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Fix: Word Print Preview Is Very Slow

By GenText 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.

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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.

Fix it with the steps below — then let GenText handle the writing: AI drafting, rephrasing, and real peer-reviewed citations right inside Word. Free, installs in 30 seconds.

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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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