Which ink does the HP OfficeJet Pro 8500A use?

The HP OfficeJet Pro 8500A (inkjet, 2010) uses HP 940XL, HP 940.

Third-party cartridge risk: Low no firmware lockout is on record for this printer, so compatible and remanufactured cartridges should work.

The HP OfficeJet Pro 8500A uses XL and standard versions of HP ink cartridges for black, cyan, magenta, and yellow colors. For high-quality prints and longer page yields, consider purchasing XL cartridges which offer about 2200 pages for black and about 1400 pages for the other colors. When buying these cartridges you may want to weigh up the higher upfront cost of standard yield genuine HP cartridges against the potentially lower cost of compatible XL versions.

Compatible cartridges

CartridgeColorYieldPagesOEM priceCost/page
HP 940XL black XL2200 $38.00 1.7¢ OEM · AmazonCompatible
HP 940XL cyan XL1400 $30.00 2.1¢ OEM · AmazonCompatible
HP 940XL magenta XL1400 $30.00 2.1¢ OEM · AmazonCompatible
HP 940XL yellow XL1400 $30.00 2.1¢ OEM · AmazonCompatible
HP 940 black standard1000 $25.00 2.5¢ OEM · AmazonCompatible

XL (high-yield) cartridges cost more upfront but lower the cost per page, which is better if you print a lot.

Our pick: the high-yield HP 940XL is the best value

The HP OfficeJet Pro 8500A is not on our firmware-lockout list, so third-party ink should work. By list price its high-yield HP 940XL works out to about 1.7 cents per page, roughly 31% less than the 2.5 cents of the standard HP 940. If you print often the high-yield cartridge is the better value, and a well-reviewed compatible version lowers the cost further.

Frequently asked questions

Which ink does the HP OfficeJet Pro 8500A use?

The HP OfficeJet Pro 8500A uses HP 940 and HP 940XL.

Does the HP OfficeJet Pro 8500A take XL cartridges?

Yes. Besides the standard cartridges it accepts HP 940XL. A high-yield XL holds more ink and costs less per page, which is worth it if you print often.

Will third-party ink work in the HP OfficeJet Pro 8500A, or will firmware block it?

The HP OfficeJet Pro 8500A is not on our firmware-lockout list, so compatible and remanufactured cartridges should work. Firmware can change with an update, so it is worth checking before buying a large supply.

How many pages do the HP OfficeJet Pro 8500A cartridges print?

Rated yields are the HP 940 at about 1000 pages, the HP 940XL at about 1400 pages and the HP 940XL at about 2200 pages. Real-world yield depends on how much you print and how much ink each page uses.

What is the cheapest ink for the HP OfficeJet Pro 8500A?

By list price the lowest cost per page here is the HP 940XL at about 1.7 cents per page. A reliable compatible or remanufactured cartridge can lower that further.

Related HP OfficeJet Pro printers

Last reviewed . Compiled by MyCartridgeFinder from manufacturer cartridge finders and retailer cross reference tables, then checked against this printer's database record. Cartridge numbers and yields come from that record, never from guesswork. See our methodology and data sources.