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How to Clear Print Queue on Windows and Mac
To clear print queue jobs in Windows, open the queue (Settings → Bluetooth & devices → Printers & scanners → Open print queue) and choose Cancel all. If jobs stay, open services.msc, stop Print Spooler, delete everything in C:\Windows\System32\spool\PRINTERS, then start the spooler again. As a last step, turn the printer off for 60 seconds and restart the PC. On a Mac, delete each job in Print Center. Your original documents are never touched — only the print copies.
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A full printer queue is almost always caused by one stuck job at the front. The levels below to clear print queue jobs go from the quickest fix to the most thorough, so stop as soon as the list is empty.
How do you clear print queue in Windows 11 and 10?
This is the order Microsoft gives in Microsoft's stuck print job steps. Try each level, and check the queue after each one.
- Cancel all. Open the queue window and choose Cancel all (in the classic window: Printer → Cancel All Documents). Confirm with Yes.
- Restart the spooler. Press Windows key + R, type
services.msc, right-click Print Spooler and choose Restart. The windows print spooler is the service that holds every waiting job, and restarting it releases locked files. - Empty the spool folder. Stop Print Spooler, delete everything inside
C:\Windows\System32\spool\PRINTERS, then start the spooler again. - Restart everything. Turn the printer off, wait 60 seconds, restart the PC, then turn the printer on.
Level 1 is enough to clear print queue lists most of the time. Level 3 works even when Cancel all does nothing, because it removes the job files directly.
How do you clear print queue jobs that won't delete?
When a job sits on "Deleting" or reappears after Cancel all, the spooler still has its file open. Remove it by hand to clear print queue jobs for good:
- Press Windows key + R, type
services.mscand press Enter. - Right-click Print Spooler and choose Stop.
- Open File Explorer, paste
C:\Windows\System32\spool\PRINTERSinto the address bar and press Enter. Select Continue if Windows asks for permission. - Select everything in the folder and delete it.
- Back in Services, right-click Print Spooler and choose Start.
Stop the spooler first — Windows won't let you delete files it's using.
The same three steps fit in three commands. Run them in an administrator Command Prompt — this is the clear printer queue cmd method:
net stop spooler
del /Q /F /S "%systemroot%\System32\spool\PRINTERS\*.*"
net start spoolerRun as administrator. This deletes every waiting job on this PC.
After the spooler starts, open the queue window again. It should be empty, and anything you print next goes straight through.
Can you empty my print queue without restarting the PC?
Yes. When people search "empty my print queue" they often expect a restart, but levels 1 to 3 above all work without one. Cancelling, restarting the spooler and emptying the spool folder take effect straight away.
A restart only helps when something else is holding the printer: a driver that has crashed, an app that keeps re-sending the job, or a printer that needs a power cycle. Try the first three levels to clear print queue jobs before you reboot, and you'll empty my print queue problems in under a minute.
If you need to empty my print queue often, keep the three commands above in a saved .bat file and run it as administrator whenever the queue sticks.
How do you clear printer queue jobs on a Mac?
To clear printer queue jobs on a Mac, use Print Center, described in Apple's Apple's Print Center guide:
- Open Print Center from Finder → Applications → Utilities.
- Select the printer in the sidebar.
- Select a job and click Delete Job. Repeat for each job.
If a job won't go, click Pause in the toolbar, delete the job, then click Resume. Resetting the whole printing system removes every printer from the Mac, so keep it as a last resort; the mac printer queue steps above solve most cases without it.
Why is the printer queue not clearing?
If you've tried to clear printer queue jobs and the list won't empty, one of these is the usual cause:
- The spooler is still running. You can't delete spool files while the service uses them. Stop it first.
- The jobs belong to another user. Cancelling them needs administrator rights.
- A driver holds the file. A crashed or damaged driver can lock the job. Restart the PC, and consider updating the driver.
- The job is in the printer's memory. The queue is empty but the printer keeps going. Cancel on the printer, or turn it off for 60 seconds.
- The app resends it. Close the app, then clear print queue jobs again.
Knowing how to clear printer queue lists in this order — cancel, spooler, folder, restart — fixes nearly every stuck queue, and none of it touches your original files.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it safe to delete files in the PRINTERS folder?
Yes. They are temporary print copies, not your documents. Stop the Print Spooler service first, and delete only the files inside the folder — never the folder itself.
How do I clear the print queue on the printer itself?
Press the Cancel (X) button while a job runs, or turn the printer off for 60 seconds. That clears the job held in its memory; then clear the queue on your computer too, so it is not sent again.
Why do jobs come back after I clear them?
Either the app is sending the job again, or the spooler was not stopped when you deleted the files. Close the app, stop the spooler, empty the folder and start the spooler again.
Can I clear another user's jobs?
Only with administrator rights on the PC or print server that holds the queue. Without them you can cancel your own jobs only.
Is there a command to clear it?
Yes. In an administrator Command Prompt, net stop spooler, then a del of the spool folder, then net start spooler lets you clear print queue jobs in one go. The full commands are on this page.