The Best Fax Machines for Business

Need a fax machine for your business? Here's our roundup of 5 solid choices.

If you send a lot of documents for your company, you may need a fax machine. Fax machines are beneficial for your small business because they’re more reliable than postal messages. They come with a lower risk of mail loss or damage and appear on your recipient’s machine within a short amount of time.

When you use a fax to send documents, you get immediate confirmation and don’t have to wonder if the recipient received it.

Fax Machines- What to Look for

A good option will receive and send faxes without interruptions or errors and handle paper smoothly. Here are a few other features to look for:

• Large Capacity Tray: If you send many faxes during the day, you may want to get a model with a large capacity paper tray. A non-jamming design is also useful for saving time and hassle.
• Legibility: While top-notch photo-quality isn’t essential, your documents must be legible and the machine should be easy to use.
• Intuitive Controls: Your machine should have intuitive controls, clear instructions, and easy access to toner cartridges. Thankfully, most fax machines are fairly easy to use.

Stand-Alone vs. All-in-One Fax Machines

Stand-alone fax machines are becoming rarer these days. When you’re shopping for a fax machine, you’ll notice that most modern options are multi-function devices that also scan, copy, and print. Depending on how much space you have in your office, you may want to get one of these all-in-one machines to save room and money.

Of course, what works best for you will depend on your business needs, the nature of your company, and your budget. Below, I’ll include options for both types.

Best for Low Print Costs

The Epson Workforce Pro WF-3730 Machine

The Epson Workforce All-in-One Printer, Copier, Scanner, and Fax machine is a multi-use device with a 500-sheet capacity. It comes with two different paper trays for different types of media and paper sizes. It prints fast and saves up to 30 percent in printing costs due to the efficiency of the printing laser.

The design saves space with a compact size that will fit easily into your home office. The Epson Workforce Pro WF-3730 is a good pick for offices that do a lot of printing and need a high-quality machine that’s up for the task. You can easily use it for double-sided printing, plus it has the option of using it either wireless or with an Ethernet cable.

Pros

• Intuitive touchscreen
• Double-sided printing
• High-quality fax

Cons

• Color ink cartridges only come in sets

High-Speed Pick

The Brother IntelliFax-2840 High-Speed Laser Fax

The Brother IntelliFax-2840 is a high-speed laser fax machine with a compact design that will save space in your office. It works well for making copies, receiving and sending faxes, and has an affordable price for people looking to save money on their office supplies.

Keep in mind that the starter toner cartridge that comes with it won’t last you long, so you’ll need to buy more soon after. The toner that works with this machine is affordable and printing is done via a high-quality laser rather than an inkjet. The full-featured machine may be configured to work as a manual answer for faxes. It functions with USB connectivity for your convenience.

Pros

• Affordable price
• USB connectivity
• Prints fast

Cons

• Not a colored fax machine
• No flatbed scanning

Budget Pick

The Compact Plain Paper Fax/Copier with Answering System

It can be hard to find a standalone fax machine these days, but if you’re looking for something simple, this may work well for you. The Compact Plain Paper Fax System is a good potential option for businesses with small capacity needs. It’s a plain paper fax that can make copies, has a digital answering system, and can record messages.

This machine can store 28 pages in its reception memory and 25 pages in its transmission memory. The copier functions include enlargements up to 150 to 200 percent, reduction, and multi-page copying. The Compact Plain Paper Fax/Copier transmits a single page in 8 seconds,

Pros

• Affordable price
• Simple design
• Compact size
• Intuitive to use

Cons

• The digital display is hard to read
• Setup can be time-consuming

Best for High Volume Businesses

The Canon imageCLASS Monochrome Printer with Scanner Copier & Fax

The Canon imageCLASS Monochrome Printer and Fax machine has a 900-sheet paper capacity. This makes it a great choice for offices that go through a lot of paper. Though it’s more expensive than other options on the list, it balances quick performance with easy upkeep.

You can add an extra paper tray to the machine depending on the size of your business and printing needs. The Canon imageCLASS Monochrome Fax and Printer has an intuitive touchscreen that you can customize to simplify your daily work tasks.

Pros

• Extra paper tray option
• Intuitive display
• Easy maintenance
• High paper capacity

Cons

• Expensive

Best Energy-Saving Fax

The Canon FAXPHONE L100 Multifunction Laser Fax Machine

The Canon FAXPHONE L100 Multifunction fax machine is a good pick for people who are concerned about having a positive environmental impact. If you activate its Energy Saver Mode, the machine only uses 1.4 W of power. The FAXPHONE L100 combines the functions of a digital copier, laser printer, and a laser fax into one convenient package. It comes with 130 speed dials for faxing, along with 100 coded dials and 30 one-touch dials.

The machine also has a standard telephone handset included and has a 512-sheet fax memory. It handles up to 150 sheets of paper in the standard cassette and as many as 30 sheets of paper in the automatic feeder. The FAXPHONE L100 Multifunction Fax Machine combines the drum and toner into the same unit, so you only have to replace one consumable item regularly. It works to provide clear and precise character printing and is designed to stand the test of time.

Pros

• Budget-friendly price
• 19-page per minute print speed
• Solid and sturdy machine
• Easy to set up

Cons

• Requires a dedicated land line.

As you can see, there are many useful functions you can use a fax machine for in your home office. Whether you want a small-capacity machine or an option that can hold hundreds of pages, one of the options above should suit your needs well.

Featured Image: Image by Steve Buissinne from Pixabay