How to Take a Linux Screenshot: 6 Tools & Shortcuts

Taking a screenshot on Linux doesn't seem as straightforward as it is on other operating systems like Windows or macOS, but it's still pretty simple. Most Linux distributions and desktop environments include a screenshot tool, and you can install others easily using your package manager. Keep reading to learn how to screenshot in Linux, including on Ubuntu and Linux Mint.

Linux Screenshot Guide: A Quick Overview

If you're using GNOME, Cinnamon, or Mate, you can use easy keyboard shortcuts to capture a screenshot.
Press the PrtScn (Print Screen) key to take a full-screen screenshot, Alt + PrtScrn to capture one window, or Shift + PrtScrn to select a region.
You can also capture screenshots using Spectacle (KDE Plasma), XFCE Screenshot (XFCE), ImageMagick, Shutter, and even GIMP.

Method 1

Method 1 of 6:

Using GNOME Screenshot

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Press PrtScn to take a full-screen screenshot. In most Linux desktop environments, including GNOME, Cinnamon, and Mate, you can use this keyboard shortcut to capture everything on your desktop. Once captured, the screenshot will be saved to your Pictures folder.^{[1]
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- The Print Screen key is typically at the top of the keyboard, sometimes just above the arrow keys, and other times in the F keys. It may be labeled "Print Screen", "PrtScn", "PrntScrn", or something else similar.
- If the Print Screen key shares a key with another function (for example, you may have an F10 key that also says "Print Screen"), you may have to hold down the Fn key at the same time.
- In some desktop environments, this will open a screenshot utility instead of immediately capturing the screen.
This shortcut will take a screenshot of the active window and save it to your Pictures folder.^{[2]
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This option allows you to click and drag a box around the area of the screen you want to capture. Once you release the mouse button, a file containing the captured area will be saved to your Pictures folder.^{[3]
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Use the Screenshot utility as an alternative. If you don't want to use keyboard shortcuts to take a screenshot, you can open the Screenshot app in Activities view to access more screenshot features. The Gnome Screenshot utility allows you to perform some additional screenshot functions, such as saving to a different location or pasting into a specific application.
- Select your screenshot type. You can choose from any of the options outlined above.
- Add a delay. If your screenshot is time-dependent, you can use the Screenshot utility to add a delay before the screenshot is captured. This will allow you to make sure the right content is on the screen.^{[4]
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- You can choose to include your mouse pointer in the screenshot, as well as whether or not you want to add a border to the screenshot.^{[5]
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Method 2

Method 2 of 6:

Using KDE Plasma (Spectacle)

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Open Spectacle. Spectacle is a helpful screenshotting tool that comes with the KDE Plasma desktop environment for Linux. To open Spectacle, you can press the Print Screen key on your keyboard (if configured) or launch it from KRunner.^{[6]
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- If pressing Print Screen doesn't open Spectacle, you can configure the key to open it in System settings > Shortcuts > Custom Shortcuts > Screenshots.
Click the "Area" menu, then choose from Current Screen (if using multiple monitors), Full Screen, Window Under Cursor (active window), or Region (to draw a box around the area to screenshot).^{[7]
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If needed, you can set a delay before the screenshot is captured. You can also opt to include (or not include) the mouse pointer, window titlebars, borders, and other features.
If you chose Window Under Cursor, click the window you want to capture. If you're screenshotting just one region of the screen, click and drag a box around the area you want to capture.^{[8]
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You can opt to copy the screenshot to your clipboard so you can paste it into a specific app or document, export it to a certain app, or save it in your preferred directory.^{[9]
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Method 3

Method 3 of 6:

Using XFCE Screenshot

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If you're using the XFCE desktop environment, you will find a tool called Screenshot in the Accessories menu. This utility makes it easy to capture a screenshot of your desktop or a specific area.^{[10]
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Select a region to capture. You can choose from Entire screen, Active window, and Select a region.
- If you want to add a delay before the screenshot is captured, enter the number of seconds into the "Delay before capturing" field.
- If needed, you can opt not to capture the mouse cursor or window borders.
Click OK, then select the window or area of the desktop you want to capture (if applicable). Once captured, you will see a window containing a preview of your screenshot and several options.^{[11]
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You can opt to save the screenshot to your clipboard so you can paste it into a specific app or document, choose a directory to save it in, or open it in your preferred image viewer or editor. If you have an Imgur account, you can choose to upload it to Imgur as well.^{[12]
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Method 4

