How to Take a Screenshot in Windows 11

That covers most people. But Windows 11 has at least six built-in ways to capture the screen, each suited to a different job — a quick clip to paste into chat, one exact window, a timed capture of a menu that keeps closing, or a full screen recording. Below is every method, what it does, and exactly where the result ends up.

The screenshot shortcuts at a glance

Method 1 — Win + Shift + S (Snipping Tool overlay)

This is the method to learn first. It hasn't changed the underlying idea since it arrived, but in Windows 11 it is powered by the modern Snipping Tool, whose Microsoft Support guide documents the same four modes — freeform, rectangle, window and full screen.

1. Press Windows key + Shift + S. The screen dims and a small toolbar appears at the top.
2. Choose a capture mode from the toolbar:
   • Rectangular snip — drag a box around any region.
   • Window snip — click a single window; Windows captures just that window, cleanly.
   • Full-screen snip — grabs everything on all connected displays.
   • Freeform snip — draw any shape with the mouse and capture inside it.
3. Make your selection. The image is copied to the clipboard, so you can paste it straight into an email, chat, or document with Ctrl + V.
4. A notification appears in the bottom-right corner. Click it to open the capture in the Snipping Tool, where you can crop, draw, highlight, add text, and then save with Ctrl + S.

Method 2 — Win + PrtScn (save a file instantly)

When you want a saved image without any extra clicks, this is the one.

1. Press Windows key + Print Screen. The screen dims for a moment to confirm the capture.
2. Windows saves a PNG of the whole screen to the Screenshots subfolder of Pictures, exactly as Microsoft's keyboard-shortcut reference describes it:

   This PC\Pictures\Screenshots

3. Files are numbered automatically — Screenshot (1).png, Screenshot (2).png, and so on.

On some laptops the Print Screen key is a secondary function printed on another key, so you may need Windows key + Fn + PrtScn. If you ever want to move that Screenshots folder, right-click it in File Explorer, choose Properties → Location, and point it somewhere else.

Method 3 — PrtScn on its own

Historically, pressing PrtScn by itself copied the entire screen to the clipboard with no file saved — ready to paste into an image editor. That still works on many machines.

On current Windows 11 builds, though, Microsoft changed the default so that pressing PrtScn opens the Snipping Tool overlay instead (the same one you get from Win + Shift + S) — Microsoft's own shortcut list now describes a bare PrtScn as selecting a region to capture, not copying the whole screen. That is why some people press Print Screen, see the screen dim, and think nothing happened. Which behaviour you get depends on your build and a single setting — see how to change the Print Screen key below.

Method 4 — Alt + PrtScn (just the active window)

Need one window and nothing around it — no taskbar, no desktop clutter?

1. Click the window you want so it becomes the active window.
2. Press Alt + Print Screen.
3. The active window is copied to the clipboard. Paste it into your document or an image editor with Ctrl + V.

Like plain PrtScn, this copies to the clipboard only — it does not save a file. For the same result as a saved file with mark-up options, use Window mode in Win + Shift + S instead.

Method 5 — The Snipping Tool app (delay, annotate, record)

The shortcuts above all launch from the same app, but opening the Snipping Tool directly unlocks its full toolbox — including timed captures and video recording. Open it from the Start menu (type "Snipping Tool") or pin it to your taskbar.

1. In the Snipping Tool window, choose New to start a capture, and pick a mode (rectangle, window, full-screen, or freeform) from the mode control.
2. To capture something that disappears when you click — a right-click menu, a hover tooltip, a drop-down — use the delay control (shown as a clock/timer). Pick a few seconds, start the snip, then set up the screen before the countdown fires.
3. After a capture opens in the editor, use the pen, highlighter, ruler, and text tools to annotate, then save with Ctrl + S or copy with Ctrl + C.
4. To record your screen, switch the Snipping Tool to its video/record mode (or press Windows key + Shift + R, the documented shortcut for opening the overlay to capture a video clip), drag out the area to record, and press Start. Stop when finished and save the clip.

Method 6 — Game Bar (Win + G)

The Xbox Game Bar isn't only for games. It's a quick overlay for grabbing a screenshot or recording any app window.

1. Press Windows key + G to open the Game Bar overlay.
2. In the Capture widget, click the camera icon for a still screenshot, or the record button to start a video. (You can also press Win + Alt + PrtScn for an instant Game Bar screenshot.)
3. Captures are saved to:

   This PC\Videos\Captures

Game Bar is the easiest way to record a running app or capture full-screen games where the other tools can be awkward.

Change the Print Screen key to open the Snipping Tool

If you want the standalone PrtScn key to launch the Snipping Tool overlay (instead of a silent clipboard copy), Windows 11 has a toggle for it. The exact location has shifted between builds, so if the wording differs on your PC, search Settings for "print screen".

1. Open Settings (Windows key + I).
2. Go to Accessibility → Keyboard.
3. Find the Print screen key option — usually worded something like "Use the Print screen key to open Snipping Tool" — and turn it On (or Off to restore the classic clipboard-copy behaviour).
4. The change takes effect immediately; no restart needed.

If you don't see the option there on your build, it may live under a different Settings page or be managed by the Snipping Tool itself — the underlying behaviour is the same either way.

Which method should you use?

• Just paste it into a chat or doc: Win + Shift + S, then Ctrl + V.
• Keep a file, zero fuss: Win + PrtScn → check Pictures\Screenshots.
• One exact window: Alt + PrtScn, or Window mode in Win + Shift + S.
• A menu or tooltip that keeps closing: the Snipping Tool app with a delay.
• A video or a game: Game Bar (Win + G) or Win + Shift + R.

Once Win + Shift + S and Win + PrtScn are in your muscle memory, you'll rarely need anything else. For related tips, our how-to hub and the archive cover File Explorer, performance, and more.