Printer Printing Blank Pages? Why It Happens and How to Fix It

A printer that feeds paper but prints nothing is almost always one of five things: tape left on a new cartridge, a clogged print head, an empty or failed cartridge, a worn laser drum, or a software setting. This guide helps you tell which one you have in a few minutes and fix it, starting with the free checks.

Why is my printer printing blank pages? Find the cause in 3 questions

Start with the printer itself, not the computer. A test page printed from the printer’s own menu skips Windows, macOS, drivers and apps. If that page comes out right, the printer is fine and the problem is in what you sent it.

1. 1Does a test page printed from the printer’s control panel also come out blank?

   No, it prints fine

   It’s a software problem. Check the document, paper size and driver (see the last row of the table below).

   Yes, it’s blank too

   It’s the cartridge, print head, drum or printer. Go to question 2.

2. 2Did it start right after you put in a new cartridge?

   Yes

   Look for tape, a pull tab or a protective cover still on the cartridge, and reseat it.

   No

   Go to question 3.

3. 3Is it an inkjet or a laser printer?

   Inkjet

   Most likely a clogged print head or an empty cartridge. Follow the inkjet fixes.

   Laser

   Most likely empty toner or a worn drum. Follow the laser fixes.

It also helps to look closely at the page. “Blank” can mean three different things, and each points somewhere different.

Why printers print blank pages: causes at a glance

Use this table as a cheat sheet. The clue column is the fastest way to narrow it down.

Inkjet printer printing blank pages: fixes in order

Work down the list. Each step costs the same or more than the one before it, so you won’t buy a cartridge you didn’t need.

1. Rule out the computer Free

   Print a test page from the printer’s control panel. If it prints, check that the document isn’t blank, that the paper size in your app matches the paper in the tray, and that the right printer is selected. Epson lists all three as causes of blank pages.

2. Remove every piece of tape Free

   New and remanufactured cartridges ship with tape over the nozzles or the air vent. Canon’s manuals say to peel off all the orange tape and protective film so the Y-shaped air hole is exposed. Don’t touch the nozzles or copper contacts while you do it.

3. Reseat the cartridges Free

   Take each cartridge out and push it back in until it clicks. If the printer still doesn’t read it, wipe the contacts on the cartridge with a dry, lint-free cloth.

4. Print a nozzle check, then clean the head Free

   The nozzle check pattern shows which colors are blocked. If it has gaps or is blank, run the printer’s head cleaning, then print the pattern again. Canon says to clean twice before moving on to deep cleaning. Cleaning uses ink, so don’t run it more than you need to.

5. Deep clean, then let it rest Free

   Run one deep cleaning. If it doesn’t help, Canon recommends turning the printer off and running deep cleaning again 24 hours later. The wait lets fresh ink soak into dried nozzles.

6. Replace the empty or failed cartridge $

   If the nozzle check is still blank for one color after cleaning, that cartridge is empty or has failed. On many printers one empty cartridge stops all printing, so check every level, not just the color you need.

7. Print head repair or a new printer $$$

   If deep cleaning twice doesn’t help, Canon says the print head may be damaged and to contact a service center. On printers where the head is part of the cartridge (most HP and many Canon home models), a new cartridge is a new head, so try that first.

Laser printer printing blank pages: fixes in order

Laser printers don’t clog. When they print blank pages, the toner isn’t reaching the drum or the drum isn’t passing it to the paper. HP’s own advice is to replace the toner first, then check the drum, transfer roller and fuser.

1. Rule out the computer and Toner Save Free

   Print a test page from the printer’s menu. If pages are very faint rather than fully blank, turn off Toner Save in the printer’s menu or driver. Brother lists this first for light prints.

2. Check for a seal or protective cover Free

   Many new toner cartridges ship with a pull tab, sealing strip or a plastic cover over the drum or roller. HP lists an unremoved shipping seal as a cause of blank pages. Remove everything orange or loose before you install it.

3. Reseat the toner and drum Free

   On printers with a separate drum, like most Brother lasers, make sure the toner cartridge is locked into the drum unit and the whole assembly is fully seated. Gently rock a new toner cartridge side to side to spread the toner first.

4. Clean the corona wire Free

   Brother drum units have a corona wire with a small slider. Slide it back and forth a few times and return it to its home position. A dirty wire causes faint pages and streaks.

5. Install a new toner cartridge $

   If the toner is low or the printer says Replace Toner, this is the likely fix. Our Brother toner replacement guide covers resets if the message won’t clear.

