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Why most color printers create darker prints than the pictures appear on computer screen?

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1. it depends on the ink hue, also images in your monitor might not be the exact color due to your brightness settings
2. Consider that your monitor emits light and that the printed output reflects and absorbs light. You might also consider that the quality of the paper you use has a direct connection to how much ink saturation occurs. Using high quality papers usually helps avoid this problem. Finally, you might want to assign printer and monitor profiles tailored to your equipment and adjust the gamma settings on your monitor while you're at it. Most printer manufacturers provide ICC printer profiles for free. You'll have to search their sites for "ICC Profiles" to find what you need. Find out how more about setting up your printing equipment:
3. Calibrate your monitor to your printouts. Print a RGB chart and adjust manually. Colour wise, unless you adjusted your monitor to your print out, it will not be a WYSIWYG.
4. try printing out a photo, then set the brightness and colors on your screen so that it will match with the photo. thatll probably fix the problem. works for me. if not, try getting screen calibration software. itll cost you a little but they work great. i prefer the first method though.
5. darken the contrast on your screen most people have a tendency to run the contrast too high, lowering it will make it easier on your eyes and give a more realistic view of what your printer will actually print UNLESS----- Your printer set to delivere more ink than it needs to print your optimium picture, which can be calibrated by running the dianostics on your printer and running the head cleaners and few test prints or calibrations prints, dependant on the printr brand