What Toner Does the HP Color LaserJet 2600n Use?

by William Elward Last Updated: October 25, 2026

Quick answer: The HP Color LaserJet 2600n uses four HP 124A toner cartridges: Q6000A black, Q6001A cyan, Q6002A yellow and Q6003A magenta. There's no high-yield version, and the imaging drum is built into each cartridge. Castle Ink stocks all four, starting with the 124A Black, plus a 124A four-pack.

The same cartridges fit the Color LaserJet 1600, the 2605 series and the CM1015/CM1017 all-in-ones.

Toner for this printer

In stock at Castle Ink and guaranteed to fit.

HP 124A Toner Cartridges – BKCMY 4-Pack (Q6000A, Q6001A, Q6002A, Q6003A) – Compatible
$219.95~~$329.99~~
HP 124A Black Toner Cartridge (Q6000A) – Compatible
$67.95~~$107.75~~
HP 124A Cyan Toner Cartridge (Q6001A) – Compatible
$59.95~~$98.95~~
HP 124A Yellow Toner Cartridge (Q6002A) – Compatible
$59.95~~$98.95~~

Order by 4 PM ET Mon–Fri for same-day shipping · Free shipping on $50+ · 100% satisfaction guarantee

CastleScore · October 2026

64/100 — Situational

HP Color LaserJet 2600n

Pillar (weight)	Score	What it is based on
Owner ratings (28%)	—	No retailer rating with enough reviews to use.
Expert reviews (20%)	—	No published numeric expert score we could verify.
Cost per page (18%)	77	About 5.9¢ per page blended (black + color) with our compatible 124A toner (2,500 black / 2,000 color pages).
Reliability (18%)	70	Most-reported problems: door-open error with the door closed; color registration drift and colored lines; fading and ghosting; no current HP driver for Windows 10/11 or macOS
Features (11%)	35	Print only, USB and 10/100 Ethernet, 250-sheet tray plus priority slot, 8 ppm. No auto two-sided printing, no Wi-Fi, no PostScript.
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. HP ended production of the 2600n around 2008 and names no direct successor. Compatible 124A toner is still widely available.

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 25, 2026. It is not a customer review. See every ranked printer or how the score works.

The toner, pictured

Our own compatible toner, photographed in-house.

What Toner Cartridges Does the HP Color LaserJet 2600n Take?

Cartridge	HP part no.	Approx. yield	Castle Ink option
124A Black	Q6000A	~2,500 pages	Compatible 124A Black
124A Cyan	Q6001A	~2,000 pages	Compatible 124A Cyan
124A Yellow	Q6002A	~2,000 pages	Compatible 124A Yellow
124A Magenta	Q6003A	~2,000 pages	Compatible 124A Magenta

Yields are HP's ratings at about 5% coverage. A 124A four-pack covers all four slots.

Can You Still Buy Original HP 124A?

Hardly. On October 25, 2026 we couldn't find a current price for original 124A at HP, Staples or Office Depot; Staples only listed its own remanufactured version. Our compatible 124A black is $67.95 (about 2.7¢ a page), each color is $59.95 (about 3¢ a page), and the four-pack is $219.95.

Toner cartridges at Castle Ink are newly manufactured compatibles. See compatible vs. remanufactured vs. OEM for what that means. Orders placed by 4 PM ET ship the same day, and U.S. orders over $50 ship free.

Using compatible toner: We found no reports of firmware blocking third-party 124A cartridges. HP notes that the Replace Cartridge message names the color only for genuine HP cartridges, and a Replace Supplies override lets you keep printing past the low-toner warning.

How Do I Replace the Toner in the 2600n?

Open the front door fully.
Grasp the used cartridge's handle and pull it straight out.
Unpack the new cartridge without touching the green roller or the memory tag.
Rock it gently side to side to spread the toner, then remove the orange protective cover.
Line it up with its color slot and push it in until it clicks.
Close the front door.

Which Other Printers Use HP 124A?

HP 124A also fits the Color LaserJet 1600, 2605, 2605dn and 2605dtn, and the Color LaserJet CM1015 and CM1017 MFPs.

What 2600n owners ask

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

Is there a Windows 10 or 11 driver?

HP's own driver is no longer offered for current Windows. Windows' built-in driver can still print, but HP utilities such as the Toolbox and firmware updater won't detect the printer.

How do I update the firmware to fix ghosting?

One owner on HP's forum had to use an older Windows 7 PC with HP's original drivers and run the firmware tool over USB, because current drivers no longer include the Toolbox.

Will it work on a Mac?

An HP community expert suggested installing Apple's HP printer driver package and choosing the model manually. Results on recent macOS versions are hit and miss.

Do I need a separate drum?

No. Each 124A cartridge includes its own imaging drum.

It says the door is open, but it's closed.

Owners report this with new cartridges installed; reseat every cartridge firmly and check the door latch and its sensor tab for damage.

2600n quirks worth knowing

It's a host-based (GDI) printer with no PostScript, so the computer does the page processing.
HP rates it at 8 pages a minute in black and color, with a first page in about 20 seconds.
It has 16 MB of memory that can't be expanded, a 250-sheet tray and a single-sheet priority slot.
It connects by USB and 10/100 Ethernet and duplexes only manually.

Frequently Asked Questions