HP Printer Paper Error [Issues & Solutions]

An HP printer paper error is something you are bound to experience sooner or later. Hence, this article will provide you with solutions to deal with most of these issues.

How to Fix HP Printer Add Paper Error

The HP printer add paper error is the same as the HP printer out of paper error. Hence, the solutions that will guide you on how to fix the out of paper error on HP printer have already been discussed in detail in this article.

Therefore, we recommend that you read that article carefully and get the instructions that will help you. Also, if your HP printer gives out of paper error when it’s not, the solutions to fixing that issue can be found in that linked article.

Furthermore, if you encounter the HP printer error “paper tray is empty” or “no paper error”, it is also the same as the “out of paper” error. Therefore, the solutions in the linked article above will also help you to clear this error message on your HP printer.

How to Fix HP Printer Paper Tray Open Error

To fix this HP printer paper tray error, try the solutions below in the given order. Do not move to the next solution if a previous solution cleared the error.

Ensure that the Tray is Well-Closed – Solution 1

To ensure that your HP printer’s input paper tray is well closed, do the following steps:

Step 1: Grab the input tray handle.

Step 2: Open the tray by pulling it towards you.

Step 3: Push the tray into your printer to close it. Ensure that the tray locks firmly in its place.

Note: When your printer’s input tray is well-closed, you’ll hear a click signifying that it has locked into its place. You might also hear some noise from your printer. Hence, you shouldn’t be worried about that.

Step 4: Check the control panel of your printer for this message: “Have you Changed the Paper?”

If this is displayed, and you don’t select an option, after some seconds, the message will fade away itself and your printer will go back to its Home screen.

In case the message is not displayed, move to the solution below.

Reload Paper into your Printer – Solution 2

If the paper was incorrectly loaded into your printer’s input tray, it could be the reason why the printer tray has refused to close completely. Hence, you need to take out the paper stack currently in the tray, rearrange it, and then load it correctly into the tray.

Follow the steps below to learn how to reload paper into your HP printer:

Step 1: Grab the input tray handle.

Step 2: Open the tray by pulling it towards you.

Step 3: While the paper input tray is out, push the printer’s photo tray inward as much as it permits.

Step 4: Take out any paper in the printer’s input tray.

Step 5: Slide the tray’s paper width guides out until it can’t go further.

Step 6: Use both hands to hold the paper stack you intend to load into your printer and hit the bottom of the paper stack on an even surface. This action is done to align the printers.

Important: Always load one paper type per time. Mixing paper types, sizes and weights can lead to an HP printer paper error.

Step 7: Place the paper stack into your printer’s input tray.

Step 8: Push the paper stack toward your input tray rear area until it can’t go further.

Step 9: Slide the tray’s paper width guides to stay at the paper edges.

Important: Ensure that the guides do not squeeze the stack. Also, do not load paper that exceeds the upper boundaries of the guides.

Step 10: Push the tray into your printer to close it. Ensure that the tray locks firmly in its place.

Note: When the input tray is well-closed, you’ll hear a click signifying that it has locked into its place. You might also hear some noise from your printer. Hence, you shouldn’t be worried about that.

Step 11: Check the control panel of your printer for this message: “Have you Changed the Paper”

If this is displayed, and you don’t select an option, after some seconds, the message will fade away itself and your printer will then use the former paper settings. Hence, you can change these settings if you changed the type or size of paper used. 

If no changes were made, you can touch “OK”. This action will take your printer to its Home screen.

In case changes were made, you also need to change the paper settings on your printer.

For Input Tray:

i. Tap “Main Tray”, then “Paper Size”; after that select the paper size in use.

ii. Tap “Paper Type”.

iii. Select the paper type in use.

iv. Tap “Done”, before touching “OK” to go back to your printer’s Home screen.

For Photo Tray:

Ensure that you see this “4.6 in., Photo Paper” in the field for “Photo Tray”. Tap “OK” to go back to the printer’s Home screen.

Important: If you own the HP Officejet 8040 e-All-in-One printer series, then the setting option of “3×5 in., Photo Paper” can be used.

