Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365. If you are using an earlier version (Word 2003 or earlier), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for earlier versions of Word, click here: Sending Printer Commands.

Sending Printer Commands

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated March 12, 2022)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365

Word has an extensive range of field commands that can be used to increase the flexibility of your documents. One such field allows you to send commands directly to your printer, without interference from Word. To insert a Print field code in your document, follow these steps:

Position the insertion point where you want the Print field to appear.
Display the Insert tab of the ribbon.
In the Text group, click the Quick Parts tool and then click Field. Word displays the Field dialog box. (See Figure 1.)

Figure 1. The Field dialog box.

Make sure (All) is selected in the Categories list at the left side of the dialog box. (It should be selected by default when the dialog box is first displayed.)
Select Print from the Field Names list.
In the Field Code box, after the Print statement, enter the information you want sent directly to the printer. This information should be enclosed within quote marks.
Click on OK.

This technique is great if there are some advanced features of your printer that you want to take advantage of. For instance, I have used this technique in several other WordTips issues to show how to send PostScript commands directly a printer.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (9567) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Sending Printer Commands.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. Learn more about Allen...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Understanding Paragraph Alignment

One of the most basic ways to align paragraphs is to set the alignment used for the text in the paragraph. Word provides ...

Discover More

Turning Off Speech Capabilities

Excel can talk to you, reading back whatever you enter into a cell. If you want to turn this capability off, you'll want ...

Discover More

Paragraph Numbers in Headers or Footers

If your documents routinely use numbered paragraphs, you may want to place the number of the page's first paragraph in ...

Discover More

The First and Last Word on Word! Bestselling For Dummies author Dan Gookin puts his usual fun and friendly candor back to work to show you how to navigate Word 2019. Spend more time working and less time trying to figure it all out! Check out Word 2019 For Dummies today!

More WordTips (ribbon)

Printing Non-Printing Characters

Serious users of Word often display non-printing characters on-screen so they can see them easier. If you want those ...

Discover More

Printing Color Separations with VBA

When printing in color (at a commercial printer) it is necessary to print different colors of your document in different ...

Discover More

Two Page Numbers per Physical Page

Want to save paper when printing your document? Just print two pages per sheet of paper and you'll get rid of only half ...

Discover More

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

Notify me about new comments ONLY FOR THIS TIP

Notify me about new comments ANYWHERE ON THIS SITE

Hide my email address

What is seven more than 7?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)

This Site

Got a version of Word that uses the ribbon interface (Word 2007 or later)? This site is for you! If you use an earlier version of Word, visit our WordTips site focusing on the menu interface.