A commercial copy machine is essential in a modern office environment. Whether you’ve based your business at home or on commercial premises, there is a price to suit all budgets. Typically, you can buy an average office copier for around $1500. However, professional copy machine prices vary across a broad scale depending on their features. The cost to purchase a good quality, low-volume copier suitable for home office use ranges upwards of $170. In comparison, a higher-grade commercial copier machine costs from $3,000 to $40,000.
Usually, an office copier price depends on variations such as copying rate (volume), printing speed measured in pages per minute (PPM), monochrome or color ink, and paper size (A2, A3, A4). But, you also have printing methods such as inkjet or laser, and other automatic or semi-automatic features.
Whichever copier you choose, go for the type that matches the number of users in the office, its intended purpose, and the expected volume. As a bonus, most general-purpose home and commercial copiers also double as a printer and scanner when connected to a computer or other device. In contrast, specialty production copiers usually don’t have this multipurpose use.
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How Much Does a Commercial Copy Machine Cost?
The table below gives price comparison of different industrial copiers and their costs to purchase. Because most manufacturers sell their products through third-party dealers, many don’t publish prices on their official websites. In these cases, we have found indicative prices on third-party websites and marked the cost with #.
| Model | Print speed (ppm)/ Volume (pages per month) | Cost* | |
| Basic | Canon ImageRUNNER 1643iF | 43ppm – 10000/month | $1500# |
| Konika Minolta bizhub C287 | 28ppm -120000/month | Not published | |
| Ricoh MP C307 | 31ppm – 5000/month | $2000# | |
| Epson WorkForce Pro EC-4020 Color Multifunction Printer | 20ppm -1500/month | $180 | |
| Xerox B210 | 31ppm – 4000/month | $150 | |
| Mid-range | Canon imageRUNNER ADVANCE DX 4725i | 25ppm – 50000/month | $8000# |
| Konica Minolta bizhub C658 | 65ppm- 250000/month | $5000# | |
| Ricoh GreenLine MP 6055SP | 60ppm – 200000/month | Not published | |
| Sharp MX-6070N | 60ppm – 225000/month | $7000 | |
| Xerox VersaLink C500 | 45ppm – 10000/month | $770 | |
| High end | Canon imageRUNNER ADVANCE DX 717iF | 75ppm – 10000/month | $5850# |
| Konika Minolta bizhub 458e | 45ppm – 200000/month | $13000# | |
| Ricoh Pro C7200SL | 85ppm – 240000/month | $18500# | |
| Epson WorkForce Enterprise WF-C21000 | 100ppm – 400000/month | Price not published | |
| Xerox VersaLink C9000 | 55ppm – 30000/month | $4550 |
*Prices are correct at the time of writing (August 2021) and are sourced from the official company website except where indicated. However, prices may have changed since this time. So, use this guide as a starting point for your own research.
Basic Copier Machines
Low volume copiers are suitable office printers for a start-up or small business, whether in a home office or on commercial premises. Usually, this type of business only needs a few copies per day, so a small commercial copier with a low volume is ideal.
Typically, the printing speed is around 20 pages per minute (ppm). Moreover, this type of machine costs from $150 to $1000, depending on its many features.
Examples of these include:
- Canon Pixma TS3320 – This is a multifunction full-color copier/printer with a printing speed of 19ppm. You can also control this using Amazon Alexa and scan from all mobile devices. Typical new selling prices are around $150.
- Brother DCP-L2530DW – This is a monochrome laser multifunction printer/copier, having a print speed of 36ppm. This machine retails for around $175.
Mid-tier Professional Copiers
Medium volume professional copiers are ideal for mid-sized businesses or small ones that are growing fast. A busy office like this needs a faster print rate, say about 40ppm. Usually, machines such as these are larger than basic copiers and contain more features. Typically, mid-tier copiers cost from $2000 to $5000; however, manufacturers don’t usually publish the official prices. Instead, they allow third-party retailers to set a price and offer discounts.