Look for Obstructions Preventing the Tray from Closing – Solution 3

To look for obstructions preventing your printer’s tray from closing, do these steps:

Step 1: Turn off your HP printer by pressing the printer’s power button.

Step 2: Grab the input tray handle.

Step 3: Open the tray by pulling it towards you.

Step 4: Take out any loose paper piece or sheet from your printer’s input tray.

Step 5: Remove any paper sheet that is blocking your printer’s photo tray.

Step 6: Remove your printer’s output tray completely and keep it aside.

Step 7: Make your printer rest on its right side to enable you to gain access to the underside.

Step 8: Inspect the gap left by the input paper tray for obstructions or loose paper.

Step 9: If you find any obstruction or loose paper in that area, take it out. If it is a paper jam, carefully pull out the paper toward you. If the paper gets torn, ensure that you remove all the torn pieces. This is necessary to prevent the reoccurrence of a jam which could also damage your printer’s print mechanism.

Step 10: Return your printer to its usual position.

Step 11: Insert the paper input tray back into your printer; ensure that it is locked firmly in place. 

Step 12: Hold the sides of your printer’s output tray with both hands and then reinsert it onto your printer’s input tray.

Step 13: Turn on your HP printer by pressing the printer’s power button.

Step 14: Wait for your printer to complete its warm-up before checking for the error message on your printer’s control panel display.

If you don’t see the message, then it means the issue has been resolved.

However, if you can still see the error message, you should do the solution below.

Restart your HP Printer – Solution 4

Turning off your printer and then turning it back is one solution you can use if you are asking “how do I clear the paper error on my HP printer?” Therefore, to restart your HP printer, do the steps below:

Step 1: Turn off your HP printer by pressing the printer’s power button.

If your printer fails to turn off, remove the printer’s power cable from your printer.

Step 2: Wait for about 60 seconds.

Step 3: Plug the power cable back into your printer.

Step 4: Turn on your HP printer by pressing the printer’s power button.

Important: Your printer might enter a warm-up process for some minutes. Therefore, you need to wait for this process to be complete before checking the printer.

Also, note that the procedure above will reset your HP printer.

Service your HP Printer – Solution 5

If the error is not resolved after doing all the solutions above, then you need to service your HP printer. Hence, you should Contact HP Customer Support. A repair schedule will be fixed and then your printer will be serviced.

If the problem cannot be fixed, you’ll be given a replacement product provided your printer is still under warranty. The repair fee is also free for products still under warranty. Therefore, if your printer is no longer under warranty, you will pay for the repairs.

The solutions above will work for most HP Officejet printers but they are specifically for HP Officejet 8040, 5746, 5745, 5744, 5743, 5742, 5741, 5740, ENVY 7654, 7644, 7643, 7640, 5665, 5664, 5663, 5661, 5660, 5646, 5644, 5643, 5642, and 5640 printers.

To read more awesome articles, click any of the links below…

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HP Printer Jam [Issues & Solutions]

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Paper won’t feed through HP Printer [Solved]

How to Fix HP Printer Paper Mismatch Error

The HP printer error “paper size mismatch” occurs when the size of the paper in the input tray doesn’t match that in the paper settings. Therefore, to clear the HP paper size mismatch error message, we recommend that you click this link and try the solutions we provided.

How to Fix HP Printer Mismatch Error on Windows

Apart from the solutions contained in the linked article above, the following solutions can also be used to fix the HP error paper size mismatch on Windows:

Update your HP Printer Firmware

To update your HP printer firmware, check out this article, and do the instructions under the “How to Update HP Printer Firmware” subsection.

Uninstall and then Reinstall your HP Printer Driver

To uninstall and then reinstall your HP printer driver, follow the instructions found in this link. The instructions will also guide you on how to uninstall and then reinstall HP printer software. A complete uninstallation is usually the best action to take when clearing problematic errors that have refused to clear.

How to Fix HP Printers – Paper Mismatch Error (Mac)

To fix the HP Printer paper mismatch error on Mac, try the following solutions:

Verify that the Paper Source and Size Settings are Correct – Solution 1

To verify that the paper source and size settings are correct, do the steps below:

Step 1: Click on “File”.

