Print in Duplex

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Last updated: Sept 19, 2017Version comment

Printing on both sides of the paper is called "duplex printing." By default, all lab printers on campus should be set to duplex printing to help conserve paper use.

You may be able to duplex print on your personal printer. Some printers automatically print on both sides of a page (automatic duplex printing); other printers allow you to manually reinsert pages to print the second side (manual duplex printing); and some printers do not support duplex printing at all. To find out whether your printer supports duplex printing, you can check the manual that came with your printer, contact the printer's manufacturer, or check the printer's properties by clicking Properties in the Print dialog box.

Step-by-step guide - Find out whether your printer supports duplex printing

The options in the Print dialog box can vary depending on your printer options and configuration.

You can use the following clues to determine whether a specific printer supports duplex printing:

  • Check your printer manual or contact your printer's manufacturer.
  • Click the tabs in the Print dialog box and review the options. If options such as the following appear on any of the tabs, the printer probably supports automatic duplex printing.
    • Print on both sides of the paper
    • Duplex printing
    • Two-sided printing
  • If you are printing to a combination copy machine and printer, and the copy machine supports two-sided copying, it probably supports automatic duplex printing.

If you have more than one printer installed, it's possible that one printer supports duplex printing and another does not.

Step-by-step guide - Manually set up duplex printing

With some printers, you can use the Manual duplex option under Printer in the Print dialog box when using Word on a Windows computer. Your computer then prints all of the pages that appear on one side of the paper and then prompts you to turn the stack over and feed the pages into the printer again.

You can also use the following procedure to manually duplex print:

  1. In the menu, click File -> Print.
  2. In the lower-left corner of the Print dialog box, in the Print box, click Odd pages and OK. The odd pages of your file should print.
  3. After the odd pages are printed, flip the stack of pages over and replace them in the paper tray.
  4. In the Print dialog box, click Even pages and OK. The even pages of your file should print.
    1. Depending on the printer model, you might have to turn and reorder the pages to print the other side of the stack.


Still need help?

For additional assistance, contact the IT Help Desk.