Thanks, the tip for creating a screenshot on a surface tablet was really helpfull to me!
Arcy
9 years ago
My PrtSc key is no longer working. I used to just press it and it would automatically take an image and all of a sudden it has stopped working.
Any idea on how to fix this?
lenovo yoga pro 2
windows 8.1
Cheers!
Gaurav Acharya
9 years ago
Thanks a lot ….Really needed that tip
Nazrul Islam
9 years ago
Thank you very much for great teaching…
Everyone will be benefited from this lesson.
Adam
9 years ago
Anybody know how to take a screenshot of an application running in full screen mode on Windows 8.1?
I would suggest toggling the F Lock key as Ton said and try the Win+PrtScr one…If you have OneDrive, then it will give you a notification when you screenshot
Daniele
9 years ago
How I missed this tutorial?
Missed a couple of this triks
Thanks
Bhargav
9 years ago
Great post, mate. Just what I have been looking for. The Windows + Prntscr shortcut does the job. Thanks a lot 🙂
Rebecca
9 years ago
I have tried every single method advised to take a screenshot on my computer and, either it won’t do it or it isn’t saving automatically as it should. Any advice?
Robin
9 years ago
My screenshot is technically “working”, but its not capturing the right screen. Rather than screen capping the program I have open, it’s taking pics of my desktop. Is there a setting I need to change somewhere to get it to capture what I’m currently viewing, not the icons on my desktop?
Perhaps you’ve used an external screen recently perhaps there was an error in the process somehow resulting in screen controls being glitchy
Chandan
9 years ago
One more is there…
Ctrl+PrtSrn also work.
Nina
9 years ago
I have a Lenovo PC and Windows 8.1, sometimes I can take a screen shot using windows key + print screen key and other times it will not work, just send me back to the front screen. Any suggestions please as to a better more reliable way to print the screen?
Leanne
8 years ago
I get frustrated because 1. I’m old and wasn’t raised with computers like the younger generation, and 2. my medications make me forget a lot of things! Your tips here make it so easy for me because you actually SHOW me what to look for next. Thank you!
Thanx nakia , yours is correct and worked on my laptop !
Zakx
8 years ago
Hi all,
I tried all the tips/shortcuts and none of them worked other than the Snipping Tool. Thank you for the help.
Much appreciated.
windows userx
8 years ago
None of the ways outlined work on my non surface windows 8.1 tablet. There is no print screen button on my tablet keyboard. The surface windows key plus vol down does not work. Also the charms does not show a screen capture option, and snippets also do not work. Seems like the only way for me to get a print screen would be to hookup a actual physical keyboard.
metal1love
8 years ago
If you have a full size wireless keyboard (Microsoft model 1014) like I do or if you have an “F Lock” key, turn the F lock off. Then your PrtScn and windows + PrtScn will work.
K Duvall
8 years ago
I tried all of the print screen tip and none of them work. So I have to resort to the “snip” tool. I have windows 8, so I don’t know what the issue is.
Are you using a laptop? If yes, press the Fn key in addition to the key combinations from the article.
Johnson
8 years ago
I have been able to use prt sc process for about five years on win 7, 8 and then 10. Copies to clipboard then open in paint, etc. Today, abruptly, this very handy facility has stopped working. Can use snipping tool but prefer the past system (quicker). Not h appy
Same here. The screenshot is working, because it’s saving to Dropbox, but it’s not copying to clipboard. I first noticed this yesterday, and have never had issues before…
Dropbox changes the default Windows action when taking screenshots. If you close the Dropbox app, everything should work correctly.
khan shabir
8 years ago
hey i can’t find print screen key on my key board
Petri
8 years ago
Sorry to say but the “old way” for taking screen shots in Win7; Windows + S,
was much more convenient and user friendly.
Why it is not supported in Win10?
Why to make it so complicated, several clicks etc.
Is it possible to make it work like that? Or By using any other 2 keys, instead of several clics.
Justin Stark
7 years ago
Hello,
Just to let some know if “alt” + “prt sc” does not work. My keyboard has a windows icon to the left of the “alt” key. This key pressed instead of “alt” with “prt sc” works for me.
In the last sentence just below the picture of the 2nd option there is a slight but obvious grammatical error (‘can will’) although it makes little difference to comprehending what is being said, to many errors like this will cause readers to distrust the information.
