Sawgrass Alternatives
Sawgrass's value is that everything is matched and supported. Every alternative trades some of that away for price or print size — the question is which trade you want.
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If you want a real sublimation printer without the proprietary system, the Epson SureColor F170 is the alternative — purpose-built hardware with the manufacturer's own ink. If you need bigger prints, a wide-format EcoTank is the only route here that reaches tabloid size, with the conversion caveats that come with it. The budget pick is the small EcoTank plus third-party ink: the cheapest way into sublimation, and the one most beginners take. First, be clear about what you would be giving up.
Quick picks
| # | Product | Best for | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Epson SureColor F170The lowest-priced printer sold as a dye-sublimation machine rather than converted into one — the honest ans... | The closest like-for-like alternative | $399.00 · View on Amazon Price as of November 12, 2026 #ad · affiliate link · we never show a price we cannot verify |
| 2 |  Epson EcoTank ET-15000The wide-format version of the printer everyone converts — it prints up to 13 by 19 inches through the rear... | Leaving because you need bigger prints | $555.27 · View on Amazon Price as of November 12, 2026 #ad · affiliate link · we never show a price we cannot verify |
| 3 |  Epson EcoTank ET-2800The printer most people convert — cheap, refillable, and widely documented. Read the warranty section befor... | The budget pick — the cheapest way in | Check price on Amazon #ad · affiliate link · we never show a price we cannot verify |
| 4 |  Third-Party Sublimation InkThe ink that makes an EcoTank conversion work, and the exact thing that puts the printer outside Epson's in... | The part that makes any alternative cheaper | $22.99 · View on Amazon Price as of November 12, 2026 #ad · affiliate link · we never show a price we cannot verify |
| 5 |  A-SUB Sublimation PaperThe paper most beginners land on, and a sensible default: high transfer rate, dries fast enough to handle, ... | The component that is the same whatever you buy | $19.99 · View on Amazon Price as of November 12, 2026 #ad · affiliate link · we never show a price we cannot verify |
Tap any row to jump to the full write-up. Prices come from Amazon on the date stamped on each button and can change after that — check the listing before you buy.
Pick by your reason for looking
| Your reason | The alternative | What you give up |
|---|---|---|
| I want a real sublimation printer, not a system | Epson SureColor F170 | Print size — it is small format |
| I need tabloid-size transfers | Wide-format EcoTank, converted | Manufacturer sanction and support |
| It costs more than I can justify | Small EcoTank plus third-party ink | Support, colour profiles, and any warranty cover |
| The ink cost is the problem | Third-party ink in a refillable printer | Guaranteed ink consistency between batches |
| My prints look wrong and I blame the printer | Nothing — check paper and pressing first | Possibly nothing at all |
1. Best for the closest like-for-like alternative
Epson SureColor F170
Epson · Currently sold · Verified 2026-10-29
The alternative we would pick first, because it keeps the thing that actually matters about Sawgrass — a printer built and sold as a sublimation printer, with the manufacturer's own sublimation ink — while removing the proprietary-system premium. You are not converting anything, you are not voiding anything, and you are not mixing third-party ink into a printer that was designed for something else. For a beginner that is most of Sawgrass's appeal at a lower entry point. Honest cons: it is a small-format printer, so large designs are out; and like all dedicated sublimation hardware, the running cost is in the manufacturer's ink.
What works
- Sold and warranted as a sublimation printer, so nothing about it is a workaround
- Refillable ink bottles rather than cartridges, so ink cost per page stays low
- Epson supplies the sublimation print software and profiles itself
- Costs substantially less than the Sawgrass machines it competes with
What does not
- Epson's own published resolution is lower than a converted photo EcoTank's
- Same 8.5 in width limit as the cheap convertible route
- One year of warranty, where Sawgrass publishes three on the SG500
- Stock comes and goes — Epson's own store has shown it out of stock
Not for you if
Your budget genuinely stops at $200. This is not a sub-$200 printer, and pretending otherwise is how people end up disappointed.
