Shredders have become an absolute necessity both at home and in the office as they help to avoid confidential information falling into the wrong hands. 

However, they vary in price depending on their brands, models, and specifications such as: 

• The shredder’s type: There are different types of shredders, e.g., industrial, multimedia, and desk side shredders.
• The shredder’s sheet and bin capacity: Sheet capacity refers to the number of sheets a machine can shred at a time while the bin capacity is the volume of shredded waste it can hold.
• The shredder’s cutting style: Some shredders cut papers in long vertical strips while others cut diagonally into tinier unreadable pieces.

So read on to find out how to select the best shredder for your budget.

We’ll take you through the different types of shredders, their key features, what makes them unique, their current prices, and where to get the best deals. 

Types of Shredders

Armadillo Industrial Supplies offers several variants of shredder machines to choose from. They include:

• Industrial Shredders - Powerful shredding machines used in industries and factories where bulk shredding of documents is required
• Deskside Shredders - Ideal for professionals with minimal office space thanks to their compact, space-saving design
• Cross Cut Shredders - Cut documents diagonally from both directions, resulting in tinier paper particles
• Multimedia Shredders - Provide powerful shredding for media materials such as hard drives, CDs & DVDs, floppy disks, and flash drives 

Now, let's review three of the best shredders for a tight budget. 

1 - Formax FD 8402SC OnSite Office Shredder

Formax FD 8402SC is a sturdy office shredder that’s built to last a lifetime. It can shred up to 26 sheets of paper at a time at a speed of 33 feet per minute, making it an excellent addition to a busy office.

Important Features of the Formax FD 8402SC OnSite Office Shredder

• LED control panel - The user-friendly LED control panel gives you easy access and control of the shredder. 
• Sturdy construction - Its components (e.g., cabinet and blades) are made from commercial grade steel that makes it durable and long-lasting.
• Safety door sensor - The shredder’s motor automatically stops if its door is opened while shredding.
• Oil indicator - The control panel LED flashes after every 4 hours of use to suggest that it’s time to oil the cutting blades for optimal functioning.

How the Formax FD 8402SC OnSite Office Shredder Compares With Other Shredders

• On-site shredder - On-site shredding ensures all your documents are destroyed right at your office. This is the most secure method of shredding since your confidential data are destroyed within your vicinity.
• Comes in both strip-cut and cross-cut models - This gives you the choice to pick your shredder according to your needs.

  
  The strip-cut shredder cuts documents in long vertical stripes that can be readable, making it a great shredder for non-confidential documents like junk mail. 

  On the other hand, the cross-cut model cuts documents diagonally from both directions, resulting in tinier, unreadable paper particles. This makes it ideal for destroying confidential documents like medical records and financial data.

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2 - Formax FD 8302SC Deskside Cross-Cut Shredder

The Formax FD 8302SC deskside shredder is a compact shredder (about the size of a wastebasket) that takes little space in a room, making it ideal for professionals with small office spaces.

Important Features of the Formax FD 8302SC Deskside Cross-Cut Shredder

• Door safety sensor - The sensor automatically stops the motor if one opens the cabinet door.
• Lightweight - It only weighs 28.6 lbs, making it super easy to carry and transport.
• Shred capacity - It can shred up to 14 sheets of paper at a time, at a speed of up to 17 feet per minute. 
• Cutter automatically stops - When you shred continuously for more than 30 minutes, the machine’s cutter revolution stops automatically.

How the Formax FD 8302SC Deskside Cross-Cut Shredder Compares With Other Shredders

• Cross-cut design - It shreds documents into tinier pieces that cannot be recovered, making it ideal if you want to destroy sensitive documents. 
• Also functions manually - Use the manual option to shred small-sized pieces that the sensor cannot detect.

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3 - Formax FD 8704CC OnSite Multimedia Shredder

Shred more than paper with the Formax FD 8704CC multimedia shredder, which has a sturdy all-metal construction built to last a lifetime. The all-around shredder destroys staples, paper clips, floppy disks, CDs, DVDs, credit cards, and many more.

