# Screenshot Not Working on Mac? How to Fix It
> Screenshot not working on Mac? Tick Shift-Command-3 and Shift-Command-4 again in System Settings ▸ Keyboard ▸ Keyboard Shortcuts, then find missing files.
Published: 2026-10-22
Author: Elisei Nicolae
Source: https://snapix.app/tutorials/screenshot-not-working-mac/
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If your screenshot shortcut is not working on your Mac and ⇧⌘3 or ⇧⌘4 does nothing, it has usually been switched off, changed, or taken by another app. Open **System Settings ▸ Keyboard ▸ Keyboard Shortcuts ▸ Screenshots** and tick its box to turn it back on.
Missing files and wallpaper-only screenshots have their own fixes below. If you use [Snapix](/), it answers those keys itself while it runs and leaves their boxes unticked on purpose, so start with [what to check in Snapix](#if-you-use-snapix).
## How to turn the screenshot shortcuts back on
1. **Open Keyboard settings.** Choose Apple menu ▸ **System Settings**, then click **Keyboard** in the sidebar. You may need to scroll down to find it.
2. **Open the screenshot shortcuts.** Click **Keyboard Shortcuts…**, then click **Screenshots** in the sidebar.
3. **Tick the boxes.** Make sure **Save picture of screen as a file** (⇧⌘3), **Save picture of selected area as a file** (⇧⌘4) and **Screenshot and recording options** (⇧⌘5) are ticked. A row without a tick does nothing when you press its keys. If Snapix is running, these boxes are unticked on purpose, so leave them and see [If you use Snapix](#if-you-use-snapix).
4. **Check the keys.** Each row shows its shortcut on the right. If one was changed, double-click it and press the keys you want, or click **Restore Defaults** to put the default keys back.
5. **Try it.** Click **Done** and press ⇧⌘4. The pointer turns into a crosshair.
Each screenshot shortcut has its own box. Here ⇧⌘4 is unticked, so pressing it does nothing until you tick it again.
The two **Copy picture** rows are the clipboard versions, ⌃⇧⌘3 and ⌃⇧⌘4. On macOS 12 Monterey or earlier, the same boxes are in **System Preferences ▸ Keyboard ▸ Shortcuts ▸ Screenshots**. For other keys, see [how to change the screenshot shortcut](/tutorials/change-screenshot-shortcut-mac/).
## Another app is using the keys
A screenshot app, or a tool that grabs text from the screen, can take ⇧⌘3, ⇧⌘4 or ⇧⌘5 for itself, and then it answers instead of macOS. Some switch the macOS shortcut off while they hold the keys, as Snapix does, and some ask you to untick it in System Settings yourself.
To find it, quit any screenshot or capture tool in your menu bar and press the shortcut again. If macOS answers now, change that app's shortcut in its settings. If nothing happens, that app may have left the macOS shortcut switched off, even if you've since deleted it. Tick it again with the steps above.
## The screenshot was taken, but you can't find it
By default, macOS saves each screenshot to the desktop as a PNG file named "Screenshot" plus the date and time ("Screen Shot" on macOS 12 Monterey or earlier). If yours aren't there:
- **Wait for the thumbnail.** The file is written when the thumbnail in the corner of the screen goes away, a few seconds after the shot. Swipe the thumbnail to the right to save it at once.
- **Check where screenshots go.** Press ⇧⌘5, click **Options** and look under **Save to**. With **Clipboard** chosen, nothing is saved: the screenshot waits for you to paste it with ⌘V. Pick **Desktop**, or **Other Location…** for a folder of your own. The choice applies to ⇧⌘3 and ⇧⌘4 too.
- **Leave Control out.** Holding Control with the shortcut, as in ⌃⇧⌘4, copies the screenshot to the clipboard instead of saving a file.
- **If you use Snapix,** it doesn't save a file by default. It copies each screenshot and keeps it in **Recent Captures** (⇧⌘S). For files, turn on **Save every screenshot automatically** in Snapix **Settings ▸ Saving**. They go to **Documents ▸ Snapix** unless you click **Choose…**.
If Snapix is using ⇧⌘5, open the **Screenshot** app from **Applications ▸ Utilities** to reach the same **Options**. There's more in [where screenshots go on a Mac](/tutorials/where-do-screenshots-go-mac/).
## The screenshot shows only your wallpaper
A screenshot app needs Screen Recording permission to see other apps' windows. Without it, the shot may show only your desktop wallpaper and the app's own windows.
1. Open **System Settings ▸ Privacy & Security ▸ Screen & System Audio Recording** (called **Screen Recording** on older versions of macOS).
2. Turn on the switch next to the app.
3. Quit the app and open it again, so the permission takes effect.
## Some apps don't allow screenshots
Some apps, such as the Apple TV app, might not let you take screenshots of their windows. That's the app's choice, not a broken shortcut.
