What To Do If Your Printer Won’t Connect To The Wi-Fi? (15 Ways To Solve)

The success of a print job depends on both the quality of the printer and the connection to your router. 

However, if your printer refuses to connect to the network, you might be in trouble. Despite our best efforts, sometimes things go wrong. Don’t worry. Here are some steps to guide you to fix the problem.

A straightforward, easy-to-use guide for anyone with a wireless printer that finds it will not connect to the network. With this short guide, you can identify the problem and solve it.

Why is Wi-Fi Not Connecting To The Printer?

Ensure your printer is turned on and functioning properly. You may want to connect your printer to your network again. 

Troubleshoot the network, the printer, or both if you are still experiencing issues.

Moreover, The Wireless Network Test report will diagnose and isolate most network problems and allow technicians to fix them remotely – in most cases restoring wireless connectivity.

On top of that, it is possible that the wireless router you use is not radiating enough signal to cover your home or office. 

So your printer is not connected to the network stably. To fix this up, make sure you keep the printer or the router close to each other.

If none of these solutions work, let’s figure out what’s wrong. There is no single solution to this problem, so you may need to try out different methods and solutions to make your printer work again. 

Solution

Reset printer

Resetting the printer shouldn’t be the ideal option as it will reset all your printer settings. However, if you are looking for a quick and easy solution, this is the best way.

A factory reset erases all settings, including the wireless configuration. The steps to reset your printer are simple but may vary depending on the printer model. 

The following are general guidelines for several basic printer models. Still, if you’re unsure how to do this, consult your printer’s manual, or search online. 

Generally, you’ll just need to turn off and unplug your printer, then plug it back in (no need to reconnect). 

1. To perform a printer reset, power off your printer and unplug it from the power outlet.
2. Then, unplug all cables from the back of the printer.
3. Next, hold down the On/Off button for 10 seconds. This will clear and delete all information and settings and return your machine to its factory default state. It might take a moment for the printer to power back on.
4. After this is complete, you can connect your printer with the wireless router again using the default SSID and login credentials provided by the router manufacturer.

Disable VPN

Is your Wi-Fi printer not connecting to your home Wi-Fi? The issue may be with your security settings, so try disabling your VPN connection and reconnecting to the home network. 

Moreover, if you’re printing from a remote network using a VPN connection, ensure your printer is set up to connect to the home router or wireless access point. 

And if you’re using a common gateway on the remote network, make sure shared printing is enabled on the common gateway.

Update Router Firmware

Your router can be the primary source of issues that interrupt your Wi-Fi connection. 

If you’ve tried changing your router settings and still can’t connect to the internet, it may be time to update your firmware.

1. From the manufacturer’s website, look for your specific product’s firmware update.
2. Be sure to choose the correct firmware for your router, and if you’re not sure, check the manufacturer’s support pages.
3. Once you’ve downloaded the file, open your router’s settings page and enter the administrator password if it is required.
4. From there, you should see an option to upload the new firmware to your router.
5. Moreover, some router manufacturer allows you to update the firmware directly from the admin panel. Here is how to do it:

• Next, you have to connect your computer with an Ethernet cable.
• Download the firmware update from the router manufacturer’s website
• Log in to your router’s web management page.
• Select the downloaded firmware to update your router
• Reboot your router

Verify Router Settings

If you have recently got a new router or reconfigured the router, you may need to verify these changes with the printer. 

The new changes may have different ISP addresses, which need to be verified with the printer. 

Here is how to verify router settings:

1. Access router settings by typing IP address.
2. Look for the Wireless or Security section and adjust the settings to default for the printer to connect.
3. There are some advanced settings you should check.

Some printer has their own admin panel, which can be accessed locally, and you have to verify these router settings on the printer’s admin panel. 

Here is how you can do that:

1. Go to your computer and open the browser and type the IP address of your printer.
2. Log in with your username and password.
3. Find the Wireless or Security Section and adjust the settings to default.
4. After that, add the new configuration settings to the printer, like the new ISP address.
5. Save changes and reboot the printer as well as the router.

Run Printer Troubleshooter

Whether you have trouble printing or are planning to install the printer for the first time, you can use the Windows Printing Troubleshooter to resolve printing problems. 

Here is how to perform printer troubleshooting:

1. First of all, navigate to Control Panel > Hardware and Sound > Devices and Printers.
2. Then, right-click the printer icon and click Troubleshoot.
3. The printer troubleshooter will then identify and fix problems. It may connect the network to your printer several times.
4. Restart the printer and try taking some test printouts.

Device Restart

Sometimes your wireless printer, router, computer/other devices, wireless access point, and modem just need a little love. 

Try using the Restart Printer feature to get each of them working smoothly together again.

Restarting helps get your wireless printer and connected devices on the same “page” again. Restart the printer, then restart your computer or other devices that you use to print. 

Set The Current Printer To Default

You might be trying to connect the printer to your laptop, but you have another device with its software that could have a virtual printer set up. 

This would appear as the default printer when you hit the print button.

