Using Old HP Printers With macOS

If you use older HP printers with macOS, you probably know by now that Apple doesn’t retain older HP printer drivers in newer versions of macOS and they may not be available for download through Apple Software Update either. You’ll realize this when you try to add an older HP printer and macOS is unable to automatically find an appropriate printer driver for your older HP printer. While you could manually search for the printer driver if the automatic search fails, you’ll quickly realize the printer driver for your older HP printer is nowhere to be found.

Fortunately, that doesn’t necessarily mean you’re out of luck and need to replace your HP printer!

While you could try using a generic printer driver with your older HP printer (I’ve gotten mixed results with generic printer drivers), you might first want to head over to the Apple site, search support for the HP Printer Drivers for macOS package (the current version available is HP Printer Drivers v5.1.1 for macOS) then download and install this package in macOS (and yes, it does install on both Intel and M1 Macs). This package includes printer drivers that support many older HP printers.

Once you have the HP Printer Drivers for macOS package installed, you should be able to add your older HP printer and macOS should be able to automatically detect your printer and select the appropriate HP printer driver, provided the printer driver is still part of the current HP Printer Drivers for macOS package.

Keep in mind, if your older HP printer also came with additional software for added functionality, you’ll need to check with HP to see if there’s a newer version of the software compatible with the latest version of macOS. The HP Printer Drivers for macOS package generally installs printer drivers (and in some cases, scanning drivers) but does not include any of the additional software that may provide added functionality. Depending on how old your printer is, HP may no longer provide relevant software updates. If you need functionality no longer supported by HP or the latest version of macOS, it may be time to replace your HP printer.

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