How to Set a Default Printer on Windows 10

This practical guide walks through how to set a default printer on Windows 10, explains the main requirements, and highlights common issues that may appear along the way.

To set up the default printer, press Windows + I to open Settings . Next, open Devices and then select Printers & scanners . Here, you'll see all of the printers on your network, along with printing services like OneNote or Microsoft Print to PDF.

Prevent Windows from changing your default printer

To set the default printer, you must first scroll down the screen and make sure that the option to Let Windows manage my default printer is unchecked . If you choose this option, Windows will automatically set the default printer. Besides, when you enable this option, you can not set the default printer as you like.

Default printer settings on Windows 10

Now, if you don't see the list of printers, click Add a printer or scanner at the top. If your printer isn't showing you select The printer that I want isn't listed .

After adding the printer you want to set as default, click on it. Next, click the Manage button to see more options.

On the printer management page, you will see the Set as default button . Click this button and Windows will set the printer you want as the default for future jobs. Once installed, you will see the Default status on the printer's name.

Now, whenever you print, the print job will be done by the printer you set by default. You can always choose another printer as the default if you want.

Good luck.