A virtual printer is a piece of computer software whose user interface and API resemble that of a printer driver, but which is not connected with a physical computer printer.

When a user requests that a document be "printed" by a virtual printer, then instead of having the document printed on paper or other material, the underlying software would process its contents in some other way, often resulting in a file being produced or the information being transmitted.

Typical uses of virtual printers include:

• Producing PDF files
• Sending documents to a fax server