What Ink Does the Brother MFC-J870DW Use?

by William Elward Last Updated: October 15, 2026

Quick answer: The Brother MFC-J870DW uses four separate cartridges: black, cyan, magenta and yellow, in either standard-yield LC101 or high-yield LC103. You can mix the two by color. Castle Ink stocks remanufactured LC103 Black, Cyan, Magenta and Yellow.

The MFC-J870DW takes the same ink as the MFC-J470DW and DCP-J152W. In the UK and Europe this printer takes LC121/LC123 cartridges, which won't fit a U.S. model.

CastleScore · October 2026

69/100 — Situational

Brother MFC-J870DW

Pillar (weight)	Score	What it is based on
Owner ratings (28%)	—	No retailer rating with enough reviews to use.
Expert reviews (18%)	—	Reviewed by PCWorld, Trusted Reviews and Expert Reviews in 2013, without numeric scores we could verify.
Cost per page (24%)	92	About 2.4¢ per page blended (black + color) with our remanufactured LC103 high-yield cartridges (about 600 pages each).
Reliability (13%)	78	Most-reported problems: 'Ink Absorber Full' stopping the printer; 'Cannot Detect' with some third-party cartridges; clogged print heads and missing colors; slow photo printing
Features (12%)	88	Print, copy, scan, fax, document feeder, auto two-sided printing, Wi-Fi, Ethernet, touchscreen, NFC, CD/DVD printing.
Value (5%)	—	Running cost and owner satisfaction

Limited data: We could not find enough owner ratings or published expert scores for this printer, so those weights are spread across the other pillars. With neither owner ratings nor a published expert score, we cap this printer at 69 (Situational) until better data is available.

Discontinued. Brother launched the MFC-J870DW in July 2013 at $150 and now lists it as discontinued. LC101 and LC103 cartridges are still sold.

CastleScore is Castle Ink’s own editorial rating, built from retailer star ratings, expert reviews, real cost per page and owner complaint patterns, checked October 15, 2026. It is not a customer review. See every ranked printer or how the score works.

The cartridges, pictured

Our own remanufactured cartridges, photographed in-house.

What Ink Cartridges Does the Brother MFC-J870DW Take?

Cartridge	Brother part no.	Approx. yield	Castle Ink option
LC101 Black / Cyan / Magenta / Yellow	LC101BK / LC101C / LC101M / LC101Y	~300 pages each	—
LC103 Black	LC103BK	~600 pages	Remanufactured LC103 Black
LC103 Cyan	LC103C	~600 pages	Remanufactured LC103 Cyan
LC103 Magenta	LC103M	~600 pages	Remanufactured LC103 Magenta
LC103 Yellow	LC103Y	~600 pages	Remanufactured LC103 Yellow

Yields are Brother's ISO figures from its MFC-J870DW brochure.

Is LC103 Worth It?

Yes. LC103 holds twice the ink of LC101 for little more money. On October 15, 2026, Staples listed Brother's LC103 black at $34.49 (about 5.7¢ a page), the LC103 cyan at $16.99, the magenta at $24.49 and a color three-pack at $45.99. Our remanufactured LC103 black is $9.95 (about 1.7¢ a page) and each color $8.95.

How Do I Replace the Ink in the Brother MFC-J870DW?

Open the ink cartridge cover on the front of the machine.
Push the lock-release lever for the color shown on the touchscreen and take that cartridge out.
Unpack the new cartridge of the same color and remove the orange protective cap.
Insert it in the direction of the arrow on the label and push until it locks.
Close the cover. The machine resets its ink counter for that color automatically.

Which Other Printers Use LC101 and LC103?

The DCP-J152W, MFC-J245, MFC-J285DW, MFC-J450DW, MFC-J470DW, MFC-J475DW, MFC-J650DW, MFC-J875DW, MFC-J4310DW, MFC-J4410DW, MFC-J4510DW, MFC-J4610DW, MFC-J4710DW, MFC-J6520DW, MFC-J6720DW and MFC-J6920DW.

What MFC-J870DW owners ask

These are the questions that come up most for this printer in Brother support forums and owner reviews, answered in our words.

It says 'Ink Absorber Full' and won't print.

The waste ink pad or its counter has reached its limit. Brother service replaces the absorber. Some owners reset the counter through a hidden maintenance menu, but the pad still needs cleaning or replacing.

It says 'Cannot Detect' after I put in a new cartridge.

Take the cartridge out, make sure the orange cap is off, and reinsert it until it locks. Some owners report third-party cartridges that the printer never recognizes.

One color has stopped printing.

Run Ink, then Cleaning, for that color, a few cycles if needed, and print a quality check sheet. Long idle periods make clogs worse.

Does the document feeder scan both sides?

No. The 20-page feeder scans one side only, though the printer prints two-sided pages automatically.

MFC-J870DW quirks worth knowing

Brother rates it at 12 ISO pages a minute in black and 10 in color.
It prints, copies, scans and faxes over Wi-Fi, Ethernet, USB or NFC tap-to-print.
It has a 2.7-inch touchscreen, a 100-sheet tray plus a 20-sheet photo tray, and a front tray for printing directly on CDs and DVDs.
Reviewers found photo printing slow: about 1:48 for a 4x6 from a PC.

Frequently Asked Questions