1. Click the Start menu and select Control Panel.
2. Click Devices and Printers.
3. Right-click your printer and select Set as default printer.
4. Confirm the action by clicking Yes (or OK).

Update Or Reinstall Printer Driver

Reinstalling your printer drivers is a quick fix for any problem that may be preventing your printer from sending or receiving documents, pages, or faxes. 

It is quite easy to do if you follow the steps listed below.

1. To uninstall the Printer Driver & Software, click on the start button and search for the control panel.
2. Open Control Panel > Programs.
3. Navigate to Uninstall a program.
4. Click your printer’s name and then click Yes. This will uninstall the printer’s driver. 
5. To install the printer’s driver again, get Specific instructions for downloading and installing the drivers for your model. You can check the manual for downloading the printer’s driver.
6. The most common way to download the driver is to search for the driver and the brand and model name. For instance, “download HP G2010 drivers”.
7. After downloading the drivers, click on install and follow the on-screen instructions.
8. Restart your computer, and try connecting to the printer.

Read More: How To Uninstall And Reinstall Printer Drivers In Windows 10? (Full Guide)

Remove And Add Printer Again

Try to remove your printer and reinstall it to see if the connection will work for it to print again.

1. Go to Start > Settings > Devices
2. Click on Printers and Scanners
3. Click the printer you want to remove and click Remove Device.
4. Now, to add the printer again, go to Settings > Devices > Printer and Scanners.
5. Click on the Add Printer icon.
6. Check your USB cable to make sure it is plugged in properly.
7. If you were using wireless, check your IP address.

Place Near The Router

If you could never figure out why your Wi-Fi printer isn’t working right. All you have to do is move the router to a different part of your house, where your printer can receive Wi-Fi signals.

The printer should be placed in an area of the house where you don’t have a lot of walls, beams, or other obstructions. 

Also, make sure the room is free from any Wi-Fi signals “interference” from neighboring electronic devices such as microwave ovens or wireless phones. 

Otherwise, your printer may not be able to connect to a connection.

Connect The Printer To The Router Directly

If you have a networked printer, check where it’s connected to the network. 

Some printers connect to a router using Wi-Fi, but if the signal from the router is weak, you may have better luck connecting your printer directly to your modem with an Ethernet cable. 

Even if it’s connected via Wi-Fi, you’ll still be able to connect it via Ethernet for a more stable connection.

Ethernet offers stable connection strength, which might help. Set your printer up in a place with an Ethernet port. 

This option is most convenient if you don’t tend to move your printer around the network. 

The Ethernet will allow you to connect it directly to any PC without worrying about finding that one special port on the router.

Establish A Wired Connection By Connecting Directly To A PC

Rather than installing your printer in the room with your Wi-Fi router or switching it into wireless Range Extender mode, you can connect it over USB and let it share a network connection from your computer. 

Just plug in a USB cable between your PC and printer, and then share the printer over the network (on printers that support sharing).

1. You can go to Settings.
2. Now click on Devices and then select Printers & Scanners.
3. On the next page, click on your printer you would like to connect and choose Manage.
4. From the drop-down list, click on Printer Properties.

A new pop-up will come. Click on Sharing tab, you should have an option to share that printer.

Change Wi-Fi Network Name (SSID)

Check your Wi-Fi network name (SSID) if you’re having trouble connecting to your printer. 

Change the name of your network (SSID) to something unique, like ‘Printer1’ or ‘RickyPrinter.’ 

Wireless networks can sometimes create interference with each other, so make sure your SSID is different from other networks in range.

• Check your router for SSID (wireless network name).
• Change it to your name, family, room number, or whatever you want.
• Restart the router and wait for 2-3 minutes.
• Reconnect devices using the new SSID.

Verify Firewall Settings

Sometimes your device’s firewall might block network settings for printing, overprotective of your device, depending on how it’s configured, will not let it see your printer over the local network.

• From the start menu, select [Control Panel]
• Click [Network and Internet Connections], then click [Windows Firewall]
• In the [Exceptions] sheet in the [Windows Firewall] dialog box, set the firewall settings to medium or “Trusted Zone.”
• Next, check the box in the Filer and Printer Sharing section and click on OK to confirm the changes.
• Reboot the system to apply the changes.

Create Printer Static IP Address

You have to make an alternate means of stabilizing IP addresses to connect to the printer directly. 

Once set, this feature is at work when you print or scan with your printer. This is particularly helpful when operating several devices across a given network.

1. Right-click on your network connection in the bottom right, and choose the Network and Sharing Center option.
2. Choose the interface that you want to set a static IP address for.
3. In the next window, choose properties, and then double click the IPv4 and choose “Use the following IP address radio button,” Then you can put the static IP address which you got from the DHCP server.
4. If you don’t know the static IP address, then hit the instructions link and get all the info.
5. After saving the changes, restart the computer and the router.
6. Connect it with your printer and try taking some printouts.

If this solution resolves the issue, then well and good. However, if these solutions don’t resolve your issues, you may better contact your printer’s manufacture.

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