Ink yields
Whether you are buying a replacement ink cartridge or a brand-new printer, the number of pages you can print from a single ink cartridge – also known as the ‘ink yield’ – is an important consideration.
Ink yields testing
To help you compare the ink consumption of different printers Canon, and other printer manufacturers, use internationally standardised testing methods. These ISO standards ensure that different printers are all tested in the same way. Testing is performed by continues printing with three individual printers, until three sets of main inks are exhausted on each printer. The quoted page yields are based on the test average results.
A4 document printing
Ink usage for A4 document printing is measured according to the international ISO/IEC 24711 standard. This involves the continuous printing of a standard five-page colour document on plain office paper. This represents a typical business consumer printing.
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10x15cm photo printing
Ink usage for borderless 10x15cm photo printing is measured according to the ISO/IEC 29102 standard. This determines ink yields by continuous printing of a set of six ISO standard photo compositions (each including test chart) on a photo inkjet paper.
A3+ photo printing
Ink yields for A3+ photo printing are determined by continuously printing a Canon-selected photograph at 279.4x355.6mm (11x14in) on A3+ photo paper. The image is printed from Adobe Photoshop using a Microsoft Windows printer driver at its default settings.
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XL inks
XL to standard yield ratio
Each XL and XXL ink cartridge is marked with a logo on its packaging indicating how many more prints it will produce compared to a standard Canon ink cartridge. It helps to calculate the savings while using high yield ink options.
Composite yield
Average CMY inks consumption
Composite ink yield is an average of the individual yields of cyan, magenta and yellow ink tanks. It makes easier to compare ink usage between printers using 3-colour cartridge and printers with individual C, M and Y ink tanks.
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Where do I find ink yields?
The same ink cartridge can deliver a different page yield depending on the printer in which it is used. You’ll find the print yield for every Canon printer under the Specifications tab on its web page.
Supplemental ink use
All inkjet printers use a small amount of ink to clean the print heads during normal use. For each Canon printer, an estimate of this supplemental ink usage is shown on its web page, alongside the ink yield figure.
The page-yield figures are measured according to specified conditions based on continuous printing; yields may vary depending on document content, paper type, print-mode setting, software, the print environment, such as ambient temperature and humidity, as well as print frequency.
All specifications are subject to change without notice. Older models of the printer may have been tested according to different standards, please check individual product specifications for details.