Can't Print a PDF? 6 Fixes That Work on Windows & Mac

Before trying anything else, open the PDF in a second app — Chrome, Edge, or UPDF — and hit Print. If it prints fine there, your original reader or its settings are the problem. If it fails everywhere, the file itself is likely damaged or restricted. That one test tells you which of the six fixes below you actually need, so you don't waste time on the wrong one.

Part 1: Why Won't My PDF Print? (Diagnose First)

"Nothing happens when I click print" almost always traces back to one of five causes. Match your symptom to the likely cause, then jump straight to the fix that fits — no need to try all six.

What you're seeing	Most likely cause	Go to
Prints fine in the browser but not in your PDF app	Reader glitch or bad print setting	Fix 1 & 2
An error like "the document could not be printed," or blank pages come out	Corrupt content, unembedded fonts, or complex graphics	Fix 2 & 3
Won't print in any app; also can't copy or edit	A permissions (print) password on the file	Fix 4
Fails after a Windows/macOS update; other file types also affected	Outdated or broken printer driver	Fix 5
Job "sends" but never prints; printer is idle	Stuck queue, wrong default printer, or loose connection	Fix 6

Part 2: 6 Ways to Fix a PDF That Won't Print

Fix 1: Try a Different Reader or Browser

This is the fastest way to isolate the problem. Most browsers have their own built-in PDF engine, so a file that chokes in one app often prints without complaint in another.

Step 1. Right-click the PDF and open it in your web browser (Chrome or Edge), or in a different PDF editor such as UPDF.

Step 2. Press Ctrl + P (Windows) or Cmd + P (Mac) and print.

If it works, your original PDF app needs an update or reinstall — and you've already got a working way to print today. If it still won't print, the file itself is the suspect; move to Fix 2 or 3.

Fix 2: Turn On "Print as Image"

If you see errors like "the document could not be printed," or pages come out blank or garbled, the PDF likely contains a damaged font or a graphic your printer can't render. Print as Image flattens the whole page into a single rasterized picture and sends that to the printer, bypassing the rendering step that's failing.

On Windows, UPDF has this option built into its print window:

Step 1. Open the PDF in UPDF, click the dropdown arrow (▼) next to the Save icon, and choose Print.

Step 2. In the print window, tick the Print as image checkbox.

Step 3. Click Print.

In Adobe Acrobat (Windows or Mac), the same option lives under the print dialog's Advanced button. You can read this article for more detailed tutorials: How to Print as Image with Adobe Acrobat? Quick and Fast

On Mac, UPDF prints through the standard macOS print dialog, which doesn't include a Print-as-Image checkbox. To rasterize a problem file on a Mac, use one of these instead: open it in Adobe Acrobat and use Advanced → Print as Image; or recreate a clean, flattened copy first (Fix 3) and print that.

Print as Image is slightly slower and can lower fine-line sharpness, so use it when standard printing throws an error — not as your everyday setting.

Download UPDF for free to try Print as Image (Windows) on the file that won't print — installation is free, and Pro features are available when you need export or advanced tools.

Fix 3: Re-download or Recreate a Corrupt File

If the PDF won't print in any app and Print as Image doesn't help, the file is probably damaged. Files can corrupt during an interrupted download or when saved to a thumb drive or network folder.

Step 1. If you got the PDF from a website or cloud link, download it again and save it directly to your computer's hard drive (not a USB stick or network drive).

Step 2. If someone emailed it to you, ask them to resend it, or open it and re-save a fresh copy: in UPDF, click the dropdown arrow (▼) next to the Save icon → Save as....

Step 3. Open the new copy and print.

Recreating the file rebuilds its internal structure, which often clears the damaged data that blocked printing.

Fix 4: Remove the Print Restriction from the PDF

Some PDFs carry a permissions password (also called an owner password) that lets you open and read the file but silently blocks printing, copying, or editing. There's often no error — the print button simply does nothing. You can lift the restriction on files you own or are authorized to edit.

⚠️ Only remove restrictions from PDFs you own or have permission to modify.

Step 1. Open the restricted PDF in UPDF. (If you don't have it yet, download UPDF for free — it installs in under a minute.)

Step 2. Click the dropdown arrow (▼) next to the Save icon and select Remove Password (Remove Security).

Step 3. Confirm, then save the unrestricted copy with Save. Print it as usual.

This works the same way on Windows and Mac. On UPDF for iOS and Android you can also remove passwords.

Fix 5: Update Your Printer Driver

An outdated or broken driver is the single most common cause of print failures on Windows, especially right after a major OS update. If other file types also won't print, start here.

