Forcing Worksheets to Print on a New Sheet

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated April 30, 2022)
This tip applies to Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, Excel in Microsoft 365, and 2021


Eva often prints entire workbooks at once. When she does, she prints double-sided so that she can conserve paper. However, this sometimes means that the first page of a worksheet will print on the back of the last page of the previous worksheet. Eva wonders if there is a way to make sure that a worksheet always starts printing on a new piece of paper when printing entire workbooks double-sided.

There is a manual way to approach this and a more automatic method. The manual method involves figuring out which of your worksheets require an odd number of pages to print, and then forcing that worksheet to use an even number of pages. Once you identify such a worksheet, all you need to do is go to the end of that worksheet (just below the last row) and insert a page break. (Display the Page Layout tab of the ribbon and click the Breaks tool. You can then choose Insert Page Break.)

The automatic method involves using a macro to print your workbook instead of using the regular Print command. The macro, in essence, prints each worksheet individually, one after the other. Thus, if you have 5 worksheets, then the macro prints them as 5 separate print jobs. Each will begin on the front of a new page. Here's the macro:

Public Sub PrintAllSheets()
    Dim wks As Worksheet

    For Each wks In ActiveWorkbook.Worksheets
        wks.PrintOut
    Next
    Set wks = Nothing
End Sub

This macro, as stated, prints all the worksheets in the workbook. If you want to print a subset of the worksheets, then you could modify the macro to print only those worksheet selected when the macro is executed.

Sub PrintSomePages()
    Dim wks As Worksheet

    For Each wks In ActiveWindow.SelectedSheets
        wks.PrintOut
    Next
    Set wks = Nothing
End Sub

Either (or both) of these macros could easily be added to your Quick Access Toolbar so that you can print exactly what you want (all or some) with just the click of a button.

Note:

If you would like to know how to use the macros described on this page (or on any other page on the ExcelTips sites), I've prepared a special page that includes helpful information. Click here to open that special page in a new browser tab.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (1984) applies to Microsoft Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, Excel in Microsoft 365, and 2021.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Converting List Types

There are two types of common lists you can create in Word: bulleted lists and numbered lists. You can switch between the ...

Discover More

Where Are Word's Settings Stored?

Ever wonder where Word stores all its settings and configuration information? There are only three places where this ...

Discover More

Changing How the Power Button Behaves

When you shut down your system, you normally use the Power button that is visible after you click the Start button. You ...

Discover More

Create Custom Apps with VBA! Discover how to extend the capabilities of Office 2013 (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Access) with VBA programming, using it for writing macros, automating Office applications, and creating custom applications. Check out Mastering VBA for Office 2013 today!

More ExcelTips (ribbon)

Printing a Draft Watermark

Adding a watermark to the background of a printout can be challenging. This tip explains the different ways you can ...

Discover More

Fitting Your Printout on a Page

Tired of wasting paper when you print a worksheet? You can scale Excel's output so that it fits only the number of pages ...

Discover More

Printing an Entire Workbook by Default

Need to print an entire workbook? It's as easy as adding a single line of code to your macros.

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is 8 - 6?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)


This Site

Got a version of Excel that uses the ribbon interface (Excel 2007 or later)? This site is for you! If you use an earlier version of Excel, visit our ExcelTips site focusing on the menu interface.

Newest Tips
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.