Printer printing double sided when you did not ask: how to stop it

A printer printing double sided when you wanted one page per sheet is not broken. Two-sided printing, also called duplex printing, is a setting, and it can be switched on in several places at once: the app, the print dialog, the driver’s saved defaults, the printer itself and, in offices, the print server. The trick is to find which one is in charge. This guide goes from the quickest fix for one job to the permanent fix for every job.

For other settings problems, the printer troubleshooting guide lists every symptom we cover. Two-sided jobs also print more slowly, which is one reason people notice them; printer printing slowly covers other causes of slow printing.

Step 1: Fix the current job in the print dialog

Open the print dialog from the app you are using and look for an option named Print on both sides, Two-sided, Duplex, Sides or similar.

• Windows apps: the option may be on the main print screen or under Printer properties, More settings or Preferences.
• Office apps: the print screen often has a one-sided or two-sided selector next to the page range.
• Browsers: look for Two-sided or Print on both sides under More settings.
• Mac apps: choose Show Details, then set Two-Sided to Off.

Set it to one-sided and print. If the next job is two-sided again, the default is set somewhere else.

Step 2: Change the default in Windows 11

1. Open Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Printers & scanners.
2. Select the printer and choose Printing preferences.
3. Find the two-sided option. Depending on the driver it may be on a Layout, Finishing, Basics or Shortcuts tab.
4. Set it to None, One-sided or Off and choose Apply.

Some drivers include ready-made shortcuts or profiles, such as an eco or paper-saving profile that turns on two-sided printing. If a shortcut is selected, choose a one-sided one or the general default.

Also check Printer properties > Advanced > Printing Defaults on drivers that show it, and repeat the change for any duplicate entries of the same printer.

Step 3: Fix presets on a Mac

On a Mac, the print dialog remembers presets. If you saved one while two-sided was on, it reapplies two-sided every time you use it.

1. Open the print dialog and choose Show Details.
2. Set Two-Sided to Off.
3. Open the Presets menu and choose Default Settings, or choose Save Current Settings as Preset to make a one-sided preset you can use from now on.

Step 4: Check the printer’s own settings

Many printers that can print on both sides have their own default for jobs and for copies. A printer-side default may apply when the job does not say otherwise.

• On the control panel, look under Settings, Print settings, Default print settings or Paper, for 2-sided, Duplex or Both sides.
• On networked printers, the same option is often in the printer’s embedded web page, which you open by typing the printer’s IP address into a browser.
• Copy settings are separate from print settings. If only copies come out two-sided, change the copy default.

Step 5: Shared and office printers

In workplaces, two-sided printing is often set as the default to save paper. It may be set on the print server that shares the printer, which overrides your own driver. If the printer is shared or managed, ask your IT team or administrator before trying to change it; they may simply show you how to print one-sided for the jobs that need it.

When two-sided prints come out wrong

Sometimes the goal is two-sided, but the result is not right.

• The back side is upside down: change the binding option. Use long-edge binding (flip on long edge) for portrait pages read like a book, and short-edge binding (flip on short edge) for landscape pages read like a calendar.
• The printer asks you to turn the paper over: the printer does not have automatic two-sided printing, or the driver thinks it does not. In Printer properties > Device Settings, some drivers let you mark a duplex unit as installed. If your printer has no duplex unit, manual two-sided printing is the only option.
• The second side smudges: let the ink dry. Some drivers have a dry time setting; printer smudging ink has more.
• Paper jams during duplex: curled or damp paper jams more often on the return path. See how to clear a paper jam and printer wrinkling paper.

Why two-sided keeps coming back

If you turned two-sided off and it returns a few days later, one of these is usually responsible:

• A driver reinstall or update. A new driver package can bring its own defaults, including a paper-saving profile. Check Printing preferences again after any driver change; printer driver is unavailable explains when Windows replaces drivers.
• A second copy of the printer. Windows may have added the same printer again, for example over the network as well as over USB, and the new entry has its own defaults. Print to the entry you fixed, or fix each one.
• The maker’s app. Some printer apps manage their own print settings and push them to the printer. Look for a two-sided or eco option in the app as well.
• Synced Mac presets. A preset you saved on one Mac may follow your account to another. Fix the preset itself rather than switching it off each time.
• Template documents. A document template can store a two-sided choice. If only documents from one template print two-sided, change the template.

Quick checklist

• Current job: one-sided in the print dialog.
• Windows: one-sided in Printing preferences and Printing Defaults, for every copy of the printer.
• Mac: Two-Sided Off and a clean preset.
• Printer: no two-sided default in the control panel or web page.
• Office: check with the administrator about server defaults.