Which Instax Camera Should You Buy? Every Model Compared

For most people, the right instax is the instax mini 13, at $89.95 on Fujifilm’s US store on November 1, 2026, down from the $93.95 Fujifilm announced in March. It is a point-and-shoot that sets the exposure for you, and its new self-timer lets the person holding it be in the photo.

Three other picks cover the common wishes. For bigger prints, the instax Wide 400 is $175.95 and prints a picture about twice the size of a mini photo. To choose shots on a screen and print photos from your phone, the instax mini Evo is $234.95; Fujifilm says its successor, the mini Evo 2, is due at the end of November at $289.95. For square prints, the instax Square 2 is $119.95.

Film is sold separately, and it is the running cost: about $1.30 a print for mini, $1.60 for Square and $1.90 for Wide at Fujifilm’s twin-pack prices. Prices below are Fujifilm’s US list prices on November 1, 2026; other stores set their own, so check before you buy.

Every instax camera compared

Fujifilm’s US store lists 17 cameras. Here they are, cheapest first.

In this table, “instant” means the camera exposes the film directly, so every press of the shutter makes a print. “Hybrid” cameras take a digital photo first; you print only the shots you want, and the mini Evo and Wide Evo can also print photos from your phone through Fujifilm’s app.

What each instax print costs

Cost per print is the twin-pack price divided by its 20 sheets: $25.99 ÷ 20 = $1.30, $31.99 ÷ 20 = $1.60 and $37.99 ÷ 20 = $1.90, rounded to the cent. A Wide picture covers 6,138 square millimeters against 2,852 for a mini (62 x 99 vs 62 x 46), about 2.2 times the area, for about 46% more per print.

For a gift, the total matters more than the camera alone. With three twin packs (60 prints) at Fujifilm’s prices, an instax mini 13 comes to $167.92, an instax Square 2 to $215.92 and an instax Wide 400 to $289.92.

• instax mini film Twin Pack: Check price on Amazon
• instax Square film Twin Pack: Check price on Amazon
• instax Wide film Twin Pack: Check price on Amazon

Best for most people: instax mini 13

The instax mini 13 is the simplest way to get instant photos, and on Fujifilm’s US store on November 1, 2026 it listed at $89.95, down from $93.95 at launch, while the mini 12 it follows listed at $93.95. You twist the lens to turn it on, twist further for Close-up Mode, and the camera sets the exposure and flash for you. It takes two AA batteries, which Fujifilm rates at about 10 packs of film (100 shots) per set.

The new part is the self-timer, with a 2-second and a 10-second setting, plus a small wedge built into the hand strap that tilts the camera up when you stand it on a table. TechRadar’s review calls it “inexpensive, easy to get grips with,” with two gripes: “the self-timer doesn’t give you a countdown light,” and the ribbed design makes it “a bit bulkier and heavier” than the mini 12. It comes in Dreamy Purple, Frost Blue, Candy Pink, Lagoon Green and Clay White.

• instax mini 13 in Clay White: Check price on Amazon
• Lagoon Green: Check price on Amazon
• Dreamy Purple: Check price on Amazon
• Candy Pink: Check price on Amazon
• Frost Blue: Check price on Amazon

instax mini 12 vs mini 13: which should you buy?

They take the same film and produce the same 62 x 46 mm picture. Both have automatic exposure, a selfie mirror and a Close-up Mode that corrects the viewfinder so close shots come out centered. TechRadar’s review lists what changed: the self-timer, “a fresh, playful ribbed design with new pastel colors,” and the strap wedge.

Buy the mini 13 if you want the self-timer and the table wedge, the two things the mini 12 lacks. On Fujifilm’s store on November 1, 2026 it also cost $4 less. Store prices move, though: TechRadar’s review, written when the mini 13 cost $94, called the mini 12 “a great cheaper option, especially during the sales,” so compare on the day. TechRadar’s instant-camera guide, which does not yet include the mini 13, names the mini 12 best overall: “foolproof to use” with “vibrant party prints,” though “prone to blowing out highlights” in harsh sunlight, which it says “can be adjusted in the settings.”

• instax mini 12: Check price on Amazon

Best for phone users: instax mini Evo

The instax mini Evo is a digital camera with a printer inside, at $234.95. You look at the shot on its screen and print only the ones you want, onto the same mini film. With Fujifilm’s free app, it also prints photos from your phone’s camera roll and works as a remote shutter. A turn of the lens ring cycles through 10 lens effects, and the built-in battery prints about 100 photos per charge, Fujifilm says.

Wait for the Evo 2? Fujifilm announced the instax mini Evo 2 on October 26, 2026, and expects it “at the end of November 2026” at $289.95. Fujifilm lists three new features: a 4.5-inch touchscreen (the mini Evo has a 3.0-inch screen), an Expanded View framing guide that shows more of the scene than the shot, and a mode that records the four seconds before each photo (a microSD card is required for that). A late-November arrival is tight for a Christmas gift. Buy the mini Evo if it has to be under the tree; wait if you want the bigger screen.

• instax mini Evo: Check price on Amazon

Best for big prints: instax Wide 400

The instax Wide 400 costs $175.95 and prints a 62 x 99 mm picture, the size for group shots and parties. It sets the exposure and flash itself, and its self-timer offers 4, 6, 8 or 10 seconds, with an angle accessory to prop the camera up. A clip-on close-up lens comes in the box, and it runs on four AA batteries, good for about 100 prints.

TechRadar picks it for weddings and events, and warns: “It’s a bulky model that’s not a camera to take a walk with.” Fujifilm lists it at 616 g without batteries, strap or film; TechRadar lists the mini 13 at 376 g without batteries, film or strap.

