How to Apply Color Print Settings to Every Excel Worksheet
Question details
The user needs to print an entire Excel workbook in color, but the color print settings are only applying to the active worksheet instead of all sheets.
- Product
- Microsoft Excel
- Device & OS
- not provided
- Scenario
- Printing a multi-sheet Excel workbook in color.
- Observed behavior
- Color printing settings apply to only one sheet because Excel saves page setup and printer preferences on a per-sheet basis by default.
Verify that your printer is fully stocked with color ink and that it supports color printing before adjusting your workbook print settings.
Group Worksheets to Apply Global Print Settings
Select all worksheets simultaneously so that your page setup and printer settings apply to the entire workbook at once.
Excel retains separate page setup and printer settings for each worksheet. To override this and print the entire workbook consistently, you must group all sheets before opening the print dialog.
Right-click on any sheet tab at the bottom of your Excel window and click 'Select All Sheets' from the context menu. The tabs will turn white to indicate they are grouped.
Press 'Ctrl + P' on your keyboard or click on 'File' and select 'Print' from the left-hand menu.
Click the 'Printer Properties' link located just below the printer selection dropdown.
Navigate to the Color or Quality tab in your printer's properties window, ensure the color printing option is selected, click 'OK', and then hit 'Print'.
Create a Dedicated Color Printer Profile
Install a duplicate printer queue configured to default to color printing, bypassing Excel's per-sheet settings.
Print Multi-Sheet Spreadsheets with WPS Office
WPS Office offers a highly compatible and intuitive Spreadsheet tool that makes managing print settings across multiple worksheets seamless, preventing issues with inconsistent formatting.
- 1. Open Your Spreadsheet: Launch WPS Office and open your multi-sheet spreadsheet file.
- 2. Access Print Settings: Click the 'Menu' button in the top-left corner and select 'Print', or simply press Ctrl+P on your keyboard.
- 3. Select Print Range: In the Print dialog box, locate the 'Print What' section and select the 'Entire workbook' option.
- 4. Confirm Color Output: Click the 'Properties' button to verify your printer is set to output in color, click 'OK', and then print your document.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does Excel print some worksheets in black and white and others in color?
Excel saves page setup and printer preferences individually for each worksheet. If one sheet was previously set to print in black and white, it retains that setting even if you change the printer properties while viewing a different sheet. You must group the sheets to apply changes to all of them.
Does saving as a PDF preserve the color settings of all sheets?
Yes, if you group all of your sheets and use the 'Save as PDF' or 'Export to PDF' function, the entire document will be saved in color regardless of your local printer's individual sheet settings.
How can I change the default print settings to color for all future documents?
To change your global default, open your computer's 'Printers & scanners' settings, select your printer, click 'Manage', open 'Printing preferences', and ensure the color mode is selected. This sets the baseline for new files, though older Excel files may still retain their legacy settings.
How do I know if my sheets are grouped before printing?
When sheets are grouped in Excel, the selected sheet tabs at the bottom of the window will appear with a solid white background, and the word '[Group]' will appear in the title bar at the very top of the Excel window.
