Fix PDF Highlights Printing in Black and White
Question details
The user needs to resolve an issue where highlighted text in a PDF prints in grayscale, even though the rest of the document and other colored annotations print correctly.
- Product
- Adobe Acrobat
- Device & OS
- not provided
- Scenario
- Attempting to print a PDF document that contains colored highlight annotations.
- Observed behavior
- Highlighted sections print in black and white or grayscale, while other shapes, markups, and text in the same document print normally in color.
Ensure your printer has adequate color ink or toner and that the latest printer drivers are installed before adjusting application settings.
Adjust Application Print Settings for Comments and Color
Ensure that your PDF reader is configured to print document markups and that grayscale printing is explicitly disabled.
Often, PDF readers are set by default to print only the document content without the overlay markups, or a hidden grayscale setting overrides the highlights. Adjusting the specific comment and color settings in the print dialogue typically restores color to your highlights.
Launch your PDF viewer, open the affected file, and go to File > Print, or press Ctrl + P on your keyboard.
Locate the 'Comments & Forms' or 'Print What' dropdown menu in the print dialog box and change the selection to 'Document and Markups'.
Find the 'Print in grayscale' or 'Black and White' checkbox in the main print window and ensure it is completely unchecked.
Click the 'Properties' or 'Advanced' button next to your printer's name and verify that the system-level color output is set to 'Color' rather than 'Monochrome' or 'Grayscale'.
Test with an Alternative Viewer or Virtual Printer
Isolate the issue to determine if the problem is specific to the current PDF software, the file itself, or the printer driver.
Print PDFs with Color Highlights Using WPS Office
WPS PDF provides precise control over document printing, ensuring that all annotations, comments, and colored highlights print exactly as they appear on your screen without unexpected grayscale conversions.
- 1. Open your PDF: Launch WPS Office and open the PDF file containing the colored highlights.
- 2. Access Print Settings: Click the 'Menu' button in the top-left corner and select 'Print', or use the shortcut Ctrl + P.
- 3. Select Print Content: In the Print interface, look under the 'Print Content' section and select 'Document and Annotations'.
- 4. Print in Color: Ensure that the 'Print in grayscale' option is disabled, then click the 'Print' button to output your document in full color.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why are my PDF highlights printing grey when the regular text is in color?
This usually happens because the PDF software is not configured to include color data for comment overlays and highlight annotations, or there is a transparency flattening issue within the print driver that defaults the highlights to grayscale.
How do I force my PDF to print with colored comments and markups?
In the print dialog of your PDF software, change the 'Comments and Forms' setting to include 'Document and Markups'. This ensures the printer processes both the base text and the overlaid colored annotations.
Can a corrupted PDF cause highlights to lose color during printing?
Yes. Sometimes the transparency or color rendering dictionary of a specific highlight annotation becomes corrupted. Printing the PDF as an image (usually found in the 'Advanced' print settings) can often bypass this issue and restore color.
