Fix: Word Print Preview Is Very Slow

By GenText Editorial Team April 2, 2026 performance
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Quick Answer

Disable background printing in File > Options > Advanced > Print, compress images, and try updating your printer driver.

Why Print Preview Is Slow

Print preview must render every page at full resolution, which is much more demanding than normal editing view.

Step-by-Step Fix

Step 1: Disable Background Printing

  1. Go to File > Options > Advanced
  2. Scroll to the Print section
  3. Uncheck Print in background
  4. Click OK

Step 2: Update Printer Drivers

  1. Open Settings > Devices > Printers & Scanners
  2. Click your default printer > Manage > Printer properties > Advanced
  3. Click New Driver to update, or visit the manufacturer’s website

Step 3: Compress Document Images

  1. Click any image > Picture Format > Compress Pictures
  2. Apply to all pictures at 150 ppi
  3. Save and try print preview again

Step 4: Change Default Printer

Sometimes a specific printer driver is the bottleneck:

  1. Go to Settings > Devices > Printers & Scanners
  2. Set Microsoft Print to PDF as the default printer
  3. Open Print Preview — if it’s fast now, the issue is your printer driver

Quick Workaround

Export to PDF with File > Save As > PDF and preview the PDF in your PDF reader instead. This is often faster for large documents.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is print preview so slow in Word?

Print preview renders every page at print resolution, which is CPU-intensive for documents with many images, complex formatting, or embedded objects. Printer driver issues can also cause delays.

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