Top 10 Best Sublimation Printers for Heat Transfer

Based on how you look at it, the skill of sublimation may be both enjoyable and rewarding. This is because any product (typically clothing) may be altered, making it suitable for launching your new business or having completely unique apparel.

Because their quality is determined by how well you can make personalized patterns, print them, and translate them anywhere you desire, it is crucial to know which are the top sublimation printers for heat transfer.

Printed photos on paper and tangible records are always in demand regardless of how far digital depictions of pictures and computerized documentation have progressed. Let’s discuss some of the best sublimation printers for heat transfer in this article.

Comparison Table

Printer	Print Speed	Copy Speed	Ink Palette	Weight
Epson Workforce Color Inkjet Printer	Multi	Multi	Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black	11.5 lb – 40.8 lb
HP OfficeJet Pro 8035	Black: 20 ISO ppm Color: 10 ISO ppm	Black: 29 ISO ipm Color: 29 ISO ipm	Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black	18.04 Ib
Epson Artisan 1430	Black: 2.8 ISO ppm Color: 2.8 ISO ppm	NA	Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black	26 lb
Sawgrass Virtuoso SG1000	NA	NA	Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black	36.90 lb
Brother Mono-Laser Printer	Black: — ISO ppm Color: — ISO ppm	Black: 36 ISO ipm Color: — ISO ipm	Black	22.7 lb
Epson Stylus C88+	Black: 23 ISO ppm Color: 14 ISO ppm	NA	Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black	10.2 lb
Hewlett Packard LaserJet Pro	NA	NA	Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black	30.4 lb
SureColor F570	NA	NA	Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black	NA
Sawgrass Virtuoso Sublimation Printer	NA	NA	Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black	27.2 lb
Epson EcoTank ET-2750	Black: 10.5 ISO ppm Color: 5 ISO ppm	Black: 7.7 ISO ipm Color: 3.8 ISO ipm	Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black	13.2 lb
Canon PIXMA iP8720	Black: 14.5 ISO ppm Color: 10.4 ISO ppm	NA	Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black	18.6 lb

Our Top 3 Picks

Sublimation Printing

Before discussing the best sublimation printers right away, let’s discuss sublimation printing to give you an idea about what you will be jumping into in this article.

Heat is utilized to transfer color upon materials (popularly referred to as sublimate), including plastics, papers, clothing, and much more in sublimation printing. This printing process is a terrific approach to generate premium quality t-shirts without needing to invest a lot of money in setup.

By employing a sublimation printer, the pattern is produced on sublimation paper that is commonly referred to as heat transfer paper as well as sublimation transfers. Several inkjet printers may be transformed into dye-sublimation printers with the use of dye sublimation inks.

Sublimation blanks are injected into the imprinted pattern after it has been printed. Sublimation blanks are essentially empty sublimation goods such as mugs or shirts.

In order to deposit the ink, the sublimation blanks are basically loaded inside a heat press machine alongside your design-printed sublimation sheet. The solid ink is transformed into a gaseous state and applied to the goods after 5-6 minutes.

The best aspect is that the patterns are both accurate and colorful, as long as you utilize the duration and heat settings that are appropriate for your items.

Now the best sublimation printers for heat transfer will be discussed.

Sublimation Printers That Are Suitable For Heat Transfer

I have also recorded my reviews about these products, here you can watch it:

Epson Workforce Color Inkjet Printer

In case you require a printer capable of printing, copying, faxing, and scanning and can perform all four efficiently, the Workforce is a good choice. Many multi-purpose printers, like the Workforce, can accomplish all of these tasks, but they don’t always have a lot of options.

The Workforce stands out from the others since it offers a wide range of alternatives. To begin with, its load capacity is enormous: it can hold close to 250 sheets of paper. This implies that if you have a lot of documents for printing, scanning, copying, or faxing, you won’t have any issues.

