Here’s a quick, clear guide on how to take screenshots on a Mac, including the main keyboard shortcuts, where your screenshots are saved, and how to change settings.

# 1. Basic Screenshot Shortcuts on Mac

# Capture the entire screen

  • Shortcut: Shift + Command (⌘) + 3
  • Result:
    • Captures all displays.
    • Saves a PNG file to your desktop by default.
  • Tip: Hold Control as well (Control + Shift + Command + 3) to copy the screenshot to the clipboard instead of saving it as a file.

# Capture a selected portion of the screen

  • Shortcut: Shift + Command (⌘) + 4
  • How to use:
    1. Press Shift + Command + 4.
    2. Your cursor turns into a crosshair.
    3. Click and drag to select an area.
    4. Release the mouse/trackpad to capture.
  • Options while dragging:
    • Hold Space to move the selection.
    • Hold Shift to lock one axis (horizontal/vertical).
    • Hold Option to resize from center.
  • Clipboard version:
    Control + Shift + Command + 4 to copy to clipboard.

# Capture a specific window (or menu)

  • Shortcut: Shift + Command (⌘) + 4, then tap Space
  • How to use:
    1. Press Shift + Command + 4.
    2. Tap Space. The cursor becomes a camera.
    3. Hover over a window or menu (it highlights).
    4. Click to capture.
  • Clipboard version:
    Control + Shift + Command + 4, tap Space, then click.

# 2. Use the Screenshot Toolbar (More Options)

For more control (timers, where to save, screen recording):

  • Shortcut: Shift + Command (⌘) + 5

You’ll see a toolbar at the bottom of the screen with options to:

  • Capture the entire screen
  • Capture a selected window
  • Capture a selected portion
  • Record the entire screen (video)
  • Record a selected portion (video)
  • Choose:
    • Save to: Desktop, Documents, Clipboard, Mail, Messages, Preview, etc.
    • Timer: 5s or 10s delay
    • Options: Show floating thumbnail, remember last selection, show mouse pointer

For Apple’s official guide, see Apple Support:
https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201361

# 3. How to Screenshot the Touch Bar (if your Mac has one)

  • Shortcut: Shift + Command (⌘) + 6
  • Captures everything currently displayed on the Touch Bar.

# 4. Where Screenshots Are Saved (and How to Change It)

# Default location

By default, screenshots are saved as .png files on your Desktop, named like:

  • Screenshot 2025-12-05 at 12.34.56.png

# Change the save location (easy way)

  1. Press Shift + Command (⌘) + 5.
  2. Click Options.
  3. Under Save to, choose:
    • Desktop
    • Documents
    • Clipboard
    • Mail
    • Messages
    • Preview
    • Or Other Location… to pick any folder.

# Change the save location (using Terminal, optional)

If you prefer the command line:

  1. Create a folder, for example: ~/Pictures/Screenshots

  2. Open Terminal.

  3. Run:

    defaults write com.apple.screencapture location ~/Pictures/Screenshots
killall SystemUIServer

More Terminal options are documented in many macOS power-user guides, e.g.:
https://ss64.com/osx/screencapture.html

# 5. Edit, Crop, and Mark Up Screenshots Quickly

After taking a screenshot in recent macOS versions, you’ll see a small floating thumbnail in the corner.

  • Click it to open the Markup tools:
    • Crop
    • Draw, highlight
    • Add text, shapes, signatures
    • Share directly (Mail, Messages, AirDrop, etc.)

If you don’t want this thumbnail:

  1. Press Shift + Command + 5.
  2. Click Options.
  3. Uncheck Show Floating Thumbnail.

You can also open screenshots directly in Preview for more editing:
https://support.apple.com/guide/preview/welcome/mac

# 6. How to Copy a Screenshot to the Clipboard (Instead of Saving a File)

Add Control to your shortcut:

  • Entire screen to clipboard:
    Control + Shift + Command (⌘) + 3
  • Selected area to clipboard:
    Control + Shift + Command (⌘) + 4
  • Selected window to clipboard:
    Control + Shift + Command (⌘) + 4, tap Space, then click.

Then you can paste (Command + V) into:

  • Pages, Word, Google Docs
  • Notes
  • Mail or Messages
  • Image editors (Photoshop, Pixelmator, etc.)

# 7. How to Screen Record on Mac (Bonus Tip)

The Screenshot toolbar also handles screen recordings:

  1. Press Shift + Command (⌘) + 5.
  2. Choose:
    • Record Entire Screen
    • Record Selected Portion
  3. Click Record.
  4. To stop:
    • Click the Stop icon in the menu bar, or
    • Use Command (⌘) + Control + Esc.

For more advanced recording and editing, many people also use tools like QuickTime Player or third-party apps (e.g., OBS Studio).

Apple’s QuickTime recording guide:
https://support.apple.com/guide/quicktime-player/record-your-screen-qtp97b08e666/mac

# 8. Common Questions About Mac Screenshots

“How do I take a screenshot on a MacBook like Print Screen on Windows?”
Use Shift + Command + 3 for the whole screen, or Shift + Command + 4 to select an area. That’s the macOS equivalent of Print Screen.

“Why aren’t my Mac screenshots showing up on the desktop?”
Check:

  1. You might have changed the save location (see section 4).
  2. Use Spotlight (Command + Space) and search Screenshot to find them.
  3. Confirm the shortcuts under System Settings → Keyboard → Keyboard Shortcuts → Screenshots.

“Can I change the screenshot file format?”
Yes, with Terminal:

defaults write com.apple.screencapture type jpg   # or pdf, gif, tiff, heic, etc.
killall SystemUIServer

For complete, official documentation, see Apple’s support article on screenshots:
https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201361