HP 65 vs HP 65XL Ink: Which Should You Buy? 🖨️
The HP DeskJet 3720 and HP ENVY 5020 are among the most compact and affordable home printers ever sold in Australia — brilliant for light home printing, easy to tuck away. The catch, as always, is replacement ink.
Ollie's been very thorough on this one (he prefers the XL — more bang for his kibble budget 🐾), and Noodle's run the full cost analysis. Here's what you need to know about HP 65 vs 65XL in Australia.
Which Printers Use HP 65 and HP 65XL?
The HP 65 range covers a wide variety of popular compact HP inkjets sold in Australia:
HP DeskJet:
- DeskJet 2622, 2624, 2625, 2652, 2655
- DeskJet 3720, 3721, 3722, 3723, 3724
- DeskJet 3752, 3755, 3758
HP ENVY:
- ENVY 5010, 5012, 5014
- ENVY 5020, 5030, 5032, 5034
HP AMP:
- AMP 100, 125, 130 (Bluetooth-enabled compact printers)
HP 65 vs HP 63 — The Most Common Mix-Up
Before going further: if you're unsure whether you need HP 63 or HP 65, here's the quick answer.
| | HP 63 | HP 65 | |--|-------|-------| | Era | 2015–2018 printers | 2018–2022 printers | | Example models | ENVY 4520, OfficeJet 3830, DeskJet 1110 | DeskJet 3720, ENVY 5020, DeskJet 2622 | | Interchangeable? | ❌ No | ❌ No |
They look almost identical. Different chip, different ink formulation. Putting the wrong cartridge in will cause a printer error or poor output. Always check your printer model number before ordering.
Page Yield: HP 65 vs HP 65XL
| Cartridge | Standard 65 | XL 65XL | |-----------|------------|--------| | Black | ~120 pages | ~300 pages | | Tri-colour | ~100 pages | ~300 pages |
Yields based on HP ISO standard at 5% coverage.
Standard HP 65 delivers only ~120 pages from the black — among the lowest page yields of any HP ink cartridge sold in Australia. The XL delivers 2.5× more pages and must be considered the minimum sensible purchase.
Cost Per Page: Genuine vs Compatible
At typical Australian retail prices:
| Cartridge | Genuine XL (est.) | Compatible XL | Saving | |-----------|-------------------|---------------|--------| | 65XLBK | ~4.5¢/page | ~1.8¢/page | ~60% | | 65XL Tri-colour | ~6.5¢/page | ~2.6¢/page | ~60% |
For a household printing ~100 pages/month, compatible XL cartridges save approximately $100–$140 per year vs genuine standard.
The 2-Cartridge System
HP 65 and 65XL use a simple 2-cartridge system:
- 65XLBK (black)
- 65XL Tri-colour (cyan + magenta + yellow combined)
The tri-colour design means when one colour depletes (typically cyan), you replace the entire tri-colour cartridge. At typical home print ratios (mostly documents), black runs out roughly 2× faster than colour.
Ollie & Noodle's Verdict
- ✅ Always buy XL — standard 65 is very poor value at ~120 pages
- ✅ Compatible XL saves ~60% — approximately $100–$140/year for a typical household
- ✅ Don't confuse HP 65 with HP 63 — they look identical but are not interchangeable
- ✅ No warranty risk under Australian Consumer Law
Australian Consumer Law and HP Warranties
HP Australia cannot void your statutory warranty simply because you used compatible ink. Under the Australian Consumer Law, HP must demonstrate the compatible cartridge directly caused a specific fault to lawfully reject a warranty claim. Routine faults — paper jams, printhead clogs, carriage errors — are mechanical issues unrelated to ink brand.
Summary
- ✅ HP 65XL delivers ~300 pages vs ~120 standard (2.5× more) for both black and colour
- ✅ Compatible XL saves ~60% per page — approximately $100–$140/year
- ✅ 2-cartridge system: black + tri-colour
- ✅ NOT interchangeable with HP 63 — different printer generation, different chip
- ✅ Available for: DeskJet 2622, 3720, 3752, ENVY 5010–5034, AMP 100–130
- ✅ No warranty risk under Australian Consumer Law