# What Show screenshots instantly does in NotchStar > Show screenshots instantly turns off the macOS corner preview so a screenshot reaches the NotchStar tray at once. It is optional and changes one setting. Canonical: https://www.notchstar.com/help/show-screenshots-instantly-setting/ Last updated: 2026-11-04 Published 2026-11-04. Show screenshots instantly is an optional NotchStar setting that turns off the macOS floating preview in the corner of the screen. With the preview off, macOS saves the screenshot straight away, so it reaches the Screenshot Tray the moment you take it instead of about five seconds later. If your screenshot preview in the corner has stopped appearing, this setting is the likely reason. ## Why there is a wait When the macOS preview is on, the screenshot floats in the corner for a few seconds so you can mark it up or drag it, and the file is saved afterwards. Apple describes this on its Screenshot pages. NotchStar can only show a file that exists, so it waits for macOS to save it. ## How you get the setting - **The first time.** After the first screenshot reaches the tray, NotchStar asks once whether to show screenshots instantly. The buttons are Turn On and Not Now. It does not ask again. - **Any time.** Open NotchStar Settings, General, and use the Show screenshots instantly switch under Screenshots. ## What it changes It changes one macOS setting, the one behind Show Floating Thumbnail in the Screenshot app's Options menu. It does not change where your screenshots are saved, their format or the shortcuts. NotchStar remembers your own value of that setting first so it can put it back. ## What you give up While it is on, you do not get the corner preview, and with it the quick Markup edit from that preview. If you use that often, leave the setting off and accept the short wait. To undo it, read [restore the macOS screenshot preview](https://www.notchstar.com/help/restore-the-macos-screenshot-preview-after-notchstar/). The overview is on the [Screenshot Tray page](https://www.notchstar.com/features/screenshot-tray/). ## Quick answers. ### Is Show screenshots instantly on by default? No. NotchStar asks once, and nothing changes unless you choose Turn On. ### Does it change where screenshots are saved? No. It only affects the corner preview. ## Keep reading. - [Screenshot Tray: your screenshots wait under the notch](https://www.notchstar.com/features/screenshot-tray/): Every screenshot lands in a tray under your Mac notch. Drag it into a chat, an email or a folder, or send several at once. - [Restore the macOS screenshot preview after using NotchStar](https://www.notchstar.com/help/restore-the-macos-screenshot-preview-after-notchstar/): NotchStar puts your screenshot preview setting back when you switch off Show screenshots instantly or quit the app. If it is still off, turn it on again here. - [How screenshots reach the NotchStar Screenshot Tray](https://www.notchstar.com/help/how-screenshots-reach-the-notch-tray/): NotchStar watches the folder where macOS saves screenshots and hangs each new one under the notch. Here is what counts, what does not, and how fast. - [NotchStar Screenshot Tray vs the macOS floating thumbnail](https://www.notchstar.com/help/screenshot-tray-vs-the-macos-floating-thumbnail/): The macOS floating thumbnail shows one capture for a few seconds. The NotchStar tray holds up to 12 for five minutes. Here is where each one wins. ## More in Screenshot Tray. - [How screenshots reach the NotchStar Screenshot Tray](https://www.notchstar.com/help/how-screenshots-reach-the-notch-tray/): NotchStar watches the folder where macOS saves screenshots and hangs each new one under the notch. Here is what counts, what does not, and how fast. - [How long screenshots stay in the NotchStar tray](https://www.notchstar.com/help/how-long-screenshots-stay-in-the-notch-tray/): The NotchStar Screenshot Tray holds the latest 12 screenshots and keeps each unused one for five minutes. Using a screenshot removes it sooner. - [Drag a screenshot from the notch into a chat or email](https://www.notchstar.com/help/drag-a-screenshot-into-a-chat-or-email/): Press on a screenshot in the NotchStar tray, move a few points and drop it into a chat or an email. The app receives a copy of the file. - [Drag a screenshot from the notch into a folder](https://www.notchstar.com/help/drag-a-screenshot-from-the-notch-into-a-folder/): Drop a NotchStar tray screenshot on a Finder folder to put the file there. Finder decides whether it moves or copies, and the tray entry goes away. - [Send several screenshots at once from the notch](https://www.notchstar.com/help/send-several-screenshots-at-once/): Take a few screenshots, pick the ones you want and drag them into a chat together. NotchStar carries all picked files in one drag. - [Pick several screenshots in the notch with Command click](https://www.notchstar.com/help/pick-several-screenshots-with-command-click/): Hold Command and click screenshots in the NotchStar tray to pick them. A drag from any picked one then carries all of them.