Important Features of the Formax FD 8704CC OnSite Multimedia Shredder

• Large shredding capacity - It can shred up to 45 sheets at once at a speed of up to 12 feet per minute. 
• Features an eco-mode - The machine automatically goes into an energy-saving standby mode if it becomes inactive for more than five minutes.
• Waste bin full sensor - The shredder’s motor automatically stops once the waste bin is full.
• Auto-cleaning feature - If the machine’s shred capacity decreases, press the reverse button for five seconds. The motor will run in reverse for a minute to clean the machine.

How the Formax FD 8704CC OnSite Multimedia Shredder Compares With Other Shredders

• 2 feed openings - The multimedia shredder features two different feed openings—one for paper shredding and another designed to destroy CDs, DVDs, ZIP/floppy disks, paper clips, DV tapes, credit cards, and staples. 
• Continuous duty motor - The shredder is designed for continuous operation, so you don’t have to stop between sessions to let it rest.

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Advantages and Benefits of Shredders

Now, let’s see why a shredder is a crucial must-have, whether in your office or at home. 

Shredders Protect Information

More often than not, you’ll hear stories of companies that accidentally exposed their customers’ confidential data due to improper management of information. 

Shredding all kinds of documents is the surest way to ensure that any personal data will not be stolen or compromised. 

Shredders Help to Manage Waste

A few sheets of paper may not seem like a cause for alarm, but what about huge piles of documents scattered all over your office and taking up your floor space? 

Shredding these waste papers significantly reduces their volume, resulting in less clutter in the work space.

Shredding is also a convenient method of transporting wastes for recycling or disposal because shredded documents are light and take up less space compared to whole papers.

Shredding Is Fast and Efficient

One of the greatest advantages of having a shredder at your disposal is that you can discard any document and material right away after you’re done with it. This reduces the chances of involving a third party (such as a shredding company), further protecting sensitive information.

Common Features of Shredders

Look out for these three key features before purchasing a shredder for your home or office.

1 - The Shredding Speed

The shredder’s efficiency is determined by checking the machine’s shred speed and how fast it feeds documents through the shredding component.

However, not all quality shredders have a high shredding speed. Most high-security shredders, for instance, have a slower shred speed because of their powerful motors that work harder to produce finer particles. 

Therefore, be sure to check the shredder’s security level when considering its shred speed.

2 - The Shredder’s Cooldown Time

A shredder’s cooldown time is the minimum time it requires between operations. Some need to shut down after 30 minutes of operation while others don’t need to cool down.

The general preference of office and industrial shredders are those with short to zero cooldown time, especially if you need to shred large files frequently.

But if you don’t do a lot of paperwork, a shredder with 10 to 15 minutes of cooldown time will work just fine.

3 - The Shredder’s Sheet and Bin Capacity

A shredder’s sheet and bin capacity determines its convenience level. Sheet capacity refers to the highest number of sheets the machine can shred at a time. A higher sheet capacity means more documents are shredded within a short time.

On the other hand, bin capacity is the volume of waste the shredder can hold, and is always measured in gallons. The higher the shredder’s bin capacity, the fewer the number of times you’ll need to empty its bin. 

Therefore, if you engage in high-volume shredding, a machine with a high sheet and bin capacity suits you best. 

But if you don’t have a lot of papers to shred, then a shredder with a moderate sheet and bin capacity is ideal.

Price Range for the Best Shredders for the Price

Shredders’ prices vary depending on their features, specifications, brands, models, and types. The table shows Armadillo Industrial Supplies’ price ranges for shredders according to their types.

Type Of Shredder	Lowest Price	Highest Price
High-Security Office Shredders	$3,075.00	$8,800.00
Onsite Office Shredders	$2,125.00	$3,845.00
Deskside Office Shredders	$605.00	$1,550.00
Industrial Shredders	$12,800.00	$63,995.00

Get the Best Shredder for Your Budget at Armadillo Industrial Supplies

Armadillo Industrial Supplies offers the latest and the highest quality shredders on the market at affordable prices. Whether you’re looking for a compact shredder that fits your small home office or a heavy-duty industrial machine for bulk shredding, Armadillo Industrial Supplies has it all.

Check out our entire collection of the best shredders in the industry here. There’s indeed a machine for every budget.

For any further inquiries, don’t hesitate to contact us. Our team of professional experts will get back to you in no time.

The customer service is outstanding…Armadillo have exceeded my expectations. Ryan

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