If you need to take a screenshot of something on your computer screen, Windows 10 offers you a variety of ways to do just that.
Whether you want to save the whole screen or a piece of it, include all the most common ways to take a Windows 10 screenshot.
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How to take a Windows 10 screenshot with the PrtScn key
An easy way to save a copy of anything on your computer screen is to simply press the “Print Screen” button on your keyboard. It is usually labeled “PrtScn” (or something very similar) and is found in the top row, in or near the job keys.
On some keyboards (especially laptops) you may need to launch Print Screen using the Function key (in other words, hold the Function key and press PrtScn).
Windows has many PrtScn variants:
- Press PrtScn. This copies the entire screen to the clipboard. You can attach a screenshot to any image application, such as Paint or Microsoft Word.
- Press Alt + PrtScn. This copies the active window to the clipboard, which you can paste into another program.
- Press the Windows key + Shift + S. The screen will dim and the mouse pointer will change. You can drag it to select a part of the screen to capture it. The screenshot will be copied to the clipboard, which you can paste into another program. (This shortcut only works if you have the latest version of Windows 10 installed, called Windows 10 Creative Update.)
- Press the Windows key + PrtScn. This saves the entire screen as an image file. You can find it in the “Pictures” folder, in the subfolder called “Screenshots.”
How to take a screenshot in Windows 10 with Snipping Tool
Microsoft includes a Windows 10 highly compatible screenshot tool, called Snipping Tool.
You can use the Snipping Tool to capture a screenshot and save it as an image file without attaching the screenshot to another application.
- Start the Snatch Tool from the start menu.
- In the “Mode” drop-down, select the type of screenshot you want – you can select anything from full screen rectangle to rectangular form.
- Click New, and your screen will freeze. Then you can use the mouse to create a screenshot. A screenshot will then appear in the Snatch Tool window.
- If you want to install something like a tooltip, which only appears after the mouse moves, you can specify how long you have to wait before taking a screenshot using the delay menu.
- If you want, once you have taken your screenshot, you can use drawing tools to define the screenshot.
- When you are done, click “File” and then click “Save As” to save the finished screenshot to your computer.
- You can also click the copy button in the Snap Tool window – it looks like two pages are placed on top of each other – to copy the image to your clipboard.
How to take a screenshot on Windows 10 with Game Bar
The Game Bar is an overlay that you can use in most Windows games to take screenshots and record video. Here’s how to use it:
- Start the game on the start menu or in the Xbox Console Companion program.
- While playing a game, press the Windows + G key. The Game Bar should appear.
- Click the camera icon to take a screenshot, or you can use the keyboard shortcut: Windows key + Alt + PrtScn.
The screenshot will be automatically saved in the “Videos” folder in a subfolder called “Capture.”
When playing a game on Steam, you can also press F11 to take a screenshot. It will be added to your screenshot folder on Steam.
