How to Create a Printer Shortcut in Windows 11

The trick to adding a printer icon to your toolbar

By
Saikat Basu
Saikat Basu
Saikat Basu
Writer
  • University of Pune (India)
Saikat has been a technology writer for 12+ years. His writing has appeared at MakeUseOf, OnlineTechTips, GoSkills, and many others.
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Updated on March 20, 2023

What to Know

  • Users can place printer shortcuts on the desktop for all hardware and virtual printers connected to the PC.
  • The shortcut opens the printing queue window.
  • Control Panel > Hardware and Sound > Devices and Printers > Printers > right-click > Create shortcut.

This article will show you how to create a printer shortcut in Windows 11. While you can't add it to the toolbar like in Windows 10, we'll show you another way to achieve a very similar result.

How Do I Create a Shortcut for My Printer in Windows 11?

You can place a printer shortcut anywhere on a Windows 11 computer. Selecting the shortcut will open the printer queue and allow you to control any running print job. Here are two methods you can use.

To create a shortcut for a printer, you must add the printer to Windows 11 by installing the drivers. If you don't have a hardware printer, you can create a printer shortcut for any virtual printer like Microsoft Print to PDF.

How to Create a Shortcut From the Control Panel

Windows 11 (and Windows 10) consolidated printers under Settings. But you can still access the old printer applets from the Control Panel and open Printer preferences or Printer settings for your chosen printer. 

  1. Go to Start.

  2. Search for Control Panel and select the first result.

    Control Panel in Windows 11 Search

  3. Select Hardware and Sound.

    Hardware and Sound in Windows Control Panel

  4. Select Devices and Printers.

  5. Go to the list of devices under Printers and select the printer to create the desktop shortcut for.

    HP Laserjet in Windows 11 Printers

  6. Right click on the printer's icon and select Create shortcut.

    Create shortcut for Printer in Windows

  7. Windows displays a prompt and offers to create the printer shortcut on the desktop. Select Yes.

    Yes Prompt displayed for printer shortcut in Windows

  8. The shortcut is now visible on the Windows desktop.

    Printer shortcut on Windows 11 desktop

How to Create a Shortcut From the Desktop

The above steps are straightforward. But as an exercise, you can create a printer shortcut from the desktop itself. First, use the above steps to note down the exact name of the printer you want to use. Then, follow the following steps.

  1. Right-click on any blank area of the desktop.

  2. Select New > Shortcut.

    New and Shortcut on desktop in Windows 11

  3. In the Create Shortcut wizard, enter the following path for the printer's location (substitute the "Name of Printer" with your printer's actual name):

    rundll32.exe printui.dll,PrintUIEntry /o /n "Name of Printer"

    Path for printer in Windows Create Shortcut Wizard

  4. Select Next.

  5. Give the shortcut a name and select Finish to place the printer shortcut on the desktop. 

    Printer shortcut name and Finish highlighted in Windows Shortcut Wizard

You can change the icon for the shortcut. Right-click on the icon > Properties > Change Icon. The default printer DLL file won't have any icons of its own, so Windows will suggest you select one from the SHELL32.dll icons folder.

How Do I Get the Printer Icon on My Toolbar in Windows 11?

The Windows 11 taskbar isn't as customizable as the one in Windows 10, and, so far, you can't pin the printer icon to the taskbar in Windows 11.

You can pin any open app, file, folder, website, and even a drive to the taskbar. But pinning a device or a printer icon is still not possible through any workaround.

As mentioned above, the next best thing you can do is create desktop shortcuts for your printers. Then, place them all in a folder and pin it to the taskbar as a Quick Access folder.

FAQ
  • Where do I find my printers in Windows 11?

    To find a printer on your network in Windows 11, go to Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Printers & scanners. From here, select Add device or Add manually to set up a shared printer.

  • How do I set my default printer in Windows 11?

    To set a default printer in Windows 11, go to Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Printers & scanners, choose a printer, then select Set as default. You can also set a default printer in the Control Panel.

  • How do I fix printer errors in Windows 11?

    If your printer isn't working, it could be due to problems with the Bluetooth or USB connection, outdated drivers, paper jams, or issues with ink and toner. Go to Settings > Troubleshoot > Other trouble-shooters > next to Printer, select Run to run the printer troubleshooter. 

  • Why is my printer not working after the Windows 11 upgrade?

    If you recently upgraded to Windows 11, you might still need to download the latest Windows update to make sure it's compatible with all of your devices. You might also need to update or install the printer drivers.

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