There are many decisions to be made before purchasing a printer and they're not made easier by the volume of printers available to choose from. One of the first decisions revolves around the differences between laser and inkjet, but now there is a further choice of standard printer or multi-purpose model.

Other things to take into consideration before buying a printer are what size of print will be required, quality, stock, running costs, volume and speed. Having a clear picture of what the printer will mainly be used for will help considerably.

If image quality is top priority, inkjet printers are considered the best option, as they offer a photographic quality print that isn't achievable with laser. Another benefit to inkjet is that it's possible to print onto a larger range of stock than with laser.

Volume, speed and cost-effectiveness are where laser printers come into their own. However, these features tend to make them considerably larger than inkjets and can eliminate them from the running, if space is a problem.

All-in-one inkjet printers are a good option for small home-based business use. They're bigger than standard models but extra functions include scanning, copying and possibly faxing. Their laser counterparts are even bulkier and are more suited to office environments than home use. Laser all-in-one versions are generally more expensive to buy than inkjets but the running costs are lower.

It's common to find printers at very low prices but this can be quite deceiving. The're sold cheaply because the makers are not looking to make money from the printers themselves but the consumables that are necessary to run them. It's often the case that the cheaper the printer the more expensive the inks, toners and stock are to buy. When checking out the life-expectancy of cartridges, the amount of prints per cartridge stated on the pack is usually unhelpful.

Once a decision has been made about whether the inkjet or laser is the most suitable, it's possible to look more closely at individual brands to see what is available and compare prices. All lasers are not created equal and neither are inkjets. The biggest brands aren't necessarily the best choice and each manufacturer will produce several similar models, with a variety of modifications, in an attempt to suit most users.

One inkjet printer may allow printing onto a variety of stock from the largest format to postcard-size prints. This may be suitable for someone wanting to use their printer for work where quality of image is all important and it doesn't matter if the printing speed is slow. Someone looking to buy a laser printer will probably be looking for more speed and capacity and will need to focus in on how one machine differs from the other when it comes to handling paper.

Making sure that the chosen printer works with existing equipment also needs clarifying before the purchase is made. Most printers seem designed for PC users but older operating systems may not work without the addition of a driver update. Mac users may find that they require a different print driver before their computer and printer can be connected. These can usually be found online.