Suggestion, provide an image of the print screen or windows ect. icon anytime its mentioned you’ll have to press the corresponding key. its an easy way to increase users quick and easy success which will in turn increase return users to your site while barely effecting your overhead if at all.
Das
7 years ago
I am able to take screenshot with tip#2
Anonymous
7 years ago
I cannot take a screen shot of a game (Star Trek Online) screen using Windows 10 using any of these methods. Only a black screen is pasted onto the Paint pad.
The old simple method of hitting Print Screen was fine. Why does the captcha only feature an ad? where are the code letters?
Anthony T
7 years ago
I was thrilled when I read the shortcut “Win+Shift+S” would let me select an area of the screen to screenshot, similar to the “Cmd+Shift+4” behavior on OSX; OSX has always had the best screenshotting capabilities and it’s always been something Windows was missing.
Unfortunately, it simply does not work. I’m on Windows 10 (NOT Home), I have all the updates, but it’s just not a valid shortcut. Win+S brings up Cortana search, and Shift+Win+S does, as far as I can tell, simply nothing.
From what I’ve read the only method to select a specific area is using the “Snippet Tool”. Unfortunately, happen to open another application EVERY TIME I want to screenshot something just doesn’t work for me. The thing that makes the OSX shortcuts great is they just “work”. CMD+Shift+3 takes a screenshot of the entire page, and if you swap 3 for 4 it immediately gives you a selection cursor, and you select a specific area to capture. Either way, the screenshot is saved on your Desktop as “Screenshot [TIMESTAMP].png”. You can even change the default file name; mine, for instance, is “Nino’s Screengrab [Timestmap].png”. It’s amazing, and you can do it anywhere no matter what. Having to stop, open another program, take the screenshot, move it to where you want it, and close the program is just totally redundant.
Was the Win+Shift+S key WORKING for you at some point while writing this, in Windows 10? Did you have the Snippet Tool open when you did it? Perhaps it’s an application shortcut that works with that tool open? I’ve also read in a few places that it may be a “OneNote” shortcut, did you have that open (or even just the icon in your taskbar) at the time?
I’m assuming you didn’t just blindly post that screenshot without verifying it, and if it did work for you I would really like to understand the conditions that allowed it to. If you did have the Snippet Tool (or perhaps even OneNote) open, then that’s probably it… but if you’re sure that’s not the case, please let me know how I can duplicate this behavior.
If you could legitimately find a way, NATIVELY, to take a selected-area screenshot in Windows 10 without needing to open Snippet Tool or install other third party software, that alone would warrant its own article; you would be a hero to many Win10 users, especially developers who are constantly sending screenshots to show work samples without revealing source, and we’d all be eternally grateful. So yeah, figure out what you did to make it work and let us know!
I assure you that all methods were tested on two different computers, verified by a tech reviewer on a third computer and that they work as described. You don’t need to open anything except the Snipping Tool, when you want to use the Snipping Tool.
To me, it sounds that you have installed many apps that override these default keyboard shortcuts and that you may benefit from a Windows 10 reset, to take things from scratch.
Rob Crombie
6 years ago
PicPick is free.
It accumulates the captures in to separate Tabs (which you can edit/annotate and save/name at your leisure).
I have mine set like this –
Ctrl K – to capture full screen
Alt K – to capture active window
PrntScrn (key) – To capture a region
(Since C Is reserved for the clipboard, I used K because I can remember Kapture as a misspell of Capture. At my age my memory needs all the help it can get)
Steven L
6 years ago
None of the 8 ways worked on my Toshiba Satellite with Windows 10.
🙁
chase
6 years ago
Thanks the wind+prtsc worked for me am making use of a windows 10
Anon
6 years ago
Awesome Documentation on Screen Captures
Loxody
6 years ago
If you are running Windows on a Mac, there is obviously no PrtScn key unless you are using a USB or Bluetooth Windows keyboard with it.
On Macs, the Win+SHIFT+S command works very well, but it is Command+SHIFT+S on a Mac since the Command key serves as the Windows key.