Examples of this type of copier include:
- Canon iR3245N – This machine prints in monochrome at 45ppm. Like most printer/copiers, it has an automatic feed. Moreover, it also offers electronic sorting and has a built-in stapler.
- Konika Minolta Ineo+368 – This machine is a multifunction copier, printing in full color or monochrome at a speed of 36ppm. Also, some of its features include printing from mobile devices and the cloud.
High-End Office Photocopiers
These high-performance copiers target large businesses that need high-volume printing. Copiers such as these print at over 100ppm, but the majority are slower. These commercial-grade machines are heavily automated, with many features. Generally, high-end copy machine prices range from $5000 to $21000, but some might cost even more than this. Once again, very few companies publish high photocopier machine prices. Instead, they prefer purchasers to contact them for a customized deal.
Typical examples of high volume copiers include:
- Xerox VersaLink C9000 is a color LED printer stacked full of features, which prints at a speed of up to 55ppm. The copier also holds around 1140 sheets of paper. You can find this Xerox machine on sale for around $4550.
- Sharp MX-4050N is a professional copier machine full of useful functions. It prints in monochrome at a speed of 40ppm. And in addition to standard A4-sized paper, the photocopier also prints onto A3. You can usually find this copier for about $22500.
Factors Affecting Office Photocopier Prices
The two main factors that determine the price of a business copy machine are:
- The overall capacity and how fast the machine can make copies.
- The feature package included with the copier.
Let’s look at these in more detail.
Capacity
High-performance copier machines are more expensive than slower speeds. Typically, low-volume copiers print at around 20 PPM, mid-range copiers print at about 40 PPM, and high-performance copiers print at 100 PPM and over.
Features
If you just want a photocopier, then you’ll be happy with a single function copier. However, if you decide on a more expensive multifunction machine, you can have extra features such as scanning, printing, fax, and document imaging.
In addition to these, some of the features that cause higher prices include:
Type, size, and thickness of paper
- The range of different paper thicknesses it can handle.
- The size range. The default paper size for most copiers is A4 or letter. But, some more expensive copiers also print onto A3, and A2. Generally, you find that A3 and A2 printers will also print onto A4 paper.
- Do you need to copy onto transparencies and envelopes as well as paper?
Stapler
- Many copiers designed for printing large documents and booklets also include automatic collators and staplers.
Networking
- Networking capabilities also vary the purchase price. Small multifunction machines can network via WiFi to a single or small group of computers. High-performance multifunction machines are wired into the office network and serve many computers.
Color and image definition
Even if you only have a monochrome copier, the image still needs to be of good quality. And if you have color, then that must be true to life. The overall image quality is usually measured in dots per inch (DPI). Those copiers with definitions higher than 600DPI will be more expensive.
Software
The software loaded onto the copier controls the machine’s operating and self-maintenance features. High-performance machines have more sophisticated software than cheaper copiers.
Purchase vs. lease
The decision to buy or lease a copier lies with you and whether your company can afford the capital expenditure of a purchase. And, that’s not the only thing to consider. If you buy a copier, you have to organize the machine’s maintenance, whereas a leased copier comes with maintenance already covered by the contract.
Leasing a copier is very useful when your business needs a top-of-the-range machine costing many thousands of dollars, and you need business capital for other purposes. Usually, leased business copy machine costs range from $60 to $900/month, depending on the model you’ve chosen.
Used vs. new copiers
Although it’s useful to have a brand new machine, don’t underestimate the benefits of using a pre-owned model. Many traders offer used copiers, already re-conditioned, and you can save plenty by choosing one of these. Generally, you can save up to 35% on high-end photocopiers, but you have to take the available models and price offers.
How to save money
It’s pretty easy to save money by only choosing machines that have features vital to your business. For example, if you only print monochrome text, there’s no need to buy a high-performance color copier.
Office Copier Example Costs
It’s not easy deciding which copier or multifunction copier/printer is right for your business requirements. The only way is to make a list of what you want from your copier and decide on which of the many brands providing these features you can afford.
Some of these example costs will help you narrow down your shortlist into a manageable chunk.
