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How To Print From An Android Phone: The Top 6 Methods
This post will show you how to print from an Android phone – and there are more than a few ways to do it. Don’t worry, we’ll cover them all…
With the increasing sophistication of our smartphones, we find ourselves carrying out most of our daily activities on them.
Printing out of documents was traditionally a PC to printer activity, but it can now be done via your Android phone.
There are different methods you can employ, and below we are going to show you some of them.
How To Print From An Android Phone
The first method here would have been Google Cloud Print. But according to the Google Android support site, the Google Cloud Print was killed off in December 2020. This means the service is no longer supported on all Android devices.
Method 1: Use Phone Default Printing Service
To use this method, your printer needs to be WI-FI enabled and then follow the steps below.
- Go to Settings on your phone, scroll to Connected Device tap on it, tap on Connection Preferences, tap on Printing, tap on Default Printing Services, toggle it on.
- Turn on your printer (must be Wi-Fi enabled), and it will appear on your default print service list.
- Minimize the Settings tab and go to the file you want to print.
- While viewing the file, tap on the menu and then tap print.
- Tap on Select a Printer and then tap on the name of the printer you initially connected.
- Tap Ok to continue and complete the process.
As earlier stated, this method only works with Wi-Fi-enabled printers, and also Android 9 OS, and higher.
Method 2: Use the Printer Plugin/App
This is quite useful for you if you are using a phone that runs on Android 4.4 or newer. Most of these printers have phone apps and we are going to show how they can be used below.
- Tap on Settings on your phone, then tap on connected devices.
- From Connected Devices, tap on Printing, then tap on Default Printing Service.
- Tap on Add Services.
- It will take you to the Google Play Store app and show lists of printer apps available for sale.
- Select your printer app from the list and install.
- After installing, go back to the printing service page, the app should be on the list.
- Close the Settings and open the file you intend to print.
- While on the file app, tap the menu button and then tap Print.
- Select your printer from the list of options that are going to display.
- Tap Ok to print after selecting the printer.
Method 3: Use Printer WI-FI
Some printers do support printing through Wi-Fi. For those that have such function, here is how to use it:
- Go to Settings on your device and tap on Network and Internet.
- Tap Wi-Fi and then tap on Wi-Fi Preferences.
- Tap Advanced and then Wi-Fi Direct.
- Tap on your printer when detected and then accept the connection on your printer.
- Go to the file you want to print, tap on the menu on the top right, and tap Print.
- Select a printer and then print.
Alternative Method: E-Print
Some printers have the e- print function that allows you to print documents even while you are not there. The requirement is that the printer must be connected to the internet and the printing will be done.
For the setup, most of them follow a similar method, there might be slight variations because of the difference in the brand.
- Follow the instructions of your brand and set up the email of your printer.
- Download the app if you have not already.
- Connect the printer to the app.
- If you are printing close to the printer, the printer will appear under the local tab of the app on your device, if you are far away, you should click on the remote option.
- Tap any of the above and then input the email initially set up and tap done to add to the app.
- You can then go back to any file you want to print and then follow the instructions to print.
Method 4: Print Through Your Email
You can also print through your email on your Android phone. The first thing you need to set up like the previous method above is your printer email.
After setting up your printer email:
- Open your email app on your phone.
- Go to Compose Message.
- Input your printer email address as the recipient.
- You can choose to put a subject body.
- Attach the file you want to print to the email and press send.
- The printer will print the attached documents.
Method 5: Print With USB
For some printers and models, you can connect your Android phone directly to the printer and print as you normally would from a PC. All you need is to get a converter that will enable connecting your USB to your printer.
Once you have a converter that converts your USB from type A to B, just plug your phone into the printer and print.
Method 6: Use Third-Party Apps
There are various apps online that you can also download and make use of for your printings. Notable examples include PrinterShare Mobile Print, StarPrint, CloudPrint, etc.
For those that are paid, they allow you access to limited printing modes and then give access to the rest when you subscribe.
A Final Word…
There you have it, with these methods above, you know what to do the next time you need to print from your Android device.