Key specs
- Type
- Dedicated dye-sublimation printer
- Max paper width
- Epson states 8.5 in; printable length limited by the application and driver
- Resolution
- Epson states a maximum of 1200 x 600 dpi
- Ink
- Four-color C/M/Y/K Epson T49M dye-sublimation ink bottles into a reservoir
- Connectivity
- Hi-Speed USB, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Wi-Fi Direct and 10/100 Ethernet
- Warranty
- Epson lists a standard one-year unit exchange with phone support
Price as of November 12, 2026
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2. Best for leaving because you need bigger prints
Epson EcoTank ET-15000
Epson · Currently sold · Verified 2026-09-29
The alternative for the specific complaint that an entry-level printer prints too small. A wide-format EcoTank handles tabloid-size transfers, which puts full back prints and large signage panels in range — print sizes that neither an entry Sawgrass nor an entry Epson sublimation printer can reach. Honest cons: this is a conversion route, not a sublimation printer. Filling an EcoTank with third-party sublimation ink is well-trodden but it is explicitly not what the printer was sold for, and we set out what that actually means on our conversion page. Go in knowing that.
What works
- Prints far wider than the letter-size printers most beginners start on
- Refillable tanks keep the running cost low once converted
- Much cheaper than a dedicated wide-format sublimation printer
What does not
- Converting it with third-party ink voids Epson's coverage for ink-related damage
- The conversion is one-way — it will not go back to regular printing
- A wide transfer needs a press big enough to use it, which is a second purchase
Not for you if
Your press tops out at 15 by 15 inches. A 13 by 19 transfer you cannot press in one pass is not much use.
Key specs
- Type
- Refillable-tank inkjet — sold as a regular printer
- Max print size
- Up to 13 x 19 in through the rear-feed tray
- Borderless
- Up to 11 x 17 in
- Sublimation
- Not a sublimation printer as sold; people convert it
- Warranty note
- Epson's warranty excludes damage from non-genuine ink
Price as of November 12, 2026
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3. Best for the budget pick — the cheapest way in
Epson EcoTank ET-2800
Epson · Currently sold · Verified 2026-09-27
The cheapest route into sublimation printing, named as such, and the one most people actually take. A small refillable EcoTank plus third-party sublimation ink is a fraction of the price of any dedicated system, and for small transfers on shirts and tumblers the output is genuinely usable. Honest cons: the conversion is one-way, there is no manufacturer support for it, nozzle maintenance is on you, and anything described as a 'conversion kit' is a third-party arrangement rather than a sanctioned one. The savings are real and so are the caveats.
What works
- By far the cheapest way to start sublimating
- Refillable tanks mean low running cost once converted
- Very widely documented by the crafting community
What does not
- Converting it with third-party sublimation ink voids Epson's coverage for ink-related damage
- A converted printer cannot go back to regular ink
- 8.5 in width limits you to letter-size transfers
Not for you if
You want a supported, warrantied sublimation setup you can call for help on. Buy a dedicated sublimation printer instead.
Key specs
- Type
- Refillable-tank inkjet — sold as a regular printer
- Sublimation
- Not a sublimation printer as sold; people convert it
- Max print width
- 8.5 in (letter)
- Ink system
- Four refillable tanks
- Warranty note
- Epson's warranty covers damage from genuine ink, not third-party ink
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4. Best for the part that makes any alternative cheaper
Third-Party Sublimation Ink
MERRYWORK · Currently sold · Verified 2026-09-27
Worth naming separately because for a lot of people the Sawgrass objection is not the printer at all — it is the ink. Third-party sublimation ink is where the running-cost difference lives, and it is the component that turns an ordinary refillable printer into a sublimation printer. Honest cons: ink quality varies between sellers more than any other item in this category, colour profiles are rarely provided, and once you put third-party ink in a printer you have made the choice permanent.
