Printer statistics span material flows, printing-related employment, and imaging-equipment efficiency. The supplied evidence is mainly U.S. municipal-solid-waste estimates, May 2024 labor data, and ENERGY STAR program estimates or qualification criteria, so these measures are not printer-sales or ownership totals.
Key Printer Statistics
The most useful headline figures are:
- In 2000, 87,740 thousand tons of U.S. paper and paperboard entered municipal solid waste, the peak in the cited EPA series.
- In 2018, 67,390 thousand tons of U.S. paper and paperboard entered municipal solid waste.
- In 2018, 3,970 thousand tons of office-type paper entered U.S. municipal solid waste, including copy and printer paper.
- In 2018, 45,970 thousand tons of U.S. paper and paperboard were recycled, a 68.2% recycling rate.
- In 2018, 17,220 thousand tons of U.S. paper and paperboard were landfilled.
- In 2018, 33,890 thousand tons of paper and paperboard containers and packaging were recycled, an 80.9% rate.
- In 2018, 32,090 thousand tons of corrugated boxes were recycled, a 96.5% rate.
- In May 2024, 204,640 U.S. printing workers had mean pay of $22.24 per hour.
- In May 2024, 145,110 U.S. printing press operators had mean pay of $22.41 per hour.
- In May 2024, 23,070 U.S. prepress technicians and workers had mean pay of $23.62 per hour.
- In May 2024, 87,060 printing press operators were the largest listed occupation in U.S. printing and related support activities.
- In May 2024, 16,090 graphic designers worked in U.S. printing and related support activities.
- ENERGY STAR estimated that certifying all U.S. imaging equipment could save more than $32 million in electricity costs per year.
- ENERGY STAR estimated that certifying all U.S. imaging equipment could prevent 596 million pounds of greenhouse-gas emissions per year.
- ENERGY STAR states that certified printers, copiers, and scanners can save up to 35% versus conventional equipment.
- ENERGY STAR states that a typical office worker uses roughly 10,000 sheets of copy paper per year.
- ENERGY STAR estimates that 10% to 35% of printed pages are left at the printer and never picked up.
- ENERGY STAR’s monochrome non-MFD TEC limit is 0.3 kWh per week for products rated at 5 images per minute or less.
Contents
- Key Printer Statistics
- U.S. Paper and Printing Material Trends
- Printer Paper and Printed-Product Waste
- Printer Recycling, Recovery, and Landfill Data
- Printing Workforce Statistics and Pay
- Employment Mix in Printing Support
- Printer Energy and Paper-Saving Benchmarks
U.S. Paper and Printing Material Trends
EPA estimates place U.S. paper and paperboard generation in municipal solid waste at 29,990 thousand tons in 1960, 55,160 thousand tons in 1980, and 87,740 thousand tons in 2000. The series then measured 71,310 thousand tons in 2010, 67,010 thousand tons in 2017, and 67,390 thousand tons in 2018.
These figures describe U.S. MSW, not printer-only paper or all commercial and industrial printing output. EPA also excludes construction and demolition debris and industrial process wastes, and rounded details may not add exactly.
| Year | Paper and paperboard generation |
|---|---|
| 1960 | 29,990 thousand tons |
| 1980 | 55,160 thousand tons |
| 2000 | 87,740 thousand tons |
| 2010 | 71,310 thousand tons |
| 2017 | 67,010 thousand tons |
| 2018 | 67,390 thousand tons |
Source: Advancing Sustainable Materials Management: Facts and Figures 2018 Tables and Figures.
Printer Paper and Printed-Product Waste
In 2018, EPA estimated 3,970 thousand tons of office-type papers in U.S. MSW. EPA defines this category as high-grade paper such as copy paper and printer paper from residential and commercial sources.
| Printed-material category | 2018 U.S. MSW generated |
|---|---|
| Office-type papers | 3,970 thousand tons |
| Marketing mail | 3,670 thousand tons |
| Other commercial printing | 2,000 thousand tons |
| Newspapers and mechanical papers | 5,050 thousand tons |
| Books | 690 thousand tons |
| Magazines | 980 thousand tons |
Source: Advancing Sustainable Materials Management: Facts and Figures 2018 Tables and Figures.
These are separate EPA categories, not a printer-only total. Newspapers, books, magazines, mail, and commercial printing follow different production and disposal pathways from office copy paper.