Tom
6 years ago
I am non technical. I tried all of the different combinations and non of them work. What could be wrong? I have a keyboard with CTR FN and ALT to left of space bar and ,ALT GR, and windows key to right of space bar. I also have PRT SCR over SUS RQ button above the = button. Can you help?
an
6 years ago
Thanks! It was very useful
Mama
6 years ago
I just wanted to save a few recipes from an online magazine with no printing option and the Windows + prt sc works for me but sadly I can not zoom in on the screenshot to read the instructions clearly. The magazine needs to be zoomed in on but then I end up with partial page. So annoying. Mostly commenting to say that the methods above work on Windows 10 for me. It did indeed save to a folder called screenshots in my pictures folder. fn + prt sc also works for copying to clipboard but I dislike having to paste into something else to save. Thank you for the tips.
THANK YOU for such good information. Nothing was working on my computer till I kept reading and found the Fn+Windows+PrtScn that worked! I really appreciate it. None of the other websites above yours on the list covered it in such detail!! You saved my job application. 🙂
The Fn key advise was really helpfull for me. Thanks !!!
Ekpe, Martin Ndubuisi
6 years ago
Thanks for your tutorials on how to capture screen shots. they are indeed wonderful and real. I have practiced them and they yielded result.
Thanks once more.
muhammad hanif
6 years ago
thank you so much for clarifying in a tutorial way……
anonymous
6 years ago
this article was actually really helpful
David
5 years ago
These don’t work
Gerald Ayson
5 years ago
thank you for this information.
Renato
5 years ago
My old Dell Latitude 2110 has no PrtScn key! What combination of keys would be equivalent to PrtScn key?
Sunny Walker
5 years ago
I’ve been using Windows 10 with all updates current. At some recent point, the Win+Shift+S quit working. I only get a full gray screen. I used to get that if I had a tab open to something with sensitive data like my bank. If I closed such a tab, then it worked again. Now it never works. Snipping tool also used to work, but now also gives full gray screen. I can do a Fn+PrintScr and get the whole laptop screen, but really need something where I can select a portion of the screen. Any further ideas that you have tested? THANKS!!!
Rowan
5 years ago
My screenshots don`t save in my pictures library. I can’t find them anywhere. I’ve looked in my screenshots folder (which wasn’t in the picture library. I had to search for it on my computer.) and it’s empty. I can’t find them anywhere, and I don’t know what to do to fix it. I already know my laptop is a dud. It was broken when I got it. But I really need those screenshots.
Glad to help. Do not hesitate to subscribe to our newsletter for more useful tutorials.
Keshav Kumar B R
5 years ago
Digital Citizen is a very, very useful for every singe user of Computer on this Planet. The information that Digital Citizen provides pertaining to Computer….Hats Off..!! Keep it up..!!
Thanks, the tip for creating a screenshot on a surface tablet was really helpfull to me!
My PrtSc key is no longer working. I used to just press it and it would automatically take an image and all of a sudden it has stopped working.
Any idea on how to fix this?
lenovo yoga pro 2
windows 8.1
Cheers!
Thanks a lot ….Really needed that tip
Thank you very much for great teaching…
Everyone will be benefited from this lesson.
Anybody know how to take a screenshot of an application running in full screen mode on Windows 8.1?
This article shares several methods for doing that. Please read it.
The PrtScr button does not do anything at all. And there is no screenshots folder located in the picture library.
probably you must toggle the F Lock key . . . ???
I would suggest toggling the F Lock key as Ton said and try the Win+PrtScr one…If you have OneDrive, then it will give you a notification when you screenshot
How I missed this tutorial?
Missed a couple of this triks
Thanks
Great post, mate. Just what I have been looking for. The Windows + Prntscr shortcut does the job. Thanks a lot 🙂
I have tried every single method advised to take a screenshot on my computer and, either it won’t do it or it isn’t saving automatically as it should. Any advice?
My screenshot is technically “working”, but its not capturing the right screen. Rather than screen capping the program I have open, it’s taking pics of my desktop. Is there a setting I need to change somewhere to get it to capture what I’m currently viewing, not the icons on my desktop?
Perhaps you’ve used an external screen recently perhaps there was an error in the process somehow resulting in screen controls being glitchy
One more is there…
Ctrl+PrtSrn also work.
I have a Lenovo PC and Windows 8.1, sometimes I can take a screen shot using windows key + print screen key and other times it will not work, just send me back to the front screen. Any suggestions please as to a better more reliable way to print the screen?
I get frustrated because 1. I’m old and wasn’t raised with computers like the younger generation, and 2. my medications make me forget a lot of things! Your tips here make it so easy for me because you actually SHOW me what to look for next. Thank you!
