To take a screenshot on a Mac, you have several options depending on what you want to capture:
Capture the Entire Screen
- Press Shift + Command + 3 simultaneously.
- The screenshot will be saved to your desktop by default, and a thumbnail may appear in the corner for quick editing
Capture a Portion of the Screen
- Press Shift + Command + 4.
- Your cursor changes to a crosshair. Click and drag to select the area you want to capture.
- Release the mouse or trackpad button to take the screenshot.
- Press Esc to cancel
Capture a Specific Window or Menu
- Press Shift + Command + 4 , then press the Space bar.
- The cursor changes to a camera icon. Hover over the window or menu you want to capture to highlight it, then click to take the screenshot.
- To exclude the window shadow, hold the Option key while clicking
Screenshot Control Panel (macOS Mojave and later)
- Press Shift + Command + 5 to bring up the screenshot toolbar.
- This panel lets you capture the entire screen, a window, or a selected portion, and also offers screen recording options.
- You can choose where to save the screenshot, set a timer, and toggle options like showing the mouse pointer or floating thumbnail previews
Additional Tips
- To copy a screenshot to the clipboard instead of saving it as a file, add the Control key to any of the shortcuts above (e.g., Control + Shift + Command + 3)
- If you have a MacBook with a Touch Bar, press Shift + Command + 6 to capture the Touch Bar itself
Screenshots are typically saved to the desktop unless you choose a different location via the screenshot toolbar options
