Take a screenshot on Mac

You can capture the entire screen, a window or just a portion of the screen.

How to take a screenshot on Mac

hold down

⌘command

and

shift

and press

#
3

Your Mac captures the entire screen and saves it as a file on the desktop. The file name will look like "Screen shot 2025-08-11 02:06:13 PM.png".

How do I take a partial screenshot?

hold down

⌘command

and

shift

and press

$
4

Your Mac lets you select a specific area of the screen to capture. After pressing the keys, your cursor becomes a crosshair. Click and drag to select the area you want to screenshot.

I don't need a file. How can I have a screenshot in the clipboard instead?

hold down

⌃control

together with any of the combinations above

Your Mac takes a screenshot and copies it to the clipboard (instead of saving it as a file).

I guess it’s in the clipboard now. How can I paste it into a document or something?

hold down

⌘command

and

⌃control

and press

Your Mac pastes the screenshot (that is in the clipboard) into a document or image you are currently editing.

Is there a dedicated program for taking screenshots?

hold down

⌘command

and

⌃control

and press

%
5

Your Mac starts the Screenshot program. This offers many options.

How do I take a screenshot of the Touch Bar (MacBook Pro)?

hold down

⌘command

and

⌃control

and press

^
6

Your Mac captures the entire Touch Bar and saves it as a file on the desktop.

How do I take a screenshot of a window or menu?

hold down

⌘command

and

⌃control

and press

$
4

Then press and release the Space bar.

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions About Screenshot on Mac

Where is my Screenshot?

If you see a thumbnail in the corner of your screen, click it to edit the screenshot. Or wait for the screenshot to be saved to your desktop.

How can I have my screenshots in other file formats than PNG?

With the Screenshot program, you can open screenshots directly in the Preview program. There you can save your screenshots in JPG, TIFF, PDF, GIF, and other file formats by using File > Export and selecting your desired format from the dropdown menu.

How can I take a screen recording?

You can take a screen recording using the built-in Screenshot program. Press Shift + Command + 5 to open the Screenshot toolbar, then click on the Record Entire Screen or Record Selected Portion button. Click Record to start recording, and click the Stop button in the menu bar when finished. The recording will be saved as an MP4 file to your desktop by default.