How To Print an Article From a Website (Tips for Clean Printing)

You might want to print an article or webpage to save the entire content, focus on specific sections, or create a clean version without ads. 

Printing can serve different purposes, which is why we’ve gathered methods to help you get exactly what you need.

1. Use Your Browser’s Print Shortcut

The easiest way to print a web page or article is to use your browser’s built-in print feature, which works universally across most modern browsers like Chrome, Firefox, Edge, and Safari. It lets you quickly print the content without extra tools or extensions.

Here's how to do it:

• Open the webpage with the article you want to print.
• Press Ctrl + P (Windows) or Cmd + P (Mac) to open the print dialog box.
• In the dialog, select your printer, choose the correct paper size, and adjust the page range, orientation (portrait or landscape), and other settings.
• Use the print preview to confirm everything looks correct.
• Once satisfied, click Print to start.

Ideal for: Printing web pages or articles exactly as they appear on the site, including images, links, and original formatting.

How To Print a Web Page / Article in All Web Browsers

2. Using Right-Click To Print Selected Text

If you only want to print a specific part of the article, you can use the right-click print method:

• Click and drag your mouse over the text to highlight what you want to print.
• Right-click on the highlighted text.
• From the menu that appears, choose Print (or Print Selection, depending on your browser).
• The print dialog box will open, showing only the selected text in the preview.
• Select your printer and other settings, then click Print.

Ideal for: Printing specific portions of an article without the extra clutter from the rest of the webpage.

3. Save the Article as a PDF for Later Printing

If you don’t have immediate access to a printer or want to save the article digitally, you can save it as a PDF:

• Open the article in your browser.
• Press Ctrl + P (Windows) or Cmd + P (Mac).
• In the print dialog box, select Save as PDF or a similar option in the printer selection dropdown.
• Choose the location to save the file and click Save.
• You can print the PDF later from a PDF reader like Adobe Acrobat or your browser.

                      Saving an article as a PDF using Chrome print settings

Ideal for: Saving articles for future use, creating a digital backup, or sharing a clean, non-editable version with others.

4. Enable Reader Mode (But Not Always Reliable)

Websites often include ads, navigation menus, and other elements that clutter the page. To print only the main content of the article, use Reader Mode (if available in your browser):

• Enable Reader Mode: In browsers like Firefox, Edge, or Safari, click the Reader Mode icon (book or page icon) in the address bar. In Chrome, go to the three dots menu > More Tools > Reading Mode to enable it.
• Print: Press Ctrl + P (Windows) or Cmd + P (Mac) to open the print dialog. Adjust settings and print the simplified article.

If your browser doesn’t have Reader Mode, you can use extensions like PrintFriendly to achieve a similar result.

Important Note

This method doesn’t always work reliably across different browsers.

We tested Reader Mode on Google Chrome, and while it removed ads and sidebars in the browser view, the print preview reverted to the original layout with images and ads.

On Firefox, it simplified the article well in the browser view, but in the print preview, one image was still included.

Many users, especially in Chrome, have reported issues with printing from Reader Mode.

If you encounter problems, a more consistent option is to copy and paste the content into a document editor, manually remove unwanted elements (like images), and then print.

5. Copy and Paste the Article into a Document

If the article layout is complicated or you only want to print specific parts, you can copy the content manually:

• Highlight the article text using your mouse or keyboard.
• Press Ctrl + C (Windows) or Cmd + C (Mac) to copy the selected text.
• Open a word processor like Microsoft Word, Google Docs, or Notepad, and paste the text (Ctrl + V or Cmd + V).
• Format the content if needed (e.g., adjust margins, font size, or images).
• Print the document directly from the word processor.

Ideal for: Those who want full control over the content, need to print only specific sections, or prefer to remove ads, images, and unnecessary elements before printing.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

If you encounter  problems during printing, here are some quick solutions:

• Page Layout Issues: Use Reader Mode or a print-friendly tool to clean up the layout.
• Printer Not Responding: Check printer connections, restart it, or reinstall printer drivers.
• Low Toner/Ink or Paper: Check that your printer has sufficient toner/ink and paper loaded before starting the job.
• Wrong Pages Printed: In the print dialog, use the Preview feature to select the exact pages you want.

Hope you found these methods helpful for printing your articles easily. If you encounter any issues, try the suggested solutions to resolve them quickly!