Step 2: Click on “Print”.

Step 3: Ensure that you select your HP printer if it isn’t selected already.

Step 4: Click on “Show Details”.

Step 5: Choose “Media & Quality” or “Paper Type/Quality”.

Step 6: Click on “Source” or “Feed from”.

Step 7: Verify that that selected paper input tray is the correct one; if it is not, change it.

Step 8: Check the settings for paper size.

• If the option for “Paper Size” appears, click on it.
• If the option for “Paper Size” doesn’t appear, click on “Cancel”, before clicking on “File, and then “Page Setup”.

Step 9: Ensure that the paper loaded and the size selected is the same.

Important: If the size of the loaded paper is not listed, choose a size that is nearly the same as that of the loaded paper.

Reset your HP Printer – Solution 2

To reset your HP printer, follow the instructions we shared earlier in this article under the “Restart your HP Printer – Solution 4” section.

Update your HP Printer – Solution 3

To update your HP printer firmware, check out this article, and do the instructions under the “How to Update HP Printer Firmware” subsection.

Uninstall your HP Print Driver and then Re-add your HP Printer – Solution 4

To uninstall your HP print driver and then re-add your HP printer to your Mac computer, do the steps below:

Step 1: Go to this site.

Step 2: Download the HP Easy Start and install it on your computer.

Step 3: Click on the drop-down menu for Easy Start.

Step 4: Click on “Uninstall HP Software”.

Step 5: Follow the on-screen instructions to uninstall your HP printer software.

Step 6: Click on the Apple icon or menu.

Step 7: Click on “System Preferences”.

Step 8: Click on “Print and Scan” or “Printers & Scanners”.

Step 9: Click on the Plus (+) sign.

Step 10: Follow the on-screen instructions to re-add your HP printer to your computer.

The HP Deskjet 3630, 2700, and 5820 printer paper mismatch errors can be fixed using the solutions above.

Note: If you get any of the errors listed below, the solutions we shared in this section will work for them as well since they all mean the same thing:

i. HP printer error paper size detected is not supported

ii. HP printer wrong paper size error

iii. HP printer error paper size or type is incorrect

iv. HP printer error paper too narrow

How to Fix HP Printer Error Unexpected Paper Size

The HP printer error unexpected paper size occurs due to the following reasons:

i. Incorrect setup of Tray 2 or Tray 3 via the EWS (Embedded Web Server) or the printer’s control panel. For instance, if the paper size setting for Tray 2 is “Letter” whereas the loaded paper size is “Legal”, it will lead to this error.

ii. Incorrect loading of custom size paper in Tray 2 or Tray 3.

iii. “Mispick” from either Tray 2 or Tray 3 which changes the printer’s timing and makes the printer think that the loaded paper is longer than it is.

iv. The printer picks multiple paper sheets (multi-feeds or multi-picks).

To fix the HP printer error unexpected paper size; try any of the solutions below:

Clear Paper Jam – Solution 1

A paper jam can cause the error under discussion. Hence, you need to check for paper jam in your printer and remove it. We recommend that you read this article where we have discussed different kinds of HP printer jam.

Confirm that your Input Trays are Configured Correctly – Solution 2

How to confirm that the Input Trays are Configured Correctly via Printer’s Control Panel

To confirm that the input trays are configured correctly via your printer’s control panel, do the steps below:

Step 1: From the control panel home screen, choose “Setup”.

Step 2: Select “System Setup”.

Step 3: Select “Paper Setup”.

Step 4: Select “Tray 2” (or Tray 3 depending on the Tray in use).

Step 5: Select “Paper Size”.

Step 6: Select the paper size depending on the size of the loaded paper in the tray. For example, if the paper in the tray is “Legal”, then you should select “Legal”.

How to confirm that the Input Trays are Configured Correctly via EWS (Embedded Web Server)

To confirm that the input trays are configured correctly via your printer’s control panel, do the steps below:

Step 1: Open a web browser on your computer.

