Standard Vs High Yield

Standard Vs High Yield main image Standard Vs High Yield image
What exactly is a high yield cartridge? You've probably heard the name before, and in this article explain just what it is and how it can save you a bundle on your printing costs.

High Yield Vs Low Yield: What’s the Difference?

You may have heard the terms thrown around a bit, so what exactly is a high yield cartridge? A high yield cartridge is simply a cartridge that contains more ink or toner and can print out more pages than a standard cartridge.

Page yield is a common printer term that refers to how many pages that cartridge can produce. Larger cartridges that contain more ink have a higher page yield–in short, high yield.


What’s the difference between a high yield and standard yield cartridge?

Cartridges are usually available in two different sizes: standard yield or high yield (and occasionally in a third size, extra high yield).  The yield (also called page yield) corresponds to the number of pages you are expected to print with a given cartridge.  Most high yield cartridges include an “XL” after the cartridge part number.

Standard Yield Cartridge: A standard yield cartridge is the most common cartridge size on the market and usually prints a smaller number of pages compared to a high yield or extra high yield cartridge, and can be purchased at a cheaper price. If you don’t print often, standard cartridges are right for you. It wouldn’t make sense spending for the pricier larger version if you don’t really need that much ink. Ink dries up when not used for a while so don’t spend money on something that might just go to waste.

High Yield Cartridge: A high yield (also called high capacity) cartridge contains more ink or toner than a standard printer cartridge, prints more pages, and is more expensive than standard yield cartridges. However, if you normally print a lot, getting a high yield cartridge is cheaper in the long run.

Extra High Yield Cartridge: Not all cartridges have an extra high yield option. An extra high yield cartridge contains even more ink and costs more than a high yield cartridge. This is more suitable in a document-heavy office setting.


Installation

Higher yield cartridges fit in the same slot as standard size cartridges. Most are actually the exact same size, it’s simply a case that the standard cartridge is only half filled while the high yield cartridge is filled all the way. For instance, HP printers that use the HP 63 should also be able to use the HP 63XL. The XL version looks almost identical and are installed no differently from how you install the standard cartridge. All sizes should click into place.


How to tell a high yield cartridge from a standard cartridge?

Because there is no standard naming convention for high yield cartridges, there are some variations on how printer manufacturers name their cartridges. Let’s take a look at a few popular brands to illustrate.

HP®

Inkjet Cartridges: For HP, let’s take a look at the abovementioned HP 63 cartridge. The 63 (like most HP cartridges) comes in two sizes: standard & high yield. Printers that use the HP 63 cartridge can use either of these cartridge sizes and this is how they’re named:

 

Cartridge Size

Cartridge Name

Page Yield

Standard

HP 63 (black)

prints 190 pages

High Yield

HP 63XL (black)

prints 480 pages

 

Laser Cartridges: HP toner cartridge sizes are named a bit differently. A standard HP toner cartridge is signified by an “A” appended to its name and the high yield version is signified by an “X” appended to its name:

Cartridge Size

Cartridge Name

Page Yield

Standard

HP 55A (CE255A)

prints 6,000 pages

High Yield

HP 55X (CE255X)

prints 12,000 pages

 

More examples are the HP 80a and HP 80x, and the HP 26A and HP 26X. HP cartridges commonly only come in standard and high yield sizes.

Canon®

Inkjet Cartridges:  Canon names their ink cartridges in a similar fashion as HP. High yield cartridges have XL appended to the cartridge name and extra high yield cartridges usually have XXL appended to the cartridge name. Let’s take the Canon PGI-640 inkjet cartridge an example:

Cartridge Size

Cartridge Name

Page Yield

Standard

Canon PGI-640

prints 180 pages

High Yield

Canon PGI-640XL

prints 400 pages

Extra High Yield

Canon PGI-640XXL

prints 600 pages

 

Printers that use the Canon PGI-640 can also accommodate the 640XL and 640XXL.

Laser Cartridges: Canon doesn’t have the higher yield option for most of its toner cartridges but the ones that do have the roman numeral “II” appended at the end of the cartridge name. A few examples of popular Canon toner cartridges without a high yield size are the FX-9 and EP22. Below is a table that illustrates how Canon names its high yield toner cartridges.

Cartridge Size

Cartridge Name

Page Yield

Standard

Canon CART319

prints 2,100 pages

High Yield

Canon CART319 II

prints 6,400 pages

 

Brother®

Brother toner cartridges have different names for each cartridge size so it is best to watch out for that. The TN441/443/446 cartridge line up is a great example of how Brother names their different size cartridges.

Cartridge Size

Name

Page Yield

Standard

Brother TN441 (black)

prints 3,000 pages

High Yield

Brother TN443 (black)

prints 4,500 pages

Extra High Yield

Brother TN446 (black)

prints 6,500 pages

 

While all printers that are compatible with the Brother TN441 cartridge are also compatible with the TN443, not all can take the extra high yield TN446 cartridges. It is always best to double check first and see what your printer model can take.

Epson®

Epson inkjet cartridge sizes follow the same format as HP inkjet cartridges with XL indicating a high yield cartridge and XXL for extra high yield cartridges. Extra high yield Epson cartridges are also a rarity just like HP and Canon. Below is an illustration of how Epson names its standard and high yield cartridges.

Cartridge Size

Name

Page Yield

Standard

Epson 220 (black)

prints 160 pages

High Yield

Epson 220XL (back)

prints 400 pages

 


Pricing

The more ink a cartridge has, the more expensive it is. By how much? If I’m getting double the prints does it double the cost? No, while high yield cartridges are more expensive than their low yield counterparts they are more cost effective and save money in the long run. If we revisit our trusty HP 63 example again it gives a clear example of these types of savings:
 

Cartridge Size

Name

Page Yield

HP Price (OEM)

Inkspot Brand Compatible Price

Standard

HP 63 black

prints 190 pages

$34.75

-

High Yield

HP 63XL black

prints 480 pages

$53.22

$33.75

 

So the 63XL does more than twice the prints of a standard size, and costs less than 2 of them, and is even cheaper again when you look at the compatible options too (the compatible high yield being cheaper than a standard yield genuine).

In a nutshell, there is a print capacity that fits everyone’s needs.  If you print regularly, paying a little bit more for a high yield cartridge is worth it in long run because you will usually get a lot more prints than your average standard yield cartridge.

 

 


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