How to Take a Screenshot in Windows 10 [Easy Ways]

Sometimes, we are urged to capture and save whatever is running on the computer screen. And for that, we want to take a screenshot of a specific window or the entire screen.

If you’re using Windows 10, the good news is that you don’t even need to think of any tricks or special software to take a screenshot.

Windows 10 allows you to take a screenshot image of your screen and save it for future reference or sharing with just a few simple key presses or clicks.

Now, if you’re a newbie who’s unfamiliar with snapshotting in Windows 10, stick with this step-by-step guide as I will walk you through all of the easiest ways to take a screenshot of all, or part, of your screen in Windows 10.

1. Use the Print Screen key

First and foremost, the old-school method to take a screenshot in Windows 10 is the ‘Print Screen’ key function. With just a single pressing of the key on your keyboard, you can instantly take a screenshot of your entire screen and copy it to the clipboard.

To take a screenshot of the entire screen on Windows 10 using the Print Screen key, follow the steps below:

Step 1. Open the screen you want to capture.

Step 2. Press the “Print Screen” (PrtSc, PrtScn, or PrntScrn) key on your keyboard. This will copy the entire screen to the clipboard.

Step 3. Open an image editing software like Microsoft Paint, Paint 3D, or Photoshop.

Step 4. Press “Ctrl+V” or right-click and select “Paste” to paste the screenshot into the image editor.

Step 5. Finally, save the image file by going to “File > Save As” and choosing a location and file name.

2. Press Windows + Print Screen

If you want to take a screenshot and instantly save it to a folder in Microsoft Windows 10, the classic ‘Windows + Print Screen’ keyboard shortcut can do the job for you.

To capture a screenshot and save it directly in a folder in Windows 10, follow the steps below:

Step 1: Make sure the screen you want to capture is visible and ready.

Step 2: Press and hold the “Windows” key and then press the “Print Screen” key which is labeled as ‘PrtScn’ or ‘Print Scrn’. It’s usually located in the top row, to the right of the function keys (F1, F2, etc.), or within the numeric keypad area.

Step 3: This will automatically save the screenshot in your “Pictures” folder, inside a subfolder named “Screenshots“.

You can access this folder by opening File Explorer, navigating to “Pictures”, and then selecting the “Screenshots” folder.

3. Press Alt + Print Screen

Another easy way to capture a screenshot in Windows 10 is by using the Alt key and Print Screen key simultaneously. These shortcut keys take a screenshot of your current active window and copy it to the clipboard.

To take a screenshot of an application or window you’ve opened, follow these steps:

Step 1. Open the window or program you want to capture.

Step 2. Make sure the window is the currently active window by clicking on it.

Step 3. Press the “Alt + Print Screen” keys on your keyboard simultaneously. This will capture an image of the currently active window and copy it to the clipboard.

Step 4. Open any image editing program such as Microsoft Paint, Paint 3D, Photoshop, etc.

Step 5. Press “Ctrl + V” or right-click and select “Paste” to paste the screenshot into the image editor. Once pasted, simply make changes (if needed) and save it.

4. Use the Snipping Tool

The next simple way to take a custom screenshot is using the Snipping Tool, a built-in feature, that comes in Windows 10. Using the Snipping Tool, you can take a screenshot of any specific part or whole of the screen.

Follow these steps to take a custom screenshot or capture a part of the screen in Windows 10:

1. Open Snipping Tool. It’s under the Start menu > All programs > Accessories. You can the search box to find it.
2. Now click the down arrow next to New.
3. Select Rectangular Snip or Free-form Snip. The former lets you capture a rectangular screenshot and the latter lets you draw any shape on the screen and takes a screenshot of that part.
4. Once you’ve done that, you can use the Snipping tool to annotate the screenshot if needed and save it to your PC.

How to take a screenshot via the Game Bar in Windows 10

Gamebar is another best way to take a screenshot in Windows 10, it is a pre-installed feature of Windows 10 that works great in terms of taking a screenshot or recording a screen.

To take a screenshot in Windows 10 via Gamebar Mode, just follow these steps:

1. On your Windows 10 PC, press Windows key + G.
2. Click the Camera button to take a screenshot. Once you open the game bar, you can also do this via Windows + Alt + Print Screen. You’ll see a notification that describes where the screenshot is saved.

That’s how to take screenshots on Windows. These are simple methods that let you capture the screen easily, so hopefully, these helped you as well.

Chandramohan Rajput

Chandramohan is a tech geek who enjoys writing about the Internet of Things, social media, and emerging technologies. He is an MCA student at GG University in Chhattisgarh with a strong foundation in computer science.