What Ink Does the Brother MFC-J1010DW Use?

Quick answer: The Brother MFC-J1010DW uses four individual LC401 ink cartridges — black, cyan, magenta and yellow. For a much lower cost per page, choose the LC401XL high-yield versions, which print roughly 2.5x the pages of standard LC401 cartridges.

Brother MFC-J1010DW Ink Cartridges at a Glance

The Brother MFC-J1010DW takes four individual cartridges. The same LC401 / LC401XL family also fits the Brother MFC-J1170DW, MFC-J1012DW and the MFC-J1800DW Print & Cut.

There is no LC401XXL. LC401 tops out at XL — if you see an "LC401XXL" listing anywhere, it is not a genuine Brother part number.

Save on LC401 / LC401XL

Castle Ink's compatible and remanufactured LC401 cartridges can save you 50–70% against genuine cartridges without giving up print quality. Every cartridge is tested, carries a 1-year warranty, and ships free on orders over $50. Shop LC401XL Black, Cyan, Magenta and Yellow for the Brother MFC-J1010DW.

How to Replace Ink in the Brother MFC-J1010DW

1. Leave the printer switched on. Open the ink cartridge cover on the front of the machine — the carriage does not need to move on this design, because Brother mounts the cartridges in a fixed bay.
2. Press the lock release lever for the cartridge you are changing and let it pop forward, then pull it straight out.
3. Unwrap the new cartridge and remove the orange protective cap. Do not touch the black chip contacts or the ink port.
4. Slide the new cartridge in following the arrow on the label — each color is keyed so it will only fit its own slot — and push firmly until the lever clicks.
5. Close the cover. The printer primes the line automatically; on a first install after running dry this can take a couple of minutes and is normal.
6. Print a test page from the control panel to confirm all four colors are laying down evenly before you send a real job.

Troubleshooting Tips

"Cannot Detect" or "Unable to Detect Ink": Power the printer off, remove the cartridge, and wipe the chip contacts with a dry lint-free cloth. Reseat until the lever clicks audibly — a cartridge that is in but not latched is the most common cause of this message. If it persists across every slot, the problem is the machine's contact block rather than the ink.

Blank pages or a missing color: Run Print Quality Check from the Ink menu, then Cleaning on any color that shows gaps. Two cleaning cycles is the sensible limit; if a channel is still missing after that, the blockage is in the head and needs a different approach.

Prints look faded straight after a cartridge change: Brother primes the line automatically but a long dry spell can leave air in it. Print ten pages of ordinary text and re-check — most cases clear themselves.

Ink levels look wrong: Brother's gauge is an estimate based on drop counts, not a measurement of what is left in the cartridge. Treat "low" as a prompt to order, not a reason to stop printing.

Official Brother MFC-J1010DW Resources

• Brother support home for your model
• Brother genuine supplies finder

Bottom Line

The Brother MFC-J1010DW is well served by the LC401 family, and the high-yield tier is where the cost per page actually falls. Buy the largest tier your printer supports, keep the model number written down somewhere you can find it, and ink stops being something you think about.

Written and reviewed by William Elward — Founder of Castle Ink, 20+ years in the printer & imaging supplies industry.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does using compatible LC401 cartridges void my Brother MFC-J1010DW warranty?
No. Under the U.S. Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, a manufacturer cannot void your printer warranty solely because you use compatible or remanufactured cartridges. If a specific cartridge causes damage, that damage is not covered — but the rest of the warranty stands.

How are these page yields measured?
To the ISO/IEC standard for the cartridge type, at 5% page coverage on plain paper. That is a deliberately modest amount of coverage, so heavy graphics, photos or dense tables will always yield fewer pages than the rating. The numbers are useful for comparing cartridges against each other, not for predicting your exact month.

Is there an XL version of the MFC-J1010DW printer itself?
No. Brother sells an MFC-J1010DWF bundled with a Refresh subscription and a refurbished RMFC-J1010DW, but there is no "MFC-J1010DW XL" printer. The XL refers to the LC401XL cartridge, not the machine.

Shop Compatible Ink at Castle Ink

Find the right cartridge for the Brother MFC-J1010DW and every other printer we cover on the Find Ink by Printer page, or work through a fault at our printer troubleshooting center.

Buy the Brother MFC-J1010DW on Amazon: Brother MFC-J1010DW on Amazon — as an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.

See also: printer says ink cartridge not recognized | faded or streaky prints | printer printing the wrong colors