Step 2: Click on the browser’s address line and type your printer’s IP Address.

This will cause the Embedded Web Server page to open.

Step 3: Click on “System Tab”.

Step 4: Click on “Paper Setup Tray 2”.

Step 5: Select “Legal”.

Step 6: Click on “Apply”.

Make Sure the Requested Paper Size and the Loaded Paper Size are the same – Solution 4

Normally, the print driver settings are the default that determines the paper size setting. However, some programs can override this default setting. Hence, you need to make sure that the requested paper size of the program in use is the same as that loaded paper in your printer’s input tray.

Given that there are different programs with a print feature, we won’t be able to provide you with a step-by-step guide on how to confirm the paper size settings across multiple programs and applications.

Nevertheless, the general rule of thumb is that you check the print settings after clicking on “Print” in the program. You can then change the setting if they don’t match.

Load Custom Size Paper in the Short Edge of the Input Tray – Solution 5

It is recommended that you use standard paper sizes as much as possible to prevent any errors. However, if it becomes compulsory that you use a custom size paper, ensure that you load it first of all into your printer’s tray short edge.

Verify that the Loaded Media Meets HP Specifications – Solution 6

Not all media can print on all HP printers. There are certain specifications that guide the type, size, and weight of media that can be used on an HP printer. Therefore, if the media doesn’t meet the specifications it could lead to the error under discussion.

Hence, we advise that you check your printer’s user manual to find out the specifications for supported media. If you discover that the media you want to use is not supported, you should get one that is supported.

Get a New Genuine HP Paper Ream – Solution 7

If your printer is picking more than one sheet of paper repeatedly, it could be a result of bad paper. Hence, the fix is to get a new genuine ream of HP paper.

Replace the Pickup Roller Assembly – Solution 8

If your printer gets frequent ‘mispicks’, it is an indication that the pickup roller assembly is faulty and that you need a new one. Hence, you can get in contact with HP Support and order a replacement.

Regarding the replacement procedure itself, we advise that you get the HP technicians to do the repair rather than doing it yourself. Getting HP tech personnel to fix the printer will prevent you from voiding your warranty.

How to Fix HP Printer Error Document Failed To Print

To fix the HP printer error “document failed to print”, restart your print spooler service. The print spooler service is responsible for temporarily storing print jobs in your computer’s memory pending when your printer prints them.

To restart your print spooler services, click on this link and follow the instructions under the “How to Clear Print Spooler” section.

How to Fix HP Printer Error Document Stuck in Queue

To fix the HP printer error “document stuck in queue”, click on this link and follow the instructions under the “How Do I Clear My HP Printer Queue [Solved]” section.

How to Fix HP Printer Paper Jam Error

To clear the HP printer error message “paper jam”, we recommend that you read this article carefully. The article deals with many paper jam errors including HP printer false paper jam error, HP Deskjet paper jam error, HP envy printer paper jam error, HP Photosmart printer paper jam error, and HP all in one printer paper jam error.

The article also provides paper jam error solutions for the following printer models: HP 8600, HP 6500, HP 6975, HP 2520, and many more.

How to Fix HP LaserJet p2015 Printer Paper Jam And Toner Light Error

To fix the HP LaserJet P2015 printer paper jam and toner light error, click on this link and follow the instructions under the “HP LaserJet P2015 Jam and Toner Light On [How to Fix]” section.

How to Fix HP Printer Load Paper Error Message

To fix HP printer load paper error, do the solutions below in the given order:

Power Reset your HP Printer – Solution 1

To power reset your HP printer, click on this link and do the instructions that follow.

Once you have performed the power reset, check if the error is resolved.

If the error is resolved, then you don’t need to troubleshoot further.

If the error isn’t resolved, do the solution below.

Examine the Paper condition and then Load it again – Solution 2

If the paper in use is folded, wet, wrinkled, torn, or dusty, the “load paper” error on your HP printer might occur. Therefore, you need to examine the paper condition and ensure that it is okay before reloading it into your printer.  

How to Examine Paper Condition

Do the steps below to examine the paper condition:

Step 1: Take out the paper stack from your printer’s input tray.