There are no sizing options on several multi-functional printers. Furthermore, most of these printers only take a single paper size, severely limiting your options. The Workforce will print every sheet of paper close to 13-inch by 19-inch, so this isn’t a problem. The Workforce can also scan documents up to 11-inch by 17-inch in length. This demonstrates that the Workforce is near-perfect in terms of alternatives.

The Workforce is a large printer that might be difficult to use since it is a fully-featured printer. Whereas the touchscreen choices on the rear of the printer are a great addition, the tiny screens sometimes make them difficult to operate.

Specifications

• Color / Mono                          Color
• Print Speed                             Up to 24 pages per minutes
• Max. Print Size                        8 inches x 47.2 inches

HP OfficeJet Pro 8035

To conserve space, costs, and effort, consider purchasing the HP OfficeJet Pro 8035. If you want to copy, scan, print, or fax your documents, this all-rounder printer is ideal.

Surprisingly, the printer will notify you whenever it runs out of ink, allowing you to buy a brand new cartridge. Furthermore, you may select this variant for your busy work because it comes with a 225-sheet tray.

This printer offers a high resolution of 4800 by 1200 dpi, which is ideal for high-quality printing. In fact, the printer may print up to 29 black ppm and 25 colored ppm.

The device can print borderless documents up to 8.5-inch x 14-inch and accepts papers up to 8.5-inch x 11-inch. The scanners on the device are 1200 dpi, ensuring high-quality scanning as well as printing.

Is it necessary for you to print multi-page papers as part of your job? This device can hold roughly 35 sheets of paper. Surprisingly, the printer supports both Wi-Fi and Ethernet, allowing you to connect to your network rapidly.

A 2.7 inches touch interface is used to operate the connectivity. Additionally, the Wi-Fi capability allows users to hook it to their phone for immediate printing.

You may use Amazon Alexa as well as Google Assistant to activate the device using a voice command. Finally, Wi-Fi Direct guarantees that your internet activity is not disrupted.

Specifications

• Color / Mono                          Color
• Print Speed                             Up to 25 pages per minutes
• Max. Print Size                        8.5 inches x 14 inches

Epson Artisan 1430

If you’re seeking a printer capable of producing vibrant, high-definition photos and graphics, the Epson Artisan is a good option. With the ability to print pictures up to 13-inch by 19-inch in size, you’ll be capable of printing any picture in high clarity. In fact, the Artisan may print images with a resolution of up to 900 pixels.

Several other heat transfer printers used for printing photos can’t produce graphics this huge or realistic, so this is ideal for anybody looking for the finest printer for a small startup.

The Artisan 1430 functions wirelessly, operating over Wi-Fi connections. This is a mainstream technology, but the Artisan is superior since it can be used with any device that has internet or Wi-Fi connectivity, not just your computer. You may print practically any picture from any smartphone with the Artisan, provided the smartphone is connected to the printer.

The Artisan also has the advantage of using separate ink cartridges. Rather than depending on a single universal color cartridge, it will be possible to replace your cartridges when required.

Nevertheless, the Artisan’s usage of separate ink cartridges might be inconvenient. Regular monitoring of the Artisan’s numerous cartridges might be difficult, as well as the photos the Artisan prints out may consume plenty of one cartridge but not the second. While using the Artisan, be ready to swap out cartridges frequently.

Specifications

• Color / Mono                          Color
• Print Speed                             4 inches by 6 inches photo in 46 seconds
• Max. Print Size                        13 inches x 44 inches

Also Check: 13 Best Sublimation Printers 2022 – Buyer’s Guide

Sawgrass Virtuoso SG1000

The Sawgrass Virtuoso SG1000 seems to be the finest sublimation printer to choose if you want a high-resolution printer. Unlike comparable printers, this one will print well on a wide range of materials.

You may print on a variety of materials if you have one of the top sublimation printers, such as sublimation mugs, woods, or T-shirts. Sawgrass is regarded for producing some of the top printers in the marketplace.

Remarkably, the printer produces outstanding photographs with a resolution of 4800 by 1200 dpi in just 6 minutes and 40 seconds. It also employs a dye sublimation method, which allows you to apply ink on a variety of textiles in less time.

