Sawgrass Sublimation Printers: SG500 vs SG1000

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The verdict up front: buy the Sawgrass SG500 if your work is mugs, tumblers, coasters and chest prints that fit on 8.5 x 14 inches. Buy the SG1000 if you sell adult shirts, totes or pillow covers, because it prints 11 x 17 from the main tray and 13 x 19 with the bypass tray, and it's the only one that takes the 70 mL extended cartridges. Everything else, from software to warranty, is the same.

A Sawgrass sublimation printer costs more to run than a bottle-fed Epson. What you pay for is the system: software that manages color, onboarding, and a 3-year or 100,000-print warranty on printers bought on or after October 1, 2025.

Sawgrass sublimation printer specs: SG500 vs SG1000

*For printers bought on or after October 1, 2025. Earlier purchases carry 2 years. Coverage applies to the original purchaser only, per Sawgrass.

What Sawgrass gets right on both printers

Before the differences, it's worth knowing why people pay more for Sawgrass at all.

Color management is built in

Sublimation color is hard because prints look dull on paper and change in the press. Sawgrass handles this in its Print Utility, which applies the right color settings for Sawgrass ink and paper. You don't download, install or troubleshoot ICC profiles. Print Utility accepts JPG, PNG, PDF, TIFF, GIF, AVIF, WEBP and EPS files and works with Silhouette for print-and-cut, according to authorized retailer JP Plus.

Design tools included

The MySawgrass Design Tool adds templates, shapes and masks, layers and access to DesignMate+ artwork, per JP Plus. It won't replace Photoshop for a designer, but it covers most product templates.

Low-maintenance design

Sawgrass describes "No-Clog Technology" on both printers, combining its inks with automatic maintenance routines. Every inkjet can still clog, but a printer that cleans itself is friendlier for sellers who print in bursts.

The longest warranty in desktop sublimation

Three years or 100,000 prints, plus lifetime tech support from Sawgrass (per JP Plus), for printers bought on or after October 1, 2025. For comparison, Epson's SureColor F170 comes with a 1-year unit exchange.

The differences, one by one

1. Print size

This is the deciding factor for most buyers.

The SG500 prints up to 8.5 x 14 inches from its main tray. That covers 11 oz and 15 oz mugs, 20 oz skinny tumblers, coasters, mouse pads, ornaments, chest logos and youth shirt fronts. A bypass tray allows longer media, but not wider.

The SG1000 prints 11 x 17 inches from its main tray and up to 13 x 19 inches with the optional bypass tray. That's enough for most adult shirt fronts, tote bags and pillow covers. Retailer JP Plus lists the bypass tray as handling media up to 13 x 51 inches, which helps for long panels and gang-sheeting small designs.

Bottom line: if adult shirts are more than an occasional order, the SG1000 is the one. Our guide to sublimation printers for shirts covers what fits at each size.

2. Ink capacity and running cost

Both printers take 20 mL starter and 31 mL standard cartridges. Only the SG1000 accepts the 70 mL extended cartridges, and retailers note those aren't compatible with the SG500.

That matters because bigger cartridges usually cost less per milliliter, and you swap them less often. Shirt fronts use far more ink than mugs, so the SG1000's larger cartridges pair naturally with its larger prints.

Either way, Sawgrass ink costs more per print than Epson's 140 mL bottles. Third-party cartridges exist (Hiipoo sells SG500/SG1000-compatible cartridges), but using them on a printer you bought for the Sawgrass ecosystem undercuts the reason you bought it. Check Sawgrass's warranty terms before trying one. For more, see our sublimation ink guide.

3. Speed

Retailer JP Plus lists the SG1000's print modes at about 15 seconds (High Speed), 29 seconds (High Quality), 48 seconds (Advanced Photo) and 6 minutes 40 seconds (Ultra Fine Photo at 4880 x 1200 dpi), with up to 156 prints per hour. Sawgrass says both printers share the same components, so expect similar per-page speed from the SG500 at the same size. The practical difference: the SG1000 can print one large design that the SG500 would need two sheets for, or gang more small designs per sheet (an 11 x 17 sheet has twice the area of letter paper). For production, fewer sheet changes matter more than seconds per page.

Note that Ultra Fine Photo mode is far slower than the others. For shirts and mugs, High Quality is a sensible working mode; save the slowest mode for photo panels where fine detail shows.

4. Footprint

The SG500 measures 15.75 x 17.25 x 8.5 inches; the SG1000 is wider at 21 x 14.25 x 8.5 inches. Both are desktop printers, but give the SG1000 a dedicated spot, especially with the bypass tray in use.

