Adobe Acrobat Cannot Print — What Causes It & How to Fix It

What Does This Error Mean?

When Adobe Acrobat can't print, it may show 'No pages were selected,' a printer error, or nothing happens at all. Common causes include a problem with the print driver, the PDF being damaged, or Acrobat's print engine needing to be reset. Most printing issues are fixed by printing as an image or using the built-in repair option.

Affected Models

Adobe Acrobat Reader DC
Adobe Acrobat Standard DC
Adobe Acrobat Pro DC
Adobe Acrobat 2020
Acrobat for Windows and Mac

Common Causes

The PDF file is partially damaged and contains elements the print driver cannot process
The printer driver is outdated or corrupted on the Windows or Mac system
Advanced features in the PDF (transparency, embedded fonts, or digital signatures) are causing rendering failures
The Adobe PDF print engine is in an error state and needs to be reset
The default printer is set to a device that is offline, disconnected, or has a paper jam

How to Fix It

Try printing as an image. In the Acrobat print dialog, click 'Advanced' and check the box 'Print As Image'. Then print. This bypasses rendering issues caused by complex PDF content.

Print as Image sends a flat bitmap to the printer instead of the PDF's vector data. It is slower and lower quality but prints reliably when normal printing fails.
Check your default printer. Make sure the correct printer is selected in the Acrobat print dialog and that it shows as Online in Windows Settings > Printers and Scanners.

Acrobat may be sending the job to an offline or virtual printer (like Microsoft Print to PDF) if the default printer is not set correctly.
Update or reinstall the printer driver. Go to your printer manufacturer's website, download the latest driver for your printer model and Windows version, and install it.

An outdated printer driver is a common cause of PDF printing failures that work fine with Word or other apps.
Try printing from a different PDF reader. Open the PDF in a web browser (Chrome or Edge) and print from there. If it prints successfully, the issue is with Acrobat specifically.

If the browser can print it, try repairing the Acrobat installation through Adobe Creative Cloud or the Control Panel.
Repair the Acrobat installation. In Windows, go to Control Panel > Programs > Microsoft Office (or find Adobe Acrobat), click Change or Repair. For Creative Cloud versions, open CC Desktop and click the three dots next to Acrobat > Other Versions > Uninstall, then reinstall.

A corrupted Acrobat installation causes intermittent printing failures that no other fix resolves.

When to Call a Professional

Printing issues in Acrobat do not require a technician. All fixes are performed within Acrobat's settings and your system's printer settings. If the issue is a damaged PDF, the owner of the file may need to regenerate it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does my PDF print fine from Chrome but not Acrobat?

Chrome has its own built-in PDF renderer that handles many problem PDFs correctly. Acrobat uses a different rendering engine that may stumble on complex or damaged PDFs. Printing from Chrome is a valid workaround when Acrobat cannot print. For best results, fix the underlying PDF or repair Acrobat.

Acrobat says 'No pages were selected to print.' What does that mean?

This message usually appears when the page range entered in the print dialog is invalid. Make sure the 'All Pages' option is selected, or check that the page range numbers exist in the document. It can also happen with secured PDFs that have printing disabled by the document owner.

Can I print a PDF that has printing disabled?

If the owner has restricted printing with a password, you cannot print without that password. Acrobat will show a message like 'This document is restricted. Printing is not allowed.' Contact the document creator to get a print-enabled version. Attempting to bypass print restrictions on documents you don't own is not recommended.