Screen capture on a Windows PC

Short answer: On a Windows desktop, bind one hotkey for region capture and one for active-monitor capture. Windows + Shift + S covers the first; ShareX or PicPick can bind the second, which matters on multi-monitor setups.

Last verified: 2026-08-01

Multi-monitor and high-DPI considerations

  • Mixed-DPI setups can produce blurry captures; set capture software to be DPI aware in its settings.
  • A 4K capture pasted into a document may appear oversized — capture the window, not the screen.
  • Give each monitor a predictable hotkey rather than dragging a region every time.

Where Windows saves your screenshots

  • Windows + Print Screen saves PNG files to This PC \ Pictures \ Screenshots.
  • Windows + Alt + Print Screen saves to This PC \ Videos \ Captures via Xbox Game Bar.
  • Windows + Shift + S copies to the clipboard first; the file only exists once you save it from the Snipping Tool editor.
  • Print Screen and Alt + Print Screen copy to the clipboard only — paste into an editor or document with Ctrl + V.

You can move the Screenshots folder: right-click it, open Properties, then the Location tab, and choose a new path.

Recommended Windows software

ShareX

ShareX Team

Free

Free, open-source Windows screenshot and screen capture software with scrolling capture, OCR, screen recording and scriptable after-capture workflows.

  • Screenshot
  • Region capture
  • Window capture
  • Full screen capture
  • Scrolling capture
Windows 10: Yes · Windows 11: YesView software

PicPick

NGWIN

Freemium

Windows screenshot software combining region, window and scrolling capture with an image editor, colour picker, ruler, protractor and whiteboard.

  • Screenshot
  • Region capture
  • Window capture
  • Full screen capture
  • Scrolling capture
Windows 10: Yes · Windows 11: YesView software

Snagit

TechSmith

Paid

Commercial Windows screenshot and screen capture software with scrolling capture, a polished annotation editor, templates, OCR and screen recording.

  • Screenshot
  • Region capture
  • Window capture
  • Full screen capture
  • Scrolling capture
Windows 10: Yes · Windows 11: YesView software

OBS Studio

OBS Project

Free

Free, open-source Windows screen recording and streaming software with scenes, sources and a screenshot output for the current frame.

  • Screen recording
  • Full screen capture
  • Window capture
  • Screenshot
Windows 10: Yes · Windows 11: YesView software

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