This thermal printer test page prints a full test receipt on a 58 mm or 80 mm roll: a ruler across the print width, a solid black band that shows every heating dot, four darkness steps, text from 6 to 16 pt, a sample bill with prices, a Code 128 barcode, a QR code, a fine line pattern and a cut line. Use it as a receipt printer test page or POS printer test page for any thermal receipt printer installed on Windows, Mac, ChromeOS or Android, from Epson, Star, Bixolon, Xprinter, MUNBYN and others. It runs online in your browser, so nothing needs installing beyond the printer's driver. Print it before a shop opens, after a new roll goes in, or whenever receipts come out pale, streaked or cut off.
How to print the thermal printer test page
- Install the printer's driver so the printer appears in your computer's printer list.
- Choose Receipt printer above, then 58 mm or 80 mm to match the roll. The 80mm thermal printer test page suits most counter printers, and the 58mm thermal printer test page suits small and mobile ones.
- Press Print this page and select the receipt printer.
- In the print window, pick the roll paper size the driver offers, set Margins to None and keep the scale at 100%.
- Print, then check that both ends of the ruler and the whole black band came out.
What the receipt test shows
| Part of the receipt | What it checks | A good result |
|---|---|---|
| Width ruler | Print width | Both ends visible: 0 to 48 mm or 0 to 72 mm |
| Solid black band | Every heating dot | Even black with no white lines |
| Darkness steps, 25 to 100% | Darkness setting | Four steps that each look different |
| Text from 6 to 16 pt | Sharpness | 6 pt text is readable |
| Sample bill | Columns | Prices line up at the right edge |
| Code 128 and QR code | Barcode quality | Both scan on the first try |
| Diagonal lines | Paper feed | Straight and evenly spaced |
| Cut line | Feed length and cutter | The cut lands below END OF TEST |
Faded or gray receipts
Thermal printers have no ink. Heat from a row of tiny dots darkens coated paper, so pale print means too little heat reaches the paper, or the paper reacts weakly.
- Raise the darkness, density or print density setting in the driver's preferences one step at a time.
- Load a fresh roll. Thermal paper slowly loses its coating with heat, light and age, and cheap rolls print paler.
- Clean the print head as described in the questions below.
- Use the power adapter that came with the printer. A weaker adapter can leave too little power for full darkness.
White lines down the receipt
A thin white line running the length of the receipt means one or more heating dots are not printing. Paper dust and label glue on the head cause most of them, so clean the head with a cleaning pen or a swab and isopropanol. A line that stays in the same place after two cleanings means those dots are burned out, and the print head or the printer needs replacing. The black band on the test receipt makes even a single dead dot easy to see.
Text cut off or too small
- Cut off at the sides: the driver is set for a wider roll than the one loaded. An 80 mm layout printed on a 58 mm printer loses both edges. Pick the size that matches the roll.
- Too small or too narrow: the print window shrank the page to fit. Set the scale to 100% and the margins to None.
- Ends of the ruler missing: the printer's print width is narrower than the page. Many 80 mm models print 72 mm, and some only 64 mm, so keep important text inside that width.
Long blank tail or no cut
Many drivers feed the full length of their default paper size, so a short receipt leaves a long blank tail. Pick a shorter roll paper size in the print window, or turn on the driver's option that skips blank paper at the end, which each maker names differently. If the receipt never cuts, check the cutter setting in the driver's preferences, which can cut after each page, after each job or never.
Print the printer's self-test
The self-test is the quickest way to tell a printer fault from a computer fault. Switch the printer off, hold Feed, switch it on and let go when it starts printing. Epson TM, Star and most generic 58 mm and 80 mm printers print their model, firmware and settings, and many continue with a page of characters after another press of Feed. If the printer does not return to normal by itself afterwards, switch it off and on.
If the self-test prints but your computer cannot print, the printer works and the problem is the driver, the port or the connection. The guides on printer offline and why is my printer not printing cover both.
Blank receipts
A receipt that feeds out blank is almost always paper loaded the wrong way round, because only the coated side reacts to heat. Turn the roll over so the coated side faces the head. Rolls of plain bond paper made for older impact printers look the same but never print on a thermal printer. For printers that use ink or toner and print blank, see printer printing blank pages.
Labels and barcodes
Thermal label printers work the same way, with a gap sensor that finds each label. The thermal label printer test page prints 4 x 6 in and 2 x 1 in labels, and Zebra owners can also print the zebra printer test page from the printer itself. To check that the receipt barcode reads well, scan it with the barcode scanner test online.
What this test cannot do
A browser prints through the system driver, which turns the page into dots. It cannot send the printer's own commands, so it cannot open a cash drawer, fire the cutter on its own or read the printer's status. The darkness steps also depend on how the driver turns grays into dot patterns, which differs between makers.
Thermal printer test page questions
How do I print a test page on a thermal printer?
Most receipt printers print a self-test with no computer: switch the printer off, hold the Feed button, switch it on and let go when printing starts. To test printing from your computer, choose Receipt printer above, pick 58 mm or 80 mm and press Print this page.
What is the print width of 58mm and 80mm paper?
A 58 mm roll has a print width of about 48 mm, which is 384 dots on a 203 dpi printer. An 80 mm roll prints about 72 mm, or 576 dots, on most printers, and 64 mm on some smaller models. The ruler on the test receipt shows the width your printer actually reaches.
Why is my thermal printer printing blank receipts?
The roll is usually in the wrong way round. Only one side of thermal paper is coated, and it must face the print head. Scratch the paper with a fingernail: the side that turns dark is the coated side. Plain paper rolls made for other printers also print nothing.
Can I print a receipt test page from a phone?
Only if the phone sees the receipt printer as a normal printer. Many Bluetooth receipt printers print only from their maker's app or a point of sale app. Those that support the phone's print service show up in the print window like any other printer.
Is there a thermal printer test page PDF?
Yes. Press Download PDF above for the 58 mm or 80 mm receipt, or find both in the printer test page pdf list. Print the PDF at 100% with the roll paper size selected in the print window.
How do I clean a thermal print head?
Switch the printer off and let the head cool. Wipe the brown or black strip of heating dots with a cleaning pen or a cotton swab dampened with isopropanol of 90% or stronger, then let it dry for a minute before closing the cover.