How to Take a Screenshot of Only One Display on a Mac

On a Mac with two or more displays, Shift-Command-3 (⌘ + ⇧ + 3) doesn't make one wide picture. It saves a separate file for every display. To screenshot only one screen, press ⌘ + ⇧ + 5, choose Capture Entire Screen and click the display you want. The pointer turns into a camera, and you get only that screen. Shift-Command-4 with a drag, a window screenshot and the screencapture command in Terminal work too.

Below: what each method takes when you have several displays, the exact steps, and how macOS decides which display is "main".

Quick comparison: what each method takes with two displays

Here's how the built-in options work with a MacBook plus an external monitor (or any setup with 2+ displays), as of October 2026:

Can't find a file afterwards? Here's where screenshots go on a Mac.

Why your Mac saves two screenshots instead of one

macOS treats every connected display as its own screen, so the full-screen shortcut takes each one separately. A MacBook with one external monitor leaves two PNG files on the desktop after Shift-Command-3. Three displays leave three. Each file is the pixel size of its own display, so a Retina laptop screen and a 1080p monitor give two images of very different sizes.

If you only needed one of them, deleting the extra file is a perfectly good fix. The methods below just skip that step. Windows works the other way around, by the way: Print Screen glues all monitors into one wide image, as we explain in how to screenshot one monitor on Windows.

Method 1: Shift-Command-5, then click the display

The Screenshot app, built into macOS since Mojave 10.14, is the cleanest built-in way to take exactly one display.

1. Press ⌘ + ⇧ + 5. The Screenshot toolbar appears at the bottom of the screen.
2. Click Capture Entire Screen, the first button on the left.
3. The pointer turns into a camera. Move it to the display you want and click anywhere on that screen.

If you click the Capture button on the toolbar instead, macOS takes every display, just like Shift-Command-3. So remember: click on the screen, not on the button.

Before you take it, the Options menu lets you change where the file goes (Save to: Desktop, Documents, Clipboard or Other Location), set a 5- or 10-second timer, or include the mouse pointer. The save location you pick there is also used by the Shift-Command-3 and Shift-Command-4 shortcuts.

Method 2: Shift-Command-4 and drag across one display

Use this when you need part of a screen, or when you'd rather drag than click through a toolbar.

1. Press ⌘ + ⇧ + 4. The pointer turns into a crosshair.
2. Press and hold the mouse or trackpad button at one corner of the area, and drag to the opposite corner. For a whole display, start in an outer corner of that screen and drag to the opposite one.
3. Let go of the button. The screenshot is saved to the desktop, or wherever Save to points.

The pointer can't go past the outer edges of your displays, so if you start in an outer corner, you can't overshoot. Only the edge shared with the other display needs a careful hand. While you drag, hold Space to move the selection without resizing it, and press Esc to cancel. Add Control (Control + ⌘ + ⇧ + 4) to copy the selection to the clipboard instead of saving a file.

Method 3: Screenshot one window on that display

If what you need is an app that fills the external monitor, take the window instead of the screen. You get a tidy image with no menu bar or Dock.

1. Press ⌘ + ⇧ + 4, then press Space. The pointer turns into a camera.
2. Move it over the window. The window lights up.
3. Click to take it. Hold Option while you click to leave out the window's shadow.

The Shift-Command-5 toolbar has the same thing as Capture Selected Window. Every built-in key combination is in our list of Mac screenshot shortcuts.

Method 4: Terminal, for one exact display every time

macOS has a command-line tool, screencapture, that can take a specific display by its number. It's handy if you take the same screenshot often, or want it in a script or an Automator action.

1. Open Terminal (Applications → Utilities, or press ⌘ + Space and type "Terminal").
2. Type one of these commands and press Return.

Display 1 is always the main display. The others are numbered 2, 3 and so on. If macOS asks whether Terminal can record the screen, allow it in System Settings → Privacy & Security → Screen & System Audio Recording. Without that permission, you may only get the desktop picture instead of your windows.

Method 5: Sleekshot for Mac, on the display under your pointer

Sleekshot for Mac is a free menu bar screenshot app for macOS 12 Monterey and later. When you press ⌘ + ⇧ + 2, it dims only the display under the mouse pointer. So you never have to wonder which screen you're on: point at the monitor, press the shortcut, drag.

1. Move the pointer to the display you want and press ⌘ + ⇧ + 2, or choose Take Screenshot from the menu bar icon.
2. Drag over an area. The W × H size bar shows its exact size. Drag the edges or corners to adjust it.
3. Mark it up right on the screenshot: an arrow, a rectangle, pixelation over private data, a text label.
4. Press ⌘ + C to copy, ⌘ + S to save, or ⌘ + ⇧ + C to copy the text inside the selection.

Screenshots are taken at full Retina resolution, including setups that mix a Retina MacBook screen with a standard external monitor. What it can't do: the Mac version has no full-screen button and no window screenshots. For an entire display, you drag from corner to corner, so Method 1 is quicker if you want one click. It doesn't record video either. Its default shortcut doesn't clash with ⌘⇧3, ⌘⇧4 or ⌘⇧5, so both keep working side by side. More about the free Mac app.

Which display is "main", and other tips for several displays

• The main display is display 1 for screencapture. To change it, open System Settings → Displays, click the display's name, open the Use as menu and choose Main display. You only see these options when a second display is connected.
• Each file keeps its display's resolution. A screenshot of a 5K monitor is far bigger than one of a 1080p screen. To shrink it for a chat or a document, open it in Preview and choose Tools → Adjust Size.
• HDR displays on macOS Tahoe 26 and later: with Options → Capture Format → HDR, screenshots are saved as HEIF instead of PNG. Choose SDR if the image is going to a website or a chat app that expects PNG.
• The file appears a few seconds late. While the floating thumbnail is on screen, the screenshot isn't saved yet. Swipe the thumbnail to the right to save it right away, or turn it off in Options → Show Floating Thumbnail.

Want the bigger picture? Our guide on how to screenshot on a Mac covers every built-in tool, including screen recording.