HP Printer Driver Install & 'Printer Offline' Fixes (Windows 11/10 & macOS)

A printer that prints a perfect test page at the shop and then shows 'Offline' at home has almost never developed a fault — it has a driver or connection problem. This guide is the checklist our technicians run through on WhatsApp calls every day, written so you can do it yourself. Start with the section that matches your printer, then jump to the fixes if you still have an error.

Step 1: which driver route your HP printer needs

Installing over USB on Windows 11 or 10

• Power the printer on, connect the USB cable directly to the PC (not through a hub) and wait about a minute. Windows usually installs a driver on its own.
• Check in Settings → Bluetooth & devices → Printers & scanners. If the printer is listed, print a test page from its page and you are done.
• If it is not listed, click Add device, wait, then click Add manually → Add a local printer → choose the USB port (USB001 or similar) → pick HP and your model from the list. If your exact model is missing, choose HP Universal Printing PCL 6 or the closest model number.
• For a current model (107, 135/136/137, M141, M211, M404 and so on), install HP Smart from the Microsoft Store and let it detect the printer — it also sets up scanning on MFPs.
• For an older model, download the Full Feature driver for your exact model from support.hp.com, install it with the printer connected, and let it detect the USB connection.

Installing a Wi-Fi or Ethernet printer

Wi-Fi models (107w, 108w, 136w, M141w, M211dw and others) are easiest through HP Smart: make sure the PC or phone is on the same Wi-Fi network, open HP Smart, and add the printer. Our Wi-Fi setup guide covers the printer-side steps. Ethernet models (P1606dn, M404dn, M227fdn, M507 and the enterprise range) are most reliable added by IP address: print the configuration page from the printer's menu to find its IP, then in Add printer choose Add manually → Add a printer using an IP address, enter it, and pick the driver. Ask your router for a fixed IP (DHCP reservation) for the printer, or the address will change one day and the printer will go 'offline' for no apparent reason.

Fix: printer shows 'Offline'

• Open the printer's queue (Printers & scanners → your printer → Open print queue), click the Printer menu and make sure 'Use Printer Offline' and 'Pause Printing' are unticked.
• Set it as the default printer, and turn off 'Let Windows manage my default printer' so Windows stops switching to Print to PDF.
• Restart the Print Spooler: press Windows + R, type services.msc, find Print Spooler, right-click → Restart. Clears most stuck queues.
• For USB: try a different USB port (a USB 2.0 port on the back of a desktop is most reliable) and a different cable — thin, long or damaged cables are a common cause.
• For network printers: print the configuration page and compare the IP address with the one Windows has (printer Properties → Ports). If it changed, add the printer again by the new IP and set a DHCP reservation.
• Still offline? Remove the printer, restart the PC, and add it again from scratch using the routes above.

Fix: 'Driver is unavailable'

This means Windows found the printer but the driver is missing or broken — common after a Windows upgrade, on older models. Remove the printer, then install the proper driver for your exact model: HP Smart for current models, the Full Feature driver for older ones. If HP no longer provides a Windows 11 driver for your printer, the HP Universal Print Driver (PCL 6) works with almost every HP LaserJet made in the last twenty years, and the built-in Windows driver (Add manually → pick the HP model) is the fallback.

Fix: 'Printer not detected' or nothing happens when you plug it in

• Confirm the printer is actually on and ready (Ready light steady, no error). A printer in an error state — open door, no toner, paper jam — is often reported as not detected.
• Swap the cable and the USB port; try a second PC or laptop. If two machines cannot see it, the printer's USB port or formatter board is at fault, which is a workshop job — see our error code guide for the formatter symptoms.
• On Wi-Fi: reboot the router and the printer, and check the printer is not joined to a guest network that isolates devices.
• On Windows, open Device Manager (Windows + X): a device under 'Other devices' with a yellow mark means the driver failed to install — install it manually with the routes above.

Installing on macOS

Current HP lasers with Wi-Fi or Ethernet support AirPrint: open System Settings → Printers & Scanners → Add Printer, Scanner or Fax, select the printer and it works with no download. USB-only current models (107a, 108a, M141a, 135a/136a) may need the HP driver package from HP's site or the HP Smart app from the Mac App Store. Older models (P1102, P1606dn, P2035, P2055dn, M401) rely on legacy HP drivers that Apple used to distribute; they still install on many Macs but support on the newest macOS versions is patchy, so if a Mac is your only computer, a current AirPrint model is the safer choice.

Model-specific notes we get asked about most

• P1102: Windows 11 installs it over USB automatically; if printing stalls, install HP's Full Feature driver, which also disables the printer's 'Smart Install' pop-up drive.
• P2035 / P2055dn: use the model driver or Universal PCL 6; for the P2055dn add by IP address over Ethernet for the most reliable connection.
• M401dn / M402 / M404dn: Universal PCL 6 by IP; enable duplex as the default in Printing Preferences to halve paper use.
• 107a / 107w / 108w / M107w: install HP Smart first. If Wi-Fi setup fails, hold the Wireless button until the light blinks and retry — the Wi-Fi guide has the sequence.
• M227fdn / 137fnw / 139fnw / M141w: HP Smart handles printing and scanning; for scan-to-folder over the network use the printer's embedded web page (type its IP address into a browser).