How to Copy a Screenshot

This wikiHow teaches you how to take a screenshot and paste it into a document, message, or post on a computer, phone, or tablet. Click the Notification icon. It's the square chat bubble icon that's usually at the bottom-right corner of...
Method 1 of 4:

Using Windows 10

  1. How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 1How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 1
    Click the Notification icon. It's the square chat bubble icon that's usually at the bottom-right corner of the screen. If you have any notifications, a small number appears at its bottom-right corner.
  2. How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 2How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 2
    Click Screen Snip. It's at the bottom-right corner of the Notification panel. If you don't see the "Snip" option, click "Expand" to see more options in the Notification panel. An icon bar with three icons (and an X at the end) will appear at the top-center part of the screen.
    1. If you don't see this option, see How to Update Windows to learn how to make sure you're using the latest version of Windows 10.
    2. If you're using an older version of Windows, see Take a Screenshot with the Snipping Tool on Microsoft Windows to learn how to capture the screenshot.
  3. How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 3How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 3
    Click the third icon from the left to capture the entire screen. It's the icon that says "Fullscreen Clip" when you hover the mouse over it. This copies the whole screen to your clipboard.
    1. If you only want to capture a rectangular section of the screen, click the first icon (the one that says "Rectangular Snip" when you hover the mouse over it), then click and drag to select a part of the screen to copy.
    2. If you'd prefer to draw a freehand line around the part of the screen you want to capture, click the "Freeform Clip" icon (the second from the left), then click and drag to select an area.
  4. How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 4How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 4
    Open the file to which you want to paste the screenshot. You can paste your screenshot into a Word document, into an MS Paint or Photoshop image, into the body of an email, and often into the body of an online post or message.
  5. How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 5How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 5
    Press Command+V to paste the screenshot into the file. This pastes a copy of the screenshot into the document or message body.
Method 2 of 4:

Using macOS

  1. How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 6How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 6
    Press Command+ Shift+4. This opens the screenshot tool.[1]
  2. How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 7How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 7
    Hold down the Control key as you select an area to capture. Click and drag the mouse to select the part of the screen you want to capture. Once you've made the selection, release the Control key and your finger from the mouse to save the screenshot to the clipboard.
  3. How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 8How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 8
    Open the file to which you want to paste the screenshot. You can paste your screenshot into a Word or Pages document, an image editing app like Photoshop or GIMP, into the body of an email, and often into the body of an online post or message.
  4. How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 9How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 9
    Press Command+V to paste the screenshot into the file. This pastes a copy of the screenshot into the document or message body.
  5. How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 10How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 10
    Right click on the screenshot and select Copy. If you need to copy a screenshot after you first take it, locate the screenshot, right click it, and select Copy. You can then paste the screenshot into a document, email, or photo editor.
    1. You can also select Duplicate after you right click on the screenshot to make a copy of the screenshot if you don't want to edit the original.
Method 3 of 4:

iPhone or iPad

  1. How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 11How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 11
    Press the Power and Home buttons simultaneously to capture a screenshot. If you're using a model without a Home button, press the Power and Volume Up buttons instead.[2] This takes a screenshot and shows a preview at the bottom-left corner of the screen.
  2. How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 12How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 12
    Tap the screenshot preview to open it. If the screenshot preview disappeared from the bottom-left corner of the screen, skip this and the next step.
  3. How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 13How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 13
    Crop the screenshot and tap Done. Cropping the screenshot is optional, but if you'd like to, drag the blue bars to surround only the part of the image you want to keep before tapping Done. This saves the image.
  4. How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 14How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 14
    Open the Photos app. It's the multicolored flower icon typically found on the home screen.
  5. How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 15How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 15
    Tap the screenshot to open it. It should be at the bottom of the list.
  6. How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 16How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 16
    Tap the
    How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 17How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 17
    icon. It's at the bottom-left corner.
  7. How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 18How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 18
    Tap Copy. It's at the bottom-left corner of the menu. This copies the screenshot to the clipboard.
  8. How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 19How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 19
    Open the app or file to which you want to paste the screenshot. You can paste a screenshot into any app that allows you to paste in an image (such as a messaging app, social media post, or email message).
  9. How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 20How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 20
    Tap and hold the place where you want to paste the image. A menu will appear.
  10. How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 21How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 21
    Tap Paste. This pastes the copied screenshot into the file or message.
Method 4 of 4:

Android

  1. How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 22How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 22
    Press the Power and Volume Down button at the same time to take a screenshot. While this is usually done by holding down the Power and Volume Down buttons for a few seconds until the screen flashes. Some phones and tablets have a different combination (such as Power and the Home button).[3]
  2. How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 23How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 23
    Open the Photos app. It's the multicolored pinwheel icon typically found on the home screen or in the app drawer.
    1. If you're using an older version of Android, open the Gallery app that came on your phone or tablet.
  3. How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 24How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 24
    Tap the screenshot to open it. If you're using Google Photos, a list of icons should appear at the bottom of the screen.
  4. How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 25How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 25
    Tap the Share
    How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 26How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 26
    icon. It's at the bottom-left corner of the image. A menu will expand.
    1. If you're using a different Gallery app, the Share icon may appear somewhere else.
  5. How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 27How to Copy a Screenshot Picture 27
    Share the screenshot in another app. It's not possible to copy and paste an image into a file, but you can share it using Android's sharing tools. Tap a social media or messaging app to share the screenshot in a post or message.
    1. You can also share the photo by opening the app you want to use to share it with (such as Gmail or Facebook), creating a new post or message, and then using that app's attachment or upload tools to insert the image into a message.
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