macOS · Devices

Set Up Printers and Scanners on Mac

Printers & Scanners settings let you add, configure, and manage printers and scanners connected over USB, Wi-Fi, or a network, including setting a default printer and checking on active print jobs.

How to open Printers & Scanners

  1. Open System Settings → Printers & Scanners.
  2. Click Add Printer, Scanner, or Fax and select your device from the list.
  3. Set a default printer from the dropdown if you use more than one regularly.
  4. Click a printer's Open Print Queue button to monitor active jobs.

What you should know

  • Add a printer automatically when it's on the same network, or manually by IP address for less common setups.
  • Set a default printer overall, or let macOS choose the last one used automatically.
  • Double-click a printer in the list to open its queue and monitor or cancel print jobs in progress.
  • Scanners connected via USB or network are configured from the same list and can save scans as PDF or image files.

Many printer features (duplex printing, stapling, tray selection) only appear once the correct manufacturer driver is installed — the generic AirPrint driver macOS installs automatically covers basic printing but not every advanced option.

Why it matters

A correctly configured default printer and driver setup saves time on every single print job, instead of picking the right device and settings from scratch each time. Installing the full manufacturer driver rather than relying on the generic AirPrint fallback unlocks features many people don't realize they're missing, like duplex printing or specific paper tray selection. Scanner setup in the same pane also turns your Mac into a quick way to digitize documents without separate scanning software. Because printers are shared hardware, understanding queue management here helps you diagnose a stuck job without giving up and restarting the whole print.

Best practices

  • Install the manufacturer's full driver and software (not just relying on AirPrint) if you regularly use features like duplex printing or specific paper trays.
  • Set your most-used printer as the default so you don't need to pick it manually for every print job.
  • Keep printer and scanner software updated through the manufacturer's own updater, since macOS updates don't always include the latest print drivers.
  • Remove old or unused printers from the list periodically to keep the picker menu manageable.
  • Check the print queue immediately if a job seems stuck, rather than resending it repeatedly, since duplicate jobs pile up in the queue.

Common problems and fixes

A print job is stuck 'in progress' and won't complete.
Open the printer's queue from Printers & Scanners, delete the stuck job, and if it recurs, remove and re-add the printer to reset its connection.
A previously working printer no longer appears in the list after a network change.
Remove the printer and add it again so macOS can rediscover it at its current network address, especially after a router replacement or Wi-Fi network change.
Scanning produces blank or corrupted pages.
Check that the scanner's own drivers are current, close any other app that might be using the scanner simultaneously, and try scanning at a lower resolution to rule out a memory or timeout issue.
Print quality looks lower than expected despite selecting the right paper type.
Confirm the manufacturer's full driver is installed rather than the generic AirPrint driver, since generic drivers often default to lower-quality print settings.

Tips and tricks

  • Click the printer icon that appears in the Dock while printing for a quick shortcut straight to that job's queue.
  • Use 'Add Printer, Scanner, or Fax' → the IP tab to manually add a network printer that isn't being auto-discovered, using its IP address.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to install printer software, or does macOS handle everything automatically?

macOS can print to most AirPrint printers with zero extra software, but installing the manufacturer's driver unlocks advanced features and often improves print quality and reliability.

Can I print to a printer connected to someone else's Mac or a Windows PC?

Yes, macOS supports printing to printers shared from another Mac or a Windows computer on the same network, configurable when adding the printer in Printers & Scanners.

How do I cancel a print job that's already started?

Open the printer's queue from Printers & Scanners (or click the printer icon in the Dock while it's printing) and click the X next to the job you want to cancel.

More Devices guides for macOS

See every macOS guide