Snipping Tool for Mac: how to snip on a MacBook
There is no app called Snipping Tool on a Mac, but macOS has the same features built in. Press Cmd + Shift + 4 and drag to snip part of the screen, or Cmd + Shift + 5 for window, full screen, timer and recording options. There is nothing to download.
The Mac equivalent of each Snipping Tool mode
Snipping Tool is a Windows app made by Microsoft, and there is no official Mac version. Apple's Screenshot tool does the same jobs with keyboard shortcuts. Here is how each Windows habit maps across.
- Rectangle snip: Cmd + Shift + 4, then drag.
- Window snip: Cmd + Shift + 4, press Space, then click the window.
- Full-screen snip: Cmd + Shift + 3.
- Win + Shift + S (snip to the clipboard): Cmd + Control + Shift + 4.
- Delayed snip: Cmd + Shift + 5, then Options, then a 5 or 10 second Timer.
- Screen recording: Cmd + Shift + 5, then Record Entire Screen or Record Selected Portion.
- Freeform snip: there is no freeform capture. Take a rectangle, open it in Preview and use the Lasso Selection tool to cut out a shape.
How to snip on a Mac
- Press Cmd + Shift + 4. The pointer turns into a crosshair.
- Drag across the part of the screen you want. Hold Space while dragging to move the selection.
- Let go to take the snip. Press Esc first if you want to cancel.
- A thumbnail appears at the bottom right. Click it to mark it up, or leave it and the file saves to your desktop as a PNG.
How to snip a window or menu on a MacBook
To snip a menu together with its title in the menu bar, open the menu, press Cmd + Shift + 4 and drag around both. A window snip is saved at full resolution, so on a Retina display the image is twice the size it looks on screen. Open it in Preview and use Tools, then Adjust Size, if you need it smaller for an email or a web form.
- Open the window or menu you want to capture.
- Press Cmd + Shift + 4, then press Space. The pointer becomes a camera icon.
- Hover over the window so it turns blue, then click. Hold Option as you click if you want the snip without the shadow.
Use the Screenshot toolbar like the Snipping Tool window
If you prefer buttons to shortcuts, press Cmd + Shift + 5. A toolbar appears with buttons to capture the entire screen, a selected window or a selected portion, and to record the screen. It is the closest thing to the Snipping Tool window on a Mac.
Click Options to set where snips are saved (Desktop, Documents, Clipboard, Mail, Messages, Preview or another folder), add a timer, hide or show the floating thumbnail, and include the mouse pointer. The app itself is called Screenshot and lives in Applications, then Utilities, so you can keep it in the Dock.
Edit a snip with Markup and Preview
Snipping Tool opens an editor after each snip. On a Mac, click the floating thumbnail to open Markup. You can crop, rotate, draw, add arrows and other shapes, type text and add a signature. Click Done to save, or the share button to send it.
Preview offers more: resize the image, adjust colour, or use File, then Export to save it as JPEG, HEIC or PDF. Neither Markup nor Preview has a blur tool, so to hide a name or email address you cover it with a filled shape.
Snip to the clipboard on a Mac
Many people use Win + Shift + S on Windows because the snip goes straight to the clipboard, ready to paste. On a Mac, add Control to the shortcut: Cmd + Control + Shift + 4 for an area or window, or Cmd + Control + Shift + 3 for the whole screen. Then press Cmd + V to paste into a chat, email or document. No file is saved.
Do you need to download a snipping tool for Mac?
For everyday snips, no. The built-in tool covers areas, windows, the full screen, timers and recording, and it is free. Be wary of downloads named Snipping Tool for Mac on unfamiliar sites. They are not from Microsoft, and it is safer to get extra apps from the Mac App Store or developers you know.
Where the built-in tool falls short is long web pages, because it cannot scroll. For those, the free NeoReader Full Page Screenshot extension for Chrome, Edge and Firefox captures the entire scrolling page, the visible part or a dragged area. Its editor can crop, draw, add text and blur private details, then save PNG, JPG or PDF or copy to the clipboard, with no account.
Two free web tools help after you snip: Screenshot to PDF joins several snips into one PDF, and Screenshot to Text copies the typed text out of a snip. Both run in your browser, and we don't store the images.