## Still not working?
Restart your Mac and try again. To check whether screenshots work without the keyboard, open the **Screenshot** app from **Applications ▸ Utilities** (or find it with Spotlight), click **Capture Entire Screen** in its toolbar, then click **Capture**. If that works, the trouble is the shortcut, and the steps at the top of this page fix it. For every way to take one, see [how to take a screenshot on a Mac](/tutorials/how-to-screenshot-on-mac/).
## If you use Snapix
By default, Snapix uses ⇧⌘3, ⇧⌘4 and ⇧⌘5 for **Capture Full Screen**, **Capture Area** and **Capture Window**. While one of its shortcuts sits on those keys, Snapix switches off the macOS shortcut for them, so only one app answers. Their boxes in **Keyboard Shortcuts ▸ Screenshots** show unticked while it does. That's expected, so leave them. It's also why ⇧⌘5 opens Snapix's window picker instead of the macOS Screenshot toolbar. ⌃⇧⌘3 and ⌃⇧⌘4 are never touched and still copy to the clipboard the macOS way.
Snapix's Shortcuts page says who answers the screenshot keys, and gives them back to macOS in one click.
- **To give the keys back to macOS,** open Snapix **Settings ▸ Shortcuts** and click **Hand these back to macOS** (**Hand ⇧⌘4 back** when only one of those keys is Snapix's). That removes them from Snapix's shortcuts and ticks their boxes again. Every capture stays in the Snapix menu, ready for other keys. Quitting Snapix or signing out also hands the keys back.
- **If the macOS screenshot still appears with Snapix running,** Snapix couldn't switch that key off, and its **Settings ▸ Shortcuts** says macOS is still handling it. Click **Open Keyboard Shortcuts**, then untick that row under **Screenshots** so only Snapix answers.
- **If Settings ▸ Shortcuts says a key does nothing,** the macOS screenshot is off and no Snapix shortcut uses it. Click **Turn back on**.
- **If you can't find the file,** that's the default: Snapix copies each screenshot and keeps it in **Recent Captures** instead of saving one. To get files too, [turn on automatic saving](#the-screenshot-was-taken-but-you-cant-find-it).
- **If the capture items in the menu are grayed out,** choose **Sign in…** in the same menu if it's there. Otherwise Snapix needs Screen Recording permission: press a capture shortcut, click **Open System Settings** in the **Allow Screen Recording** window, switch **Snapix** on, then click **Quit & Reopen Snapix**. Until setup is finished, ⇧⌘3, ⇧⌘4 and ⇧⌘5 still work the macOS way, and Snapix's other shortcuts, like ⇧⌘8, bring setup back instead. Here's how to [set up Snapix](/tutorials/set-up-snapix-mac/).
- **If ⇧⌘6 doesn't capture the last area,** macOS may be using it: for the Touch Bar on Touch Bar Macs, or for Siri on macOS 27 with Siri AI turned on. Snapix doesn't switch those off, so record another key for **Capture Last Area** in **Settings ▸ Shortcuts**.
- **If your free trial has ended,** Snapix still takes the shot and shows it in a locked preview, but it isn't copied to the clipboard, and the upgrade window opens.
**Note:** Before you delete Snapix, click **Hand these back to macOS** in its **Settings ▸ Shortcuts**, then quit it from its menu. If a macOS shortcut still does nothing after you quit Snapix, tick its box again with the steps at the top of this page.
## Frequently asked questions
### Why is Command-Shift-3 not working on my Mac?
Its shortcut may be switched off or changed. Open **System Settings ▸ Keyboard ▸ Keyboard Shortcuts ▸ Screenshots** and make sure **Save picture of screen as a file** is ticked and set to **⇧⌘3**. If it's unticked and you didn't do that, another app may have switched it off to use the keys. Snapix does this while it runs and you're signed in: **⇧⌘3** takes a Snapix screenshot of the display under the pointer, and the box stays unticked on purpose.
### Why does my Mac screenshot only show the wallpaper?
Usually the app taking it doesn't have Screen Recording permission, so it can't see other apps' windows. Open **System Settings ▸ Privacy & Security ▸ Screen & System Audio Recording** (**Screen Recording** on older versions of macOS), turn the app on, then quit and reopen it.
### Why can't I take a screenshot of some apps or videos?
Some apps, such as the Apple TV app, might not let you take screenshots of their windows, often to protect the video they play. That's the app's choice, not a broken shortcut: the macOS screenshot tools can't capture those windows, and neither can Snapix.
### Why isn't Command-Shift-4 working on my Mac?
Check that **Save picture of selected area as a file** is ticked in **System Settings ▸ Keyboard ▸ Keyboard Shortcuts ▸ Screenshots**. If Snapix is running, **⇧⌘4** opens its **Capture Area** instead, and that box shows unticked on purpose. To give the key back to macOS, click **Hand these back to macOS** in Snapix **Settings ▸ Shortcuts**.
