Amazon Basics Office Stapler

Reviewed from 52636 Amazon customer reviews

★★★★★ 4.6/5 on Amazon

Amazon Basics Office Stapler with black matte finish, loaded with standard staples

✅ PROS

Effortlessly staples 20 sheets without jamming, even with heavy cardstock
Full-metal base and head give it real heft — no cheap plastic wobble
Integrated staple remover on the base is genuinely useful, not a gimmick

❌ CONS

The plastic top cover feels less durable than the metal base — drop it on tile and it might crack
No adjustable throat depth, so stapling deep into a booklet requires awkward angling
Only accepts standard 26/6 staples, not heavy-duty 24/6 for thicker stacks

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Based on real Amazon reviews— we analyzed 52636 verified customer ratings to bring you this verdict.How we review →

The Verdict

The $10 stapler that 52,000 people bought — is it actually good?

Let’s be honest: a stapler is not a sexy purchase. You’re not shopping for a status symbol. You need something that punctures paper, doesn’t jam, and doesn’t fall apart in six months. The Amazon Basics Office Stapler has over 52,000 ratings and a 4.6-star average. That’s a lot of people who’ve shoved paper through this thing. Here’s the real story after digging through the feedback.

What you actually get

The box contains the stapler itself — that’s it. No spare staples, no case. It’s a full-strip stapler, meaning it takes a standard 210-staple strip (26/6 size). The body is a mix of metal and plastic: the base and the main mechanism are metal, while the top cover is plastic with a matte black finish. It weighs about 9.6 ounces, so it has enough heft to stay put on your desk, but it’s light enough to toss in a drawer.

The standout physical feature is the integrated staple remover tucked into the back of the base. It’s not an afterthought — it’s a solid little claw that actually works. You’ll use it more than you think.

How it performs

I’ll cut to the chase: this stapler does what it’s supposed to do, and it does it well. The manufacturer claims a 20-sheet capacity, and that’s accurate with standard 20-pound paper. It punches through cleanly with a satisfying thunk — not a weak click. The spring-loaded mechanism is smooth, and the base doesn’t slide around on your desk, thanks to rubberized feet on the bottom.

One customer put it this way: “I’ve had this for two years and it has never jammed once. My old Swingline jammed every other week.” That’s the experience echoed across hundreds of reviews — reliability is the headline here.

It also handles cardstock and folded documents without complaint. If you’re stapling a 10-page report with a cardstock cover, this stapler won’t flinch.

What buyers consistently praise

Reliability: The number one theme in reviews is “no jams.” That’s the whole job, and it nails it.
The staple remover: People genuinely love this. One reviewer noted, “The built-in remover is actually better than the standalone one I bought separately.”
Value: At this price point, buyers repeatedly say it outperforms expectations. “I expected to replace this in a year. It’s been three years and it’s still going strong,” wrote another customer.

Where it falls short

Let’s be fair — this isn’t a premium stapler, and there are tradeoffs.

The plastic top cover is the weak point. The metal base feels solid, but the plastic shell on top can crack if you drop it on a hard floor. A couple of reviews mention this exact failure after a fall. It won’t affect function immediately, but it’s a durability concern.

No adjustable throat depth. The distance from the staple to the edge of the paper is fixed at about 2.5 inches. If you’re trying to staple the center of a booklet or a thick folded document, you’ll have to angle it awkwardly. A professional-grade stapler with an adjustable anvil will do this better.

Staple size limitation. It only takes standard 26/6 staples. That’s fine for 95% of office work, but if you regularly staple 30+ pages, you need a heavy-duty model. This isn’t that.

Who should buy this

Home office workers who need a dependable stapler for occasional use — this is perfect.
Students who need something cheap that survives a backpack. The metal base helps here.
Small business owners who want a backup stapler for the drawer, not a centerpiece.

Skip it if you’re a legal assistant stapling 50-page briefs daily, or if you need a stapler with a deep throat for booklet binding. You’re in heavy-duty territory, and this isn’t the tool for that.

FAQ

Q: Does it jam with standard staples? A: No. The mechanism is simple and forgiving. Use quality staples (like Bostitch or Swingline) and you’ll rarely see a jam. Cheap no-name staples are the most common cause of jams in any stapler.

Q: Can I use it for tacking (temporary stapling)? A: No. This model doesn’t have a rotating anvil for pinning or temporary stapling. You get a permanent clinch, and that’s it.

Q: How do I reload it? A: Push the plastic top cover forward and it pops open. Drop in a full strip of 26/6 staples, close it, and you’re done. Takes about five seconds.

The Verdict

Rating: 8.8/10

Buy it if you want a no-nonsense, reliable stapler for everyday office work and you don’t want to overthink a $10 purchase. It’s one of the best value-for-money office tools on Amazon.

Skip it if you need heavy-duty capacity, adjustable stapling modes, or you’re prone to dropping things on hard floors. For those cases, spend more on a metal-bodied model with a deeper throat.

The Amazon Basics Office Stapler is proof that you don’t need to spend $40 to get a tool that works. It’s not flashy, it’s not fancy, but it’s honest — and 52,000 reviewers can’t all be wrong.