Being able to take a screenshot on Mac is a valuable skill, as you may need to capture your screen to report an error message or share a chat conversation. While Macs have everything you need to take screenshots, the process is not so straightforward.

To help you out, this post outlines five easy methods to take a screenshot on Mac. You'll learn how to use keyboard shortcuts, the Touch Bar, built-in tools, and a third-party application to capture your Mac's screen. By the end of this post, you'll have a solid understanding of how to take screenshots on your Mac easily.

How to screenshot on Mac with keyboard shortcuts (quick but limited)

Mac offers keyboard shortcuts to take screenshots on nearly all your Mac devices, including MacBook laptops, iMac all-in-ones, or Mac Mini and Mac Studio desktops. You can use the shortcuts to quickly capture screenshots of your entire screen, a screen section, or even a specific window.

1. Capture the entire screen

Step 1. Press and hold the "Command", "Shift" and “3” keys at the same time. This will take a screenshot of your entire screen.

mac keyboard command shift 3

Step 2. You will see a floating thumbnail in the bottom-right corner of your screen. You can swipe the thumbnail away or let it slip away on its own, and it'll be saved to your desktop by default. Or you can click on the thumbnail to open it in a new editing window. You can crop the screenshot in this window, draw or type on it, or share it easily.

2. Take a partial screenshot

Step 1. Press and hold the "Command", "Shift" and “4” keys simultaneously.

mac keyboard shift command 4

Step 2. Your mouse cursor will become a crosshair. You can drag it to select the area that you wish to capture. Once done, just release the mouse button to take the screenshot.

Step 3. Then you might see a thumbnail in the corner of your screen. Click it to edit the screenshot. Or wait for the screenshot to save to your desktop.

3. Capture a specific window

Step 1. Open the window that you want to capture.

Step 2. Press and hold the "Command", "Shift", “4” and “Space bar” keys at the same time.

mac keyboard shift command 4 space bar

Step 3. Your mouse cursor will become a camera icon. Simply click on the Minecraft window to capture it.

Step 4. You can see a thumbnail in the corner of your screen. Click it to edit the screenshot. Or wait for the screenshot to save to your desktop.

How to take screenshots using the Touch Bar (for newer Macbook Pro)

You can easily take screenshots using a Macbook Pro with a Touch Bar. You can add the screenshot feature to your Touch Bar and capture anything on your Mac’s screen with only one tap.

1. How to take a screenshot on Mac by using the Touch Bar

You can add the screenshot button to your Touch Bar to quickly take a screenshot by clicking the button. Please check the steps below.

Step 1. Go to the "Control Strip" section of the "System Preferences" menu and select the "Screenshot" option.

Step 2. Use the "Customize Control Strip" button to add the "Screenshot" button to the Touch Bar.

mac touch bar screenshot option

Step 3. When you tap the "Screenshot" button on the Touch Bar, you can capture a selected portion, a window, or the entire screen. The screenshot will be saved to your desktop.

mac touch bar screenshot

2. How to capture the screenshot of the Touch Bar

Want to take a screenshot of your Touch Bar? You simply press “Command + Shift + 6” keys to capture the entire Touch Bar and save the screenshot to your desktop.

How to take a screenshot on Mac with the built-in screenshot menu (free but limited)

A built-in screenshot menu is available on macOS Mojave and later. It allows users to take screenshots and record the screen of their Mac quickly. That means if you’re a Mojave, Catalina, Big Sur, or Monterey user, you can easily access the built-in screenshot menu and start screenshot capture. Just check the steps below.

Step 1. Press the “Command + Shift + 5” keys on your keyboard to open the screenshot menu.

Step 2. The screenshot menu will appear at the bottom of the screen. It has several options for taking a screenshot on Mac, including capturing the entire screen, a specific window, or a selected area.

Step 3. Choose the option you want to use to take the screenshot. If you capture a specific window or a selected area, the cursor will change to a crosshair. Click and drag the crosshair to select the area you want to capture.

Step 4. When you have selected the area you want to capture, release the mouse button. The screenshot will be taken and appear at the right-bottom of the screen for a few seconds. You can click it to edit it further or let it go then it will be saved to your desktop.

