My printout has lines running through it. What should I do?

• See our how-to video or follow or the instructions below.

  White or Dark Lines in Printout

  If you notice white or dark lines in your prints (also called banding), try these solutions before you reprint:

  • Run a nozzle check to see if any of the print head nozzles are clogged. Then clean the print head, if necessary.
  • Make sure the paper type setting matches the type of paper you loaded.
  • Make sure you loaded the printable side of the paper correctly for your product.
  • Turn off any high speed settings in your product software.
  • Align the print head. If print quality does not improve after aligning the print head, disable the bidirectional (high speed) setting.
  • Adjust the print quality in the product software.
  • When horizontal banding appears or the top or bottom of the paper is smeared, load paper in the correct direction and slide the edge guides to the edges of the paper.
  • If you continue to see horizontal bands or streaks in your printouts after cleaning the print head and adjusting the print quality, make print quality adjustments for each paper type.
  • If you are copying from the ADF, copy from the scanner glass instead or use a higher quality setting.
  • When vertical banding appears or the paper is smeared, clean the paper path.
  • You may need to replace the ink cartridges.
  Related concepts
  Print Head Nozzle Check
  Print Head Cleaning
  Related tasks
  Aligning the Print Head Using the Product Control Panel
  Selecting Additional Layout and Print Options - Windows
  Selecting Printing Preferences - Mac
  Related references
  Paper or Media Type Settings - Printing Software
  Related information
  Loading Paper
  Replacing Ink Cartridges and Maintenance Boxes