How to Scan from a Printer to iPhone

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Updated February 10, 2023

Finding the best printer entirely depends on your needs. And for those working from home, purchasing an all-in-one printer is often a great solution, as it provides the option to print, scan, copy, and more. Many of the best all-in-one printers allow users to scan documents directly to mobile devices. To help you understand the process, we’ll explain how to scan from a printer to an iPhone below.

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

  • Major printer manufacturers have dedicated iOS apps that allow iPhone users to scan documents directly to their mobile devices.
  • Download the app and ensure that your printer and phone are on the same Wi-Fi network to ready your devices for scanning.
  • After completing the scan, you’ll have the option to save the document to your files app or share it via email.

All-in-one printers handle a wide range of tasks. For more info on general use, check out our articles explaining how to send a fax from an all-in-one printer. We also have a helpful setup guide on how to connect a printer with an ethernet cable.

Insider Tip

iPhones can scan documents directly into the notes app with the phone camera.

How to Scan on an All-In-One Printer and Send to iPhone

Figuring out how to use a printer with a phone can be tricky. But, the process is a piece of cake once you know where to look. The only requirements needed to print from your iPhone are that you download a brand-specific app to create a connection between the phone and the computer.

The following steps explain how to print from a Wi-Fi- network connection. But if you want to learn more about connecting your phone to your printer, we have another article that shows you how to print from a mobile device without Wi-Fi.

STEP 1 Download a Compatible Print App for Your iPhone

Research which print app is needed to work for your printer brand. For example, a Brother machine will require a different app than a Canon or HP printer.

STEP 2 Download AirPrint

Go to the Apple App Store and download the AirPrint app to connect your phone to your printer over a wireless network. Then ensure your printer and phone are on the same Wi-Fi network if they aren’t already.

STEP 3 Connect Printer and Phone

Open up the brand-specific mobile app and see that your printer model appears. You may have to click an “Add Device/Machine” button to open the list of available printers.

STEP 4 Scan the Document

Place the pages in question into your printer’s document scanner. Then, in the phone app, press the san icon. The scan will arrive as a separate file on your phone screen; from there, you can save it to the files app. You can also press the share button to share it to an email.

Warning

You may need to update your phone’s OS software before using printer scan apps.

STAT: Businesses typically spend between 5-15% of revenue on printing costs. (source)

How to Scan from a Printo to iPhone FAQs

Can you edit a scanned document on your iPhone?

Scanned documents appear as PDFs and are unable to be edited.

Do all printers allow you to scan to your iPhone?

Most major printer manufacturers now have applications available for download on Apple products.

Can you scan a document to an iPad?

So long as the device has the correct version of iOS, the scanning process for an iPad is the same as scanning for an iPhone.
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