What Ink Does the HP OfficeJet Pro 8500A Use?

by William Elward Last Updated: November 2, 2026

Shopping for this printer? See all HP 940 Ink Cartridges – 940XL Black, Cyan, Magenta, Yellow → Ships same day by 4 PM ET, 1-year guarantee.

Quick answer: The HP OfficeJet Pro 8500A uses four HP 940 cartridges: black, cyan, magenta and yellow. The high-yield HP 940XL versions are rated for about 2,200 pages (black) and 1,400 pages (each color). Castle Ink stocks remanufactured 940XL Black, 940XL Cyan, 940XL Magenta and 940XL Yellow.

The same cartridges fit every version: the 8500A (A910a), 8500A Plus (A910g) and 8500A Premium (A910n), and the original OfficeJet Pro 8500 (A909) series without the "A". The cartridges feed two separate printheads that stay in the printer, so changing ink never means changing a printhead.

CastleScore · October 2026

79/100 — Recommended

HP OfficeJet Pro 8500A

Pillar (weight)	Score	What it is based on
Owner ratings (28%)	68	3.5★ average across 131 ratings at Adorama
Expert reviews (18%)	—	No published numeric expert score we could verify.
Cost per page (24%)	98	About 0.7¢ per page blended (black + color) with our remanufactured 940XL (2,200 black / 1,400 color pages).
Reliability (13%)	62	Most-reported problems: printhead failures and streaking; paper jams and document-feeder misfeeds; ink leaks
Features (12%)	88	Print, copy, scan, fax, document feeder, auto two-sided printing, color touchscreen, Wi-Fi and Ethernet, 250-sheet tray with optional second tray.
Value (5%)	75	Very low running cost offset by middling owner ratings

Limited data: No expert site has published a numeric score for the 8500A that we could verify, so the expert weight is spread across the other five pillars.

Discontinued. HP stopped selling the 8500A around 2012; the OfficeJet Pro 8600 series followed it. This score rates it for current owners.

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 12, 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 HP OfficeJet Pro 8500A Take?

Cartridge	HP part no. (standard / XL)	Approx. yield (standard / XL)	Castle Ink option
HP 940 Black	C4902AN / C4906AN	~1,000 / ~2,200 pages	Remanufactured 940XL Black
HP 940 Cyan	C4903AN / C4907AN	~900 / ~1,400 pages	Remanufactured 940XL Cyan
HP 940 Magenta	C4904AN / C4908AN	~900 / ~1,400 pages	Remanufactured 940XL Magenta
HP 940 Yellow	C4905AN / C4909AN	~900 / ~1,400 pages	Remanufactured 940XL Yellow
HP 940 printheads	C4900A (black/yellow), C4901A (cyan/magenta)	Long-life; replaced only if they fail	—

Yields are HP's estimates. All four cartridges must be installed for the printer to work.

Is 940XL Worth It?

Yes, especially for black. The 940XL black prints more than twice as many pages as the standard 940, and the colors about 55% more. Original HP 940XL black was listed at $56.99 at 4inkjets on October 12, 2026 and was backordered, which is typical now that HP has wound the cartridge down. Our remanufactured 940XL black is $11.99 and each color $10.99, about half a cent a page for black and under 1¢ per color cartridge, or $41.99 for all four in the 940XL 4-pack, which makes the 8500A one of the cheapest cartridge printers to run.

How Do I Replace the Ink in the HP OfficeJet Pro 8500A?

Make sure the printer is on, then open the ink cartridge access door on the front.
Grip the empty cartridge and pull it firmly toward you to remove it.
Unpack the new 940 or 940XL cartridge.
Line it up with the slot of the matching color and push it in until it seats.
Close the access door. Only ever switch the printer off with the Power button, never with a cartridge missing, so the printheads are capped.

Which Other Printers Use HP 940?

The OfficeJet Pro 8000 (including the 8000 Wireless and 8000 Enterprise), the original OfficeJet Pro 8500, 8500 Wireless and 8500 Premier, and the 8500A Plus and 8500A Premium. The later OfficeJet Pro 8600 looks similar but uses HP 950/951.

What OfficeJet Pro 8500A owners ask

These are the questions that come up most for this printer on retailer Q&A pages, manufacturer support communities and owner reviews, answered in our words.

Which printhead do I replace?

Print a self-test report and see which colors are missing or streaked. Black or yellow problems point to the C4900A head; cyan or magenta problems point to the C4901A.

Do I have to replace the printheads when I change ink?

No. The four 940 cartridges feed two long-life printheads. You only replace a printhead if it fails.

How long can a printhead be out of the printer?

HP says no more than 30 minutes, or the printhead and printer can be damaged. Have the new head unpacked and ready before you remove the old one.

Does the 8500A use the same ink as the OfficeJet Pro 8600?

No. The 8600 uses HP 950/951. The 8500A, 8500A Plus, 8500A Premium, original 8500 and 8000 all use HP 940.

What is the difference between the 8500 and the 8500A?

The "A" models added HP ePrint and web apps, and the Plus and Premium versions have a larger 4.3-inch touchscreen and a 50-sheet two-sided document feeder. The ink is identical.

OfficeJet Pro 8500A quirks worth knowing

Its pigment inks give laser-like text, but they need a drying pause between sides, so two-sided printing is slow.
There is no separate photo tray; photo paper replaces the plain paper in the main tray.
It accepts an optional second 250-sheet paper tray.
A failed printhead can be swapped by the owner, so a dead head doesn't have to mean a dead printer.

Frequently Asked Questions