5. Price

The SG1000 sits at the top of the desktop sublimation price tier; the SG500 is mid-range. Both often come in bundles with ink and paper, and Sawgrass introduced new everyday pricing. Compare complete bundles, not printer-only prices.

SubliJet UHD vs VersiFlex: the other decision

Both printers are sold in two ink configurations. This choice is permanent.

Choose SubliJet UHD if you work on polyester shirts and coated hard goods. Sublimation on polyester is permanent and has no hand-feel.

Choose VersiFlex if your customers keep asking for cotton. Sawgrass says it works with no weeding and no powder, and recommends a heat press with manual pressure adjustment. Just set expectations: it's light garments only, and wash life on cotton is lower than true sublimation on polyester. Other routes to cotton are covered in our guide to sublimation spray for cotton.

Choose the SG500 if…

• You mainly make drinkware, coasters, ornaments, phone cases and small apparel prints.
• Your desk space is limited.
• You want the Sawgrass software and warranty at the lower entry price.
• You're starting out and might never need 13 x 19.

Choose the SG1000 if…

• You sell adult t-shirts, totes or pillow covers.
• You print enough to benefit from 70 mL cartridges.
• You want to gang-sheet small designs on 13 x 19 or long media.
• You'd rather buy once than upgrade in a year.

The extras to budget for

The printer price isn't the whole bill. Plan for these before you compare quotes:

• Bypass tray (SG1000). Required for 13 x 19 and long media. Without it, the SG1000 tops out at 11 x 17.
• Option tray. Sawgrass sells an extra paper tray for both models (up to 8.5 x 14 on the SG500, 11 x 17 on the SG1000), useful if you swap between paper sizes often.
• Ink beyond the install kit. Starter kits ship with 20 mL cartridges, which run out quickly. Standard install kits use 31 mL.
• Paper. Sawgrass recommends TruePix for sublimation, and VersiFlex Light for cotton on VersiFlex printers.
• A press that matches. A 13 x 19 print needs a 16 x 20 press; a 15 x 15 won't cover it in one press.

Setting up a Sawgrass printer

Sawgrass setup is more guided than most. Authorized retailers such as JP Plus describe free one-on-one setup and onboarding with the printer. The flow looks like this:

1. Choose your ink system before you buy (SubliJet UHD or VersiFlex), because the printer is configured around it.
2. Install the cartridges from the install kit and let the printer run its initial charge.
3. Install Sawgrass Print Utility on a supported computer (Sawgrass lists Windows 10 or macOS 13 with an Intel or AMD processor).
4. Design or import artwork in the MySawgrass Design Tool or your own software, then send it to Print Utility, which applies Sawgrass color settings for your ink and paper.
5. Pick the product and paper in Print Utility, print, and press using the substrate maker's settings.

The built-in self-cleaning routine runs maintenance automatically, which is why Sawgrass printers tolerate gaps between orders better than a converted EcoTank.

Sawgrass vs Epson vs a converted EcoTank

*For printers bought on or after October 1, 2025.

Sawgrass costs more to run, and you're paying for predictability: software-managed color, a long warranty and someone to call. Epson's F170 is the value pick at 8.5 inches. A converted EcoTank is the cheapest and the riskiest.

Who should skip Sawgrass

• Hobbyists printing a few mugs a month. The support and warranty are worth less to you than lower ink cost.
• Apple silicon Mac users who don't want to confirm compatibility first. Check Sawgrass's current requirements.
• Anyone who wants third-party ink. It defeats the point of the Sawgrass system.
• Shops needing 24-inch width. That's Epson F570 or Sawgrass VJ-628 territory.

What about bigger or cheaper options?

• Bigger: Sawgrass's VJ-628 is a 25-inch printer for production shops. Sawgrass lists it as Windows 10 only, Ethernet only, with a 1-year warranty, which makes it a very different machine.
• Cheaper to run: Epson's 8.5-inch SureColor F170 refills from 140 mL bottles. See our Epson F170 review.
• All options: our best sublimation printers roundup.

Whichever printer you choose, the press matters as much as the print. Pair an SG1000 with a press at least 13 x 19 inches if you'll use the full size; see our sublimation heat press guide.

How we compared

We didn't test these printers hands-on. We used Sawgrass's printer and VersiFlex pages for sizes, connectivity, requirements and warranty, and authorized-retailer listings (JP Plus and others) for cartridge sizes, print modes and software details. Where a spec came only from a retailer, we've said so.

FAQ

Verdict

The SG500 is the right Sawgrass sublimation printer for most crafters: same software, same warranty, smaller footprint and lower cost. Step up to the SG1000 only if adult shirts or larger prints are a real part of your business, since that's where its 13 x 19 capability and 70 mL cartridges pay off.