• instax Wide 400: Check price on Amazon

Best for square photos: instax Square 2

The instax Square 2 is Fujifilm’s newest Square camera, announced October 13, 2026 at $119.95, and the cheapest of the three Square cameras Fujifilm’s US store lists. It has automatic exposure and flash, Close-up, Landscape and Standard modes, and a Mood Filter Switch with Warm and Cool settings. Four AA batteries come in the box, and it comes in Slate Blue, Misty White or Brick Red. TechRadar’s instant-camera guide does not yet include it. That guide names the $199.95 instax Square SQ40 best retro square for its “desaturated, vintage vibes,” while calling it “pricey,” and the $159.95 instax Square SQ1 best for cheap square-format prints.

• instax Square 2: Check price on Amazon

Should you buy a hybrid Evo or a film-only instax?

Buy film-only if the fun is the surprise of the print, and buy a hybrid if you hate wasting film. On a film-only camera every shot uses a sheet, at $1.30 to $1.90 each. Of the mini Evo Cinema, TechRadar notes that “unlike fully analog models, you can selectively print only your best shots, which helps manage costs over time.”

The trade-off is the look of the print. TechRadar found the Wide Evo’s prints, “being derived from digital captures rather than analog ones, lack the pop and vibrancy I’d associate with Instax cameras,” and rated the mini Evo Cinema’s prints below both: its “print quality isn’t as reliably vibrant or true-to-life as with the Mini 12 or the larger Instax Wide Evo.” Hybrids also cost more: the cheapest on Fujifilm’s store, the mini LiPlay, is $110 more than the mini 13, and the mini Evo and mini LiPlay+ are $145 more. And they need charging: the hybrids here run on built-in rechargeable batteries rather than AAs.

Other instax models, and who they suit

• instax mini SE: the cheapest instax, with a brightness dial you set yourself for the light; it takes four AA batteries. In an Amazon check on November 1, 2026, only refurbished (Amazon Renewed) units were listed.

• instax mini 41: a mini camera Fujifilm sells on “classic style,” in black, on two AA batteries.

• instax mini 99: for someone who wants control. TechRadar calls it Fujifilm’s “most feature-packed instant camera.” Fujifilm lists six color effects made by LEDs inside the camera, a tripod thread and an NP-70S rechargeable battery. Check price on Amazon

• instax mini LiPlay: the cheapest hybrid, a camera and phone printer in one.

• instax mini LiPlay+: a hybrid with two cameras that can attach a short sound clip to a print through a QR code; it prints from your phone too.

• instax mini Evo Cinema: a hybrid that also shoots video, which a QR code on the print plays back on a phone; Fujifilm says it stores the video and audio for 24 months. TechRadar finds it “slower to start up and a bit fussy to operate.”

• instax Wide Evo: the hybrid for Wide prints, TechRadar’s pick for “sharp Instax Wide prints,” and Fujifilm’s most expensive camera here alongside the Evo Cinema.

• instax Pal and instax Pal 2: small digital cameras with no printer inside. They send photos to an instax Link printer; the original Pal can also print through a mini Evo or mini LiPlay.

Prices for all of these are in the comparison table above.

Which film fits which instax?

Each camera with a printer takes one film size, and the sizes do not mix: the mini 13, Square 2 and Wide 400 pages each list a single film format, while the printerless Pal cameras work with any size through a Link printer. Mini film fits every camera with “mini” in its name, the mini hybrids and the mini Link printers; Square film fits Square cameras and the Square Link; Wide film fits Wide cameras and the Link WIDE printers. Fujifilm also sells film with colored and patterned borders, and special films such as Soft Haze, a lower-saturation, lower-contrast Square film launched with the Square 2 at $18.99 for 10 exposures (about $1.90 a print). TechRadar adds that multi-packs “can bring down the cost per print.”

Only want to print phone photos?

Skip the camera. The instax mini Link 3 is a pocket printer for your phone at $116.95, using the same mini film. It needs a phone: Fujifilm says “Bluetooth connectivity required.” TechRadar points out that with a printer “you can be selective on which prints you make, which cuts out the risk of wasted prints.”

• instax mini Link 3: Check price on Amazon

Buying an instax as a gift

• Buy film with it. Fujifilm’s pages for the mini 13, Wide 400 and mini Evo all list film as sold separately, so add at least one twin pack (mini film: check price on Amazon).
• Check the batteries. The mini 13 takes two AA batteries and the Wide 400 four, and neither product page lists batteries in the box; Fujifilm’s Square 2 announcement does list four AAs.
• For a child or a first camera, the mini 13 needs no settings. For other kids’ tech, see the kids tablet guide.
• Flying with it? Fujifilm has warned since 2020 that newer scanners at various US airports can fog instant film, causing “distortion in shadow areas,” and poor prints after one pass.

For more gift ideas, see the tech gifts guide.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best instax for a beginner? The instax mini 13: it sets exposure and flash for you and adds a self-timer, at $89.95 on Fujifilm’s store.

Is the instax mini 13 better than the mini 12? It adds a 2- or 10-second self-timer and a table wedge on the strap, and uses the same film. On Fujifilm’s store on November 1, 2026 it cost $4 less than the mini 12.

How much does instax film cost per picture? At Fujifilm’s twin-pack prices, about $1.30 for mini, $1.60 for Square and $1.90 for Wide.

Can an instax print photos from your phone? The hybrid models can: the mini LiPlay, mini LiPlay+, mini Evo, mini Evo Cinema and Wide Evo print from your camera roll through Fujifilm’s apps, and the mini Evo 2 will when it ships. Film-only cameras such as the mini 13 cannot.

When does the instax mini Evo 2 come out? Fujifilm expects it at the end of November 2026, at $289.95.