Objective To study the impact of the surface properties of different papers on different tone densities of prints. Methods Six kinds of coated paper were selected and measured for their properties of whiteness, glossiness, PPS roughness and surface strength. The printing of different tone step scale color blocks were simulated on different paper samples using ink-jet printer. To analyze the experimental data, we measured the densities of the printing color blocks by densitometer using the method of grey correlation analysis. Results The results showed that the brightness had the largest grey relational R, followed by PPS roughness. The surface strength and glossiness had different R values on different colors and different tones. In addition, different properties showed different degree of influence on CMYK. Conclusion Paper whiteness has the largest correlation with printing quality, so that we need to choose different papers according to the need of printing quality during the practical production process.