How to Print from iPhone with AirPrint: Step-by-Step Guide

To print from iPhone, open what you want to print, tap the Share button, choose Print, select your printer and tap Print. Apple’s AirPrint system is built into every iPhone and iPad, so there is no driver or app to install as long as the printer supports AirPrint and is on the same Wi-Fi network. This guide shows the steps in common apps, how to check compatibility, and what to do when the printer does not appear.

What you need

• An AirPrint printer. Most Wi-Fi printers sold in recent years support it. Look for AirPrint on the box or the specification sheet, or search Apple’s list of AirPrint devices.
• The printer on your Wi-Fi. If it is new, follow our wireless printer setup guide first.
• Your iPhone on the same network. Not mobile data, not a guest network, and with any VPN switched off while printing.

Before you print: make the printer easy to find

A little setup on the printer side makes AirPrint far more dependable, especially in a home with several devices:

• Give the printer a recognisable name. Printers often announce themselves with a model number and a string of characters. Many let you rename them on their built-in web page: type the printer’s IP address into Safari on a device on the same network. Our guide to finding a printer’s IP address shows where to get it. A name such as “Kitchen printer” makes the right choice obvious in the Printer list.
• Two Wi-Fi bands are fine. If your router has separate 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz names, the iPhone can usually stay on 5 GHz while the printer uses 2.4 GHz, because both belong to the same home network. Guest networks are the exception: they normally keep devices apart.
• Mind the sleep timer. A printer that switches itself fully off cannot answer AirPrint. Sleep mode is normally fine, but if the printer keeps vanishing, look for an auto-off setting in its menu.
• New router or Wi-Fi password? The printer will not follow on its own. Reconnect it first, using our guide to connecting a printer to a new Wi-Fi network, then print from the iPhone as normal.

How to print from iPhone, step by step

1. Open the photo, web page, email, note or PDF you want to print.
2. Tap the Share button (a square with an arrow pointing up).
3. Scroll down the list of actions and tap Print.
4. Tap Printer and choose your printer. The iPhone remembers it for next time.
5. Set the options: number of copies, page range, Double-sided, black and white, and paper size where offered.
6. Tap Print in the top-right corner.

Where Print hides in some apps

App	Where to find Print
Photos	Share button, then Print
Safari	Share button, then Print (or the menu on the address bar, then Print)
Mail	Open the message, tap the reply arrow, then Print
Files	Open the document, tap Share, then Print
Notes	Open the note, tap the three-dot menu, then Print
Word, Excel, Google Docs	The app’s own menu (three dots or File), then Print

If an app has no Print option, try sharing the item to Files as a PDF and printing it from there.

Choosing paper and photo settings

When you print photos, the options screen offers paper size and, on many printers, paper type. Load photo paper first and choose the matching size (for example 4 x 6 in or 10 x 15 cm). Double-sided printing appears only if the printer can print on both sides automatically.

Follow or cancel a print job

While a job is printing, Print Center appears in the App Switcher. Swipe up from the bottom of the screen and pause (or double-press the Home button on older iPhones), then tap Print Center to see the queue or tap Cancel Printing. Print Center disappears when no jobs are waiting.

Printing without a Wi-Fi router

If your printer supports Wi-Fi Direct, you can print with no home network at all. On the iPhone, open Settings, Wi-Fi, and join the network whose name begins with DIRECT followed by the printer name. Enter the password shown on the printer’s screen or information page, then print with AirPrint as above. Your phone loses internet access while connected. See our Wi-Fi Direct printing guide for more.

If you see “No AirPrint Printers Found”

Work through these checks in order:

1. Same network. In Settings, Wi-Fi, check the network name matches the one on the printer’s network report.
2. Wake the printer. Some printers stop announcing themselves in deep sleep. Press a button or print a report.
3. Turn off VPN and Private Relay for the test. Some VPNs block local network discovery.
4. Allow local network access for third-party apps: Settings, Privacy & Security, Local Network.
5. Restart the iPhone, printer and router.
6. Check AirPrint is enabled on the printer. On some models it can be switched off in the web settings page (type the printer’s IP address into Safari).

If none of this works, the printer may not support AirPrint. In that case install the maker’s app, such as HP Smart or Canon PRINT, which can print to its own brand of printers.

Printing from a Mac and other devices

AirPrint works the same way on a Mac; see how to add a printer on Mac. For Android phones, see how to print from Android.