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how to print screen on mac

To print screen on a Mac, you first take a screenshot, then (optionally) send it to a printer using Preview or another app.

Quick Scoop

Here’s the fast version you’d see in a forum answer:

On a Mac there’s no “Print Screen” key.
You use keyboard shortcuts to take a screenshot , then open it and print.

Most-used shortcuts

  • Capture entire screen to a file:
    • Press Shift + Command (⌘) + 3.
* A thumbnail may appear at the bottom corner; wait or click it to edit.
  • Capture a selected area:
    • Press Shift + Command (⌘) + 4.
* Drag the crosshair to select the area, release the mouse to capture.
  • Capture a specific window:
    • Press Shift + Command (⌘) + 4, release, then tap the Space bar.
* Cursor becomes a camera; click the window you want.
  • Screenshot options panel (more like Windows tools):
    • Press Shift + Command (⌘) + 5.
* A toolbar appears to capture entire screen, a window, a portion, or record video.
  • Copy screenshot straight to clipboard (for chat, docs, etc.):
    • Entire screen to clipboard: Control + Shift + Command (⌘) + 3.
* Selection to clipboard: `Control + Shift + Command (⌘) + 4`.

* Then paste with `Command (⌘) + V` into chat, email, or document.

How to “Print Screen” and Actually Print

Once you’ve taken the screenshot, you can print it just like a photo or PDF.

Step-by-step (example: full-screen screenshot)

  1. Take the screenshot
    • Press Shift + Command (⌘) + 3.
 * By default, macOS saves it on the Desktop as “Screenshot [date] at [time].png”.
  1. Open the screenshot in Preview
    • Double-click the screenshot file; it will usually open in Preview by default.
  1. Print from Preview
    • In the menu bar, go to File > Print or press Command (⌘) + P.
 * Choose your printer, set orientation and scaling, then click **Print**.

You can do the same from other apps (Photos, browser, etc.) if you open the image there and use Command (⌘) + P.

Mini sections

Where the screenshots go

  • Default location is the Desktop (PNG format).
  • You can change destination and format via Screenshot options (Shift + Command (⌘) + 5 → Options).

Quick example: like a Windows “Print Screen”

If you’re coming from Windows and just want something similar to “Print Screen then paste”:

  • Use Control + Shift + Command (⌘) + 3 or Control + Shift + Command (⌘) + 4.
  • Then go to your chat/doc and press Command (⌘) + V to paste the image directly.

SEO bits (for your post)

  • Focus phrase used naturally: how to print screen on mac.
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Meta-style description:
Learn how to print screen on Mac using simple keyboard shortcuts for full screen, windows, or selected areas, plus how to copy to clipboard and print your screenshots quickly.

TL;DR:
Use Shift + Command (⌘) + 3 or Shift + Command (⌘) + 4 to take the screenshot, then open it in Preview and press Command (⌘) + P to print.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.