Printer test page: CMYK pattern to print

A CMYK test pattern is a sheet with blocks and fine lines of cyan, magenta, yellow and black that you print to check whether a nozzle is clogged. If a colour comes out with streaks, gaps or is missing entirely, that print head needs cleaning. You'll find the pattern ready to print further down: print it out and compare it with your screen.

What is a nozzle test pattern?

It's a control image designed so that paper reveals what the software hides. Each colour area uses a single cartridge, so when you print it on plain paper you can see at a glance which nozzle lays down ink properly and which one is dry or half-blocked. Manufacturers call it a "nozzle test" or "nozzle check".

It works with any inkjet printer: HP, Epson, Canon or Brother. On laser printers (toner) it doesn't apply the same way, because there the defects come from the drum or the toner itself, not from nozzles. For inkjet, this pattern is the quickest and cheapest test there is: you only use up one sheet.

When is it worth running a print test?

Print the pattern whenever you notice the quality dropping. It's the first check before touching anything, and it saves you replacing a cartridge that's actually full. Do it in these cases:

• You get streaks or white lines on photos and documents.
• A colour looks faded, off, or has disappeared.
• The printer has gone weeks without being used and the ink has dried up.
• You've just installed a new cartridge and want to confirm it's flowing.

Print your CMYK pattern here

This is the test pattern. Press Ctrl+P (Windows) or Cmd+P (Mac) to open the print dialogue. Use plain white paper, "Normal" or "High" quality, and turn off any ink-saving or greyscale setting so that all four real colours come out.

If you're printing from your phone, use the "Print" option in the share menu. Keep the sheet next to your monitor: you're going to compare it with what should be solid blocks and continuous lines.

How do you read the test result?

Reading it is simple: what's missing on the paper is what's missing in the print head. Each block should come out solid and uniform, and each pattern of fine lines complete and unbroken. Look out for these details:

• Uniform block: that colour's nozzle is fine.
• White streaks or missing lines: partially clogged nozzle.
• Very pale or blank block: dry nozzle or out of ink.
• Mixed or dirty colour: there may be cross-contaminated ink between nozzles.

Compare the four colours against each other. If black comes out perfect and cyan is banded, the problem is localised to cyan, not the whole printer. That saves you cleans and expenses you didn't need.

What to do depending on which colour fails?

The colour that comes out badly tells you which nozzle to clean. The solution is almost always the same — a print head clean — but it's worth reading the map before wasting ink on unnecessary cycles.

• A single colour fails (C, M, Y or K): a specific nozzle is clogged. Run a print head clean from the printer menu.
• Several colours fail: the head is quite dry; it needs one or two cleans and a few hours' wait.
• Only black fails in text: check that you're not in draft or ink-saving mode.

You'll find the step-by-step guide by brand in our guide to how to clean print heads. After each clean, print the pattern again and compare: you should see the gaps filling back in.

What if the colour doesn't come back after cleaning?

If after two or three cleans the pattern is still the same, the problem is no longer a light blockage. Sometimes the cartridge is empty despite showing ink, or the head needs a soak. Before giving up, check our guide to the printer not printing even though it has ink.

When the cartridge is genuinely empty, it's not worth forcing more cycles: you waste good ink cleaning in vain. Replace the failing colour with a new one and run the test again. In compatible ink cartridges you'll find replacements for HP, Epson, Canon and Brother with print quality equivalent to the original and considerably less spend.

How often is it worth printing the pattern?

There's no need to obsess over it. Printing the pattern once a month is enough to keep the ink from settling, especially if you use the printer rarely. A print head that works now and then dries out less than one sitting idle for weeks. Bookmark this page and you'll have the test one click away whenever you need it.

Frequently asked questions