How to Take a Screenshot in Chrome (2025)

Chrome doesn’t have a visible screenshot button like some browsers, but there are several ways to capture what’s on your screen. Here are the best methods, from quickest to most flexible.

Method 1: Using Chrome DevTools (Built-in)

Chrome has a hidden screenshot feature in its Developer Tools:

1. Open DevTools with Ctrl+Shift+I (Windows/Linux) or Cmd+Option+I (Mac)
2. Press Ctrl+Shift+P (or Cmd+Shift+P on Mac) to open the command palette
3. Type “screenshot” and choose from:
   • Capture screenshot - captures the visible viewport
   • Capture full size screenshot - captures the entire page
   • Capture node screenshot - captures a selected element
   • Capture area screenshot - lets you draw a selection

The screenshot is automatically downloaded to your Downloads folder.

Pros and cons

Pros: No extension needed, captures full pages, can target specific elements

Cons: Requires multiple steps, no styling options, raw output needs editing for sharing

Method 2: Using a Screenshot Extension

Extensions like Pluck, Awesome Screenshot, or Lightshot add screenshot functionality directly to Chrome.

With Pluck, the process is simple:

1. Click the Pluck icon or press Ctrl+Shift+E
2. Click any element on the page
3. Adjust padding and background color
4. Copy to clipboard or download

Unlike raw screenshots, Pluck adds professional styling automatically - padding, backgrounds, and proper sizing for social media.

Method 3: Operating System Shortcuts

You can also use your OS’s built-in screenshot tools:

Windows:

• Win+Shift+S - Opens Snipping Tool, select an area
• PrtScn - Captures entire screen to clipboard

Mac:

• Cmd+Shift+4 - Select an area to capture
• Cmd+Shift+3 - Capture entire screen

Linux:

• PrtScn or use your desktop’s screenshot tool

Limitation

OS screenshots capture exactly what’s visible - you’ll need to crop manually and won’t capture content below the fold.

Method 4: Third-Party Tools

Tools like Snagit, ShareX (Windows), or CleanShot (Mac) offer advanced screenshot features including scrolling capture, annotations, and cloud upload.

These are great for power users but come with a learning curve and often a price tag.

Which method should you use?

Use case	Best method
Quick screenshot for notes	OS shortcut (Win+Shift+S)
Full page capture	DevTools or extension
Beautiful, shareable screenshots	Pluck
Annotated screenshots	Snagit or ShareX
Element-specific capture	Pluck or DevTools

For most people sharing screenshots on social media, in documentation, or for marketing, an extension like Pluck saves significant time by eliminating the crop-edit-style workflow.