6. Replace the drum unit $$

   A worn drum can’t hold toner, so pages stay faint or blank even with new toner. See how to replace and reset a Brother drum.

7. Service the transfer roller or power supply $$$

   If pages are still blank with new toner and a new drum, the transfer roller or high-voltage supply has likely failed. HP’s community experts call this a hardware fault. On a small office laser, a repair can cost more than a new printer.

Printing blank pages but has ink? Here’s why

This is the most common version of the problem, and it’s frustrating because the ink gauge says everything is fine. The gauge measures how much ink the printer thinks it has used, not whether ink is reaching the paper.

• Dried nozzles. Ink dries in the print head if the printer sits for weeks or loses power before it parks the head. HP’s support community names this as the usual cause. Clean the head as described above.
• Tape still on the cartridge. The gauge reads full because the cartridge is full. The ink just can’t get out.
• Air in the cartridge. A cartridge that has been in storage, or one that was dropped, can need a few cleaning cycles before ink flows. If it’s new and still blank after two cleanings, contact the seller.
• The chip reads, but the cartridge failed. Any cartridge, brand-name or aftermarket, can arrive defective. If one cartridge prints nothing while the others work, swap it before you clean the head again and again.

HP, Epson, Canon and Brother: what’s different

HP printer printing blank pages

In the HP Smart app, go to Printer Settings, then Maintenance or Tools, then Clean Printhead. HP suggests running level 1, printing a test page, then moving to level 2 if needed (HP.com, March 2026). On HP LaserJets, start with the toner cartridge and check for the shipping seal.

If your HP shows a “cartridge problem” or “cartridge not recognized” message instead of printing blank pages, that’s a chip issue, not a clog. See what the HP cartridge problem message means. If your model name ends in “e”, read what the “e” means for which cartridges work before you buy.

Epson printer printing blank pages

Run a nozzle check, then head cleaning if the pattern has gaps. Epson also lists a wrong paper size and the wrong printer selected as causes. If you only get a blank page inside a longer document, turn on Skip Blank Page in the Epson printer software, where your model has it.

Canon printer printing blank pages

Remove all orange tape and film from new cartridges, then print the nozzle check. Clean twice, then deep clean. If that doesn’t work, turn the printer off and deep clean again after 24 hours. Canon says to contact a service center if two deep cleanings don’t fix it.

Brother printer printing blank pages

On Brother lasers, turn off Toner Save, clean the drum and corona wire, then replace the toner and finally the drum. Those are Brother’s own steps for faint pages. If blank pages only come out when you print from a Windows computer, Brother suggests opening the printer’s Properties, going to the Advanced tab and unchecking Keep printed documents. On Brother inkjets, use the same nozzle check and cleaning routine as other inkjets.

If the fix is a new cartridge: what it costs

When cleaning and reseating don’t help, a new cartridge is usually the fix. A compatible or remanufactured cartridge costs much less than a brand-name one. Our study of 43 printers found a median of 1.3¢ per black page for Swift Ink mono laser toner versus 3.5¢ for brand-name toner.

Yields are the brand’s rated ISO yields, which match ours for these cartridges. Prices change, so check the product page. To compare your own printer, try the printer cost per page calculator.

Frequently asked questions

Why is my printer printing blank pages when it has ink?

The print head is most likely clogged, or tape is still covering the cartridge. The ink gauge only estimates how much ink is left. Print a nozzle check, remove any tape, and run the cleaning cycle up to twice.

Why does my printer print blank pages after changing the cartridge?

Tape, a pull tab or a protective cover is usually still on the new cartridge, or it isn’t fully seated. Take it out, remove every strip, and push it in until it clicks. On inkjets, a fresh cartridge can also need one cleaning cycle before ink flows.

Why does my laser printer print blank pages with new toner?

Check for a seal or cover left on the cartridge first. If there isn’t one, the drum unit is the next most likely cause, then the transfer roller. Blank pages with new toner and a new drum usually mean a hardware fault.

Why does my printer print a blank page between pages?

Two sheets are probably feeding at once. Fan the stack, don’t fill the tray past the line, and use dry paper. If the blank page comes at the end of a document, the file likely has an empty last page or an extra page break.

Can a compatible cartridge cause blank pages?

Any cartridge can arrive defective, brand-name or aftermarket. Most blank pages with a new cartridge come from tape left on or a cartridge that isn’t seated. If it’s still blank after those checks and one cleaning, contact the seller for a replacement.