In today’s age, computers and their accessories like printers have become a necessity. The same is true for me. That is why I’m highly reliant on my printer. Whenever it develops a snag, it disrupts my entire schedule.
A printer only printing in black and white is one of the most common snags you can experience. Fortunately, it has an easy solution as well. Before I go into the details of the solution, it is time to look at the cause of the same.
Why Is the Printer Only Printing in Black and White?
There are a few likely causes why this might happen. These include:
Printer Settings
If the greyscale setting is selected, the printer will only print in black and white.
Old Drivers
When did you last update the drivers of your printer?
Most of us do not update them at all. With each passing day, the drivers get older and sometimes might not work appropriately with the latest version of your operating system. In that case, the printer might likely start printing only in black and white because of compatibility issues.
Now that you know the causes, I will help you understand how to fix each of these problems.
How to Solve These Problems?
I will highlight the solutions to each of these problems below and the step-by-step guide. That should help you solve these problems, and once that happens, the printer will start printing in color again.
Solution 1: Changing the Printer Setting
The procedure to change the greyscale to default is pretty easy.
Step One: Open the Start Menu
Depending on the Windows version, you might notice the windows button in the left-hand side corner of your screen or the start button. Click on that and select the devices and printers option. If you cannot view this option, use the Windows search bar to look the same.
Step Two: Choose the Right Printer
You will see your printer’s name in the dialogue box, and after that, right-click on that name and select printing preferences.
Step Three: Go to the Color Type
In the color tab, you will see the greyscale option selected. You have to de-select it and under the RGB color menu, make sure that the default option is selected.
Step Four: Click Apply
Once you choose the settings, click on apply.
That’s it!
Now your printer will start printing in color once again.
Solution 2: Update Drivers
Once you update the drivers, the printer should start functioning appropriately. The steps to do so include:
Step One: Open Control Panel
Use the search bar option at the bottom of your window screen or click the Start/Windows icon and click on the control panel from the menu.
Step Two: Choose Hardware and Sound
In the control panel settings, click on hardware and sound, and after that, click on device manager. This should bring up a long list that will contain printers as well.
Step Three: Right Click on the Printers Option
Right click on the relevant printer option and click update driver.
Step Four: Choose the Automatic Option
This will allow you to select between automatic and manual options, and you have to choose ‘automatic’.
Step Five: Alternatively, Search on the Manufacturer’s Website
If your computer isn’t able to find the drivers on your hard disk or externally connected storage, it will ask you to search on the manufacturer’s website.
A simple web search with your manufacturer’s name and printer model followed by drivers will take you to that page. You can then download the drivers and install them manually.
That’s it!
In these few simple steps, you can update your printer’s drivers, and after that, restart the machine.
Once you do so, this problem will likely get solved.
Conclusion
Instead of pulling your hair over printer only printing in black and white, you have to try these two solutions. They will certainly fix the problem and ensure that your printer starts functioning normally again.