$100 to $600
These multifunction machines are suitable for a home office or a small team. The machine might be cheap, but the ink cartridges are usually quite expensive. Usually, these print at around 20ppm.
$1500 – $3000
These machines are typically low-end commercial models. They are much more capable than a home copier but still only have basic office features. Usually, these machines print from 20 to 30ppm. Typically, models include the Ricoh Aficio MP 2000SPF priced from $2,800 to $3,100.
$3000 – $10000
Models in this price range usually have an automatic feed and can connect to an office network. Furthermore, these usually print at around 35ppm. Typical models include the Xerox Workcentre 7125, priced from $3,600 to $3,800. Alternatively, choose the Canon 6065 priced between $8,000 and $11,000.
$15000 – $20000
Multifunction copier/printers within this range often have features, such as card readers, hole punching, collating, and stapling. These models also have features with a direct to email capability. Typically, their print speed is around 35ppm.
$40000 – $60000
This size machine is more suited to large corporations who need fast throughput. Typically these print at around 50 to 60ppm. Each machine will have all available features, some of which only a large company will use.
$80000 minimum
These printers can operate and produce copy at over 100ppm. However, a machine such as this is only essential if the company is in the printing business. Otherwise, you will rarely use all its features.
Leasing a copier
Of course, leasing a copier will make these high prices more affordable, especially if your company needs a high-speed copier.
On average, renting a copier with a low print speed (20 to 30ppm) might cost your company around $70 to $100 per month. In contrast, the cost to lease a fully-featured, high-end model might cost around $700 per month.
What Should I look For In My Business Copy Machine?
It makes sense to be critical when choosing a business copy machine. If you decide on a copier that has features you’ll never use, then you’re wasting your company’s money. So, here is a list of things you should look out for:
Useful features
Understand what features your company needs in a copier. Who will use it, and what will they use it for? To help you with this, look at this list:
Multifunctions
Do you need to do more than copy? You might also scan, print from a computer, collate, and staple.
Color or monochrome
Does the company need color or monochrome printing? Monochrome, or black and white, is usually adequate for text documents. But, if you want full-color images, then choose a color one. Alternatively, buy a monochrome for general use in the office and a small cheap color copier for those times when you need full color.
Copier speed
Do you need a machine that churns out the copies quickly? If the answer’s no, then you don’t need a super-fast copier, do you? Look at the specification sheet, where it’ll tell you the printing speed. If you’re a non-specialist small business, you probably won’t need anything faster than 40 to 50ppm.
Office size
Most offices are already configured to allow for the optimum deskspace, doors, and windows. So, where do you intend to put the machine? Many of the medium to high-performance machines can take up the floor space of a large desk. So, think carefully about how big the copier is and where you intend to put it.
How many people will use it?
How many people will have regular access to the copier? You don’t need a large capacity copier for a single person or a small team. However, if a large department needs to use it, then go for a large capacity machine.
Paper capacity
How much will it be used? Look at the volume and capacity specifications. The capacity is a measure of how much paper you can load into the copier. If you have a small business that isn’t creating booklets eight hours a day, then you only require around 50 sheets or so at a time. You’ll find, refilling the paper trays is simple enough if you run out.
Memory
If you intend your copier to store many documents, then you need one with enough memory. If this sounds like your place of work, then look for a copier with a minimum of 1.5GB.
Security
Many businesses copy or print confidential and secure information such as Social Security numbers, financial data, account numbers, health records, credit reports, or business secrets? The Federal Trade Commission provides a guide to help with setting up the appropriate data security.
Scanner
All copiers need a scanner, but which type should you buy? Some are good enough for black and white text pages, but if you intend to copy or scan high-resolution images, you should choose one with 4800-pixel resolution.
Inkjet or laser printing?
Choose the printing medium depending on your needs. If you don’t intend to copy or print many pages, go for an inkjet. Furthermore, they’re a lot cheaper too. In comparison, if you intend to print high volumes of high-quality images, you should choose a laser printer. Laser printing is fast and produces very high-quality images. Usually, the toner lasts much longer than an ink cartridge too.
