Where to buy instant film

Availability by format

That first row is the practically important one. instax mini is the only instant film you can reliably buy without planning, and that is worth more than most price differences — a camera with no film at a party is useless regardless of what the film cost.

Why we do not name a cheapest retailer

Because we checked, and it does not hold. On 13 October 2026 we found the identical instax mini 20-exposure twin pack at two US camera retailers:

An 11% difference on the same pack, and both out of stock at the moment we looked. That is the normal state of this market, and it is exactly why every buy button on this site says "Check price on Amazon" rather than printing a number — any specific price we published would be wrong for somebody within a week.

Buying direct from the manufacturer

• •Polaroid sells all its film directly at polaroid.com, including the triple, five and twelve packs. For Polaroid film this is often the most reliable source, and the multipack ladder there is the only official discount available.
• •Kodak sells 4PASS cartridges directly at its photo printer store, and its printer bundles frequently include media at a better effective price than buying separately.
• •Fujifilm does not sell instax film direct in the US in a way we could verify, which is academic — it is the one film that is everywhere.
• •Canon sells SELPHY ink and paper sets through its own store and camera retailers.

What to avoid

• •Film from unfamiliar bulk sellers. Film is a chemical product and heat ruins it. A pack that has sat in a hot warehouse is not a bargain, and counterfeit instax packs do exist.
• •Expired film for anything that matters. It is cheap and unpredictable — colors shift, contrast changes, and some packs do not develop. Fine to experiment with, wrong for a gift or an event.
• •Buying a year ahead to save 11%. Film expires. The multipack saving is real and small; wasted film is a complete loss.
• •Assuming an album will fit. A separate but related trap — see matching an album to the print size.

The practical advice

1. 1.For a gift: buy the film with the camera, from the same order. One twin pack minimum.
2. 2.For an event: order film at least two weeks ahead, and buy one more pack than your calculation says. WIDE and Polaroid film in particular are not last-minute purchases.
3. 3.For ongoing use: if the camera takes instax mini, you never need to plan. If it takes anything else, keep one spare pack at home.
4. 4.For Polaroid specifically: buy the five-pack from polaroid.com. It is the cheapest official route and the right quantity for a camera that uses eight-shot packs.

1. Easiest film to buy anywhere

Fujifilm instax mini 12

The only instant film you can reliably pick up with the groceries.

Buy it for

Anyone who will run out at an inconvenient moment — which is everyone.

Skip it if

Anyone who needs a bigger print.

• •Stocked in supermarkets, drugstores and general retailers, not just camera shops.
• •About 85 cents a shot and the cheapest film in production.
• •AA batteries too, so nothing about this camera needs a specialist shop.

Running cost: instax mini works out at $0.85 a shot. See every format’s cost.

How it scores8.6/10 overall

• Availability10
• Cost per shot10
• Print size5

Our editorial scoring, built from published specifications and reviews by outlets that test hardware — see how we pick. We have not handled these products, so these are not test results.

Engadget, which publishes hands-on reviews, calls it “a basic instant camera ideal for newbies that lets you get started shooting”.

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2. Plan ahead for this one

Polaroid Now Generation 3

Great camera, film you will mostly be ordering.

Buy it for

Anyone who buys film in advance rather than on the day.

Skip it if

Anyone who wants to top up mid-event.

• •Film is mostly online or direct from polaroid.com rather than on a high street.
• •Eight exposures a pack, so you run out faster than you expect.
• •Polaroid's own five-pack is both the cheapest route and the sensible quantity.

Running cost: Polaroid i-Type works out at $2.37 a shot, so a hundred photographs in the first year puts the real total at about $366.86 including the camera. See every format’s cost.

How it scores7.0/10 overall

• Availability5
• Cost per shot2
• Print size10

Our editorial scoring, built from published specifications and reviews by outlets that test hardware — see how we pick. We have not handled these products, so these are not test results.

Check price on Amazon→

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Read the full review