Easily Take a Screenshot on Chromebook Without a Windows Key

Simple shortcuts to capture your screen on ChromeOS

Co-authored by Rain Kengly Reviewed by Stan Kats

Last Updated: December 11, 2025 Fact Checked

• Take a Full-Screen Screenshot
|
• Take a Partial Screenshot
|
• Use the Settings Menu
|
• FAQ
|
• Video

|Show more |Show less

You don't need to have a keyboard with a Windows key to take a screenshot on your Chromebook. If you need to take a screenshot, you can use the Chromebook-specific Screenshot key (if you have one), or use a keyboard shortcut with the "Show windows" key. Here's how to take a screenshot on a Chromebook without a Windows key.

Quick Steps

1. Press CTRL + Show Windows key.
2. Select Screenshot at the bottom.
3. Choose to take a full, partial, or window screenshot.
4. Select the area to screenshot.
5. Find your screenshots in the Downloads folder.

Steps

Section 1 of 4:

Take a Full-Screen Screenshot

1. 
   1
   Press the Screenshot key

   

   . This looks like a square with a circle inside of it, similar to a simplified camera icon. If you have this key, you can just press this key to take a full-screen screenshot.

   • If you don't have this key, skip to the next step.
2. 
   2
   Press Ctrl + Show Windows key

   

   to take a screenshot. The "Show Windows" key can usually be found in the top row of your keyboard. This looks like a rectangle with two or three vertical lines next to it.

   • If you don't have a Show Windows key, press Ctrl + Shift + F5 instead.
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3. 
   3
   Select Screenshot. This is in the menu at the bottom.
4. 
   4
   Select Take a full screen screenshot. The screenshots can be found in the Downloads folder by default. You should also receive a notification in the corner of your screen. You can click this notification and click Show in folder to be redirected there.
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Section 2 of 4:

Take a Partial Screenshot

1. 
   1
   Press Ctrl + the Show Windows key

   

   . The "Show Windows" key can usually be found in the top row of your keyboard. This looks like a rectangle with two or three vertical lines next to it.
2. 
   2
   Click and drag to select an area on your desktop. The area within the selection will be saved in the screenshot.

   • The screenshots can be found in the Downloads folder by default. You should also receive a notification in the corner of your screen. You can click this notification and click Show in folder to be redirected there.
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Section 3 of 4:

Use the Settings Menu

1. 
   1
   Click Settings, then Screen Capture. Settings can be found in the corner of your screen. Screen Capture will appear in the pop-up menu.
2. 
   2
   Select a screenshot type. You can select Full Screen, Partial, or Window Capture. Full screen captures your entire screen, Partial captures the selection you specify. Window captures the window you specify.
3. 
   3
   Click or select the screenshot area. If you selected Full Screen, click anywhere to take the screenshot. If you selected Partial, click and drag over an area to select it. If you selected Windows, select the window you want to screenshot.

   • The screenshots can be found in the Downloads folder by default. You should also receive a notification in the corner of your screen. You can click this notification and click Show in folder to be redirected there.
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Section 4 of 4:

Frequently Asked Questions

1. 1
   How do I take a screenshot with a shortcut?

   • To take a full screenshot on a Chromebook, press the Ctrl key + Show Windows key
     
     at the same time.
   • To take a partial screenshot on a Chromebook, press the Shift key + Ctrl key + Show Windows key
     
     at the same time.
2. 2
   Where can I find my screenshots on Chromebook? When you take a screenshot on a Chromebook, it will be saved to your Downloads folder unless you change the default save location. You can also click the notification after taking a screenshot and select Show in folder to open the screenshots folder.
3. 3
   How do I take a screenshot on a tablet? To take a screenshot on tablets, press the Power button and Volume down button at the same time.
4. 4
   How do I record my screen on a Chromebook? If you want to record your Chromebook's screen, follow these steps:

   • Press the keyboard shortcut Shift + Ctrl + Show windows.
   • Select Screen record in the menu at the bottom.
   • Select a recording option such as Record the full screen, Record a partial screen, or Record a window.
   • Set your camera and audio devices.
   • Click or select an area to record.
   • When you're finished recording, you can click Stop recording at the bottom-right corner.
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