# How to screenshot only one monitor

> On Mac, ⌘⇧3 saves one file per display and ⌘⇧5 lets you pick one. On Windows, drag a Win+Shift+S rectangle. hypershot grabs the screen under your pointer.

On a Mac, **⌘⇧3** already saves a separate file for each display, so keep the one you want; or press **⌘⇧5**, choose the entire-screen option and click the display you want. On Windows, **Win+PrtScn** (and **PrtScn** with Snipping Tool's Print screen option off) puts every monitor into one wide image, so the built-in way to get one monitor is **Win+Shift+S** in **Rectangle** mode, dragging from corner to corner of that monitor. A screenshot app like hypershot makes it one keypress on both: `⌘⇧1` on Mac, or `Ctrl+Shift+1` on Windows, captures only the monitor your pointer is on.

## The built-in way on Mac

macOS is good at this already.

**⌘⇧3** captures every display, but as one file per display, not a stitched panorama. With two screens you get two screenshots on your desktop; delete the one you didn't want.

**⌘⇧5** opens the Screenshot toolbar. Choose the entire-screen button, move the pointer to the display you want and click it, and only that display is captured.

The small friction: **⌘⇧3** leaves files to clean up, and **⌘⇧5** is a few clicks every time.

## The built-in way on Windows

Windows treats your monitors as one big desktop, which is the root of the problem.

- **Win+PrtScn** saves all monitors as a single image in **Pictures\Screenshots**.
- **PrtScn** on recent versions of Windows 11 opens Snipping Tool's capture bar; with that option turned off (**Settings → Accessibility → Keyboard**), or on Windows 10, it copies all monitors to the clipboard.
- **Win+Shift+S** gives you the capture bar's modes. **Full screen** doesn't offer a choice of monitor in the versions we've seen, and reports differ on exactly what it grabs on a multi-monitor setup, so don't rely on it for one display.

What works reliably:

1. Press **Win+Shift+S** and pick **Rectangle**.
2. Drag from one corner of the monitor you want to the opposite corner. Go slowly at the bezel, or a sliver of the next screen comes along.

Or, if what you want is mostly one app: maximise it on that monitor and press **Alt+PrtScn**, which copies the active window. You get the app without the taskbar.

## With hypershot

hypershot's [screen capture](/docs/hypershot/capturing/screen-capture/) captures the screen where your mouse pointer is. No menu, no choice to make, no extra files.

1. Move the pointer onto the monitor you want.
2. Press `⌘⇧1` on Mac, or `Ctrl+Shift+1` on Windows.

That's the whole thing. The rest of hypershot follows the same rule:

- **Region capture** (`⌘⇧2` / `Ctrl+Shift+3`) works on whichever screen you're on; move the mouse to switch screens.
- **Delayed screen capture** (`⌘⇧8` / `Ctrl+Shift+8`) counts down before it fires, for when you need a moment to set the screen up. The countdown is 5 seconds by default, adjustable from 1 to 30 in **Settings → Captures**.
- **The [preview folder](/docs/hypershot/capturing/capture-history/)** shows up on the screen the capture came from, and follows your pointer across monitors when idle.

Want only one window rather than a whole monitor? `⌘⇧W` (`Ctrl+Shift+W` on Windows) captures the window you click and nothing around it. See [How to capture a single window](/blog/capture-a-single-window/).

## Which to use

- **Mac, now and then:** **⌘⇧5** and click the display. It's built in and it's accurate.
- **Windows, now and then:** a **Win+Shift+S** rectangle over the monitor.
- **Often, on either:** one hypershot shortcut, with the pointer on the right screen.

## Why is my Windows screenshot so wide?

Because **PrtScn** and **Win+PrtScn** capture the whole desktop, and with two or three monitors the desktop is two or three screens wide. Crop it, or use one of the single-monitor methods above.

## Does the screenshot include the cursor?

macOS leaves the pointer out unless you turn on **Show Mouse Pointer** in **⌘⇧5** Options. hypershot leaves it out by default too; turn on **Capture cursor** in **Settings → Captures** to include it in full-screen and delayed captures.

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From https://hypernuclear.com/blog/screenshot-one-monitor/