Paper sizes
Will the machine use standard A4 and A3? Or perhaps you need a specialist copier for A2, A1, or A0 plans. Do you intend to copy onto envelopes or transparencies?
Network
If you already have the office computers linked to a server or each other via a wired network, it makes sense to connect the copier to the network. Alternatively, most copiers also have the option to network using WiFi.
Running costs
It would be great to have all these features, but we also have to consider the cost.
What is your budget? If you know this, you have immediately cut down your list to those you can afford. Furthermore, if you decide to lease, each copier comes with a list detailing the cost of ownership. It’s essential to read this and understand it. However, even if you decide to buy, you still need to know these additional costs.
- Price of toner or ink.
- Maintenance costs.
- Are you limited to a certain number of copies per month (lease only)?
- How much electricity does the copier use?
Leasing/Renting vs. Buying an Industrial Copier
You should also consider the pros and cons of renting or leasing against buying a copier. Purchasing always means high up-front costs. However, if you lease or rent, you usually end up paying more in the long term. Another advantage of buying is that once you’ve paid, you own it and can do with it what you want. You can even resell it if you want something different.
However, purchasing a copier has a significant drawback; everything becomes your responsibility, including maintenance, once you’ve paid. Therefore, if you purchase a copier, you don’t pay as much. But, the risks become more pronounced.
Leasing, on the other hand, isn’t just the opposite of purchasing.
Yes, you save on up-front costs and usually don’t worry about maintenance and spares, as the monthly payments cover these costs. However, your contract will specify a monthly base rate. That is, a set maximum number of copies and prints. On top of this, if you go over the maximum, you pay extra. However, you might be lucky and find a flexible plan with pricing tiers that change every month depending on the number of copies. In comparison, other plans will charge extra for each page over the maximum.
Finally, at the end of the term, you have the option to continue the lease with a newer model, find another provider, or purchase the copier from the provider at a heavily discounted price.
So, the choice between purchasing and leasing depends very much on your company’s bank balance, its policy towards capital spending, how long you intend to use the machine, and what you want to use it for.
Top 5 Best Commercial Copier Suppliers
Here we profile some of the most reputable business copy machine suppliers. Note that we haven’t ranked the companies in any particular order.
Xerox
Xerox is a large multinational manufacturer of photocopiers, printers, and multifunctional units. While the parent company specializes in sales and leasing, Xerox also has a subsidiary company, Continua, specializing in short-term rentals to businesses that need additional support. These could be for temporary offices, seasonal increases in demand, conferences, and other events.
Xerox solutions for the rental market include a full range of services:
- Equipment delivery, installation, and removal.
- Servicing.
- Printer and copier supplies.
- Maintenance.
The rental solutions on offer include hiring from 3 days up to one year. This deal gives the customer the advantage of a short-term rental to reduce business costs and the disadvantages inherent in long-term lease contracts.
Xerox offers many advantages to those customers choosing their products:
Multi paper types
Companies often neglect to choose the ideal paper to get their message across when needing to convince a client. Furthermore, many printer and copier companies don’t bother to promote this idea anyway. However, Xerox realizes that first impressions are everything when trying to win that lucrative contract. Therefore, their products can accept many different paper types without suffering from performance or quality issues.
Output quality
Xerox has a reputation for equipment that produces high-quality print. But, they manage to do this without selling their products at such a high price that customers go elsewhere for their printing requirements.
A consistently good reputation
Xerox has been around for many years and has built a consistent reputation for quality and competitive prices.
Quick boot-up times
Many manufacturers produce equipment that takes forever to start in the morning. Because of this, customers don’t turn them off at night. However, the significant disadvantage of doing this is that you’re using power overnight. Therefore, Xerox produces copiers and printers that start very quickly, so you’re happy to turn them off when not in use.
Just what your business needs
Xerox produces printing and scanning equipment to suit most customers. If you’re short on office space, you can choose small machines that you can carry from place to place as needed. Other machines allow you to scan all types of paperwork, such as magazines, passports, books, etc. Alternatively, Xerox has many products specifically designed for speed.