If you are eager to switch from your outdated SG400 printer, then you don’t have to be concerned. There is no waste of resources because the printer includes suitable accessories from its preceding edition.

The nice thing about this printer is that this may handle all of your massive printing needs. As a consequence, instead of working your usual job, you may start a new revenue stream within the Dye-sublimation printing industry, which promises a rise in sales. Furthermore, the letter-sized printer enables precise and high-quality customization of designs.

Specifications

• Color / Mono                          Color
• Print Speed                             600 by 600 dpi in 15 seconds
• Max. Print Size                        13 inches x 19 inches

Brother Mono-Laser Printer

Repeated printing cycles can consume a huge amount of ink and be expensive. This is particularly the case if you print lots of items on a regular basis, and it’s easy to run out of ink amidst printing processes that demand you to print many complex papers quickly.

Brother has effectively overcome this issue by including a 2600 sheet substitute toner cartridge in their Mono Laser printer. This implies you’ll be able to print more than 2600 pages without having to replace the ink cartridge using this Brother’s mono-laser printer. This makes it ideal for office environments where thousands of papers are printed on a routine basis.

When it comes to print resolution of Brother’s Mono Laser printer, it is likewise unaffected. It may print at a resolution of 2600 by 600 dpi, which makes it even more suited to printing important papers that must be as simple as possible.

The mono-laser printer from Brother is also versatile in terms of performance and size. Mono-Laser has a paper capacity of almost 250 pages and therefore may print both in legal as well as letter formats. The mono-laser printer from Brother is only capable of printing. This printer lacks the capability of scanning, faxing, or even copying. As a result, its application is relatively one-dimensional.

It’s additionally is not Wi-Fi accessible, so you’ll have to instruct the printer to print from the computer you’ve connected to it. This may be quite inconvenient in big setups when Wi-Fi connectivity is required.

Specifications

• Color / Mono                          Monocchrome
• Print Speed                             36 pages per minute
• Max. Print Size                        8.5 inches x 14 inches

Epson Stylus C88+

There are two drawbacks to using a color printer that utilizes just a single ink cartridge intended for all the colors needed. Firstly, in case the printer is used often, the ink will quickly run out. Secondly, you’ll be replacing the cartridge frequently.

The second problem concerns the general quality of the printed material. If just a single ink cartridge is utilized, the quality of the print is severely affected.

Epson’s Stylus requires numerous ink cartridges. This fixes both problems because you’ll just have to replace one cartridge, and the quality will be significantly better.

Furthermore, if you employ color printers with many cartridges, you might discover that you are supposed to change individual ink cartridges far less frequently than if you were using a color printer with just a single ink cartridge.

Quality is yet another aspect where Stylus shines. Whereas most color printers that employ several ink cartridges have good quality in and of itself, the Stylus goes above and beyond, producing a stunning 5760 by 1440 dpi ratio. Color printers of this level of quality, especially ones with numerous ink cartridges, are rare.

Nevertheless, aside from color printing, you won’t receive much benefit from this printer. It may just print in color and at a speed of roughly 23 pages per minute, and it does not support Wi-Fi.

Specifications

• Color / Mono                          Color
• Print Speed                             23 pages per minute
• Max. Print Size                        8.5 inches x 44 inches

Hewlett Packard LaserJet Pro

Anyone who requires a printer for their office environment will benefit from Hewlett Packard’s most trusted printer, “LaserJet Pro,” a lot. You can never be wrong with this printer if you are seeking a printer for business or perhaps an office, whether it is about the paper capacity or the printing quality, or even the printing speed or the connectivity.

The output of most printers identical to the LaserJet pro is 200 to 250 sheets. The LaserJet Pro offers a 300-page capacity. You will seldom need to replenish the LaserJet Pro, except if everything is going so quickly that you happen to lose count of the number of papers you have put in the printer.

