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How to Save a Screenshot

Screenshots have lots of uses, and most devices allow you to take them with quick shortcuts. Screenshots can be used for troubleshooting, instruction, reference, or for showing off. The process for taking screenshots varies depending on...
Method 1 of 10:

Windows

If you're using a Surface or Windows tablet, see the Windows Mobile section.

  1. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 1How to Save a Screenshot Picture 1
    Take a full-screen screenshot by pressing .⎙ PrtScr. You may have to press the Fn key to activate the ⎙ PrtScr key. This will copy the image on your monitor to the clipboard. You will then need to paste the screenshot into another program, such as Paint or Word. After pasting the screenshot into another program, save the file to save the screenshot. There won't be any indication that the screenshot was taken.[1]
    1. Windows 8/8.1 - You can save a full-screen screenshot directly to a file by pressing ⊞ Win+⎙ PrtScr. The screen will dim momentarily and the screenshot will be saved in the Screenshots folder in your Pictures library as a PNG file. Since you're saving the screenshot directly to a file, you don't need to paste it into another program.
    2. Windows 8.1 - You can share a screenshot of your desktop using the Charms bar. Press ⊞ Win+C to open the Charms bar and then click "Share". Windows will take a screenshot of your desktop and then give you a list of apps that you can use to share it.
  2. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 2How to Save a Screenshot Picture 2
    Take a screenshot of the active window only by pressing .Alt+⎙ PrtScr. This will copy a screenshot the currently-selected window to your clipboard. You will then need to paste the screenshot into Paint or another image-editing program. Once you've pasted the image, save it to save the screenshot to your hard disk.
  3. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 3How to Save a Screenshot Picture 3
    Use the Snipping Tool to create custom screenshots. The Snipping Tool is available in Windows Vista and later. It allows to you select what you want to appear in the screenshot, as well as add basic annotations to the completed screenshot. You can open the Snipping Tool by clicking the Start button and typing "snipping tool".
    1. For detailed instructions on using the Snipping Tool, click here.
  4. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 4How to Save a Screenshot Picture 4
    Take screenshots of a game using the game's screenshot key. Many games will not allow you to take screenshots using the ⎙ PrtScr key. Instead, many games have a dedicated screenshot key that you can find in the Controls section of the menu. If the game doesn't have a screenshot key, you can use a screen-capture program like Fraps to take the screenshot.
Method 2 of 10:

Mac

  1. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 5How to Save a Screenshot Picture 5
    Take a full-screen screenshot by pressing .⌘ Command+⇧ Shift+3. You'll hear a shutter sound if your speakers are on. The screenshot will be saved to a file on your desktop in PNG format. The image's name will be the date and time it was taken.
    1. To copy the screenshot to your clipboard instead of creating a file, press ⌘ Command+Control+⇧ Shift+3.
  2. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 6How to Save a Screenshot Picture 6
    Take a custom-sized screenshot by pressing .⌘ Command+⇧ Shift+4. The cursor will change into a crosshair. Click and drag to create a box on your screen. Everything inside of the box will be captured when you release your mouse button.
    1. Press Esc to exit the screenshot selection without taking the picture.
    2. To copy the screenshot to your clipboard instead of creating a file, press ⌘ Command+Control+⇧ Shift+4.
  3. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 7How to Save a Screenshot Picture 7
    Take a screenshot of a window by pressing .⌘ Command+⇧ Shift+4. Press Space to turn the crosshair into a camera. Click the window that you want to capture. The screenshot will be saved to your desktop.
  4. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 8How to Save a Screenshot Picture 8
    Use the Grab utility for more control over your screenshots. The Grab tool allows you to choose between full-screen, window, or selection capture. You can open Grab from the Utilities folder. Click the "Capture" menu to choose your capture mode.[2]
Method 3 of 10:

Linux

  1. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 9How to Save a Screenshot Picture 9
    Take a full-screen screenshot by pressing the .⎙ PrtScr key. In most Linux distributions, this will copy the image of your screen to the clipboard. In some distributions, this will launch a screen capture utility, allowing you to save the image directly to a file. If the image was copied to the clipboard, it will need to be pasted into an image editor and saved.
  2. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 10How to Save a Screenshot Picture 10
    Take a screenshot of the active window by pressing .Alt+⎙ PrtScr. Again, this will work with most Linux distributions, but not all of them. The screenshot of the active window will be copied to the clipboard, or the screen capture utility will open and prompt you to save the image. If the image is copied to the clipboard, it will need to be pasted into another program.
  3. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 11How to Save a Screenshot Picture 11
    Use the terminal to take a screenshot. With the ImageMagick utility, you can take a variety of different screenshots. Install ImageMagick by typing sudo apt-get install imagemagick (Many distributions come with it already installed). Use the following commands to take different types of screenshots. The screenshots will be saved to your working directory:
    1. import –window root -pause 5 fileName.png - Change the -pause timer to adjust how long it will wait before capturing the screenshot. This will take a screenshot of the entire desktop.
    2. import fileName.png - This will turn your cursor into a crosshair. Click a window to capture just that window, or click and drag to capture everything inside the box.
Method 4 of 10:

iOS

  1. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 12How to Save a Screenshot Picture 12
    Press and hold the Sleep/Wake button.
  2. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 13How to Save a Screenshot Picture 13
    Immediately press and release the Home button. You will see the screen flash momentarily[3]
  3. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 14How to Save a Screenshot Picture 14
    Find your screenshots in the Photos app. They'll be filed in the "Screenshots" folder.
Method 5 of 10:

Android

  1. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 15How to Save a Screenshot Picture 15
    Press the screenshot buttons. Most Android devices running Android 4.0 or later have the ability to take screenshots. The buttons used to take screenshots vary depending on your Android device model. Below are some of the most common methods. If your device isn't listed, try one of the button combinations below anyway:[4]
    1. Samsung Galaxy devices - Press the Power + Home buttons.
    2. HTC, Motorola, LG, Nexus devices - Press the Power + Volume Down buttons.
  2. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 16How to Save a Screenshot Picture 16
    Find your screenshots. You'll be able to find your screenshots in your Gallery or Photos app. They'll be filed in the Screenshots album.
  3. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 17How to Save a Screenshot Picture 17
    Use a screenshot app for older devices. If your Android device doesn't support screenshots, you may still be able to take screenshots using an app. Open the Google Play Store and search for "Screenshot". There are lots of different free screenshot apps you can try out.
Method 6 of 10:

Windows 8 Mobile/Tablet

  1. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 18How to Save a Screenshot Picture 18
    Press and hold the Windows and Volume Down buttons on the device. You will see the screen dim for a moment to indicate that the screenshot was taken.
    1. If the device doesn't have a Windows button, press and hold the Power and Volume Down buttons instead.
  2. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 19How to Save a Screenshot Picture 19
    Find the screenshots. Your screenshots will be saved to your Pictures library in a folder labeled "Screenshots". You can find your images by using the Pictures app or Explorer in Desktop mode.
  3. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 20How to Save a Screenshot Picture 20
    Use the Snipping Tools if you'd like. You can use the Snipping Tool on Windows tablets, but it doesn't work too well with the touch interface.
Method 7 of 10:

Blackberry

  1. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 21How to Save a Screenshot Picture 21
    Press the Volume Up and Volume Down keys at the same time. This will take screenshots on most Blackberry 10 phones, including the Q10, Z10, and Z30.[5]
  2. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 22How to Save a Screenshot Picture 22
    Find your saved screenshot. Open the File Manager app and navigate to the Camera folder. You'll find your screenshots here.
  3. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 23How to Save a Screenshot Picture 23
    Install a screenshot app on older Blackberry devices. Most older Blackberry phones don't natively support screenshots. There are a few apps available on the Blackberry World market that will allow you to take screenshots on these devices, including:
    1. Capture It
    2. Screen Muncher
Method 8 of 10:

PlayStation 4

  1. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 24How to Save a Screenshot Picture 24
    Setup a dummy Twitter account. The PS4 only allows you to upload screenshots to Twitter or Facebook, and constantly posting your screenshots here can tick off your friends. Creating a dummy account and setting it to Private will allow you to upload your screenshots and then download them to your computer without having to bother anyone.[6]
    1. Click here for instructions on creating a Twitter account.
  2. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 25How to Save a Screenshot Picture 25
    Press and hold the Share button when you want to take a screenshot. Your game will pause, and the Share menu will open.
    1. You can adjust your controller settings so that tapping the Share button opens the menu instead of having to hold it. Press the Options button while in the Share menu to change these settings.
    2. Not all content supports screenshots. You may not be able to take screenshots when playing movies or during video game cutscenes.[7]
  3. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 26How to Save a Screenshot Picture 26
    Select "Upload Screenshot" and then select the screenshot you want. You can only upload a single screenshot at a time.
  4. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 27How to Save a Screenshot Picture 27
    Select Twitter from the list of services. Sign in with your dummy Twitter account if you're not already.
  5. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 28How to Save a Screenshot Picture 28
    Upload the image. You can add a post to it if you'd like.
  6. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 29How to Save a Screenshot Picture 29
    Open your Twitter account on your computer. After posting the screenshot, you can download the full-quality version by opening your Twitter account.
  7. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 30How to Save a Screenshot Picture 30
    Click the image to open it. The image will pop-out in a separate window.
  8. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 31How to Save a Screenshot Picture 31
    Right-click on the image and select "Copy image URL". This will copy the address for the image to your clipboard.
  9. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 32How to Save a Screenshot Picture 32
    Paste the address in your address bar. Change large to orig at the end of the URL and press ↵ Enter. This will load the full-size image in your browser.
  10. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 33How to Save a Screenshot Picture 33
    Save the image to your computer. Press Ctrl+S or click "Save" in your browser's menu to save the image to your computer.
Method 9 of 10:

Xbox One

  1. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 34How to Save a Screenshot Picture 34
    Update your Xbox One. The Xbox One didn't get the ability to take screenshots until the March 2015 system update. You'll need to have your Xbox One updated in order to take screenshots. You'll normally be prompted to update automatically.
    1. If you aren't prompted to update, open the Settings menu, select "System", and then "Update Console".
  2. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 35How to Save a Screenshot Picture 35
    Start up the game you want to take a screenshot of. You can't take screenshots of the Xbox One menu.
  3. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 36How to Save a Screenshot Picture 36
    Tap the Xbox button twice to open the Snap menu.
  4. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 37How to Save a Screenshot Picture 37
    Press .Y to take a screenshot. If you have a Kinect, you can say "Xbox, take a screenshot".
  5. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 38How to Save a Screenshot Picture 38
    Find your screenshots. You can find all of your screenshots in the Upload Studio app, under "Manage Captures". You can then share them to various social networks or save it to your OneDrive.[8]
Method 10 of 10:

Wii U

  1. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 39How to Save a Screenshot Picture 39
    Make sure you are signed into Miiverse. You'll need to be connected to Miiverse in order to take and post screenshots. Click here for details on creating a Nintendo Network ID and signing into Miiverse.
  2. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 40How to Save a Screenshot Picture 40
    Play a game until you find a place you want to take a screenshot. You can't take screenshots of the menu.
  3. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 41How to Save a Screenshot Picture 41
    Press the Home button on your Gamepad. This will open the Home menu and suspend the game.
  4. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 42How to Save a Screenshot Picture 42
    Tap the Miiverse button. This will load the Miiverse community for the game you're playing.
  5. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 43How to Save a Screenshot Picture 43
    Tap "Post". This will open the New Post screen.
  6. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 44How to Save a Screenshot Picture 44
    Tap the "Screenshot" button. You'll find this in the upper-right corner.
  7. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 45How to Save a Screenshot Picture 45
    Select the screenshot you want to use. You can choose either the TV's display or your game pads display.
  8. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 46How to Save a Screenshot Picture 46
    Post the screenshot. You can type or draw on the post, and then save it to post it to the Miiverse community.
  9. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 47How to Save a Screenshot Picture 47
    Visit the Miiverse on your computer. In order to save the screenshot, you'll need to open it on the Miiverse website and then download it to your computer. You can visit Miiverse at miiverse.nintendo.net.
  10. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 48How to Save a Screenshot Picture 48
    Open the community page for the game you just posted. You'll see all the most recent posts. If you acted quickly, you'll likely see your post towards the top of the list.
  11. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 49How to Save a Screenshot Picture 49
    Click the image to open the full version. This will let you see the screenshot at its full size.
  12. How to Save a Screenshot Picture 50How to Save a Screenshot Picture 50
    Right-click on the image and select "Save image as". Name and save the image to your computer so that you can share it or archive it.
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