FN+Windows+Prt Scn works as well
Thank you!! Tried all of the above and nothing worked except the snip tool which can be limiting at times. This worked perfectly.
Thanx nakia , yours is correct and worked on my laptop !
Hi all,
I tried all the tips/shortcuts and none of them worked other than the Snipping Tool. Thank you for the help.
Much appreciated.
None of the ways outlined work on my non surface windows 8.1 tablet. There is no print screen button on my tablet keyboard. The surface windows key plus vol down does not work. Also the charms does not show a screen capture option, and snippets also do not work. Seems like the only way for me to get a print screen would be to hookup a actual physical keyboard.
If you have a full size wireless keyboard (Microsoft model 1014) like I do or if you have an “F Lock” key, turn the F lock off. Then your PrtScn and windows + PrtScn will work.
I tried all of the print screen tip and none of them work. So I have to resort to the “snip” tool. I have windows 8, so I don’t know what the issue is.
Are you using a laptop? If yes, press the Fn key in addition to the key combinations from the article.
I have been able to use prt sc process for about five years on win 7, 8 and then 10. Copies to clipboard then open in paint, etc. Today, abruptly, this very handy facility has stopped working. Can use snipping tool but prefer the past system (quicker). Not h appy
Same here. The screenshot is working, because it’s saving to Dropbox, but it’s not copying to clipboard. I first noticed this yesterday, and have never had issues before…
Dropbox changes the default Windows action when taking screenshots. If you close the Dropbox app, everything should work correctly.
hey i can’t find print screen key on my key board
Sorry to say but the “old way” for taking screen shots in Win7; Windows + S,
was much more convenient and user friendly.
Why it is not supported in Win10?
Why to make it so complicated, several clicks etc.
Is it possible to make it work like that? Or By using any other 2 keys, instead of several clics.
Hello,
Just to let some know if “alt” + “prt sc” does not work. My keyboard has a windows icon to the left of the “alt” key. This key pressed instead of “alt” with “prt sc” works for me.
In the last sentence just below the picture of the 2nd option there is a slight but obvious grammatical error (‘can will’) although it makes little difference to comprehending what is being said, to many errors like this will cause readers to distrust the information.
Suggestion, provide an image of the print screen or windows ect. icon anytime its mentioned you’ll have to press the corresponding key. its an easy way to increase users quick and easy success which will in turn increase return users to your site while barely effecting your overhead if at all.
I am able to take screenshot with tip#2
I cannot take a screen shot of a game (Star Trek Online) screen using Windows 10 using any of these methods. Only a black screen is pasted onto the Paint pad.
The old simple method of hitting Print Screen was fine. Why does the captcha only feature an ad? where are the code letters?
I was thrilled when I read the shortcut “Win+Shift+S” would let me select an area of the screen to screenshot, similar to the “Cmd+Shift+4” behavior on OSX; OSX has always had the best screenshotting capabilities and it’s always been something Windows was missing.
Unfortunately, it simply does not work. I’m on Windows 10 (NOT Home), I have all the updates, but it’s just not a valid shortcut. Win+S brings up Cortana search, and Shift+Win+S does, as far as I can tell, simply nothing.
From what I’ve read the only method to select a specific area is using the “Snippet Tool”. Unfortunately, happen to open another application EVERY TIME I want to screenshot something just doesn’t work for me. The thing that makes the OSX shortcuts great is they just “work”. CMD+Shift+3 takes a screenshot of the entire page, and if you swap 3 for 4 it immediately gives you a selection cursor, and you select a specific area to capture. Either way, the screenshot is saved on your Desktop as “Screenshot [TIMESTAMP].png”. You can even change the default file name; mine, for instance, is “Nino’s Screengrab [Timestmap].png”. It’s amazing, and you can do it anywhere no matter what. Having to stop, open another program, take the screenshot, move it to where you want it, and close the program is just totally redundant.
Was the Win+Shift+S key WORKING for you at some point while writing this, in Windows 10? Did you have the Snippet Tool open when you did it? Perhaps it’s an application shortcut that works with that tool open? I’ve also read in a few places that it may be a “OneNote” shortcut, did you have that open (or even just the icon in your taskbar) at the time?
I’m assuming you didn’t just blindly post that screenshot without verifying it, and if it did work for you I would really like to understand the conditions that allowed it to. If you did have the Snippet Tool (or perhaps even OneNote) open, then that’s probably it… but if you’re sure that’s not the case, please let me know how I can duplicate this behavior.
