Dilemma. You are without a printer for a variety of reasons.

What should you choose? Leasing or renting a printer or buying a new one.

In this article, we will show you the pros and cons of each option.

It happened again. I was recently printing a contract for a client. Suddenly, my printer stopped working. I was panicking as I didn’t know what to do as this was a very important business for me. Then I started googling for solutions. Best price for a new printer, lease a printer, rent a printer, I want a printer ASAP, printer services, printing solutions… I got a lot of hits. But I was in a dilemma. What should I choose? Should I buy a brand new printer, lease a printer or rent a printer? In this article, we’ll give you the pros and cons of each option.

Buying a printer or copier is a big purchase. It can be costly, especially for businesses that don’t know how much they will be printing and haven’t calculated properly. That’s why there are other options like leasing or renting.

Let’s start with leasing. Leasing a printer is certainly a good decision if you are short on cash. You have a fixed monthly payment that you agree with the lessor in advance for a longer period of time. This allows you to plan ahead for your expenses, which are very predictable. If you know with certainty that you will need a machine for a longer period of time. That is, a year or more, then leasing is a good option. Typically, maintenance is included in a lease. That means annual inspections and maintenance. In many cases, you also get managed print services to streamline or manage a company’s document output.

On the other hand, leases are signed for a long term. Mostly for 5 years. You need to make sure that the print volume remains the same. Otherwise, you are trapped in a contract, which is sometimes a big risk for small businesses and startups. This risk was evident last year during the pandemic when companies slowed down printing, but there is nothing you can do since you are trapped in a contract.

Another downside to leasing a printer is that it is more expensive. Many businesses overpay for the actual value of the copier or printer during the lease period and also for maintenance.

The next option is to buy a brand new printer or copier.

Buying a printer is a one-time exchange of money for a depreciable asset. Then it’s your asset, you know exactly how much you’re paying for it, and you can do whatever you want with it. Use it or, when you no longer need it, sell it. You are not dependent on a contract or a third party and you can be very flexible with maintenance.

When buying a printer, you need to factor in a large initial investment. This is because it does not include the ongoing costs of the printer, such as replacing cartridges or other spare parts. Replacing consumables is very expensive and sometimes even exceeds the cost of the printer. If you need replacement parts, you may have to wait days for them or buy them at an inflated price from the vendor. However, buying a printer also involves some extra work. You have to take care of the printer yourself. Maintenance service is not free. All of this costs extra and takes up your already limited time. Not to mention the warranty period, even if it is included, you will be without a printer for at least a few days.

Printer rental, proses, and conses

One of the best choices for renting is that you have a lot of flexibility, as the contracts aren’t as long as with the lessor. This gives you a lot of freedom when deciding on a rental contract. It is a cost-effective solution as there is no initial investment. Perfect for new businesses or those who want a worry-free solution.

Renting a printer is a great solution for optimization and get a better overview of printing costs in your business. The price of the monthly rental is completely fixed, with no additional costs, adjusted to the print volume and the most suitable type of device for an individual job. The package is linked to the number of prints and is determined by you in consultation with our sales experts.

The price of renting a printer includes service and all spare parts for the printer, so you don’t have to worry about anything in the event of a breakdown or the need to replace cartridges.

Unlike buying a printer where you have to take care of maintenance yourself or pay dearly for a service technician, our technical support team responds exceptionally quickly to ensure smooth operation. The call center experts are also available to provide ongoing support and answer any questions you may have.

The Optiprint solution allows you to never throw away a set of cartridges throughout the life of the printer, regardless of the quantity printed. In the trend of waste reduction, we use a lot of waste material in production that would otherwise end up in landfills. During operation, Optiprint has saved approximately 3,820,000 cartridges through our development based on cartridge reuse.

Optiprint has been in the equipment rental and rental service market since 2009, which is an ever-growing industry.

Optiprint always puts the customer first, as evidenced by more than 4,100 satisfied customers. With an extensive franchise network throughout Slovenia and therefore a local presence, they ensure a quick response regardless of your location.

With the business franchise model, they are also present abroad, in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Romania, Italy, and the Czech Republic. More information on how to become our franchise partner can be found here.

At the end of the day, it is still a decision for the end-user or the company that suits them best. However, the recommendation definitely goes towards renting. It certainly has more advantages than disadvantages. It gives you the freedom and choice to sign and cancel the contract at any time, but on the other hand, it also gives you the opportunity to spend your precious time doing your job and things you love to do instead of wasting it on maintenance, buying spare parts, or reading contracts. At the end of the day, I too decided to rent an Optiprint TOP package.