How to screenshot on Mac with Preview (backup solution)

Preview is a built-in app on Mac that allows you to view and edit a wide range of file types, including images, PDFs, and documents. Additionally, it is a versatile tool that can help you take screenshots.

Like the keyboard shortcuts and screenshot menu, Preview allows you to capture screenshots from the entire screen, a selected area, or a specific window. The difference is that the Preview lets you name the file before saving it to your preferred location.

Here is how to screenshot on Mac with Preview.

Step 1. Open the window or screen that you want to capture.

Step 2. Launch the Preview app on your Mac, open the File menu, click Take Screenshot, then choose From Selection, From Window, or From Entire Screen, according to your needs.

preview take screenshot from window

Step 3. Once the screenshot is captured, you can edit it by cropping it, adjusting the color and contrast, or adding annotations. To save your edited screenshot, go to the "File" menu and select "Save".

How to screenshot on Mac with Awesome Screenshot & Recorder (recommended)

Suppose you have heavy needs for screenshot capture and annotation. In that case, you are suggested to use Awesome Screenshot & Recorder, as it is a versatile and powerful tool that helps you take screenshots, record your screen, edit images/videos, upload files to the cloud, and share instantly via links.

Unlike other standalone applications, Awesome Screenshot & Recorder is a browser extension compatible with Chrome, Firefox, Edge, and Safari. That means it can be used on both Windows and Mac with any of the four browsers installed.

Awesome Screenshot & Recorder

One extension for all your screen recordings & screenshots

Record screen and capture screenshots easily
Edit videos/images quickly
Store videos/images to the cloud and share instantly

Key features

Lets you take screenshot from a scrolling webpage, the entire screen, a specific window, or any selected area
Allows you to record screen with audio and/or webcam
Provides a variety of annotation tools for you to edit the screenshot
Offers a built-in video editor or quick video editing
Lets you upload the screenshots to the cloud storage or save them locally
Enables quick and easy sharing of files

Here is how to take a screenshot on Mac using Awesome Screenshot & Recorder.

Step 1. Download and install the Awesome Screenshot extension to your browser. Sign in to it or create an account.

Step 2. Open the window or page that you wish to capture on your Mac.

Step 3. Click the Awesome Screenshot extension icon in the Chrome toolbar to launch the extension.

Step 4. Click the "Capture" tab, then choose to take a screenshot from “Visible Part”, “Full Page”, “Selected Area” and “Entire Screen & App Window”, depending on your preferences. Then, you can take the screenshot.

awesome extension capture entire screen and app window

Step 5. The captured screenshot will be opened in a new tab, where you can edit and annotate it as needed.

awesome screenshot and recorder annotation tool

Step 6. When you are finished editing the image, click the "Done" button to upload it to the cloud. You will also have the option to download it locally, print it, copy it, or generate a shareable link.

awesome screenshot and recorder image download options

Conclusion

Generally speaking, two methods exist to take a screenshot on a Mac. One uses built-in tools, and the other utilizes a third-party screenshot program. You can use shortcuts or screenshot menus for simple and quick screenshot capture. If you want to capture the screen and edit it further, you can try Awesome Screenshot & Recorder, as it offers many screenshot options and annotation tools.

FAQs for taking screenshots on Mac

1. Is there a snipping tool on Mac?

Yes, Mac has its snipping tool that allows you to take a screenshot of the entire screen, a selected area, or a specific window. You can press “Command + Shift + 5” to trigger the snipping tool quickly.

2. Where does a screenshot go on Mac?

Screenshots are saved to the desktop Mac by default. Whether you take a screenshot using “Command + Shift + 3”, “Command + Shift + 4” or “Command + Shift + 5”, Mac will save your screenshot to the desktop.

To change the location that stores your screenshots, you can press “Command + Shift + 5” and click “Options”, then select a new location in the “Save to” section.

3. How to customize the keyboard shortcuts of the screenshot?

Mac allows you to customize the screenshot keyboard shortcuts. To do so, you can follow the steps below.

Step 1. Go to “System Preference” > “Keyboard” > “Shortcuts” > “Screenshots”, find the screenshot shortcut you want to adjust, and then double-click on it.

Step 2. Press and hold the keyboard combination you prefer, and it will appear in place of the old shortcut.

How to Take a Screenshot on Mac in 2023

Miley Shen

Miley Shen