Why is My Canon Printer not printing Color Correctly? Complete Fix Guide

Canon printers, just like any other equipment, are prone to issues, and if you’re trying to figure out why Canon printer not printing color correctly, you are in the right place.

You’ll get step-by-step troubleshooting techniques and be able to fix issues associated with your printer not printing color correctly. 

Whenever your Canon printer has printing issues, it’s most certainly a hardware or software problem. It could be a depleted ink cartridge, wrong printer settings or outdated drivers. You may also be using incompatible paper, which your printer cannot accept.

Before diving into complex solutions, you should visually check your Canon printer and clean it with a soft cloth.

Make sure all hardware is in place and that there are no cable breakages.

Reasons Why Canon Printer Is not Printing in Color

Printer owners often have their printers break down on them, but fortunately, it’s also easy to fix the common problems associated with printers.

When your printer stops printing in color, it’s easy to assume the problem is the ink cartridge or even the whole printer itself. Sometimes there is more to it than that.

Here are some possible causes of this problem:

• Wireless connectivity issues.
• Paper jam issues.
• Low paper laded in the tray.
• Corrupt drivers and printing software.
• Faulty or dirty printhead.
• Using duplicate ink.

Some of the issues will require you to dismantle your printer to remove the print heads. 

If you have to remove the print head to fix the problem, you’ll need the right tools, time, patience, and technical savvy to remove your printer’s print heads.

While fixing a print can be costly, the cost of solving your Canon printer not printing color can vary considerably, depending on what method you use to improve the fault.

In some instances, you won’t need to spend a dime.

Why is My Canon Printer not printing Color Correctly? – Solutions

Canon printers are made for different purposes. All-in-ones are suitable for printing, scanning, and copying; inkjets are best for home or personal use.

LaserJets are more reliable, and high-end design jets are for large organizations.

Because of this, different Canon printer models will require another troubleshooting method.

Here are some solutions that will get your Canon printer working again:

Solution #1 Check Printer’s Ink Cartridge

Most home and office Canon printers print smoothly as long as you replace their ink or toner cartridges and keep the paper tray filled (and don’t leave them on for too long without printing).

If the cartridge is the exact cause of your Canon edible printer not printing color correctly, the printer will often alert you early on to make a replacement.

Here’s how to replace a depleted or faulty printer cartridge:

1. Open the printer door to access the cartridge.
2. Carefully take out the cartridge.
3. Replace the cartridge with proper ink.
4. Put back the cartridge in position.
5. Do a color test print.

If the Canon printer has ink or toner monitoring system, then you’ll likely be able to see how much ink or toner is remaining.

When determining the size of the print cartridge, think about how much yield you intend to have.

Note: Screen colors may differ from printed colors because the methods used to produce screen colors do not exactly match those used to create printed colors.

Solution #2 Update Printer Driver

It’s the job of the printer driver to make sure that your computer communicates commands effectively with your printer.

Outdated or corrupted drivers will most likely make your printer have all kinds of issues, including inability to print color correctly.

Each printer brand has its software program for converting data to be printed into a form specific to the printer.

Downloading and installing Canon printer drivers is often a confusing and tedious task, especially if you are not tech-savvy.

Still, it is the best solution for your driver-related issues.

Here’s how to update Canon printer drivers.

1. Hold the Windows Key, then press “R” to start Device Manager.
2. Find your printer under “Print Queues.”
3. Right-click on your Canon printer, then select “Update Driver.”
4. Click “Search Automatically” for the driver software update.
5. Restart your computer and Canon printer.

Canon printers are often set to update themselves automatically, but sometimes this doesn’t happen.

You may have to wait for a while as the drivers get installed or updated whenever you’re updating your printer.

Note: Printers, computers and other devices will often need updates to keep them running smoothly and working properly.

Solution #3 Restart the Printer

Sometimes a Canon printer that’s not working correctly just needs a power cycle. A power cycle (a restart) solves numerous issues, including clearing and resting the queue.

Resetting the queue allows the printer to see the new jobs in the queue. Restarting ensures that all files are read correctly by the printer driver and reloads system resources.

Here’s how to restart your Canon printer:

1. Turn the printer off by pressing the power button.
2. Unplug the power cable from the socket.
3. Unplug any cables connect to the Canon printer.
4. Reconnect the cables to your printer.
5. Press the printer power button to switch on the power.

Make sure you wait enough time for the cartridges to center before printing again. The center icon will appear when the cartridges are positioned correctly.

If your printer is still giving you trouble after restarting it try resetting it to its default settings.

NOTE: Whenever you create a print job, it gets moved into a holding area called a print spooler.

If the spooler is full you may also need to restart it to fix the color printing issues.

Solution #4 Change Printing Settings

There are various settings you can set on the Canon printer.

One setting enables you to choose to print in black and white or color, another lets you choose between draft quality or high quality, yet another lets you choose which size of the paper the printer will print.

The reason why your Canon printer isn’t typing color correctly could be because that’s how it’s set to operate.

You’ll therefore need to put color printing ON. Here’s how to change the settings:

1. Click Start Menu on your computer.
2. Go to Settings, then Printer and Scanner.
3. Select your Canon printer from the list.
4. Click Properties.
5. Ensure that the color printing option is set to ON.

You may also make various tweaks in your settings to get the right printing results you need.

All the settings you put in place will be your default settings for your printer unless you actively make changes in the future.

Note: When making a print from a Word Processor you will get a settings dialogue box to make printing changes for that specific print.

Check and refill your Canon printer cartridge then update printer drivers when it’s not printing color correctly. If this doesn’t work, restart your printer, then ensure your printer color settings are turned on.

Read Next: Is it Safe to Sleep Near a Wireless Router?

Final Thoughts

If you let your printer sit unused for a couple of days or let it sit with power on for a long weekend, you may need to clean the printheads because it’s probably clogged with ink.

It could be the simple solution for why Canon printer not printing color correctly.

In case you have tried the troubleshooting techniques to fix the problem with your Canon printer and finding it difficult to fix the problem on your own, then feel free to contact the Canon Printer support team.