Print Test Page

Print test page is the simplest trick to diagnose the health of your printer. You simply have to take a test print to check the working condition of your printer. So, a simple test print will keep you well informed about the working quality of the printer. It will generate a test page with different text sizes, graphs, grids, text blocks, alignment information, and radial-gradient (smooth transition of colors). Similarly, you simply need to review the printed page to analyze the quality of the print. If you notice a distortion on the test page it is a signal that something is going wrong with the printer. Otherwise, a good-quality test page means not to worry and continue printing.

The test page is like a doctor having a diagnostic test on a patient. Just like an X-ray helps to diagnose a fracture within the human body. Similarly, the printer test will provide detailed information about the health of your printer. If you casually use your printer for printing purposes, then there is a possibility that either the ink in the cartridge is getting dry or the nozzles clog (blocks). Therefore, a print test once a week is recommended to maintain the ink flow and avoid such problems.

Generally, people use two types of printers: black-and-white printers (grayscale) and color printers. Likewise, the test prints are different for both types of printers. For a black-and-white printer, the printer test will produce a page showing different shades of black ink. However, for the color printer, the test print will be a combination of CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Key) colors.

This blog post will help you as a detailed guide from taking a simple print test to a thorough assessment of both colored and black-and-white printer test pages. Furthermore, you can also avail of our free tool to “print a test page” in a single click below.

Test Page Black and White

A black-and-white printer test page can be used to check the print of a black ink cartridge. It is a composition of different shades of black ink. Black-and-white print is also known as grayscale print.

Click the button above for a free A4 size PDF Test Page for your Black & White Printer and apply the print command (Ctrl+P).

Assessment of Black and White Test Page

• Grid: It is a pattern of vertical and horizontal lines. It helps to identify the perfect alignment of the print head with printing paper. Also, the grid seems to convey alignment, color accuracy, and spacing.

• Ascending text block size: It helps to analyze the different text sizes ranging from 8 to 28. Likewise, it determines scaling, clarity, and smoothness between different text sizes.

• Text Block: It is an indicator of capital and small letters of the alphabet, through which the quality of ink flow and rendering problems can be identified.

• Alignment Wheels: Alignment helps to check the proper installation of the printer cartridge. The alignment wheel uses circles segmented into four quadrants. So, check if the black color print is accurately filled within each segment; an overlap or misalignment means your printer needs printhead alignment.

• Intensity Graph: It shows the ink density across a spectrum. It is an illustration of a gray color composition. It ranges from 0 to 256. For example, an 8-bit image may contain 256 different combinations of gray color.

• Radial Gradients: It is a transition from black to light gray color. Also, a smooth transition means the printer is in good working condition.

Color test page

Color printer users should use a color test page instead of a black-and-white test page. This will help to check the strength of the color printer.

Click the button above for a free color A4 size PDF Test Page and apply the printing command (Ctrl+P).

Assessment of Color Test Page

• Color Intensity Graph: A graph showing the ability of a printer to drive ink density from each color ink cartridge. It identifies problems with any specific color printer cartridge.

• Rainbow Bar: It is a rainbow-like spectrum to check the printer ink alignment and assessment of color printer ink quality.

• Radical Gradient: It is a parameter to determine the smooth transition between different cartridge colors. Printer colors show a smooth outward transition from a center point. However, if the transition to color printing is uneven, this means the ink in any one cartridge is running out.

• Text block: In the color print test, the text block indicates the smooth printer ink flow, and it will determine any problem associated with the printer. However, if there is any problem with the ink cartridge, the text will be skewed on one side.

• Grid: It helps to identify the perfect alignment of the printhead. Also, the grid shows the alignment of the printhead, color accuracy, and spacing of a color printer.

Test Page Mac

Step-by-step guide on Mac (Apple)

1. Click on “Apple Icon”
2. Select “Printer and Scanner” from the “System Preferences” option.
3. Scroll your “printer” from a given list.
4. Navigate to “Options and Supplies” and then a new window will open.
5. Select the “Utility” option.
6. Click on “Print a Test Page”.
7. The printer will print the test print.

Printer test on Windows

Test Page Windows 11 and10

1. Type Printer and Scanner on the search bar.
2. Click on the Printer and Scanner option and a new window box will appear.
3. Select your Printer from the given list.
4. Right-click on your printer option and choose Manage.
5. From manage select “Print a Test Page”.

