How to Screenshot on an iPad: Buttons, Cropping, and Full Page

To take a screenshot on an iPad without a Home button, press the top button and either volume button together, then quickly release them. On an iPad with a Home button, press and quickly release the top button and Home button together. A regular screenshot is saved in Photos. To capture video of the screen instead, see how to screen record on an iPad.

The button choice depends on the iPad’s physical controls, so you do not need to identify its exact generation first. This guide covers both layouts, with separate notes for the newer iPadOS 26/27 capture interface and the older iPadOS 18 thumbnail interface. “Print screen” means capturing an image here; it does not print a sheet of paper. To put a page on paper, see how to print a web page on iPad.

For a small “snip,” capture the screen and crop the image. For a long Safari webpage, use Full Page when available. Those are different jobs: cropping removes the edges of a capture, while Full Page includes content beyond the visible screen.

Choose the right capture

What you need	Method	Where to check
The visible screen	Top + volume, or top + Home	Photos
A small part of the screen	Capture, then crop the preview	The saved cropped picture
A long Safari webpage	Full Page, then choose the save option	Photos, or Files for a PDF
Capture without pressing two buttons	AssistiveTouch Screenshot action	The capture preview and Photos

Take a screenshot using the iPad buttons

1. Open the app or webpage and display the information you want. Scroll to the relevant part before taking an ordinary screenshot.
2. Look for a round Home button below the screen. If present, press it and the top button together. If absent, press the top button and either volume button together.
3. Quickly release both buttons. Use a brief press rather than holding them down.
4. Open the capture preview to inspect it, or check the new image in Photos. Confirm the actual picture contains the intended screen.

Apple’s iPad screenshot instructions show both button layouts. Do not choose a volume-button method merely because Touch ID is present: some iPads have Touch ID in the top button and no Home button. The visible Home button is the useful distinction.

Why the preview looks different

Newer software can open a full-screen preview immediately. Apple’s iPadOS 27 Screen Capture settings describe full-screen previews as the default. To use the smaller thumbnail instead, open Settings > General > Screen Capture and turn off Full-Screen Previews. You can turn the same switch back on later.

On the older iPadOS 18 interface, a thumbnail briefly appears in the lower-left corner. Tap it while it is visible to work on the capture; swiping it left dismisses the preview. A disappearing thumbnail does not mean that an ordinary screenshot was lost: check Photos. If your software lacks Screen Capture settings, use the preview behavior it provides.

Crop a screenshot to make a smaller snip

1. Take a screenshot and open its preview. If you use the thumbnail interface, tap the thumbnail promptly.
2. Drag the crop handles around the image inward until only the needed area remains. Keep complete words and controls inside the selected rectangle.
3. Inspect the result. For example, keep the full error message while removing unrelated app content around it.
4. Use the displayed save control to finish. In an interface with a Done menu, select the Photos save option. Open the saved image to confirm the crop.

Apple’s current screenshot guide documents cropping and sharing from the preview. A screenshot captures the display first; cropping afterward gives you a smaller picture without installing a separate snipping app. Save the image before assuming that closing an editing screen completed the change.

Add text or an arrow before sharing

Tap Markup or its pen-tip icon in the preview. For a typed label, use the Add (+) control, select Add Text, tap the text box and type. For an arrow or another shape, use Add Shape, select it, then drag it into position. Drag its outline handles to resize it.

These controls are described in Apple’s Markup text and shape instructions. A short label such as “tap here” beside the relevant control is often clearer than covering it with several marks. Use the Share button to choose a destination, and inspect the finished attachment so the recipient gets the intended image.

Capture a full Safari webpage and save a PDF

1. Open the page in Safari and take a screenshot.
2. Open the screenshot preview and select Full Page, if that option is available. Inspect the longer page preview before saving.
3. In the iPadOS 26/18 interface, tap Done, then Save PDF to Files when you want a PDF. Choose a folder and tap Save. Use Save to Photos if you want the available image option instead.
4. Open Files and return to the folder you chose for the PDF. Open the file and check the content beyond the first screen.

Apple’s iPadOS 26 Full Page instructions give these save options. Newer preview layouts can present save controls differently; select the offered Files/PDF option rather than assuming every Done menu is identical. Full Page is available for supported content such as Safari webpages, not every scrolling app.

A full-page PDF saved in Files will not appear as an ordinary screenshot in Photos. If you cannot find the folder, our guide to locating files on an iPad explains Files locations and search. The screenshot PDF goes wherever you selected; it does not have to be in Downloads.

Take a screenshot without the hardware buttons

1. Open Settings > Accessibility > Touch > AssistiveTouch and turn on AssistiveTouch.
2. Choose Customize Top Level Menu. Select a menu icon and change its action to Screenshot. Remember which existing action you replaced.
3. Return to the screen you want to capture. Tap the floating AssistiveTouch button, then your Screenshot action.
4. Check the resulting capture. When finished, you can turn AssistiveTouch off using the same settings switch. The same method works on a phone, as shown in our guide to taking a screenshot on an iPhone without the power button.

Apple documents this configurable menu in Use AssistiveTouch on iPad. Adding Screenshot to the menu avoids relying on a particular default submenu arrangement. You can also assign supported custom tap actions in those settings if you prefer a shortcut.

Apple Pencil and external keyboard alternatives

On a compatible iPad with Apple Pencil, Apple documents swiping the Pencil up from a bottom corner to capture and mark up the screen. See take and mark up a screenshot with Apple Pencil. If that gesture does not produce a screenshot on your setup, the hardware-button or AssistiveTouch method above remains an alternative.

With an external keyboard connected, Command + Shift + 3 takes a screenshot. Command + Shift + 4 takes one and immediately opens Markup for viewing or editing. Apple lists both in iPad keyboard shortcuts. These are iPad shortcuts; do not expect the Mac’s area-selection behavior from the second combination.

Find a saved screenshot or fix a failed capture

Find the image: in the newer Photos layout, open Collections > Media Types > Screenshots. On the iPadOS 18 layout, look for Screenshots under Media Types in the Photos sidebar. Check Files instead if you deliberately saved a full-page PDF there.

The iPad locks, changes volume, or opens another control: check the two-button choice, press the buttons together and release promptly. A long hold is not the screenshot action. If simultaneous presses are difficult or a button is damaged, try AssistiveTouch.

No Full Page option: first try an actual webpage in Safari. A regular screenshot can still capture what is visible, but it cannot include the rest of a long page by itself. If the option remains absent, save the visible section or use the app’s own document export when it offers one.

Before sending any capture, open the exact image or PDF you plan to share. Check that the needed text is legible and that you have not included unrelated messages or account details. That final check confirms both the capture and the save destination, which matters more than whether you heard a shutter sound.