If you could legitimately find a way, NATIVELY, to take a selected-area screenshot in Windows 10 without needing to open Snippet Tool or install other third party software, that alone would warrant its own article; you would be a hero to many Win10 users, especially developers who are constantly sending screenshots to show work samples without revealing source, and we’d all be eternally grateful. So yeah, figure out what you did to make it work and let us know!
I assure you that all methods were tested on two different computers, verified by a tech reviewer on a third computer and that they work as described. You don’t need to open anything except the Snipping Tool, when you want to use the Snipping Tool.
To me, it sounds that you have installed many apps that override these default keyboard shortcuts and that you may benefit from a Windows 10 reset, to take things from scratch.
PicPick is free.
It accumulates the captures in to separate Tabs (which you can edit/annotate and save/name at your leisure).
I have mine set like this –
Ctrl K – to capture full screen
Alt K – to capture active window
PrntScrn (key) – To capture a region
(Since C Is reserved for the clipboard, I used K because I can remember Kapture as a misspell of Capture. At my age my memory needs all the help it can get)
None of the 8 ways worked on my Toshiba Satellite with Windows 10.
🙁
Thanks the wind+prtsc worked for me am making use of a windows 10
Awesome Documentation on Screen Captures
If you are running Windows on a Mac, there is obviously no PrtScn key unless you are using a USB or Bluetooth Windows keyboard with it.
On Macs, the Win+SHIFT+S command works very well, but it is Command+SHIFT+S on a Mac since the Command key serves as the Windows key.
I am non technical. I tried all of the different combinations and non of them work. What could be wrong? I have a keyboard with CTR FN and ALT to left of space bar and ,ALT GR, and windows key to right of space bar. I also have PRT SCR over SUS RQ button above the = button. Can you help?
Thanks! It was very useful
I just wanted to save a few recipes from an online magazine with no printing option and the Windows + prt sc works for me but sadly I can not zoom in on the screenshot to read the instructions clearly. The magazine needs to be zoomed in on but then I end up with partial page. So annoying. Mostly commenting to say that the methods above work on Windows 10 for me. It did indeed save to a folder called screenshots in my pictures folder. fn + prt sc also works for copying to clipboard but I dislike having to paste into something else to save. Thank you for the tips.
This did not help me at all; very frustated!
What exactly is your problem?
THANK YOU for such good information. Nothing was working on my computer till I kept reading and found the Fn+Windows+PrtScn that worked! I really appreciate it. None of the other websites above yours on the list covered it in such detail!! You saved my job application. 🙂
Excellent. Happy to help! 😉
The Fn key advise was really helpfull for me. Thanks !!!
Thanks for your tutorials on how to capture screen shots. they are indeed wonderful and real. I have practiced them and they yielded result.
Thanks once more.
thank you so much for clarifying in a tutorial way……
this article was actually really helpful
These don’t work
thank you for this information.
My old Dell Latitude 2110 has no PrtScn key! What combination of keys would be equivalent to PrtScn key?
I’ve been using Windows 10 with all updates current. At some recent point, the Win+Shift+S quit working. I only get a full gray screen. I used to get that if I had a tab open to something with sensitive data like my bank. If I closed such a tab, then it worked again. Now it never works. Snipping tool also used to work, but now also gives full gray screen. I can do a Fn+PrintScr and get the whole laptop screen, but really need something where I can select a portion of the screen. Any further ideas that you have tested? THANKS!!!
My screenshots don`t save in my pictures library. I can’t find them anywhere. I’ve looked in my screenshots folder (which wasn’t in the picture library. I had to search for it on my computer.) and it’s empty. I can’t find them anywhere, and I don’t know what to do to fix it. I already know my laptop is a dud. It was broken when I got it. But I really need those screenshots.
How exactly do you make those screenshots? Please describe the exact procedure that you perform.
This was SUPER helpful! Thank you so much! ☺
Thanks a Lot
thanks for information
This helped a whole lot. Thank you.
This article was extremely useful. Very much appreciated, thanks.
Glad to help. Do not hesitate to subscribe to our newsletter for more useful tutorials.
Digital Citizen is a very, very useful for every singe user of Computer on this Planet. The information that Digital Citizen provides pertaining to Computer….Hats Off..!! Keep it up..!!
Thank you very much for appreciating our work. 😉