pdf prints with grid overlay

Hi G W Chan, 

Thanks for the details. To help narrow this down, could you please confirm whether this PDF was created by you or if it was provided by someone else? 

If the file was created by another party, the grid you’re seeing in Print preview may be an intentional print-only overlay/watermark embedded in the PDF by the document owner (for document protection or tracking). In some PDFs, certain layers are configured to not display on screen but appear only when printing, which would match what you described. 

In that case, the best next step would be to contact the file owner/creator and ask whether the PDF includes a print-only watermark/layer and request an updated copy (or a version without that overlay if appropriate). 

I hope the guidance above helps you identify whether the grid is coming from and allows you to print the document cleanly. Wishing you a smooth experience resolving this printing behavior and completing your work without unnecessary interruptions. Thank you so much for your understanding. 

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The issue is likely specific to that particular PDF’s content or styling rather than to Microsoft Edge or the printer itself.

Use these steps to isolate and work around it:

1. Test with other PDFs and sites
   • Open a different PDF or another online document in Edge.
   • Press Ctrl+P and print.
   • If other PDFs print normally, the grid is probably embedded in or generated by that specific PDF (for example, as a background or layout grid), not a global Edge setting.
2. Try printing a “plain” version via Immersive Reader (if available)
   • If the PDF is displayed as a web page or has text that can be read in Immersive Reader:
     1. Open the problematic document in Edge.
     2. Select the Immersive Reader icon in the address bar (if present).
     3. Once in reading mode, press Ctrl+P and print again.
   • This strips many style elements; if the grid disappears, it confirms the grid is part of the document’s styling.
3. Test printing from another application
   • Download the PDF and open it in a dedicated PDF reader (for example, Adobe Acrobat Reader) or another app.
   • Print from that app.
   • If the grid still appears, it is embedded in the PDF. If it does not, the issue is how Edge renders that specific PDF.
4. Confirm Edge and printer are otherwise healthy
   • Follow the general print troubleshooting pattern:
     • Print other websites or documents from Edge.
     • Print from other apps (for example, Word) to the same printer.
   • If everything else prints correctly, treat this as a document-specific issue.

If the grid is embedded in the PDF, the only reliable fixes are to obtain a corrected version of the PDF from the source or to print from another app that allows suppressing background or grid layers.

References:

• Troubleshoot print issues in Microsoft Edge
• View, print, and edit PDFs in a PDF reader