How to print from your Android phone or tablet with Google Cloud Print

As much as you may try to live in a paperless world, there are bound to be times when you need to print. You can do that right on your Android phone or tablet rather easily. It’s getting the printer connected that’s the tedious part. Your best option is to connect your printer to Google Cloud Print. Here’s what you need to do.

Google Cloud Print

The most straightforward method is to add your printer to Google Cloud Print. This ensures you can access that printer from wherever you’re signed in to your Google account: the couch, coffee shop, or baseball park.

This first step is best done on a computer that’s on the same network as your printer. In Chrome go to Settings > Show Advanced Settings > Google Cloud Print. Then click Manage.
Under New Devices look for a printer that is attached to your network. Click Add Printer to join it with your Google account.

Start printing

Now you’re ready to try it out from your Android phone or tablet. For our example I used Gmail. Tap the overflow button (three dots) and select Print.
Then, touch Save as PDF and you’ll see a menu that lists out your printers. Choose the one you wish to print with. Once you touch the Print icon, your printer should fire right up.

As an alternative to Google Cloud Print, you should check with your printer documentation, as many companies have their own proprietary printing apps.