Removing a printer from Windows 11 isn’t exactly rocket science, but it can be annoying if you don’t know where to look or if the system suddenly refuses to let go of the device. Sometimes printers hang around even after you’ve physically unplugged them, or they still appear after driver updates, leaving your device cluttered and confused. This guide covers a few practical ways to get rid of those stubborn printers—useful when they become obsolete or just refuse to uninstall normally. The goal is to clean up your device list, avoid printing errors, or troubleshoot a stubborn printer that just won’t disappear from the menu.
How to Remove a Printer from Windows 11
Method 1: The usual route through Settings
This is the most direct method that works for most people. It’s pretty straightforward—go into Settings, find your printer, and remove it. It’s the kind of thing that should be simple, but sometimes, Windows likes to hide things or make it a bit more complicated, especially if driver issues or permissions are involved.
- Open Settings by clicking the Start menu and choosing Settings, or just press Win + I.
- Navigate to Bluetooth & Devices (or just Devices on some Windows 11 builds).
- Click on Printers & scanners from the sidebar.
- Scroll through the list, find your printer—this isn’t always perfect if multiple similar names are there, so double-check carefully.
- Click on the printer you want gone and hit Remove device. Confirm any prompts—sometimes Windows throws up a UAC (User Account Control) dialog, so you’ll need admin rights.
On some setups, doing this works like charm. The printer disappears, and life is good. But if it’s stubborn or the device still lingers in other menus, move onto the next methods.
Method 2: Remove via Devices and Printers (Control Panel)
This older route is sometimes more reliable, especially if Windows’ modern UI is give-or-take or glitchy. It’s a bit more manual, but it helps clear out drivers and settings behind the scenes. Sometimes, Windows’ Settings app doesn’t fully clean up the driver, leaving ghost printers around.
- Open the Start menu, type Control Panel, and open it.
- Go to Hardware and Sound, then click Devices and Printers.
- Find your printer in the list, right-click it, and select Remove device.
Pro tip: if the printer stubbornly stays, open Print Management (type in the Start menu), and look under All Printers. Right-click the device there, choose Delete, and even remove its drivers under All Drivers. This way, you avoid leftover driver clutter that can cause problems later.
Method 3: Use PowerShell or Command Prompt for deeper cleanup
This is kind of a nuclear option, but if the usual removal isn’t working, you can try deleting the printer via terminal commands. It’s also handy when dealing with network printers or stubborn devices that refuse to disappear. Because Windows sometimes leaves behind components that the UI doesn’t clean up, this can help in those cases.
- Open PowerShell as an administrator: right-click the Start button and choose Windows PowerShell (Admin).
- Type the command:
Get-Printer
to list all printers. - Find the exact name of the printer that refuses to die.
- Remove it with:
Remove-Printer -Name "PrinterName"
(make sure to replace “PrinterName” with the actual name from the list).
In some cases, you might need to also delete associated drivers, which can be done with commands like `Remove-PrinterDriver` or through deeper driver management tools, but use these with caution.
Things to keep in mind
Of course, some printers behave weirdly. A reboot after removal doesn’t hurt—sometimes Windows needs a little nudge to clean up. Also, if you’re on a network printer, try disconnecting from the network or disabling sharing before you attempt removal. And, always ensure you have admin rights; otherwise, you might hit permission errors. Because Windows can be a bit picky, especially with printer drivers, manual driver cleanup can sometimes be necessary if the device keeps showing up.
Summary
- Use Settings → Devices → Printers & scanners to remove standard printers.
- For stubborn devices, try the Control Panel’s Devices and Printers route.
- Advanced users can leverage PowerShell or Command Prompt to remove printers and drivers.
- Reboot after removal if things still act funny, and consider updating or clearing drivers if needed.
Wrap-up
Honestly, printer stuff can get weird fast—Windows isn’t always consistent. But these methods usually pin down the problem and clean up leftover devices. If an old printer keeps stubbornly sticking around, a deeper driver purge or even reinstalling the driver might be the next step. Just remember, the system’s not always honest about what’s still lurking, so a bit of trial and error can be part of the game. Fingers crossed this helps someone cut through the clutter faster—done right, it usually isn’t too bad.