In addition, the LaserJet Pro is known for printing documents and drawings fast. You won’t have to bother over any pages printing slowly, considering a speed of 28 pages per minute with this printer. If you’re printing a large document or several photocopies of the exact document, you can have them pretty quickly at the same rate.

Not only does the LaserJet Pro provide wireless connections, but it may even accommodate up to ten people in its workgroup. This is ideal for any business scenario where a large number of employees need to print at the same time.

Since the LaserJet Pro can accomplish so much, you’ll be required to teach people how to operate it. Regretfully, this printer is not as user-friendly as it is supposed to be, and it will frustrate anyone who does not understand how to use it. It also includes a lot of settings, which might make it difficult to operate at times.

Specifications

• Color / Mono                          Color
• Print Speed                             28 pages per minute
• Max. Print Size                        8.5 inches x 13 inches

SureColor F570

Among a handful of sublimation printers which does not require a modification tool is the Epson SureColor F570. It’s perfect for picture presents, cups, tumblers, posters, and clothes, among other things. This highly efficient printer was introduced a while ago and has since grown in popularity.

PrecisionCore technology helps make it simple to print quicker without compromising quality. It has 2 complete units of CMYK inks capable of printing 24-inch x 100-inch roll and 17-inch x 100-inch sheets.

The installed cutter, as well as high-capacity ink tanks, are two other features that contribute to its high performance. Altogether, it’s a solid choice for anyone looking for a desktop sublimation printer with the output capacity to justify a $2000+ investment.

Specifications

• Color / Mono                          Color
• Print Speed                             NA
• Max. Print Size                        8.27 inches x 13 inches

Sawgrass Virtuoso Sublimation Printer

Numerous heat transfer or sublimation printers presume that you actually own heat transfer papers or sublimation sheets. In case you don’t possess any on hand and need to start printing patterns right once, this may be a real pain.

Luckily, the Virtuoso from Sawgrass includes 110 and maybe a couple more sheets of sublimation paper which you may use right away. This is ideal if you don’t know where to acquire a sublimation sheet but need to create patterns right away.

Numerous heat transfer printers additionally presume that you already own the design tools you use to create logos and graphics before purchasing one. Virtuoso also handles this by adding its own program.

In case you already possess software, this provides you another alternative or saves you the hassle of seeking for designing software.

Nevertheless, Virtuoso has a limit to the types of impressions it can make. You’ll have to search somewhere else if you require a heat transfer printer capable of transferring graphics onto cotton. Only polyester textiles and polymer-coated sophisticated materials are acceptable for Virtuoso’s ink.

Virtuoso’s overall effectiveness suffers as a result of these constraints.

Specifications

• Color / Mono                          Color
• Print Speed                             600 by 600 dpi in 15 seconds
• Max. Print Size                        8.5 inches x 14 inches

Epson EcoTank ET-2750

Epson EcoTank ET-2750 is the ideal option because it can function well for sublimation printing, copying, and fax machine all in one. Unlike conventional printers that employ cartridges, this printer has automated ink bottles that do not require any squeezing.

Furthermore, the container key design guarantees that the container is correctly inserted to prevent ink spillage. It comes with ink that can last for about two years in the container.

Because of its small and lighter design, it is easy to transport. Its smooth rounded corners and appealing matte black finish complement any office decor. The highest resolution of the system is approximately 5760 by 1440 dpi.

This printer has the capability to print at a rate of 10.5 ppm in monochrome and 5 ppm in color. You may, nevertheless, get 4 by 6 borderless prints to complement your images.

This device also includes automated duplex printing, which is a great feature. EcoTank ET-2750 features a variety of connectivity options, including the ability to print wirelessly from your smartphone. In addition, the device supports a variety of prominent Cloud applications for rapid scanning and printing.

Additionally, you may print great hard copies by inserting a camera’s micro SD card into the printer. Another alternative is Wi-Fi Direct, which is ten times faster than Bluetooth and can handle enormous amounts of data.