Step 2: Look for obstructions within the tray. Check the mechanism within the tray with the aid of a flashlight. Verify that nothing is obstructing the loaded paper from making contact with the pickup rollers. If you see an obstruction, simply remove them.

Step 3: Examine the paper condition. If any sheet is bent, wrinkled, curled, dusty, or ripped, such sheet should be replaced.

Step 4: Ensure that you are using the same type and size of paper. You should not mix paper types since your printer is designed to work with one paper type per time.

Step 5: Hit the paper stack on an even surface. This should arrange the edges of the stack.

Step 6: Load a minimum of 10 paper sheets and a maximum of 25 sheets. This is the number you can use while you troubleshoot. However, during normal printing, you can load more provided that you don’t exceed the printer’s capacity.

Reload your Paper

Once you are certain that the paper is in good condition, do the steps below to reload your paper:

Step 1: Pull the input tray out of your printer.

Step 2: Move the tray’s paper guides as far as possible.  

Step 3: Put the paper stack in the input tray with the print side facing up. Ensure all the corners of the paper stack are even.

Step 4: Move the tray’s paper guides to the sides of the paper stack.

Step 5: Ensure that the loaded paper doesn’t exceed the tray’s maximum capacity.

Step 6: Push the paper input tray into your printer.

Print a Configuration Report

After you reload the paper, print out a configuration report to confirm if the error is resolved or not. You can print the report via your printer’s control panel or the Embedded Web Server (EWS).

To print a configuration report on your HP printer via the control panel, click this link and follow the instructions.

To print a configuration report on your HP printer via the Embedded Web Server (EWS), click this link and follow the instructions.

If your printer prints the configuration report, try to print the document you were trying to print before the error occurred. If the document prints, you shouldn’t troubleshoot further.

If your printer doesn’t print the configuration report, do the following solution.

Change your Print Driver Settings – Solution 3

To change your print driver settings, do the steps below:

Step 1: Open the original document you wanted to print before the error occurred.

Step 2: Click on “File”.

Step 3: Click on “Print”.

Step 4: Click on the button that will open the dialog box for “Properties”.

Note that the button might vary depending on the program or application you are printing from.

Step 5: Click on the tab for “Paper/Quality”.

Step 6: Click on the drop-down list for “Paper Sizes”.

Step 7: Choose a size that is the same as the loaded paper.

Step 8: Click on the drop-down list for “Paper Type”.

Step 9: Choose a type that is the same as the loaded paper.

Note: You can even choose specific paper types and weights when you click on “More”.

If the size of your loaded paper isn’t listed, make a custom size by doing the following:

a. Click on “Custom”.

b. Type any name you will like the custom size to be called in the dialog box for “Name”.

c. Enter the dimensions of the paper in the boxes for “Width” as well as “Length”.

d. Choose the measurement unit (Millimeters or Inches).

e. Click on “Save”.

f. Close the dialog box for “Custom Paper Size” by clicking “OK”.

g. Close the dialog box for “Properties” by clicking “OK”.

Important: You must close the dialog box before you can apply the changes made.

h. Open the dialog box for “Properties” again.

i. Click on the drop-down list for “Paper Size”.

j. Choose the custom size you just created.

k. Click on “OK”.

l. Click on “OK” to print.

If after doing the above the original document prints, it means the error is fixed. Hence, you don’t need to troubleshoot further.  

If your printer prints on regular white paper, whereas it doesn’t print on special types of paper, then you don’t need to troubleshoot further. The problem could be with the special paper you tried to print with.

If you still can’t print, move to the solution below.

Service your HP Printer – Solution 4

If your printer fails to print after doing the above, then it needs servicing. Therefore, you should contact HP for further assistance and support.

How to Fix HP Printer Error No Paper Pickup

To fix the HP printer error no paper pickup, we recommend that you read this detailed article. All that you need to know is contained in the linked article.

How Do I Get HP Printer Out Of Error State?

To learn how to get an HP printer out of error state, read this article carefully and follow the instructions contained in it