Printer Not Printing in Windows 10 and 11: Step-by-Step Fix

Printer shows in Windows but won't print — the most common cause is a stuck print queue or Print Spooler service issue. (For a deeper dive into Spooler crashes, permissions and registry cleanup, see how to fix Print Spooler errors.)

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Step 1 — Clear the Print Queue

First thing to try for any printer problem:

Stop-Service Spooler -Force
Remove-Item "$env:SystemRoot\System32\spool\PRINTERS\*" -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
Start-Service Spooler
Write-Host "Print queue cleared"

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Step 2 — Restart Print Spooler

Restart-Service Spooler
Get-Service Spooler | Select-Object Name, Status

# If disabled:
Set-Service Spooler -StartupType Automatic
Start-Service Spooler

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Step 3 — Remove and Reinstall Printer

# List printers
Get-Printer | Select-Object Name, PortName

# Remove printer
Remove-Printer -Name "PRINTER_NAME"

Then add again:

Win + I → Bluetooth & devices → Printers & scanners → Add device

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Step 4 — Update Printer Driver

1. Device Manager → Print queues
2. Right-click printer → Update driver
3. Or download from manufacturer (Canon, HP, Epson, Brother)

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Common Errors

"Printer offline"

Settings → Printers → printer → Open queue →
Printer → uncheck "Use Printer Offline"

Document stuck in queue

Stop-Service Spooler -Force
Remove-Item "$env:SystemRoot\System32\spool\PRINTERS\*" -Force
Start-Service Spooler

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Troubleshooter

msdt.exe /id PrinterDiagnostic

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Summary

Problem	Fix
Stuck document	Clear print queue (Stop Spooler)
Printer offline	Uncheck "Use Printer Offline"
Not detected	Remove and reinstall
Print error	Update or reinstall driver