Whether you need it for work or capturing your favourite gaming worlds and moments, knowing how to take a screenshot on a PC is an extremely useful trick.
Snipping Tool
With the Snipping Tool, you can quickly and easily take a screenshot of your PC screen. To open the tool, you can either search for it in Start or press the Windows Logo Key + Shift + S.
With the Snipping Tool, you can take either a:
- Free-form snip: draw a free-form shape
- Rectangular snip: drag the cursor to form a rectangle over what you want to capture
- Windows snip: select the window you want to screenshot
- Full-Screen snip: take a snapshot of your entire PC screen
When you’ve taken your screenshot, it is automatically saved to the Snipping Tool window where you can choose to make changes and save your snapshot.
Print Screen
In both Windows 10 and 11, you can use the Print Screen (PrtScn) key to take a screenshot of your entire screen. To do this, all you need to do is press the PrtScn key.
In Windows 10, your screenshot is automatically copied to your clipboard. To save it on your PC, you will need to paste it into a program where you can insert images, such as Paint or Microsoft Word. Whereas, in Windows 11, your screenshot will be saved to your PC’s ‘Screenshots’ folder. To find this, all you need to do is open File Explorer > Pictures.
Built-in Game Bar
The Game Bar is a built-in Windows feature that you can use to capture and record videos, along with taking a screenshot. To open the Game Bar, you can search for it in Start or press the Windows Logo Key + G.
To take a screenshot, all you need to do is press the camera icon on the overlay menu. To record a video, you will need to press the record button. All of the screenshots and clips are saved in the Videos > Capture folder.
Capture Cards
If you are looking to record videos or live stream your gameplay, then an easy way to do this is with a capture card. Especially, if you are planning to record footage from a console as well. A capture card will record your screen in up to 4K HDR resolution, along with crystal-clear audio.
Elgato Game Capture 4K60 Pro 4K Capture Card:
- Capture card
- Records in 4K HDR
- Supports 60 FPS
- Compatible with Sreamlabs OBS, OBS, and XSplit
Streamplify CAPTURE 4K USB Capture Card:
- Capture card
- Supports 4K resolutions
- Compatible with 60 FPS
- Can be used with popular software such as OBS, Twitch, and YouTube
Learn More About Your PC Hardware
How Do You Take a Screenshot in Windows?
Do you have any quick tips? Leave them in the comments below.
- 3 min read
Ruth Rowley
Author
Ruth has been with Overclockers UK for over a year and has gone on to write about everything ranging from in-depth hardware guides to monthly game releases.
Outside of writing blog posts, she can be found wrapped in a blanket with her black cat, engrossed in a book or playing life-simulation games such as The Sims, Stardew Valley, and Animal Crossing.
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