Toner is one of the largest running costs of a digital press, so it is natural for any print shop owner to think about compatible toner when they see the price difference. The right question is not “which is cheaper?” but: which is cheaper at the end of the year, when you count everything?
We sell genuine Ricoh toner, so our view is clear. But we will set out the calculation itself, so you can judge.
Toner in a production press is not just coloured powder
Ricoh Pro machines run on a chemically produced toner (PxP-EQ) with small, evenly sized particles that melts at a lower temperature. The whole machine is tuned to the properties of this toner:
- The fuser’s temperature is calculated for exactly this toner’s melting point.
- The developer is made to carry particles of this size and charge.
- Colour calibration and the profiles are built on its colour values.
When you put in a toner with different properties, each of these parts is working on something it was not made for.
The cost difference: work it out per sheet
Take the Ricoh Pro C7100X as an example. The genuine toner set (four colours) costs EGP 26,500 in Egypt, and prints about 12,000 sheets of everyday press work. This is the toner of each job, by order:
| Job | Order | C7100X |
|---|---|---|
| Poster one side · 1 per sheet100 posters | 100 posters | EGP 99 |
| Folded A4 brochure two sides · 2 per sheet1,000 brochures | 1,000 brochures | EGP 520 |
| Product stickers one side · 35 per sheet5,000 stickers | 5,000 stickers | EGP 192 |
| A5 flyer two sides · 4 per sheet1,000 flyers | 1,000 flyers | EGP 374 |
| Book or magazine cover one side · 1 per sheet500 covers | 500 covers | EGP 762 |
| Wedding cards one side · 4 per sheet500 cards | 500 cards | EGP 222 |
| A3 menu two sides · 1 per sheet100 menus | 100 menus | EGP 279 |
| Business cards two sides · 24 per sheet1,000 cards | 1,000 cards | EGP 143 |
| One sheet of everyday press work33 × 48 cm, one side | 33 × 48 cm, one side | EGP 2.21 |
The figures come from everyday press work on the 33 × 48 cm sheet, a quarter of the full sheet. A job printed on both sides is counted with both sides. All prices are in Egyptian pounds.
If the compatible toner is cheaper by a given percentage, the saving is that same percentage of these figures. So on light work you are talking about pennies a piece. Multiply the figure by your volume a month to see the real saving in money, then compare it with the items below.
The items that do not show in the cartridge price
1. How many sheets the cartridge prints
Price alone is not a measure. A cheaper cartridge that prints fewer sheets can come out dearer per sheet. Before you compare, ask for the actual page yield and work out the cost per sheet, not the cost per cartridge.
2. The developer and the drum
This is the most important point. Toner mixes with the developer inside the machine, and the developer has a long life: on the C5100S and C5200S, for example, about 600,000 A4 pages. If the toner’s properties are different it can spoil the developer mix before its time, and then you are replacing a full developer to save on a cartridge.
The same goes for the drum and the cleaning unit: a toner with uneven particles can wear the blade and the drum surface faster.
3. The fuser
If the toner needs a higher temperature to melt, you will find toner rubbing off heavy paper, or you will have to raise the temperature, and the fuser wears faster.
4. Colour consistency
A corporate customer wants the same shade of their logo on every order. Genuine toner gives you the same shade from one cartridge to the next, and calibration is built on it. With compatible toner the shade may shift between cartridges, and you spend time on calibration and reprinting.
5. Waste and downtime
Every order that is rejected or reprinted eats months of saving. And every day the machine stands waiting for a technician is a day without production.
6. Warranty
Check the terms of your warranty or maintenance contract before you use any non-genuine consumables, because faults that result from them are normally not covered.
So when might compatible toner make sense?
To be fair: if your machine is old and out of warranty, your work is text and internal print where the shade does not matter, and your volumes are small, the risk is lower. But even then, work out the actual cost per sheet, not the cartridge price.
If your work is commercial and goes to customers (catalogues, brochures, cards, corporate print), any problem in colour or consistency costs you more than you saved.
How do you bring toner cost down without changing its type?
- Choose the right machine for your volume. Cost per sheet differs from model to model: a sheet of everyday press work costs EGP 1.77 in toner on the C9100 and EGP 2.68 on the C5200S.
- Price your work by its toner. A sheet of dark business cards takes more than three times the toner of a light poster, so they cannot be priced the same.
- Ask about offers. Toner sets go on offer at lower prices.
- Calibrate regularly, so the machine does not lay down more toner than it needs.
How do you make sure the toner is genuine?
- The part number on the box matches your machine model. Each colour has a number, such as 828380 for black on the C9100.
- The box is sealed with the Ricoh seal and carries the original label.
- Buy from a known source that gives you an invoice.
Toner numbers for all models are in the toner section of the parts catalogue. And if you want the exact toner cost on your own work, ask us and we will work it out on your volumes and your type of print.