Specifications

• Color / Mono                           Color and Monochrome
• Print Speed                             10.5 ppm in monochrome and 5 ppm in color
• Max. Print Size                       8.5 inches x 47.2 inches

Canon PIXMA iP8720

The auto sheet paper loading of the Canon PIXMA iP8720 will handle up to 150 papers at once. This sublimation printer includes a six-color ink setup, including grey, that allows it to reproduce pictures with acceptable tonalities and colors.

Users may also anticipate 600 by 600 dots per inch from the gadget. 9600 by 2400 dpi is the highest resolution. Canon PIXMA additionally has the capability to print frameless pictures up to 13-inch x 19-inch and 4-inch x 6-inch vivid photographs in as little as 36 seconds.

You may print instantly on CD, DVD, or even Blu-ray discs utilizing the disc tray. It also has an automated power setting whenever the printer is out of use.

Specifications

• Color / Mono                         Color
• Print Speed                            NA
• Max. Print Size                       9600 x 2400 dpi

Buying Guide

There are so many sublimation printers on the marketplace that it is tough to pick the best one.

As we have evaluated the top sublimation printer for heat transfer, it’s now time to emphasize the important or necessary features that you should look for before purchasing these printers. So, without further delay, let’s get started!

Print Field Size

While selecting the ideal sublimation printers for heat transfer, the primary and most crucial to take into account is size.

Several inkjet printers, most notably sublimation printers, are unable to print the product’s exterior borders because they cannot reach them.

As a result, it is critical to pick a printer with a little larger print size than your completed garment. For instance, if the desired size of your finished product is 11-inch x 17-inch you ought to purchase a printer with measurements of 12-inch x 18-inch.

Printing Speed

The printer’s speed might have an influence on your overall workflow. Regardless of how excellent the printer’s performance is, if the speed is slower than the specified time, you will not be capable of getting the most out of your output.

Furthermore, the majority of the work performed with the assistance of printers is generally in bulk volume, and if we cannot achieve the appropriate speed, everything would be in vain. So, if you want to print in huge quantities with low printing expenses, keep this aspect in mind while selecting a printer.

Usage of Ink Color

Huge quantities of output colors are generated using sublimation printers by a mixing procedure that employs specific base ink colors. There are several printers offered with varying quantities of ink sets.

Most printers being used function with a four-color ink set, but just a handful employ an eight-color ink set, which produces a high level of resolution. You can make your selection based on your requirements.

Brands

Whether you are a novice or an expert in the printing industry, make absolutely sure to put your cash in a brand that you are entirely confident in. A smart strategy to accomplish this is to select a printer from a well-known company that consistently offers outstanding printers with high print quality by utilizing glossy picture paper and enabling duplex printing.

This way, your investment will not be wasted because the item will be of superior quality. On the other hand, when you invest in a freshly established printers’ firm, you may not get good return on your investment. Sublimation printers are now dominated by printer companies such as Sawgrass and Epson.

Conclusion:

In this article, the best sublimation printers for heat transfer have been discussed with other information that will be valuable for you when picking the best option. You will find all the information required to choose the most appropriate sublimation printer for heat transfer.

We are hopeful that this article on sublimation printers will assist you with the aforementioned purpose.

Also Check: Best Sublimation Printer for Beginners – Buying Guide

FAQs:

Which sublimation printer is best for heat transfer?

These are the best sublimation printers for heat transfer:

• Epson Workforce Color Inkjet Printer
• HP OfficeJet Pro 8035
• Epson Artisan 1430
• Sawgrass Virtuoso SG1000
• Brother Mono-Laser Printer
• Epson Stylus C88+
• Hewlett Packard LaserJet Pro
• SureColor F570
• Sawgrass Virtuoso Sublimation Printer
• Epson EcoTank ET-2750
• Canon PIXMA iP8720

Will any inkjet printer work for sublimation?

Due to the general construction of sublimation paper, it is not compatible with all printers. It actually is the ink that performs the work on normal printer paper. The problem is that several printers lack sublimation-compatible printer nozzles or ink cartridges. So not all inkjet printers are suitable for sublimation.