Misalignment is the single most common check-printing problem, and it almost always comes down to one of three things: print scale, paper positioning in the tray, or margin settings in the software itself.
Check these in order
- Print scale: confirm your print dialog is set to 100% or "actual size." Any "fit to page" or "shrink to fit" option will scale every field by a different amount depending on your printer's default margins, throwing off alignment unpredictably.
- Paper tray loading: check stock needs to be loaded the same way, the same direction, every time. If you flip or rotate it differently between prints, the same software settings will produce different results.
- Printer-specific margins: every printer model handles its unprintable margin slightly differently. A layout tuned for one printer can be a few millimeters off on another, even with identical settings.
A reliable way to calibrate
Print a test check on plain paper, then hold it up to a blank sheet of your real check stock against a bright light or window. You'll immediately see which direction and by how much each field is off, which tells you whether to adjust your software's margins or your paper loading.
Check Writer 123's print layout accounts for standard printer margins automatically, and lets you fine-tune the offset per printer if you still see drift after the first test print.