How to take a screenshot on a Mac or MacBook

In short

Press Shift + Command + 3 for the whole screen, Shift + Command + 4 to drag over part of it (then Space for one window), or Shift + Command + 5 for a toolbar with capture, recording and Options. Screenshots are saved to the desktop.

7 of 7 steps show a real screenshot from our MacBook Neo.

What changed: added a table of every screenshot shortcut on a Mac and what each one captures.

Steps

1. 1

   Capture the whole screen

   Press Shift + Command + 3.

   A small floating thumbnail of the screenshot appears in the bottom-right corner.

   Done
   
2. 2

   Capture part of the screen

   Press Shift + Command + 4. The pointer becomes a crosshair; drag over the area you want and let go.

   On our MacBook Neo the crosshair showed its position as numbers (725 / 475), which turn into width × height once you drag.

   Done
   
3. 3

   Capture one window

   Press Shift + Command + 4, then press the Space bar. The pointer becomes a camera and the window under it is highlighted.

   Click the window you want to capture just that window.

   Done
   
4. 4

   Open the screenshot toolbar

   Press Shift + Command + 5. A bar near the bottom offers every capture type, Options and a Capture button.

   On our MacBook Neo the toolbar has three record buttons: Record Entire Screen, Record Selected Portion and the new Record Selected Window.

   Done
   
5. 5

   Choose where to save and set a timer

   Click Options in the toolbar. Under Save to, pick Desktop, Documents, Clipboard, Mail, Preview or Other Location…; under Timer, pick None, 5 Seconds or 10 Seconds.

   On our MacBook Neo Desktop, None and Show Floating Thumbnail were ticked.

   Done
   
6. 6

   Edit the screenshot

   Click the floating thumbnail in the bottom-right corner before it disappears. Apple says this opens the screenshot for editing.

   Apple says you can hold the pointer over the thumbnail to keep it on screen.

   Done
   
7. 7

   Find the saved file

   If you do nothing, the screenshot is saved to the desktop with a name that starts with "Screenshot" and the date and time.

   On our MacBook Neo it appeared at the top right of the desktop as "Screenshot 2026-10…10.17.27".

   Done
   

Every screenshot shortcut on a Mac

Press	What you get
Shift-Command-3	The whole screen.
Shift-Command-4, then drag	The part you drag over. Hold the Space bar while dragging to move the box; Esc cancels.
Shift-Command-4, then Space bar	One window or menu: click it. Hold Option as you click to leave out the window's shadow.
Shift-Command-5	The Screenshot app. Its Options menu sets a timer, where screenshots are saved, the floating thumbnail and the pointer. On supported Macs with macOS Tahoe 26 or later it also picks SDR (PNG) or HDR (HEIF).
Add Control to any of these	The screenshot goes to the clipboard instead of a file, for example Control-Shift-Command-3.

Apple says screenshots save to your desktop unless you choose another place in the Screenshot app's Options menu.

Source: Take a screenshot on Mac

If you do not see this option

• No floating thumbnail Press Shift + Command + 5, click Options and make sure Show Floating Thumbnail is ticked.
• The screenshot is not on the desktop Press Shift + Command + 5, click Options and check which place is ticked under Save to, for example Documents or Clipboard.
• Only two record buttons Record Selected Window is new in macOS 27; older versions such as macOS 26 show two record buttons.

If this does not work

• Nothing happens straight away Press Shift + Command + 5, click Options and set Timer to None instead of 5 Seconds or 10 Seconds.
• You pressed the shortcut by mistake Press Esc to leave the crosshair or camera pointer without taking a screenshot.
• The toolbar keeps the old selection Remember Last Selection is ticked in Options by default; untick it or drag a new area.
• An app's window comes out blank Apple says some apps, such as the Apple TV app, might not let you take screenshots of their windows.

Good to know

To copy a screenshot instead of saving it, add the Control key to any of the shortcuts, then paste with Command + V.

To change the save location, press Shift + Command + 5, click Options and choose another folder.

About this guide

Device

Mac

Shown on

macOS 27.0.1 (MacBook Neo)

App

Preview

Real screenshots

7 of 7 steps

Checked

October 2026

Sources

1 official, linked below

Sources

• Apple Support: Take a screenshot on Mac

Links checked October 2026. Menus and features can change with updates.

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