "WorkForce" in their names—including WorkForce Pro Supertank, WorkForce Pro WF-Series, and WorkForce ST-Series—but they're sold primarily through business channels, which also puts them outside the scope of this overview.

The Professional Imaging categories similarly include primarily floor-standing printers for everything from CAD operations to printing on fabrics, while the Label Printers and Presses categories cover the ColorWorks and SurePress sub-brands. ColorWorks printers deliver full-color labels on demand for businesses that print enough to justify the printers' high prices, while SurePress digital label presses are the sort of behemoths that need more floor space than a small family room.

Epson LabelWorks: Industrial-Style Label Printing

You'll find the current set of Epson LabelWorks printers on its own section of the vendor's website. All of the LabelWorks printers use industrial-style labels, meaning that most of the available tapes are plastic (polyester), though some other kinds exist as well, including vinyl and magnetic (similar to flexible refrigerator magnets), as well as some specifically for labeling cables, and still others designed for home users, including a printable ribbon label.

(Credit: Epson)

The printers include models for both home use and work. They run all the way from the strictly standalone LW-PX300 (which requires typing label text on its own keyboard, and is limited to a maximum 0.71-inch-wide label tape) to the LW-Z5010PX, which can handle 2-inch-wide tapes and can create and print labels as a standalone printer or from a PC or mobile device. A nice touch for all of them is that Epson offers a lifetime warranty. Most also work with a wide range of label types, but you'll want to check before buying to make sure the printer can print the kinds of labels you need.

So, What Is the Best Epson Printer to Buy?

It's easy to feel overwhelmed by all the Epson printers available, but you can cut the list down to a manageable size by finding the sub-brands most appropriate for your needs before looking at details like paper handling, copying, and scanning. We've picked the best Epson printers in multiple use cases, based on our tests and overall evaluations. For more options—from Epson and other manufacturers—check out our favorite inkjet printers and printers overall, as well as our picks for the best photo printers, the best business printers, and the best wide-format printers.