How to screenshot on a Mac
To take a screenshot on a Mac, press Shift-Command-3 for the whole screen, Shift-Command-4 to drag over an area, or Shift-Command-5 to open the Screenshot toolbar. These shortcuts are the same in the Apple guides for macOS Ventura 13, Sonoma 14, Sequoia 15 and Tahoe 26, checked on 4 November 2026.
The shortcuts
| You want | Press |
|---|---|
| The entire screen | Shift-Command-3 |
| A portion of the screen | Shift-Command-4, then drag over the area |
| A window or the menu bar | Shift-Command-4, then Space bar, then click it |
| A menu and its items | Open the menu, press Shift-Command-4, then drag over the items |
| The Screenshot toolbar | Shift-Command-5 |
| Copy to the clipboard instead of saving a file | Add Control to any of the above |
Apple’s support article adds that you can press Esc to cancel a selection, and that holding Space bar while you drag moves the selected area without resizing it.
What happens next
A small thumbnail can appear in the bottom right corner of the screen for a few seconds. Click it to mark the screenshot up, or swipe it right to save it at once. If you do nothing, the file is saved. Screenshots are .png files and their names start with “Screenshot” followed by the date and time. Older Apple pages write “Screen Shot”.
By default, captures made with the keyboard shortcuts are saved to the desktop. To change that, read how to change where Mac screenshots are saved. If the thumbnail gets in your way, read how to turn off the screenshot preview.
Version differences
The steps above do not change between macOS 13, 14, 15 and 26. What does change is the extras. macOS Tahoe 26 adds a way to record a single window and, on supported Macs, a choice between HDR and SDR capture formats. Read the page for your version: Sonoma, Sequoia, Tahoe or Ventura.
Limits
Some apps do not allow screenshots of their windows. Apple names the Apple TV app as an example. If a shortcut does nothing, read what to check when the screenshot shortcut does not work.
NotchStar’s Screenshot Tray is an optional extra. It hangs each new screenshot under the notch so you can drag it into a chat or a folder. You do not need it to follow any step on this page.
