You're setting up your Canon PIXMA TS6420a on WiFi and it just won't join. The Canon PRINT app spins, the printer's screen shows "Connecting" then drops back, or the pairing finishes and the printer disappears from the network a few minutes later. The TS6420a has a dual-band radio (2.4 GHz and 5 GHz), and most pairing failures come down to one of a few things: WPA3 on a mesh router, a stuck setup mode, or a quirk in how the Canon PRINT app handles the handoff.
The fastest fix is a clean power cycle. Unplug both the printer and your router. Wait 30 seconds. Plug the router back in first and let it fully come online (all lights stable). Then plug the TS6420a back in. Open the Canon PRINT app and start a fresh setup. This clears the simplest version of the failure without touching any settings.
If that didn't do it, work through the rest below in order.
Why the TS6420a Won't Join Your WiFi
The TS6420a was released in 2023 as Canon's budget photo-focused all-in-one. It supports both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands, but like many budget printers, it's picky about security settings. A few things commonly block pairing:
- WPA3-only mesh networks: the TS6420a needs WPA2 or WPA2/WPA3 transitional; pure WPA3 with PMF required will fail silently on Eero, Orbi, Deco, or Nest WiFi.
- Setup mode timed out: the printer only stays in pairing mode for a limited window after first power-on; after that, you need to manually re-enable it.
- 2.4 GHz band hidden or disabled: the TS6420a needs to see the 2.4 GHz band during initial pairing even if you plan to run it on 5 GHz later.
- Canon PRINT app cached data: the app sometimes holds onto old printer info that blocks fresh pairing.
- Wrong WiFi password: a single typo or a curly quote copied from a notes app breaks setup silently.
- Cartridge contacts dirty: after months of use, dirty contacts on the PGI-280XL or CLI-281 cartridges can cause the printer to behave oddly, including network instability.
Switch Your Mesh Router to WPA2 or WPA2/WPA3 Transitional
If you're on a mesh system like Eero, Orbi, TP-Link Deco, or Google Nest WiFi, this is the most common pairing blocker for the TS6420a. The printer's radio doesn't handle pure WPA3 well. Open your router's app and find the security mode setting. Switch it from WPA3 to either WPA2 or WPA2/WPA3 transitional (sometimes labeled "compatibility mode"). Save the change and give the mesh about 60 seconds to reconfigure.
Now try pairing the printer again through the Canon PRINT app. Once it's connected and you've printed a test page, you can switch the router back to WPA3 if you want. The printer usually holds the connection after that.
This is a confirmed issue on the TS6420a. The Canon setup guide recommends using WPA2 for first-time pairing and then switching back if needed.
Re-Enter Setup Mode on the Printer
If the TS6420a has been sitting unplugged for a while or you skipped the initial WiFi setup, it's likely out of pairing mode. On the printer's touchscreen, go to Setup > Reset settings. Confirm the reset. The printer reboots and should enter setup mode again.
Once it's back up, open the Canon PRINT app on your phone and tap Register Printer. The app should find the TS6420a and walk you through the pairing process. Make sure your phone's Bluetooth is on during this step, the app uses Bluetooth Low Energy to discover the printer during initial setup.
Make Sure Your Phone Is on 2.4 GHz
The TS6420a pairs over 2.4 GHz during initial setup. If your phone is on the 5 GHz band of a split-SSID network (common on TP-Link, Asus, and older Netgear routers), the Canon PRINT app can't bridge the printer onto your network. Switch your phone to the 2.4 GHz SSID temporarily and try again.
If your router broadcasts both bands under one SSID (band steering), this usually isn't an issue. But if you see separate network names like "MyWiFi" and "MyWiFi_5G", make sure you're on the 2.4 GHz one during setup.
Clean the Cartridge Contacts
The TS6420a uses five cartridges: one PGI-280XL black pigment and four CLI-281 dye-based colors. After several months of use, the gold contacts on the cartridges and inside the print head can get dirty. This sometimes causes weird behavior, including network dropouts or failure to connect.
Remove each cartridge and check the contacts. If you see any ink residue or tarnishing, gently wipe them with a dry lint-free cloth. For tougher gunk, a cotton swab with a tiny bit of isopropyl alcohol (90% or higher) works well. Let everything dry completely before reinstalling the cartridges. Then try the WiFi setup again.
Clear and Reinstall the Canon PRINT App
The Canon PRINT app (renamed from "Canon PRINT Inkjet/SELPHY" in 2023) caches printer info, and sometimes that cache gets corrupted. On iOS 14+ or Android 8+, delete the Canon PRINT app, restart your phone, then reinstall it from the App Store or Play Store. Sign in to your Canon account again and run setup fresh.
A fresh install often catches the printer that was invisible before. It also clears any stale network profiles the app was holding onto.
Check the WiFi Password Character by Character
Curly quotes from a notes app, special characters that look identical but encode differently, or a single transposed letter will fail silently. Type the password manually into the Canon PRINT app instead of pasting. If your password contains symbols like apostrophes, dashes, or quotes, retype them on the printer's touchscreen one character at a time to make sure they match what your router expects.
The TS6420a's touchscreen keyboard can be a little finicky with special characters, so take your time here.
Factory Reset and Start Over
If nothing else worked, restore the TS6420a to factory defaults. On the touchscreen, go to Setup > Reset settings. Confirm the reset. The printer wipes everything: WiFi config, Canon PRINT pairings, custom settings, and any stored network profiles.
After the reset completes, the printer reboots into a clean first-time setup mode. Open the Canon PRINT app fresh and walk through setup as if it were brand new. This clears any deep config corruption that was blocking pairing.
