How to Use Snipping Tool on Windows 11

The quickest way to use Snipping Tool in Windows 11 is to press Windows + Shift + S, drag over the area you want, and paste the screenshot or click the preview to edit and save it. Open the full app from Start when you want a delay timer, markup tools, Text actions, or screen recording.

These steps cover the Snipping Tool app built into current Windows 11 releases, including version 26H2 (September 2026), and follow Microsoft’s Snipping Tool guide. If a button described here is missing, update Snipping Tool from the Microsoft Store.

Snipping Tool is built into every edition of Windows 11, including Home and Pro, so there’s nothing to download and no account to sign in to. This guide starts with every way to open it, then walks through capturing, editing, saving, and recording.

Every Way to Open Snipping Tool

Method	What opens
Windows key + Shift + S	The screenshot bar
Windows key + Shift + R	The screen-recording bar
Print Screen (PrtSc) key	The screenshot bar, when the keyboard setting below is on
Start, then type Snipping Tool	The full app
Start, then All, then the letter S	The full app
Windows key + R, then type snippingtool	The full app
Command Prompt, PowerShell, or Terminal: snippingtool	The full app
Taskbar icon or desktop shortcut	The full app

The shortcuts and the full app do different jobs. The screenshot bar is a thin strip of buttons across the top of a dimmed screen. It’s the fastest way to grab part of the screen, and the capture goes straight to the clipboard. The full app is a regular window with a New button, a Delay timer, a Record option, and the settings. Open the full app when you need to capture a menu that closes as soon as you click, change where screenshots are saved, or record with a microphone. For a quick capture you plan to paste into an email or chat, the shortcut is all you need.

How to Use Snipping Tool in Windows 11

Open Snipping Tool, choose a capture mode, select what you want to capture, and then edit, copy, save, or share it. To drop a copied capture into a document, here’s how to copy and paste on Windows 11.

Step 1: Open Snipping Tool

Open Start, type Snipping Tool, and select the app.

If you only need a quick screenshot, press Windows + Shift + S. That opens the capture bar right away without the full app window. The Run box, the All apps list, and a taskbar pin also work; those are covered under More Ways to Open Snipping Tool below.

Step 2: Choose a Snipping Mode

Open the Snipping Mode menu and pick one of the four image modes:

• Rectangle: drag a box around the area you want.
• Window: capture one open app or dialog box.
• Full screen: capture everything on the screen.
• Freeform: draw any shape around the area you want.

Step 3: Select New and Capture the Screen

Select New. With Rectangle and Freeform, click and drag over the screen. With Window, click the window you want. Full screen captures the display as soon as you pick it.

If you started with Windows + Shift + S, choose a mode from the small bar at the top of the screen and make your selection. The capture opens in the Snipping Tool window, ready to edit.

Step 4: Edit or Mark Up the Screenshot

Use the toolbar above the capture:

• Pen and Highlighter draw on the image. Select either one again to change its color and size.
• Shapes adds arrows, lines, rectangles, ovals or emoji.
• Eraser removes marks you added.
• Image crop trims the edges.
• Undo and Redo step back and forward through your changes.

For resizing or rotating, select Edit, then Edit with Paint.

Select Text actions to recognize the text in the screenshot. Then choose Copy all text to paste it somewhere else instead of typing it.

Smarter Capture Features

Microsoft’s Snipping Tool overview lists a few extras worth knowing:

• Quick redact: after selecting Text actions, choose Quick redact to black out detected email addresses and phone numbers before you share. Microsoft says text recognition runs locally on your PC.
• QR codes: if a screenshot contains a QR code, Snipping Tool can recognize it and offer to open the link.
• Perfect screenshot: tightens the capture area around the main content so you crop less. Copilot+ PCs only.
• Color picker: copies the color value of anything on screen. Also Copilot+ PCs only.

Step 5: Save, Copy, or Share the Screenshot

Snipping Tool saves captures automatically to Pictures > Screenshots. To keep another copy with a name and folder you choose, select Save as or press Ctrl + S. Press Ctrl + C to copy the snip, or select See more (the three dots), then Share to send it through another app.

To change automatic saving or the Screenshots folder, select See more, then Settings. To print a capture, right-click the saved file in File Explorer and select Print.

Building a presentation? You can also insert a screenshot directly in PowerPoint without opening Snipping Tool.

More Ways to Open Snipping Tool

From the Run Box or Command Line

1. Press Windows key + R. The Run box opens in the lower-left corner.
2. Type snippingtool.
3. Press Enter. The full app opens.

The same command works if you type snippingtool in Command Prompt, PowerShell, or Windows Terminal and press Enter. That’s handy if you already have a terminal open, or you want to start Snipping Tool from a script.

From the All Apps List

If search isn’t working, you can still find the app by name.

1. Select Start.
2. Select All (called All apps on some versions) to see every installed app.
3. Scroll to the apps that start with S and select Snipping Tool.

Pin It to the Taskbar or Desktop

1. Select Start and type Snipping Tool.
2. Right-click Snipping Tool in the results.
3. Select Pin to taskbar or Pin to Start. The icon now stays on the taskbar or Start menu.

