Samsung Printer Paper Jam: How to Clear It and Stop It Coming Back

A paper jam error means your Samsung printer expected a sheet to reach a certain point in the paper path and it didn't get there in time. Inside the printer, small sensors track each page as it moves from the tray, past the toner cartridge, through the fuser, and out to the output tray. When a page stops, bunches up, or takes too long to reach the next sensor, the printer halts and reports a jam.

That's why the location in the message matters. "Tray 1," "inside machine," and "exit area" each point you to a different part of the printer. Start with the section below that matches your message.

Read the Message First: What Your Samsung Printer Is Telling You

Samsung printers report jams in different ways depending on the model and its age:

Using a model with no display? Many compact Samsung laser printers don't have a screen. A solid orange status light means a paper jam, so check the tray first, then inside, then the exit area.

For other codes that aren't paper jams, see our full list of Samsung printer error codes and messages.

Before You Pull Anything

A few minutes of care here saves you from a torn sheet stuck deeper in the printer, or a burned finger.

• Turn the printer off and unplug it before reaching inside.
• Let it cool. The fuser, the part that bonds toner to paper, gets very hot during printing. Samsung's own manuals warn that the fuser area is hot, so give the printer several minutes before you open the rear or exit area.
• Pull slowly, with both hands, in the direction the paper normally travels. Yanking a sheet is the most common way a simple jam turns into torn scraps you can't reach.
• Don't use metal tools like tweezers, scissors, or a screwdriver near rollers, sensors, or the drum.
• Protect the toner cartridge. If you remove it, don't touch the green surface on its underside, and don't leave it sitting in the light for more than a few minutes. Cover it with a sheet of paper if you need to step away.

Error 1: Paper Jam in Tray 1 (M1-1110 / Paper Jam 0)

This jam happens right at the start, when the printer tries to grab a sheet from the tray. Often the paper is only halfway in, wrinkled at the leading edge, or two sheets fed at once.

Solution:

1. Turn off the printer.
2. Pull the paper tray straight out and set it on a flat surface.
3. Look into the empty tray slot. If you can see the jammed sheet, grab it by both corners and pull it gently straight out.
4. If you can't see the paper or it won't move, open the front cover (on some compact models it's the top cover) and check for the sheet there. Don't force it. If it's caught further in, go to Error 2.
5. Check the paper stack in the tray. Remove any creased or curled sheets, fan the stack, tap it square on a desk, and reload it.
6. Slide the paper guides in until they just touch the stack. They should be snug but shouldn't bend the paper.
7. Push the tray back in until it clicks, close any covers you opened, and turn the printer on.

Still getting M1-1110 after the tray is clear? Repeated tray jams usually point to the pickup roller. See Why Your Samsung Printer Keeps Jamming below.

Error 2: Paper Jam Inside Machine (M2-1110 / Paper Jam 1)

Here the paper got picked up but stopped partway through, usually near the toner cartridge or imaging unit. To get to it, you'll need to take the cartridge out.

Solution:

1. Turn off the printer and let it cool for a few minutes.
2. If your model has a flip-up output support on top, fold it closed first. On models like the Xpress M2020, the top cover won't open properly with the support up.
3. Open the front or top cover.
4. Lift out the toner cartridge (or imaging unit on color models) and set it on a clean sheet of paper, away from direct light.
5. Find the jammed sheet. Hold it with both hands and pull it slowly toward you, in the direction it was traveling.
6. Use a flashlight to check for small torn pieces. A scrap the size of a fingernail is enough to trigger the error again.
7. Reinstall the cartridge until it seats firmly. If it isn't fully seated, the cover may not close or you may get a new error.
8. Close the cover, reinsert the tray if you removed it, and turn the printer on.

If the sheet disappears toward the back of the printer, stop pulling from the front and clear it from the exit area instead.

Error 3: Paper Jam in Exit Area (M3-1110 / Paper Jam 2)

An exit area jam happens in the last stage, as the page leaves the fuser on its way to the output tray. This is the hottest part of the printer, so take the cool-down seriously.

Solution:

1. Turn off the printer and let the fuser cool.
2. If part of the sheet is sticking out of the output tray, pull it gently straight out.
3. On many Xpress models, opening and closing the front cover will push the jammed page out on its own. Try that before you reach inside.
4. If the page won't come out or you feel resistance, open the rear cover.
5. Some models have green fuser levers on each side. Push them down to release pressure on the paper, then slide the sheet out slowly.
6. Raise the fuser levers back to their original position, close the rear cover, and turn the printer on.

Heads-up: If you leave the fuser levers down, print quality can suffer and you may see smudged or loose toner. Always put them back.

Exit jams that keep coming back often come from paper that's too heavy for the path, or damp paper curling as it heats. Check the paper type your model supports in its user guide.