On Windows:

Step 1. Type Device Manager in the taskbar search and open it.

Step 2. Expand Print queues (or Printers), right-click your printer, and choose Update driver → Search automatically for drivers.

Step 3. Follow the prompts, restart, then try printing again.

On Mac:

Step 1. Open System Settings → General → Software Update and install any pending macOS updates — Apple ships most printer drivers through system updates.

Step 2. If the printer still misbehaves, go to System Settings → Printers & Scanners, remove the printer, then add it back to pull a fresh driver.

For either platform, you can also download the latest driver directly from the printer manufacturer's website using your exact model number.

Fix 6: Reset the Default Printer, Clear the Queue, and Check the Connection

If the job appears to send but nothing prints, the culprit is usually a stuck queue, the wrong default printer, or a loose connection.

On Windows:

Step 1. Press Windows + R, type control.exe, and open Devices and Printers under Hardware and Sound.

Step 2. Right-click your printer and choose Set as default printer (look for the green check mark).

Step 3. Double-click the printer, open the queue, and cancel any stuck jobs. Then print once — don't keep clicking Print, which only piles up more stuck jobs.

On Mac:

Step 1. Go to System Settings → Printers & Scanners and set the right printer as Default.

Step 2. Click the printer, choose Printer Queue, and delete any stuck jobs.

Step 3. For a wired printer, reseat the USB cable; for wireless, confirm the printer and computer are on the same network. Restart the printer if needed.

Download UPDF for free to open your file, clear the print restriction if there is one, and reprint from a clean engine — installation is free, and Pro features are available when you need export or advanced tools.

Part 3. How UPDF Fixes This in One Window

Most "can't print" cases come down to two things a good PDF app handles directly: a file the printer can't render, and a file that's blocked from printing. UPDF handles both.

• Print as Image (Windows) — a checkbox right in UPDF's print window (dropdown arrow (▼) next to Save → Print). It flattens problem pages so they print even when a corrupt font or heavy graphic blocks normal printing — the same fix behind Adobe's "Advanced → Print as Image." On Mac, UPDF uses the macOS print dialog, so rasterize via Acrobat's Advanced option or by recreating the file first.
• Remove Password / Security (Windows & Mac) — one click from the same Save dropdown lifts a permissions password so a locked file will print, on documents you're authorized to edit.

Because UPDF is a full editor, it also doubles as a clean second reader for Fix 1 (a fresh engine to print from) and can re-save a fresh copy for Fix 3.

UPDF is free to download and use, and free exports carry a trial watermark. UPDF Pro is $49.99/year or $79.99 one-time (lifetime) — a fraction of Adobe Acrobat Pro's $19.99/month subscription — and removes the trial watermark while unlocking batch tools, and full conversion.

If you regularly print scanned documents or files with mixed fonts, download UPDF for free and — on Windows — try Print as Image on a copy first.

Part 4. Edge Cases: When the Standard Fixes Don't Work

• The Print button is greyed out entirely. This is almost always a permissions password, not a bug — go straight to Fix 4. If the button is active but does nothing, it's a queue or driver issue (Fix 5–6).
• Only some pages print, or one page comes out blank. A single unembedded font or corrupt image on that page is usually to blame. Print as Image (Fix 2) rasterizes the whole document and clears it; if not, recreate the file (Fix 3).
• It prints fine to a PDF printer but not to paper. "Print to PDF" first (Microsoft Print to PDF on Windows, Save as PDF on Mac), then print that new, clean PDF — this rebuilds the file and often bypasses the original error.
• Network/shared printer fails while a USB printer works. The queue on the shared printer is likely stuck or the driver on the server is outdated. Clear the queue (Fix 6) and confirm the driver on the machine hosting the printer.
• Nothing works on this computer. Move the file to a different computer and print from there. Driver, OS, and app-specific problems don't travel with the file, so this quickly confirms whether the file or the machine is at fault.

Part 5. Frequently Asked Questions

Conclusion

A PDF that won't print is almost always a corrupt file, an outdated reader, or a print restriction — so test in a second app first, then reach for Print as Image or remove the restriction as needed. UPDF handles the two hardest cases directly: its Print as Image checkbox (Windows) forces problem files through, and one-click Remove Password (Windows & Mac) unlocks files blocked from printing.

Download UPDF for free to try removing a print restriction — or, on Windows, Print as Image — on the file that won't print. Installation is free, and Pro features are available when you need export or advanced tools.