Printer Recycling, Recovery, and Landfill Data
The 2018 EPA estimates show different outcomes across paper streams. All U.S. paper and paperboard in MSW had 45,970 thousand tons recycled, 4,200 thousand tons combusted with energy recovery, and 17,220 thousand tons landfilled.
| Material stream | Generated | Recycled | Energy recovery | Landfilled |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paper and paperboard, all MSW | 67,390 thousand tons | 45,970; 68.2% | 4,200 thousand tons | 17,220 thousand tons |
| Nondurable goods | 25,490 thousand tons | 12,080; 47.4% | 2,630 thousand tons | 10,780 thousand tons |
| Newspapers and mechanical papers | — | 3,270; 64.8% | 350 thousand tons | 1,430 thousand tons |
| Containers and packaging | 41,900 thousand tons | 33,890; 80.9% | 1,570 thousand tons | 6,440 thousand tons |
| Corrugated boxes | 33,260 thousand tons | 32,090; 96.5% | 230 thousand tons | 940 thousand tons |
Source: Advancing Sustainable Materials Management: Facts and Figures 2018 Tables and Figures.
The newspaper row has no separate generation figure among the supplied facts. The packaging and corrugated-box rates cannot be treated as copy-paper or printer-device recovery rates.
Printing Workforce Statistics and Pay
The BLS May 2024 OEWS estimates cover occupations, not printer ownership or unit sales. Across U.S. printing workers, BLS reported 204,640 workers, mean pay of $22.24 per hour, mean annual pay of $46,260, and median hourly pay of $21.55.
| Occupation | Workers | Mean hourly | Mean annual | Median hourly |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Printing workers | 204,640 | $22.24 | $46,260 | $21.55 |
| Prepress technicians and workers | 23,070 | $23.62 | $49,130 | $22.74 |
| Printing press operators | 145,110 | $22.41 | $46,620 | $21.71 |
| Print binding and finishing workers | 36,470 | $20.69 | $43,040 | $19.14 |
Source: Occupational Employment and Wages – May 2024.
BLS annual wages use a year-round full-time convention of 2,080 hours. They are survey estimates and do not represent individual offers.
Employment Mix in Printing Support
The industry-specific BLS chart lists the largest occupations in U.S. printing and related support activities. Printing press operators led the listed occupations with 87,060 workers in May 2024, while print binding and finishing workers numbered 31,320.
| Listed occupation | Workers, May 2024 |
|---|---|
| Printing press operators | 87,060 |
| Print binding and finishing workers | 31,320 |
| Customer service representatives | 16,270 |
| Graphic designers | 16,090 |
| First-line supervisors of production and operating workers | 15,960 |
| Prepress technicians and workers | 15,080 |
| Sales representatives in wholesale and manufacturing, excluding technical and scientific products | 13,980 |
| General and operations managers | 12,810 |
| Shipping, receiving and inventory clerks | 9,430 |
| Laborers and freight, stock and material movers | 8,950 |
Source: OEWS Chart: Largest Occupations in Printing and Related Support Activities, May 2024.
This chart is narrower than the occupation-wide printing-worker estimate because it counts listed occupations within a specific industry context, not every occupation in the industry.
Printer Energy and Paper-Saving Benchmarks
ENERGY STAR estimates that making all U.S. imaging equipment certified could save more than $32 million in electricity costs per year and prevent 596 million pounds of greenhouse-gas emissions per year. The program equates the emissions reduction with emissions from more than 57,000 vehicles, but that is an equivalence rather than a vehicle count.
ENERGY STAR says certified printers, copiers, and scanners can save up to 35% versus conventional equipment. These are program estimates for imaging equipment, which includes printers, multifunction devices, scanners, and other device types.
The same guidance states that a typical office worker uses roughly 10,000 sheets of copy paper per year, with 45% ending up in the recycling bin by the end of the day. ENERGY STAR estimates that 10% to 35% of total pages are left at the printer and never picked up, and its image-combination mode can print up to 8 images on one sheet.
Source: Imaging Equipment | ENERGY STAR.
ENERGY STAR qualification criteria provide thresholds rather than market averages. The monochrome non-MFD TEC limit is 0.3 kWh per week for products rated at 5 images per minute or less, while the base sleep-mode allowance for a small printer using inkjet, impact, or other listed marking technologies is 4.0 watts.
For monochrome TEC printers, automatic duplexing is integral to the base product at speeds of at least 37 images per minute. For small or standard printers rated above 30 images per minute, the required default delay to sleep is 60 minutes.
Source: Imaging Equipment Key Product Criteria | ENERGY STAR.
The ENERGY STAR paper-use statements do not specify a survey sample or sampling frame. The energy figures are program estimates, capability guidance, or qualification thresholds, so they should not be presented as typical consumption or printer-market averages.