What works
- Turns a cheap printer into a working sublimation printer
- Far cheaper per page than cartridge sublimation ink
- Most sellers supply an ICC profile for color accuracy
What does not
- Voids Epson's coverage for damage caused by non-genuine ink
- Color accuracy varies a lot by brand without a good profile
- There is no going back to regular printing
Not for you if
The printer is also your household document printer. Once it is converted, that is over.
Key specs
- Type
- Dye-sublimation ink in refill bottles
- Used with
- Refillable-tank inkjets, most commonly Epson EcoTank
- Color profile
- An ICC profile from the ink maker matters more than the ink brand
- Reversible
- No — a converted printer stays converted
Price as of November 12, 2026
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5. Best for the component that is the same whatever you buy
A-SUB Sublimation Paper
A-SUB · Currently sold · Verified 2026-09-27
Here to simplify one decision: transfer paper is not brand-locked to your printer. Whichever route you take, you need sublimation paper, and a well-reviewed general-purpose paper works across dedicated printers and converted ones alike. If your prints are coming out pale, the paper and the pressing are more likely causes than the printer — which is worth knowing before you spend hundreds switching hardware.
What works
- Consistent results across shirts, mugs and hard blanks
- Dries quickly enough that sheets do not smudge when stacked
- Cheap enough to practice with
What does not
- Only works with sublimation ink — regular ink will not transfer
- Printing on the wrong side wastes the sheet and the ink
Not for you if
You are printing on dark fabric. Sublimation does not work on dark fabric at all, whatever paper you use.
Key specs
- Type
- Dye-sublimation transfer paper
- Weight
- Commonly 125 gsm
- Sizes
- Letter and larger sheets
- Transfer rate
- High — most of the ink releases to the blank
- Printed side
- One side only — the coated side
Price as of November 12, 2026
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The conversion question, stated plainly
Most cheap sublimation setups are refillable photo printers filled with third-party sublimation ink. This works, a great many people do it, and it is also not what the printer was sold to do: it is one-way, unsupported, and the colour management is your problem. We wrote the EcoTank sublimation conversion truth specifically so nobody buys into it thinking otherwise. It is the right choice for a lot of beginners and the wrong choice to make without reading that page first.
What does not change whichever route you pick
Sublimation only bonds to polyester and polymer coatings, no matter whose printer made the transfer — so cotton is out and dark shirts are out regardless of hardware. You also need a press that holds a high temperature for a long dwell, and the temperature guide applies identically. Changing printer brand solves cost and size problems; it does not solve material problems.
Prices in the table are read from Amazon automatically with the date under each button, which is the only sensible way to compare routes whose relative cost moves month to month.
Common questions
Is there a cheaper alternative to a Sawgrass printer?
Can I use regular ink in a sublimation printer, or sublimation ink in a regular printer?
Do I need Sawgrass software to get good colour?
How we picked
We verify every product is currently sold by reading the manufacturer's own catalog, compare published specifications rather than marketing copy, and rank on what a first-time buyer has to decide. We do not run lab tests and we do not claim to, and commission never affects the order.
Read this next
Sawgrass vs Epson EcoTank
Dedicated printer or converted EcoTank — cost, warranty, support and which suits which user.
Sawgrass SG500 Review
The published specification, what the three-year warranty and lifetime support are really worth, the cartridge ink trade, and the point at which a converted EcoTank wins.
The EcoTank Conversion, Honestly
What converting an EcoTank actually costs you in warranty and reversibility, stated up front.
The Best Sublimation Printer Under $1000
Three registry printers currently priced under $1000, ranked by what the budget buys: purpose-built hardware, supported colour, or tabloid-size prints.
The Best Sublimation Printer for Beginners
Convert an EcoTank or buy a dedicated printer — the honest trade-off between cost and support.
Back to Sublimation.