Nine times out of ten, the cause is the double-sided setting. Set your printer to flip on the short edge, not the long edge. If you are printing each side by hand, you may also be loading the paper back into the tray the wrong way round. Print one test sheet and mark it with a pencil to find the right direction.
You have set everything up. The page order looks right. You have folded the booklet, and then you notice it: every other page is upside down. It is frustrating, especially when you have already used a pile of paper.
The good news is that this is one of the easiest booklet problems to fix. It almost always comes down to one printer setting. This guide covers the fix, plus the other causes of booklets that print wrongly.
The main cause: wrong flip edge
A booklet is printed on landscape sheets, with two pages side by side. When the printer flips the sheet to print the back, it can turn it over in two ways:
- Flip on long edge: The sheet turns like a page in a book on its side. This works for normal portrait documents.
- Flip on short edge: The sheet turns like a page in a notepad that opens at the top. This is what a booklet on landscape paper needs.
If your printer is set to long edge, the back of each sheet will be upside down compared with the front. Switch to short edge and the problem goes away.
How to change it
In Microsoft Word: Go to File, Print, then under Settings pick Print on Both Sides and choose Flip pages on short edge.
In Adobe Acrobat: In the Print window, open Properties (next to the printer name), and look for a duplex or two-sided option. Choose Short edge binding, or Flip on short edge.
On a Mac: In the Print window, open the drop-down that says Copies & Pages and choose Layout. Set Two-Sided to Short-Edge binding.
The wording is a little different on every printer, so look for words like “binding”, “flip” or “duplex”. If you want the full Word walkthrough, see how to set up booklet printing in Word.
Other reasons your booklet might be printing wrongly
1. You are printing each side by hand and loading the paper wrong
If your printer does not print on both sides automatically, you will print the fronts first, then put the pages back in to print the backs. Printers differ. Some want the printed side facing up. Others want it facing down. Some need the top of the page going in first, and others the bottom.
A simple test: Take one sheet of blank paper and draw a pencil arrow on the top corner of one side. Print one page on it. Look at where the print lands compared with your arrow, and you will quickly learn how your printer works. Write the answer on a sticky note and put it on the printer.
2. The booklet setting is turned on twice
This one catches many people. Word, Acrobat and InDesign all have their own booklet tools. Many printers also have a “Booklet” option in their settings. If both are on, your pages get rearranged twice, and you end up with a jumbled mess.
Pick one. If you are using the software’s booklet tool, turn off the printer’s own booklet setting. Look for it under Properties, Finishing or Layout.
3. The page count is not a multiple of 4
This does not usually cause upside-down pages, but it does cause blank pages and odd order at the end. A booklet needs 4, 8, 12, 16 pages and so on. Our guide on how many pages a booklet can have explains the full rule.
4. The wrong “Booklet subset” is selected
If you chose Front side only and then forgot to print the Back side, you will have pages with print on one side and blank on the other. If you printed Back side first, the order will look wrong. We cover those options in what booklet subset means.
5. Pages are different sizes or orientations
If one page in your file is landscape while the rest are portrait, some programs rotate it. Open the file and check that every page matches.
6. Page scaling is shrinking or moving the layout
Options like “Fit to page” or “Shrink oversized pages” can combine badly with a booklet layout. Set scaling to 100% or “Actual size” and let the booklet tool handle the layout.
A quick troubleshooting checklist
Work down this list. It takes about two minutes.
- Is the printer set to flip on the short edge?
- Is only one booklet setting turned on (software or printer, not both)?
- Does your page count divide by 4?
- Is the paper size set to the full sheet (A4 for an A5 booklet)?
- Is the scaling set to 100% or Actual size?
- If printing by hand, did you load the paper the right way round?
- Did you print a single test copy before running the full job?
That last point matters more than people think. Printing one copy of an 8-page booklet costs two sheets. Finding the mistake after 50 copies costs a lot more.
How to check a booklet before you print
If you want to make sure your page order is right without wasting paper, here is a trick. Take four sheets of scrap paper and fold them in half. Write the page numbers 1 to 16 by hand in order, then unfold them and look at how the numbers sit on the sheets. Compare this with your printed test. If they match, your settings are right.
It also helps to remember the rule that facing pages always add up to the page count plus one. In a 16-page booklet, page 16 sits next to page 1, and 15 sits next to 2. If you want to see how that works, read our guide on how to arrange pages for booklet printing.
When it is worth letting a print shop take over
Some problems come from the printer itself, not your file. Older machines struggle with duplex printing, thick paper can jam, and home staplers do not reach the middle of a folded booklet. If you are fighting your printer for an hour, it may be cheaper and faster to have it done professionally.
Our booklet printing service handles the order, folding and stapling. Send your PDF in normal page order and we do the rest. If you are short on time, take a look at our same-day printing option.
Frequently asked questions
Why is my PDF booklet printing upside down?
The duplex setting is almost always the cause. Switch to flip on the short edge in the print settings.
Why is my booklet not printing correctly?
Check for a double booklet setting, a page count that is not a multiple of 4, or scaling that changes the layout.
Why are booklet pages printing in the wrong order?
Usually the booklet tool is turned on twice, or the booklet subset option was set up wrongly for manual double-sided printing.
Why does the back of my booklet print upside down in Word?
In Word, choose Print on Both Sides and select Flip pages on short edge.
Still stuck?
Send us your file and we will tell you what is wrong. You can get a quote or order printing when you are ready.
