How to take a screenshot on a Mac computer

Table of Contents

On any Mac computer, you can take high-resolution screenshots and edit or share them as you wish. If you bought or updated your Mac after 2018, you’ll have access to the advanced screenshot menu, which also allows you to record videos on your screen.

What you need for a fast hint on Taking screenshots on Mac

A keyboard shortcut is the simplest way to snap a screenshot on a Mac.
The Mac screenshot menu is opened by pressing Shift + Command + 5, which allows you to take both screenshots and movies.
You may snap a short screenshot by pressing Shift + Command + 4, and Shift + Command + 3 will capture the entire screen.

Here are four simple keyboard shortcuts for taking screenshots on a Mac.

Mac shortcuts for taking screenshots

The Shift, Command, and number keys are used in every method for screenshotting on a Mac.

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
Shift + Command + 3	Capture a screenshot of the entire screen.
Shift + Command + 4	Highlight a specific part of the screen to screenshot.
Shift + Command + 5	Open the screenshot menu to record the video or edit your screenshot options.
Shift + Command + 6	Take a screenshot of the Touch Bar, if your Mac has one.

Take a screenshot of the entire screen by pressing Shift + Command + 3.

Press and hold Shift + Command + 3 to capture your entire screen. It will take and save screenshots of each monitor if you are using multiple monitors.

You’ll get a little thumbnail preview in the bottom-right corner of your screen when you take the screenshot, which you may click to edit the screenshot. If you don’t want it, see the “screenshot menu” guide below for instructions on how to disable it.

Capture a specified portion or window by pressing Shift + Command + 4.

Press Shift + Command + 4 to capture a specified area of your screen. The crosshair on your mouse pointer will appear. The crosshair can then be moved across your screen by clicking and dragging it. To capture the selected area, release the mouse button or trackpad, or use the Esc key to cancel.

This strategy can be used for a lot more than that. You can unlock more options by tapping other keys after pressing Shift + Command + 4:

Press Shift + Command + 4 and then the spacebar to capture a specific window. A camera will emerge from the crosshair. To capture a window, move the camera pointer over it and click. When you save the screenshot, it will be surrounded by a gray border.

After moving the crosshair to create a highlighted area, press and hold the space bar to lock in the form and size. This prevents the box from expanding or contracting in size. The box can then be dragged anywhere on the screen. To snap a screenshot, simply release the spacebar.

After dragging the crosshair to create a highlighted area, press and hold the Shift key to adjust the height and width. This allows you to change the box’s height and width. By hitting the Shift key, you can switch between height and width. To take a screenshot, release the mouse button or trackpad.

Use the snapshot menu by pressing Shift + Command + 5.

A Screenshot program is included in the current versions of macOS (Mojave, Catalina, Big Sur, and Monterey). Press Shift + Command + 5 to launch this app. At the bottom of the screen, a little navigation panel will emerge.

You can capture a screenshot of the full screen, a single window, or a highlighted section using the three icons on the left. You can capture a video of the entire screen or only a highlighted section using the next two icons to the right.

A menu labeled Options is also available. This menu allows you to specify where your screenshot should be saved, how much time should pass between hitting “Capture” and the screenshot is captured, and other options.
The Show Floating Thumbnail option, which is enabled by default, is worth noting in this menu. After you capture a screenshot with this option enabled, a little thumbnail of it will appear in the bottom-right corner of the screen. After a few seconds, this thumbnail will vanish, and the screenshot will be saved to your computer.

However, before the thumbnail disappears, you can click it to open the screenshot in a new window. You can draw or type on it, crop it, share it using your Apple ID account, or remove it from this window.

Take a picture of the Touch Bar.

The Touch Bar is not present on all Mac computers, but if it is, you can take a screenshot of it.

If there’s something on your Touch Bar that you’d like to show others, press Shift + Command + 6 to take a screenshot. This will capture anything on your Touch Bar right away.

Where can I find screenshots from my Mac?

Scans are saved to your desktop by default. It’ll be titled “Screen Shot” by default, followed by the date and time it was taken.

You can also choose where your screenshots will be saved. To open the screenshot menu, press Shift + Command + 5 and then Options. Choose a new Save to the location from the option that appears.
At the top of this menu, you’ll find “Save to” options.

ALSO, READ MORE POSTS ON: