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Printer won't print black but color works

Colors print but black text is missing or faint? Check the black cartridge and its tape, clear blocked black nozzles and fix paper type and grayscale settings.

10–30 min
Easy
Updated

Quick fix

Print a nozzle check from the printer's maintenance menu or the maker's app. If the black pattern is missing or broken, run one cleaning cycle and check again. If you've just fitted a new black cartridge, take it out, make sure every piece of protective tape and any plastic cap is gone, and push it back in until it clicks.

Didn’t work? Go to the full steps

You might see

  • Color images print but black text is missing or very faint
  • Black areas come out dark brown, green or purple instead of solid black
  • A new black cartridge prints nothing at all
  • Black prints on photo paper but not on plain paper, or the other way round

Usually caused by

  • An empty or dried-out black cartridge
  • Protective tape or a cap left on a new cartridge
  • Clogged black nozzles, often after the printer sat unused
  • The wrong paper type selected on a printer with two black inks
  • A driver setting that builds black from color inks only

Safety first. Change inkjet cartridges with the printer on and the carriage stopped, touching only the cartridge; unplug the printer before cleaning anything inside it, and on a laser printer keep clear of the hot fuser.

Step-by-step fix

Work through the steps in order and check each one off. Most people are printing again before the last step.

Any inkjet or color laser printer

0 of 6 steps tried

  1. Check the black level

    Check the black level on the printer's screen, in the maker's app or on a status report from the printer's menu. Levels are estimates, so if black is low and getting fainter, replace the cartridge.

  2. Check a new cartridge for tape

    New cartridges ship with tape over the nozzles or air vent, and sometimes a plastic cap. Remove all of it, leaving the copper contacts and any chip alone, then push the cartridge back until it clicks.

  3. Print a nozzle check

    Run a nozzle check, sometimes named a print quality report, from the printer's maintenance or setup menu or the maker's app. A blank or patchy black block next to good colors means the black nozzles are blocked or the cartridge isn't feeding ink.

  4. Run a cleaning cycle

    Run one cleaning cycle and print the check again; run a second only if the pattern is improving. Pigment black tends to dry in the nozzles more readily than color ink, so a printer left unused for weeks may need two or three cycles spread over a few hours.

  5. Know which black your printer uses

    Some inkjets have a pigment black for text on plain paper and a dye-based or photo black for glossy paper. Pigment black generally isn't used on glossy photo paper, so the paper type setting decides which black prints. If black works on photo paper but not on plain paper, check the text black cartridge.

  6. Check the black toner (color laser)

    Check the black toner cartridge is fully seated with any sealing tape removed, and look at its level in the printer's supply status. If the printer has separate drum units, look for a drum warning for black.

Common questions

Why does black print as dark green or brown?

Many printers add a little color ink to black areas, or build some blacks from color inks. When the black ink isn't reaching the paper, you see only that color part, which looks brown, green or purple.

Can I print with only the color cartridge?

Some printers can carry on in a color-only mode with the black cartridge removed, while many refuse to print with any cartridge missing or empty. Your manual says which applies to your model.

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