When a printer refuses to print, the cause is usually boring: a stuck job in the queue, the wrong default printer, a loose connection, or the printer silently set to "offline" mode. Fix them in this order and you will clear the great majority of home and office printing problems yourself.
1. Check the obvious: power, paper, ink and error lights
Look at the printer itself first. Is there paper in the tray, seated straight? Any blinking orange light usually means a paper jam, an open cover, or an empty cartridge. Open all covers, pull out any stuck paper gently in the direction it normally travels, and close everything firmly. Many printers will not print at all with one cartridge fully empty — even for black-and-white documents on some models.
2. Restart the printer and the computer
Turn the printer off, unplug its power cable for 30 seconds, plug it back in and let it finish its start-up sounds. Then restart the computer. This clears the printer's stuck memory and the PC's confused connection in one go — it fixes a surprising number of "it just stopped working" cases.
3. Clear the stuck print queue
One corrupted document at the front of the queue blocks everything behind it. Go to Settings → Bluetooth & devices → Printers & scanners, select your printer, open the print queue, and cancel every document listed. If a job refuses to delete, restart both devices and clear it again before sending anything new.
4. Set it as default and turn off "Use Printer Offline"
In the same printer menu, set your printer as the default so Windows stops sending jobs to an old or virtual printer. Then open the print queue window, click the Printer menu at the top, and make sure Use Printer Offline is NOT ticked. This single hidden setting is the top reason a healthy printer shows "Offline".
5. Check the connection — USB or Wi-Fi
For USB: try a different cable and a different USB port, directly on the computer (not through a cheap hub). For Wi-Fi printers: the printer and PC must be on the same Wi-Fi network — a very common trap is the PC on the 5 GHz band and the printer stuck after the router was reset. Print the printer's network test page from its own buttons to confirm it is connected, and restart the router if it is not.
6. Restart the Print Spooler service
Press Windows key + R, type services.msc and press Enter. Find Print Spooler, right-click it and choose Restart. If it was stopped entirely, set it to start and set its Startup type to Automatic. Then try one test page.
7. Remove and reinstall the printer
If nothing worked, remove the printer from Settings → Printers & scanners, restart the PC, and add it again. Windows will fetch a fresh driver. If your model is old, download its driver from the manufacturer's official website (HP, Canon, Epson, Brother) — never from random "driver fixer" sites, which bundle junk software.
Frequently asked questions
Why does my printer say Offline when it is switched on?
Usually the "Use Printer Offline" option got ticked in the print queue window, or the PC lost the Wi-Fi/USB connection. Untick that option, restart the printer and router, and check the cable or network.
Will clearing the print queue delete my document?
Yes, cancelled jobs are removed and must be sent again — but a stuck job blocks every document behind it, so clearing the queue is the only way to unblock printing.
Do I need to install a driver from a CD?
No. Windows 10 and 11 install basic drivers automatically for most printers. Only download drivers from the printer maker's official website if a special feature is missing.