Epson
Epson is one of the leading printer and copier manufacturers and sells many machines ideal for the modern office environment, both large or small. Furthermore, its technology allows its products to print at high speeds to a very high quality.
Some of the following benefits shows how valuable this company’s products are:
Power saving
Electricity use is always a significant factor in a company’s overheads. All Epson’s equipment automatically goes into low power usage mode when not in use. And of course, there are the benefits of using their multipurpose scanning, printing, and copying equipment. This means you only have one machine operating or standing idle, rather than three separate machines, each using power.
Convenient
We’ve just mentioned the multipurpose machines, having all the standard functions in one machine. Well, they’re also very compact too. If you have a small office, you can have the machine stand next to your desk. Furthermore, Epson’s machines also digitally store files in their built-in memory (typically up to 6MB), so you can work ahead on various projects.
Maintenance & repair
Epson machines are very reliable, therefore need fewer repairs. Also, the company engineers designed the machines to have a minimum of components. Moreover, there are only three components that might need replacing during the machine’s lifetime:
- Maintenance box.
- Paper pick-up rollers.
- Ink cartridges.
Connectivity
All Epson machines can interface using WiFi or directly with mobile devices. The company’s printers support Apple AirPrint, Epson iPrint, and Google Cloud Print. The advantage of this is that your Epson machine, at home or in the office, can connect to your devices, no matter where you are in the world.
Affordable price
Epson machines are renowned for being affordable, and their printer ink ranks among the lowest priced consumable compared to any other printer.
Konica Minolta
This company has a full range of multifunction machines as well as single-function copiers. Furthermore, Konica’s high-end machines produce copy at 105ppm using monochrome ink. Also, the company’s multifunction machines are among the top-rated in the office environment because you only need one machine to cover all aspects of scanning, printing, and copying. The following paragraphs show the versatility of these machines.
Interface
The machine has a touchscreen control panel that provides intuitive control. Also, some models have optional Voice Guidance systems to provide the user with audible instructions. Moreover, there are also one-touch preset controls for everyday print jobs.
Print management
The machine tracks printer usage, and your company can allocate printing costs to a person or a department. If you have a new employee or one who isn’t as tech-skilled as others, customized tips are available for training. The majority of printing in the office is probably monochrome. So, it makes sense to use the feature that allows you to use this mode as the default, with color as an option.
Scanner/copier/printing features
The Konica machines have:
- Fast dual scanning with the advantage of a large document feeder.
- Scanning to the cloud and printing from the cloud.
- Many features such as collating, booklet making, and stapling.
- Use multiple paper sizes.
- Automatically scan to PDF.
Versatility for many business types
Konica Minolta has a machine for just about any type of customer. The compact multifunction printers are great for home offices or small start-ups. In comparison, if you have a growing business, then choose the Konica Minolta bizhub range for an ideal scalable solution.
Sharp
Sharp produces many different types of printers and copiers to suit all company types. The machines have excellent security features to protect the data stored on your computers and servers. Specifically, the Sharp Security Suite includes a full range of features to protect your system from data breaches or hacking:
- The Suite restricts printer access from unauthorized users. Therefore, only authorized employees have complete access.
- Direct connections from the cloud or over WIFi are restricted to authorized users.
- The built-in software helps to protect the system from hackers.
- Your IT department and other authorized users will be the only people to configure the system remotely.
Ricoh
Ricoh copiers are affordably priced, of high quality, and made by a highly respected electronics company of 75 years. The following reasons show why a Ricoh copier is a valuable addition to your office equipment.
Award-winning
Ricoh has won many product and industry awards with its multifunction monochrome printers and high-quality laser printers. Moreover, almost every product has won awards from Buyers Laboratory Inc. Also, Computerworld included the company in the top 100 technology leaders of 2016.
Wide product selection
Whether you want a printer, copier, or multifunctional device, Ricoh has many products to suit almost any company. Furthermore, they are also very affordable.
