Fix it yourself · Printing
Printer says offline or won't print
Nine times out of ten the printer has lost the Wi-Fi network or Windows is stuck on an old job. These steps fix most of it.
Steps
- Turn the printer off, wait 30 seconds, turn it on. Wait until it stops making noises and shows its normal screen or steady light.
- Restart the computer — properly, using Restart, not Shut down (Windows "Shut down" doesn't fully restart).
- Check the printer is on the same Wi-Fi network as the computer. Most printers show the network name in their menu under Wi-Fi or Network settings. If you've recently changed modem or Wi-Fi password, the printer needs to be reconnected — use its Wi-Fi setup menu.
- On the computer: Settings → Bluetooth & devices → Printers & scanners, click your printer, and if there's a queue of stuck documents open it and cancel all.
- While there, click Set as default so Windows isn't sending jobs to an old printer or "Microsoft Print to PDF".
- Try printing a test page from that same screen.
If that didn't work
- If it prints from your phone but not the computer, the printer is fine — remove it from Printers & scanners and add it again.
- If it stopped working right after a Windows update or a new modem, that's the cause; the reconnection above usually sorts it.
When to stop and call
It's still offline after reconnecting to Wi-Fi, scanning to the computer has stopped, or it's a shared office printer that some PCs can't see.
Book a visit →Ready when you are
Book a visit.
Tell me what's going wrong and when suits — I'll confirm a time, usually the same or next day.