How-to guide
How to print a test page from your printer or computer
Print a test page from the printer’s own menu, Windows or a Mac, then read it to tell whether a fault is in the printer, the connection or the computer.
A test page is the quickest way to split a printing problem in half. A page printed from the printer’s own menu proves the print engine, the ink or toner and the paper path work with no computer involved. A page sent from Windows or a Mac proves the driver and the connection work too. Print the first kind before you change any settings on the computer, and the second kind after any fix, to confirm it held.
Steps for the printer itself, Windows 11/10 and Mac.
Before you start
- Plain paper loaded in the main tray
- The printer switched on and awake
Steps
Work down the list in order. Tick off each step as you go: your progress is saved on this device.
On the printer itself
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Load plain paper and wake the printer
Put a few sheets of plain Letter or A4 paper in the main tray and slide the guides in until they touch the stack. Press a button or tap the screen so the printer is awake and showing its home screen or a steady power light.
You should see: No error message or blinking warning light is showing.
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Open the setup or reports menu
On printers with a screen, look in the Setup, Settings, Reports, Tools or Maintenance menu. The names vary by maker and model, so look for anything that mentions a report, a status page, a configuration page or a quality page.
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Choose a report that shows print quality
A print quality or diagnostic page, or an inkjet nozzle check, is the most useful because it shows every color as solid blocks and fine lines. A configuration or network report is the better choice if you also want the printer’s IP address and firmware version.
You should see: The printer pulls in a sheet and prints a page of blocks, lines or text within a minute or so.
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Use the button combination on screenless models
Many printers without a display print a status or test page when you hold a particular button, or press two buttons together. The combination differs between models, so look up “configuration page” or “self-test” in your printer’s manual rather than trying buttons at random.
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Read the page before you change anything
Look for gaps in lines, missing or wrong colors, streaks, faint areas and smudges. If this page prints cleanly but documents from the computer don’t, the printer itself is healthy and the fault lies in the connection, the driver or the app.
You should see: You can now say whether the problem is inside the printer or between the computer and the printer.
Windows 11 and 10
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Open Printers & scanners
On Windows 11 go to Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Printers & scanners. On Windows 10 go to Settings > Devices > Printers & scanners.
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Select the printer you want to test
Click the printer’s name. If you see two entries for the same printer, for example one ending in “Copy 1”, choose the one you normally print to, because each entry can use a different driver or port.
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Send the test page
On Windows 11, click Print test page. On Windows 10, click Manage first, then Print a test page.
You should see: A Windows test page comes out listing the printer name, the driver name and the port it was sent to.
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Use Printer properties if the option is missing
Open Printer properties (on Windows 10 it sits under Manage), stay on the General tab and click Print Test Page. This route works on both versions and also shows the model and driver, which helps later.
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Check the queue if nothing comes out
If no page appears within a minute, click Open print queue (Windows 10: Open queue) and look at the status column. A job marked Error or stuck at Spooling points to the queue or the spooler, not the printer hardware.
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Compare the two test pages
Lay this page beside the one printed from the printer’s menu. Both clean means the printer and driver are healthy and the problem sits inside one app or document. A clean printer page but a faulty or missing Windows page points at the driver, the port or the connection.
You should see: You know which half of the chain to work on next.
macOS
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Open Printers & Scanners
Choose Apple menu > System Settings > Printers & Scanners on macOS 13 Ventura or later. On older versions the same pane is in System Preferences.
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Open the printer’s queue
Click the printer’s name, then click the button that opens its queue, labelled Printer Queue or Open Print Queue depending on your macOS version. A small window opens showing any waiting jobs.
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Look for Print Test Page in the menu bar
With the queue window in front, open the Printer menu in the menu bar. If your printer’s driver offers it, choose Print Test Page.
You should see: A job appears in the queue window and the printer starts within a minute.
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Print a short document if there is no test page
Not every driver includes a test page. Open TextEdit, type a few lines, make one word bold and color another, then press Command + P and print. This tests the same route from the Mac to the printer.
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Resume the queue if it is paused
If the queue window says the printer is paused, click Resume. A paused queue holds every job, including your test, until it is resumed.
You should see: The job leaves the queue and the page prints.
Good to know
- A configuration or network report usually lists the printer’s IP address, MAC address, firmware version and page count. Keep a copy with the printer’s paperwork; it saves digging through menus during the next fix.
- Printing a short color page about once a week also helps keep inkjet nozzles from drying out, so on a printer that sits idle a test page doubles as maintenance.
- If the page printed from the printer’s own menu comes out blank, the fault is in the printer, not the computer. Work through the blank-page and print head guides before reinstalling any software.
Common questions
Why does the Windows test page print but my documents don’t?
The driver and connection are working, so look at the app. Check that it is sending to the right printer, that the paper size matches what is loaded, and that the document has no page range set that skips pages.
Does printing a test page use much ink?
A configuration report uses very little. A full print quality page with solid color blocks uses about as much as a page of color graphics, so there is no need to print one every day.
Can I print a test page from my phone?
Phones have no built-in test page. Print a short document or photo from the phone’s share menu, or use the manufacturer’s app, which on many models can tell the printer to print a status report.