Printer test on Windows 8/7

1. Type Control Panel on the search bar.
2. Click Devices and Printers on the control panel.
3. Scroll down to find your Printer.
4. Right-click on your printer option and view Printer Properties.
5. Click on the “Print a test page” option.

How to Fix Printer Problems

Printer issues	Causes	Solutions
Color or Text issue	Blocked Printhead	Clean print head Go to Print Settings Use Clean cycle on your printer menu
Test page not performing	The test page not performing	Reinstall cartridge Check ink level Check for any ink blockage
Non-aligned Grid	Check for jammed paper that might be disconnectedProperly install the cartridge	Signs of a hardware problem
Blur text or Faded color	Low ink level	Clean print head Go to Print Settings Use Clean Cycle on your printer menu

Printers brands and Test Page

Following are some popular printers in the market for both professionals and domestic users. A printer user can test the page, either by pressing a dedicated button specific to the printer model or by using the printer software specified to the printer model. Also, you can use our free online tool to print black-and-white test pages or color test print pages.

Types of Printers & Print Test Methods

Printer type	Models & Dedicated keys	Software
HP Printer	Hold the “Power” button and a single click on the “Cancel” button.	HP Universal Print Driver
Canon Printer	Pixma: hold the “Cancel” button until two flashlights. MX Series: Open “Menu”, go to “Setup”, scroll “Maintenance”, click “Nozzle Check” and “OK”. ImageClass: Hold the “Stop” button until two flashlights then release the “Stop” button.	Easy-PhotoPrint EX Canon PRINT
Epson Printer	Most EcoTank: hold the “Resume” button for five seconds. Expression Photo: hold both the “Black” and “Color” buttons for three seconds. Expression Home: hold the “Power” button for five seconds. WorkForce: Press and hold the “Cancel” Button.	Epson ReadyPrint Service, Epson Remote Print
Brother Printer	Hold “Power” button and a single click on the “Cancel” button.	Print SDK Demo Brother print all-in-ones software
DTF Printer (Direct to Film)	No shortcut buttons	AcroRIP Wasatch SoftRIP PhotoPRINT
Dell Printer	No shortcut buttons	Dell Printer Hub, Dell DocumentHub, Dell ColorSmart
Lexmark Printer	New models: Open “Menu”, navigate to “Machine info”, and press “OK”. Select “Print a test Page”, and press “OK”. Old models: Hold the “Go” button while turning on the printer. Release “Go” button when lights are ON. Press the “Go” button again for print a test page.	Lexmark P910 Series Utility,  Lexmark MarkVision Professional.
Xerox Printer	Touch Screen models: Press the “Settings” button, “Reports” option, then “Menu Settings Page”. Select “Print a Test Page”. Old models with LCD: Press “Menu Button”, go to “Reports”, then select “Menu Settings Page”. Select “Print a Test Page”. Older models without LCD: While turning ON Printer press & hold “Linefeed” Button until the test page prints.	Xerox Global Print Driver, Xerox CentreWare Web Interface, Xerox Smart Start”.
Samsung Printer	AltaLink and WorkCentre: Press the “Menu button”, open “Maintenance”, click “Supplies”, & then “Print Supplies Information”. Versant: Press the “Menu” button, check “Diagnostics”, then select “Print Menu Settings Page”. Phaser: Press the “Home” button, scroll to “Settings” or “Maintenance”, and, click “Print Diagnostics Page”.	Samsung Mobile Print, Samsung Smart Printer Studio, Samsung Easy Printer Manager

Print Test Page PDF

Printer users should know that the test page is set to default print in PDF format. Whether you are a Mac user or a Windows operating system user, the test paper will print in PDF format. You can use dedicated keys specific to different brands of printers, or you can print a test paper directly from the control panel. Both methods have been mentioned above in this article. For a test page PDF, you can also use our free online tool to save your precious time.

Print Test Page HP

HP printers are widely used printers around the globe and these users generally do not know the shortcut method to get a test page. If you are an HP printer user, you can use dedicated keys on the printer to instantly get a test page, press and hold on the “Power button” and press the “Cancel button” only one time, and then release the power button, your printer will print a test page. You can also use the “HP universal print driver” to get a print test page hp.

Conclusion

Consequently, to ensure the quality of a printer it is advisable to take a test print once in a blue moon. This will keep the printer ink in working condition and avoid nozzle clogging. Similarly, this will act as a precautionary measure to address problems with your printer at the earliest stage. Also, it will let you know the printer ink level in the cartridge.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

For more information on printers, you may read our related blog posts.