The printer is one of the most used pieces of office equipment. Whether its copies of a resume for an interview or notices for employees, you’ll always have to print something. The problem is that printing isn’t exactly cheap.

Fortunately, there are ways to save on your office printing costs, from the cartridges you empty to the paper you use. Here are five tips:

1. Use printers with separate cartridge slots

There’s nothing more expensive than replacing an entire printer cartridge when one ink color runs out. If your printer is an older model that combines ink types into one cartridge, then it might be time to replace it.

Newer printers sold today are tri-color models that allow for separate red, blue, and yellow color cartridges. Other models like Brother and Hewlett-Packard have slots for four cartridges: cyan, magenta, yellow and black. If your office printer has this feature, you’ll only need to replace individual cartridges when a single ink type runs out.

2. Set the printer to draft mode

Setting the printer to draft mode allows it to consume less ink. This is ideal for disposable documents like one-time memos. While the quality of the prints will be reduced, this drawback is negligible if you’re only going to use these files only once. You can reserve setting the printer output to normal quality for the final versions of the documents that you’ll need to submit to your boss or a client. You can also consider using greyscale mode for text-based documents.

3. Recycle your paper

For disposable documents and drafts, you might want to use scrap paper. These pages may have only one side printed on, leaving the other side blank. By printing on the other side, you can help reduce the waste your office throws out each day. Save the newer sheets for report handouts, presentation papers, and hard copies of slides, especially if these will be presented to clients.

4. If possible, only print documents for signing

Official receipts, contracts, and letters are important documents that require the signature of an individual. Whenever possible, save your printer for these papers that need to be signed and filed as records for a transaction or a task. If you have to send one-time notices to your employees, try to use email instead. That way, you’ll minimize your office paper and ink usage and reduce waste material.

5. Use remanufactured cartridges

Remanufactured cartridges are made from the still-working parts of old cartridges, which are then reassembled, refilled with ink, and sold at a cheaper price. This ensures maximum compatibility with your printer model while providing quality prints for your business needs. If you make a living by printing large quantities of photos or documents, then this is the best solution for your business. You can even take advantage of discount coupons to save on your orders, especially if you purchase many cartridges for your office.

Whether you’re a business that relies heavily on printing materials or a small office that only prints a few documents a week, there’s always a way to save on your printer costs. While these five tips may seem simple enough, they can help save you a lot of money if implemented properly. That way, you will be left with more money to invest on more important aspects of your business.