There are several methods to take a screenshot on Windows OS. Using the PrtScn key is the easiest among them. It just copies an image of the current screen to the clipboard, which you can paste it in an image editor such as Photoshop or simply in Microsoft Paint in order to get the output by saving it. But there are more ways to take screenshots in windows, these are some of them.
1. Screenshot of the entire Windows screen
If you ever wanted to capture the full screen of your PC, it is extremely easy to do so.
- Setup the screen or navigate to where you wanted to get a screenshot.
- Just press PrtScn (Print Screen) key on your keyboard.
- Now, open an image editing program such as Photoshop or Paint. Paint will be available in almost all of the Windows versions.
- After opening the application, just press Ctrl + V for pasting the screenshot.
- Then save it to any location as you usually do.
To save the screenshot without having to paste it into an extra program, just use the Win + PrtScn buttons. The screenshot will be automatically saved to the Documents > Pictures > Screenshots folder. This will work on almost any Windows versions including Windows 7, 8, 8.1, and 10.
2. How to capture a Window
There may be situations where you just need the image of a single opened window instead of the entire screen. To do this, follow these steps.
- Open the window that you want to take a screenshot of.
- Hold down Alt + PrtScn.
- Now, the image of the Window will be copied to the clipboard.
- As you’ve seen in the previous method, just open an image editor program and paste it there, then take the output by saving it in your desired format.
3. Print screen using Snipping Tool
There is a built-in screenshot software coming with the Windows Vista, 7, 8 and 10 versions. The snipping tool allows taking screenshots in a much easier and convenient way. To have a picture of the monitor using the snipping tool, follow these steps.
- Go to start and type “Snipping Tool” and you will find the program. Click on it.
- Now, select the snipping mode by clicking on the arrow next to the “New” button.
- Also be sure to adjust the snipping settings by going to the “Options” menu.
- After configuring all the settings, click on the New button.
- Now, select the area for the screenshot either by dragging the mouse. (The full-screen snip will be automatically created without needing to select the portion.)
- The snipping tool will bring a new window where you can make changes to the screenshot. Make necessary changes if any.
- Save the screenshot by clicking on the floppy icon on the window.
That’s it, now you have a screenshot of the area that you’ve selected.
4. Capture screen using browser extensions
There are numerous Chrome and Firefox extensions available that helps to take screenshots right from your browser. These types of extensions are useful for those who often need to take screenshots of webpages or the selected area in websites. Below are some of the best browser extensions to take a screenshot.
Chrome
- Full Page Screen Capture
- Awesome Screenshot
- Take Webpage Screenshots Entirely
- Lightshot
- Nimbus Screenshot and Screencast
Firefox
All of them has almost same procedure for printing the browser screen. You just have to click on the extension icon, and it will display a bunch of options for you.
5. Use third-party software
You could also utilize external software for taking screenshots in Windows. We will explain how to use them in the coming articles. So stay tuned to our website.
6. Use Windows Game Bar
Windows comes with a feature known as the Windows Game Bar. Its primary focus is to provide the ability to screenshot or record games, but can also be used for simple screenshot purposes. This is how to take a screenshot using the Windows Game Bar.
- Press Windows + G keys to open the Game Bar. You will see several windows opened up.
- In the Broadcast & capture window, simply press the Camera icon.
- It will save your screenshot to the location “C:\Users\[Username]\Videos\Captures.“
7. Screenshot using Surface Pen
If you are using the Microsoft Surface tablet with the help of a Surface Pen, you can simply Double Press the Back Button to take a screenshot of your current screen.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here we listed some of the most asked queries related to the topic. It will help you to solve your doubts if you have any of those questions too.
1. Steps to take screenshot on Windows 10/7/8
The steps are no different in any of the windows versions, including the Windows 10, 8, and 7. All the methods can be used in any of the Windows versions except XP, and Starter versions.
2. How to screenshot on Dell/HP laptop?
The computer or laptop brand doesn’t alter the steps. It is mostly based on which operating system the device is running on (unless there are some dedicated shortcuts provided by the manufacturer). It will work on any of the PCs of Sony, Dell, HP, Lenovo, Asus, Toshiba, etc.
3. Where are my screenshots located
If you’ve used the normal PrtScn button and saved using an editor, the screenshot will be saved to the selected location. If you’ve used the Win + PrtScn keys, the screenshots will be saved to the “Screenshots” folder in “Pictures” folder on “Library.” If you used any third-party applications, you might want to take a look at their save locations.
4. Print screen not working Windows 10
There are no known reasons for this problem. It might be due to issues with the operating systems files or to the keyboard itself. Just try disconnecting and reconnecting your keyboard or restarting the PC or laptop. It may solve the problem. If your keys are not working, you may either use software for the purpose or can use the virtual keyboard available on Windows.
5. Home and Prt Sc buttons are the same, what to do?
In some laptops or keyboards, you might have the same button for both “Home” and “Prt Sc.” In this case, you have to take a screenshot without PrintScreen button right? Just using the Win + PrtScn buttons will do the job in most of the cases. If it is not working, go for the snipping tool or screen capture software.
6. Is the method for taking screenshots on PC and mac the same?
A PC is usually referred to as a computer which runs on the Microsoft Windows OS. Even though generally it can be any computer running any OS. Any of the above-mentioned methods will flawlessly work on any PCs, but they will not on a different operating system. If you own a mac, here is how to take a screenshot on Mac.
7. Is Windows Game Bar available in Xbox?
There is an alternative for the Windows Game Bar on Xbox. If you want to know more about it, here is our article on taking a screenshot on Xbox, where we listed several methods in detail.