Error 4: Paper Jam in the Duplex Area

On Samsung printers that print on both sides automatically, the page flips and travels back through a duplex unit. A jam here usually shows up partway through a two-sided print job.

Solution:

1. Turn off the printer and let it cool.
2. Open the rear cover and look for the sheet in the duplex path. Pull it out slowly.
3. If you can't see it, pull out the paper tray. On models with a removable duplex unit, press the green release handles and gently slide the unit out, then remove the paper.
4. If the sheet stays behind when the duplex unit comes out, check the bottom of the printer through the tray opening and the rear cover.
5. Reinstall the duplex unit, close the rear cover, reinsert the tray, and turn the printer on.

If duplex jams happen often, try a single-sided job. If single-sided prints go through fine, the problem is in the duplex path, not the tray.

Error 5: Paper Jam in the Manual Feeder or MP Tray

The manual feeder and multipurpose (MP) tray handle envelopes, labels, and card stock, which are exactly the kinds of media that jam more easily.

Solution:

1. If the sheet didn't feed properly, pull it straight out of the feeder.
2. Open and close the front cover to reset the jam sensor. Printing usually resumes.
3. If paper went partly into the printer, follow Error 2 to clear it from inside.
4. Before trying again, feed one sheet at a time, keep envelopes and labels flat, and check that the paper weight is within what your model's user guide lists for the manual feeder.

Samsung Printer Says Paper Jam but There's No Paper

This is one of the most common Samsung printer complaints. You've opened every door, found nothing, and the orange light or jam message is still on. The printer isn't imagining things. Something is still telling a sensor that paper is present, or the pickup system is failing to grab paper.

Work through these in order:

1. Look for torn scraps. Take out the tray and toner cartridge, then shine a flashlight into the paper path and the rear/exit area. A tiny strip left from an earlier jam is the most common cause.
2. Check the sensor flags. The printer tracks paper with small plastic levers (flags) that paper pushes as it passes. After a jam, a flag can get stuck in the "paper present" position. If you can see one, it should swing freely and spring back. Don't bend or force it.
3. Reseat everything. Put the toner cartridge back until it's fully seated, push the tray in firmly, and close every cover completely. A cover that isn't fully latched can keep the error on.
4. Reload the tray with fresh plain paper. Curled, thick, or glossy sheets can cause feed timing errors that the printer reports as a jam.
5. Clean the pickup roller. If the printer makes a feeding sound but no paper moves, the roller has probably lost its grip. See the next section.
6. Power-cycle the printer. Turn it off, unplug it for a minute, then turn it back on so it re-checks all sensors.

Why Your Samsung Printer Keeps Jamming

Repeat jams almost always have a specific cause. Clearing the paper fixes the symptom. These fixes deal with what's causing it.

Worn or dirty pickup roller

The rubber pickup roller grabs each sheet from the tray. Over time, paper dust and toner build up on it and it gets smooth and shiny, so it slips instead of gripping. Samsung's service documentation lists worn or dirty pickup, forward, and reverse rollers as the thing to check when tray and inside-machine jams keep coming back.

To clean it, wipe the roller with a lint-free cloth lightly dampened with water or isopropyl alcohol and let it dry fully before printing. If the rubber is cracked, glazed, or still slips after cleaning, the roller needs to be replaced.

Paper habits that cause jams

Samsung's user guides give the same prevention advice across models:

• Don't overfill the tray. Keep the stack below the fill mark inside the tray.
• Set the guides correctly. Snug against the stack, not loose and not squeezing it.
• Flex, fan, and straighten paper before you load it, so sheets don't stick together.
• Don't mix paper types or sizes in the same tray.
• Skip creased, damp, or curled paper. Store paper flat in its wrapper, away from humidity.
• Don't add or remove paper from the tray while the printer is printing.
• Use paper your model supports. Weight limits vary by model and by tray, so check the specs in your user guide before running card stock or labels.

Dust and infrequent use

Printers that sit on the floor or go weeks between jobs collect dust and pet hair around the pickup area, which leads to missed feeds. Keeping the printer on a desk or shelf and printing a page now and then helps.

When a Paper Jam Needs More Than a Fix at Home

Some jams can't be fixed at home. Stop and get help if:

• A jam comes back on every page even after you've cleaned the rollers and checked the path
• You hear grinding, clicking, or see broken plastic pieces
• Paper is stuck inside the fuser and won't come out without force
• The jam error stays on after the printer is empty, reseated, and power-cycled

Good to know: HP took over Samsung's printer business in November 2017. That's why drivers, user guides, firmware, and official support for Samsung printers are now on HP's support site, not Samsung's. Your model's user guide there shows the exact cover and lever layout for your printer.

If you'd rather have someone walk you through it, our team can help you figure out where the jam is and whether it needs a part.