Method 4 of 6:

Using ImageMagick

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Open the Terminal. ImageMagick is a command-line utility that can capture screenshots for you. Many distributions come with ImageMagick already installed, but you can install it for free from your distribution's package manager if you don't have it.
- To open the Terminal quickly in Ubuntu and many other distributions, press Ctrl+Alt+T.^{[13]
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On Debian-based distributions such as Ubuntu, type sudo apt-get install imagemagick and press ↵ Enter. You will be prompted for your administrator password. If ImageMagick hasn't been installed, it will begin downloading and installing. If it is already installed, you will be informed.
Type magick and press ↵ Enter. Replace fileName with the name you want to give the screenshot.^{[14]
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Type magick import Pictures/fileName.png and press ↵ Enter. Replace fileName with the name you want to give the screenshot. The cursor will turn into a crosshair, and you can click the window that you want to capture.

Method 5

Method 5 of 6:

Using Shutter

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Install Shutter. This is a popular screenshot program that contains some advanced upload and editing capabilities. If you take and share screenshots often, you may want to give this program a try.^{[15]
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- You can find Shutter through most distributions’ package managers. Simply search for "Shutter" and install the program.^{[16]
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- To install Shutter from the Terminal on Debian-based distributions, including Ubuntu, type sudo apt-get install shutter and press ↵ Enter.
Along the top of the Shutter window, you'll see the three options that you can pick from: Selection, Desktop, and Window. Click the button to select the type of screenshot you want to take.^{[17]
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Take your screenshot. If you selected "Desktop", your screenshot will be taken automatically. If you selected "Selection", the screen will dim, and you can click and drag to create a selection box. Everything inside the box will be captured. If you selected "Window", you can click the window that you want to take a screenshot of.
- The screenshot will be saved automatically to your Pictures folder.
After taking the screenshot, a preview will appear in the Shutter window. Click the Edit button to open the Shutter editor. You can use the editor to highlight things on the screenshot or make notations. Click Save when you are finished.^{[18]
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Export the screenshot. You can send the screenshot to an image upload service, or add an FTP server to upload it to. Click the Export button to open the Export menu.
- In the "Public hosting" tab, you can choose to upload the screenshot to your Dropbox account or a variety of online image hosting websites. You'll be asked for your account credentials when you select one.
- In the "FTP" tab, you can enter the connection information for your FTP server, which is useful if you post screenshots on a blog or website.
- In the "Places" tab, you can move the screenshot to another location on your computer or network.

Method 6

Method 6 of 6:

Using GIMP

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Install GIMP. GIMP is a free image editor that comes installed on some Linux distributions. If you don't have it installed, you can get it for free using your distribution's package manager.^{[19]
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Click the File menu and select Create → Screenshot. The screenshot creation tool will open.^{[20]
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- In some Linux desktop environments, this function will open your DE's screenshot utility instead of the one built into GIMP.
You can choose to take three different types of screenshots: single window, full-screen, or custom selection. If you choose the single window option, you'll be able to click the window that you want to take a screenshot of.^{[21]
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You can add a delay before the screenshot is taken so that you can arrange everything exactly how you want it. If you have single window or custom screenshots selected, you'll choose your screenshot target after the delay timer runs out.^{[22]
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Depending on your settings, the screenshot may be taken immediately. When you're finished, the screenshot will open in the GIMP editing window.^{[23]
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If you don't want to make any edits to the screenshot, you can save it to your hard drive. Click the "File" menu and select "Export". Give the screenshot a name and choose where you would like to save it. Click the "Export" button once you are satisfied.

Community Q&A

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Question

How do I take a screenshot with my keyboard exclusively (not using a mouse) on a Linux (CentOS 7) with MAC keyboard?

Community Answer

You can take a screenshot of the entire screen by pushing the "Print Screen" (PrtSc) button on your keyboard. To get a screenshot of only the active window, use Alt-PrtSc. This is easier than using the Gnome "Take Screenshot" tool.

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