Warranties
The last thing you want to happen when you’re in the middle of a long copying/print run is for the machine to break down. And, even the most expensive and most well-known machines break down occasionally. Therefore, Ricoh supplies a warranty for all their equipment when bought and used within the USA.
Distinguished history
Ricoh has been trading since 1936 and has fought its way to be an industry leader ever since. Furthermore, it boasts many high-ranking customers such as Nintendo, AT&T, and Toshiba. So, you know it’s got a good reputation.
Affordable
Even though the company is a market leader, it doesn’t overprice its products. Many outlets around the country sell Ricoh products, and you can be sure that you’ll find special offers at many of these.
Commercial Copier FAQs
What is the average cost per page for printing?
First, let’s see how we calculate this value.
(Price of ink cartridge / page yield) + cost of a sheet of paper = cost per page
Now we can look at each factor in turn:
Cartridge price
This is the cost of the ink cartridge. Probably, you won’t be surprised to find out that the price depends on the make and model of the printer
Page yield
This is the number of pages your printer can produce before changing ink or toner cartridge. Usually, you’ll find this value on the reverse of the cartridge packaging or in the specifications. However, you should know that the manufacturer calculates the yield under controlled conditions and based on printed pages with only 5% coverage. Usually, this is around one-third of a page of double-spaced text. Not much, is it?
Paper cost
Paper cost depends on the quality and size of each sheet. Typically, depending on the weight and quality, costs range from 0.5 and 2 cents per page. Even so, don’t be tempted into buying cheap paper. Probably, it won’t hold the ink correctly, and colors will run. So, choose a well-known and respected brand of paper.
So how much does a page cost?
Well, if you note what we said previously, you’ll find that, on average, the cost of printing a page calculates at approximately 5 cents per page. But, one more thing to remember. The type of printer machine matters too.
If you use a $100 printer, an average monochrome page costs around 5.5 cents (as we’ve just seen). Furthermore, a color page using the same printer costs around 9 cents. In contrast, using a $1000 printer, the same page will cost 4 cents using monochrome and 8 cents using color.
So the average price depends on the price and sophistication of your printer, its ink or toner cost, the quality and size of the paper, and finally, how much monochrome and color print you use on each page.
How long do commercial copiers last?
A copier’s lifetime depends on how many pages you print and whether you exceed the machine’s monthly duty cycle. Furthermore, you must also keep up with the machine’s regular maintenance.
However, in the trade, many people know that most copiers only last between three to five years on average. Therefore, if you try to use your copier or printer for longer than this time, you will notice a loss in productivity, and eventually, the machine will break down.
So, make sure to replace your copier before its performance deteriorates to the point where you can’t read the print. The ability to replace the printer is one of the reasons that many customers decide to lease.
What is the best copier for a small business?
Probably, the best copier for a small business is one that can multi-task. For this reason, we would suggest going for a multifunction printer/scanner/copier, with a print speed of around 20 to 35ppm. If you choose one of these, you automatically have three machines for the price of one, and as a copier uses almost the same technology as a multifunction, the price won’t be much different.
Now we look at the brand names. Probably the best basic multifunction machines come from:
- Hewlett Packard (HP) has an excellent multifunction printer. The Laserjet Pro range provides print, scan, copy, and fax capabilities for any small business.
- Canon provides some of the best commercial machines for just about any sized company.
- Kyocera printer/copiers usually have high ratings for their multifunction color copiers. Both color and monochrome printing speeds can reach 26ppm.
- Konica Minolta designs its range, especially for small businesses. Their Bizhub range handles monochrome prints at 35ppm.
Choose one of these or any of the other good quality and well-known brands, and you won’t go far wrong.
Next Steps
If you don’t know what you’re doing, choosing the correct copier for your business can be very difficult, especially if you want to incorporate printing and scanning functions as well. It’s even more challenging to find out the prices of the copiers on your shortlist, as most copier/printer manufacturers don’t publish their commercial copy machine prices online. Instead, you have to compare third-party suppliers to try and find the best deal.
You probably need help. So, complete the form on this page, and you’ll receive up to 4 quotes detailing the best copiers for your size business and your company’s requirements.