How to Print Without Borders on a Windows 11 Inkjet Printer

Quick fix: Borderless printing requires the printer to support it and the right paper size selection. Open the document → File → Print → Printer Properties → Paper/Quality (or Layout) tab. Find Borderless or Edge-to-edge option and enable. Pick a paper size with (Borderless) suffix (e.g., 4×6 Borderless).

You want to print a photo without white borders — edge-to-edge. Most modern inkjets (Canon Pixma, Epson EcoTank, HP Envy/OfficeJet) support borderless on specific paper sizes. The driver setting is buried under Printer Properties, often hidden behind a different button than expected.

What causes this

Borderless printing requires the printer to over-print — print slightly beyond the paper edge so any positioning variance still covers to the edge. Manufacturers expose this as a separate paper size option (e.g., “Photo Paper 4×6 Borderless”) or as a checkbox in the printer driver. The setting isn’t always in the standard Print dialog — it’s typically under Printer Properties or Preferences.

Common cause for unexpected borders: app picked “Photo Paper 4×6” (with borders) instead of “Photo Paper 4×6 Borderless,” or the borderless option wasn’t ticked.

Method 1: Enable borderless in Print dialog

The standard path. Depends on app.

1. Open the image or document. Press Ctrl + P.
2. In Print dialog, find Printer Properties or Preferences button (location varies):
   • Word: Print → Printer Properties.
   • Photoshop: Print → Print Settings.
   • Edge: Print → More settings → Print using system dialog.
3. In Printer Properties, navigate to Paper/Quality, Layout, or Page Setup tab.
4. Find Borderless Printing tickbox or Borderless radio button. Tick.
5. Select paper size: pick the one with (Borderless) or (BL) suffix. Common sizes:
   • 4×6 photo
   • 5×7 photo
   • 8.5×11 (Letter)
   • A4
6. Pick paper type: Glossy Photo Paper, Premium Photo Paper, etc. Plain paper rarely supports borderless.
7. Click OK. Back in main Print dialog, click Print.

This is the standard print-time configuration.

Method 2: Set borderless as printer default for repeated use

For frequent borderless printing.

1. Open Settings → Bluetooth & devices → Printers & scanners → [printer] → Printer properties.
2. Switch to Advanced tab. Click Printing Defaults.
3. Same dialog as in-app printer properties. Enable Borderless, pick borderless paper size as default.
4. Click Apply → OK.
5. Now every print job defaults to borderless (until you override per-job).
6. For photo printing workflows: create a separate Windows printer profile dedicated to borderless. Right-click your printer in Settings → Copy (some drivers support this). Configure the copy as borderless-default.
7. For multi-tray printers: configure Tray 1 = Photo Paper Borderless, Tray 2 = Plain. Per-job selection becomes faster.

This eliminates per-job borderless configuration.

Method 3: Use the manufacturer’s photo printing app

For best photo print quality.

1. Install vendor photo software:
   • Canon: Easy-PhotoPrint Editor from Microsoft Store.
   • Epson: Epson Photo+.
   • HP: HP Smart app.
   • Brother: Brother iPrint&Scan.
2. Open the app. Pick a photo. Borderless options are prominent in the layout/template chooser.
3. Vendor apps add layout templates (collage, single photo, scrapbook) that auto-set borderless and the right paper.
4. For best color: vendor apps also use the manufacturer’s ICC profiles automatically. Better color match than printing via Word or generic apps.
5. For batch photo printing: vendor apps support print queues for many photos with consistent layouts. Faster than printing one at a time.

This is the right path for photo enthusiasts.

How to verify the fix worked

• Test print a photo on borderless paper. Output should reach the paper edge on all four sides.
• If borders still appear: check that the document/photo’s aspect ratio matches the paper’s. If not, the image gets letterboxed.
• For Canon: confirm in print queue that the Page Size shows the (Borderless) variant.

If none of these work

If borderless option isn’t available, the cause may be: Printer doesn’t support borderless: not all inkjets support it. Older or entry-level models often skip the feature. Check the printer’s spec sheet. Wrong driver: Windows generic driver may not expose borderless. Install the manufacturer’s driver directly. Wrong paper: some borderless paper sizes are limited (e.g., HP supports borderless on photo paper but not on plain paper). Try Premium Photo Paper or Glossy Photo Paper. For documents with margins set in app: Word, Pages, etc. apply margins to the document. Set margins to 0 in the app before borderless print — otherwise borders come from the app, not the printer. For inkjets with smudging at edges: borderless prints stress the print head’s edge handling. After borderless, blot test — if smudges, reduce print speed in driver. Or clean rollers and reduce paper-feed friction.

Bottom line: Open the document → Print → Printer Properties → enable Borderless and pick a (Borderless)-suffixed paper size. Set as printing default if frequently used.