Printer Only Printing In Black & Whte

[AliY1Ed]

No matter what I try, I cannot get my printer to print colour any more.

I have checked all the settings, (although nowhere in the Windows Printer Settings does it mention anything about printing in Colour or otherwise) and when I open the HP Smart Print window, it allows me (under "More Settings" to see a box that says it is currently set to "Monochrome", when I change it, it immediately changes back again and displays a message above the box that says: "Colour mode was changed from Colour because of a conflict with another printer setting." 

I have uninstalled the drivers and reinstalled the latest available drivers. I have checked the printer has the latest firmware (Edited).

I genuinely don't know what to do now.

Any ideas?

[Pallipurath]

Hi @AliY1Ed,

Welcome to the HP Support Community.

Thank you for posting your query.

I am sorry to hear that your HP printer is only printing in black and white and not in color, and you are unable to change the settings from "Monochrome" to color, I would request you to please follow the steps:

Verify Print Preferences

• Go to Control Panel → Devices and Printers.
• Right‑click your HP printer → Printing Preferences.
• Under the Paper/Quality tab, ensure Color is selected instead of “Black & White” or “Grayscale.” 
• If the option is missing, click Advanced and check for “Print in Grayscale” settings.

Check HP Smart App Settings

• Open HP Smart → Print Settings → More Settings.
• If “Monochrome” keeps reverting, it usually means another setting is overriding it (e.g., “Draft mode” or “Economy mode”).
• Disable any conflicting options like “Print in grayscale,” “Use black ink only,” or “Draft quality.”

Perform a Printer Reset:

• Turn off the printer and unplug it from the power outlet.
• Wait for about 60 seconds before plugging it back in.
• Turn on the printer and attempt to print again.

Check Windows Print Settings:

• Go to "Settings" > "Devices" > "Printers & Scanners."
• Select your printer and click "Manage."
• Click on “Printing Preferences” and look for color options.

Hope this helps, Please revert if the issue persists.

Take care and have an amazing day!

Did we resolve the issue? If yes, please consider marking this post as "Accepted Solution" and click "Yes" to give us a helpful vote - your feedback keeps us going!

Regards

Pallipurath.

[AliY1Ed]

When I go to the Printer Settings, I don't get the options for Colour, and clicking on Advanced doesn't give me that either.

Having updated the drivers and the copy of HP Smart too, I thought it would definitely be there. When I use HP Smart, even the Monochrome setting seems to have disappeared now, too.

I literally don't understand what is going on here, unless the drivers are all wrong, but I updated them to the latest available.

[Pallipurath]

Hi @AliY1Ed,

Thank you for responding.

I regret to hear that you are unable to see the Print in Grayscale in advanced setting. However

 Check Cartridge Status

• On the printer screen:
• Go to Setup
• Select Ink / Cartridge Information
• Confirm both Black and Color cartridges show ink levels.
• If the color cartridge shows empty or missing, replace it first.

Reinstall Full Feature Driver (Very Important)

• Go to Control Panel → Devices and Printers
• Right-click HP ENVY 4520
• Click Remove device
• Restart the computer
• Download and install the Full Feature Software & Driver for HP ENVY 4520 from HP’s official website
• Restart again after installation
• This restores full driver functionality, including color controls.

After Reinstalling

• Go back to:
  Printing Preferences → Paper/Quality
• You should now see:
• A Color option
  OR
• Print in Grayscale (set this to OFF

Hope this helps, Please revert if the issue persists.

Regards

Pallipurath

[ferRX]

Hi @AliY1Ed 

Please try to install the next driver for your printer:

• >> Envy 4520 basic driver software - Windows

* Click YES   to say thank you, 

* Click Accepted as Solution when question is answered.

Best regards,

ferRX.

[AliY1Ed]

Thanks for the help on this thread. I think I must just have the wrong printer. I can never understand how printers don't "just work" - surely it is not beyond the wit of mankind to come up with a device to print in a straightforward way?

Anywaqy, I can now print in colour, but I have seemingly now lost the ability to print on both sides of the paper. I am just about ready to give up and buy a different printer, This is tiresome!

Thanks for everyone's efforts in trying to get this to work for me - it's appreciated! 🙂