The fastest way to capture your screen on Mac

Mac has a built-in screenshot tool that works without downloading anything. Press Shift + Command + 3 to capture your entire screen, or Shift + Command + 4 to select just the part you want. The image saves to your desktop as a PNG file with the date and time in the filename.

If you need to capture just one window instead of the whole screen or a selection, press Shift + Command + 4, then press the spacebar. Your cursor will change to a camera icon. Click the window you want to capture, and it saves to your desktop the same way.

All three of these shortcuts work on any Mac running macOS 10.14 or later. The screenshots appear on your desktop within seconds, ready to share, edit, or move to a folder.

Key Takeaways

  • Shift + Command + 3 captures your entire screen and saves it to your desktop automatically.
  • Shift + Command + 4 lets you drag to select only the part of the screen you want to capture.
  • Shift + Command + 4, then spacebar, captures a single window with its shadow included.
  • Screenshots save as PNG files with the date and time in the filename, so you can find them easily on your desktop.
  • You can change where screenshots save and what format they use by opening the Screenshot app from Spotlight.

Capturing just part of your screen

When you press Shift + Command + 4, your cursor turns into a crosshair. Click and drag to draw a rectangle around the part of the screen you want to capture. As you drag, you will see the dimensions of your selection in pixels. Release the mouse when you have the area you want.

If you make a mistake while dragging, press Escape before you release the mouse. The screenshot will not save, and you can try again. This is useful if you start the selection in the wrong place or realize you need a larger area.

You can also hold the spacebar while dragging to move your entire selection without resizing it. This helps when you have the right size but need to shift the rectangle left, right, up, or down.

Capturing a single window

Press Shift + Command + 4, then immediately press the spacebar. Your cursor becomes a camera icon, and the window under your cursor highlights in blue. Click any window to capture just that window with its shadow, which makes it look like it is floating on a white background.

This is the cleanest way to capture a single application window for sharing or documentation. The shadow is included automatically and cannot be removed with the keyboard shortcuts — if you need a window without the shadow, you would need to edit the screenshot afterward in Preview or another image editor.

If you move your cursor away from any window while in this mode, the blue highlight disappears. Move back over a window to highlight it again, then click to capture.

Where screenshots save and how to change it

By default, all screenshots save to your desktop with filenames like "Screenshot 2024-01-15 at 2.30.45 PM.png". Your desktop can get crowded quickly if you take many screenshots. To change where they save, open the Screenshot app by pressing Command + Spacebar, typing "screenshot", and pressing Enter.

In the Screenshot app window, look for the "Save to" dropdown menu. You can choose Desktop, Documents, Clipboard, Mail, Messages, or a specific folder. If you choose Clipboard, the screenshot copies to your clipboard instead of saving to a file — you can then paste it directly into an email, document, or message.

You can also change the file format from PNG to JPG, TIFF, or PDF in the same menu. PNG is the default and works well for most purposes. JPG makes files smaller but slightly lower quality. TIFF is larger and mainly useful for professional printing work.

Using the Screenshot app for more control

The Screenshot app gives you options the keyboard shortcuts do not. Open it the same way: Command + Spacebar, type "screenshot", press Enter. You will see buttons for capturing the entire screen, a selection, or a window, plus a timer option.

The timer button is useful when you need to capture something that appears after a delay — like a menu that opens when you click something, or a tooltip that shows after hovering. Click the timer button, choose 5 or 10 seconds, then click Capture. You have that many seconds to navigate to what you want to capture before the screenshot happens automatically.

The Screenshot app also shows a thumbnail of your screenshot in the corner of your screen for a few seconds after you capture. Click the thumbnail to open it in the Screenshot app, where you can crop it, draw on it, or add text before saving.

Editing screenshots after you capture them

When a screenshot thumbnail appears in the corner of your screen, click it to open the editing window. You can crop the image, draw lines or shapes, add text, add a signature, or magnify part of the image. These tools are built into the Screenshot app and do not require another program.

If you miss the thumbnail or want to edit a screenshot later, open the image from your desktop or folder in Preview (the default image viewer on Mac). In Preview, click Tools in the menu bar, then Annotate, to access drawing and text tools similar to the Screenshot app.

After you edit a screenshot, click File and then Save to overwrite the original, or click Export As to save it with a new name or in a different format.

Copying screenshots to your clipboard instead of saving them

If you want to paste a screenshot directly into an email, document, or message without saving a file first, add the Control key to any screenshot shortcut. Press Shift + Command + Control + 3 to copy your entire screen, or Shift + Command + Control + 4 to copy a selection.

The screenshot copies to your clipboard instead of saving to your desktop. You can then paste it immediately by pressing Command + V in any application that accepts images — Mail, Messages, Word, Google Docs, and most others.

This method is faster when you only need the screenshot once and do not need to keep a copy on your computer. If you change your mind and want to save it, paste it into Preview first, then save from there.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is my screenshot saving as a PDF instead of a PNG?

You may have changed the file format in the Screenshot app. Open Screenshot (Command + Spacebar, type "screenshot"), look at the format dropdown, and change it back to PNG. This setting applies to all future screenshots you take with the keyboard shortcuts.

Can I take a screenshot of my entire screen if I have multiple monitors?

Yes. Shift + Command + 3 captures all connected monitors as separate files. Each monitor saves as its own PNG file on your desktop. If you want to capture only one monitor, use Shift + Command + 4 and drag to select just that monitor's area.

How do I capture a video of my screen instead of a still image?

The Screenshot app does not record video. You need to use QuickTime Player instead. Open QuickTime (Command + Spacebar, type "quicktime"), click File in the menu, then New Screen Recording. Click the red record button and drag to select the area you want to record.

What if I want to take a screenshot but hide my password or sensitive information?

Take the screenshot first, then open the thumbnail that appears in the corner and use the drawing tools to blur or cover the sensitive area. You can draw a black rectangle over the information or use the magnifying tool to obscure it before saving.

Can I change the keyboard shortcut for taking screenshots?

Yes, but it requires opening System Settings. Click the Apple menu, then System Settings, then Keyboard, then Keyboard Shortcuts. Click Screenshot on the left side, and you can change each shortcut by clicking it and pressing the new key combination you want to use.