How to: Capture a screenshot in Windows 10 using the Snipping Tool


Introduction

Use the steps below to take a screenshot in Windows 10.

TIP: You can take a screenshot of User Account Control using some workarounds.

Instructions

TIP: Alternatively, you can press the key combination Windows key (Windows key)+Shift+S. This will copy the image to the clipboard to be pasted into another application.

1) Click your Start button.

2) In the search box, type Snipping Tool, but do not press Enter. In the list of search results, click Snipping Tool to open it.

example screenshot

3) Next to "New", click the drop-down arrow.

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4) Choose a desired snip type. The options are:

  • Free-form Snip: Draw a free-form shape around an object.
  • Rectangular Snip: Drag the cursor around an object to form a rectangle.
  • Window Snip: Choose a window, such as a dialog box, that you want to capture.
  • Full-screen Snip: Capture the entire screen.

example screenshot

TIP: You can use the "Delay" setting to choose how long of a delay that you wish to have before the screenshot is captured.

5) Click the New button to capture the screenshot.

  • If you chose "Full screen mode", the screenshot is captured immediately. Skip ahead to step 6.
  • If you chose "Rectangle mode" or "Free-form mode", use your mouse to draw the area on the screen that you wish to capture. When you release the mouse button, the screenshot is captured and you may proceed to the next step.
  • If you chose "Window mode", click the window that you wish to capture.

6) If desired, you may use the tools available to mark up the screenshot, crop it, and so forth.

7) After making the appropriate changes to your screenshot, click the save icon.

TIP: Instead of saving the screenshot, you may use the "Copy" button next to "Save as". The "Copy" button copies the screenshot to your clipboard so that you may paste it into another area on your computer.

example screenshot

Outcome

You have taken a screenshot using the Snipping Tool on your computer.