Once it’s pinned, you can also press the Windows key plus the number of its position on the taskbar. For example, if it’s the third pinned icon, press Windows key + 3. Here’s more on pinning apps to the taskbar.

For a desktop icon instead, open Start > All, then drag Snipping Tool from the list onto an empty part of the desktop. Windows creates a shortcut, and double-clicking it opens the app.

How to Use Windows + Shift + S

1. Press Windows key + Shift + S. The screen dims and a small toolbar appears at the top.

2. Pick Rectangle, Window, Full screen, or Freeform.
3. Select the part of the screen you want to capture. A preview pops up in the lower-right corner.
4. Select that notification to open the screenshot in Snipping Tool for markup, or paste it with Ctrl + V.

On current Windows 11 versions, the Print Screen key opens the same capture bar by default. Windows + Print Screen skips the bar and saves the whole screen to Pictures > Screenshots.

To get back a capture you copied a few minutes ago, view your clipboard history with Windows key + V. Screenshots are kept there too, so clear the clipboard in Windows 11 if a capture shows private information. Press Esc to close the capture bar without taking anything.

How to Take a Delayed Screenshot

A delay helps when you need to capture a menu, tooltip, or other item that closes when you click somewhere else.

1. Open Snipping Tool.
2. Select the Delay control (the clock icon).
3. Choose a delay, such as 5 seconds.

4. Select your snipping mode and choose New.
5. Open the menu or item you want before the countdown ends. The screen freezes so you can make the capture.

How to Record the Screen with Snipping Tool

Snipping Tool also records video in Windows 11. Open the app and switch to Record, then select New, or press Windows + Shift + R to open the video capture bar.

1. Drag over the part of the screen you want to record.
2. Turn on the microphone button to add a voiceover, or the system audio button to include sound from your PC.
3. Select Start.

4. Select Stop when you’re finished.

The recording opens in Snipping Tool and is saved automatically as an MP4 file in Videos > Screen Recordings. Microsoft added the audio options in a 2023 app update, as announced on the Windows Insider blog.

To trim the clip or add captions, select Edit in Clipchamp, open the Captions tab, and select Transcribe media. For more recording options, including Game Bar, here’s how to screen record in Windows 11.

Useful Snipping Tool Keyboard Shortcuts

• Windows + Shift + S: open the screenshot capture bar. For shortcuts that skip Snipping Tool, such as Windows + Print Screen, here’s how to take a screenshot on Windows 11.
• Windows + Shift + R: open the video capture bar.
• Alt + M: choose a snipping mode while using the app.
• Shift + arrow keys: move between snip types.
• Alt + N: create a new snip in the last mode you used.
• Alt + D: delay the capture by 1 to 5 seconds.
• Ctrl + C: copy the current snip.
• Ctrl + S: save the current snip.

Turn the Print Screen Key On or Off for Snipping Tool

On current versions of Windows 11, pressing Print Screen opens the Snipping Tool capture bar. If it only copies the whole screen, or you want the old behavior back, change this setting:

1. Open Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Keyboard.
2. Turn Use the Print screen key to open screen capture on or off.

On some older versions, the switch is under Settings > Accessibility > Keyboard and is labeled Use the Print Screen button to open screen snipping, according to Microsoft’s keyboard shortcut list. If you don’t see it in either place, search Settings for Print Screen.

If another app, such as OneDrive or a third-party screenshot tool, has taken over the Print Screen key, turn that off in the other app’s settings, then close and reopen that app or restart the PC. With the switch off, Print Screen copies the whole screen to the clipboard without opening anything. Windows + Print Screen still saves the entire screen to Pictures > Screenshots, and Alt + Print Screen copies only the active window. On many laptops you may need to hold Fn as well.

What to Do If Snipping Tool Is Not Working

If Snipping Tool won’t open, the shortcut stops responding, or captures fail to save, work through these steps in order:

1. Try both Start search and Windows key + Shift + S to see whether it’s the app or just the shortcut.
2. Restart the PC.
3. Check for updates in Windows Update and in the Microsoft Store under Library.
4. If the shortcut captures but no preview appears, go to Settings > System > Notifications and make sure notifications for Snipping Tool are on.

5. Go to Settings > Apps > Installed apps, select the three dots next to Snipping Tool, and choose Advanced options.
6. Select Repair. If that doesn’t help, select Reset. Reset clears the app’s own data and preferences, but screenshots already saved in your Pictures folder stay where they are.

7. If Snipping Tool is missing entirely, search for Snipping Tool in the Microsoft Store and select Get or Install.

Microsoft’s guide to repairing apps in Windows notes that some apps don’t show Advanced options; if yours doesn’t, skip to the reinstall step. On a work or school PC, an administrator may have blocked the app or the Microsoft Store, so ask your IT team.

If the problem continues, work through a fuller sequence of fixes to fix Snipping Tool in Windows 11.

Take a Screenshot of Only One Monitor

With more than one display, Full screen mode captures every monitor at once. To capture only one, open Snipping Tool, choose Rectangle, select New, and drag from one corner of that monitor to the opposite corner. Then press Ctrl + S to save the image.

Frequently Asked Questions