A man in an office on a video call with a laptop

March 25, 2025

Your guide to Snipping Tool in Windows

Imagine you’re in the middle of a video call and your colleague shares an important chart on their screen. You need to save it quickly, but taking a photo with your phone just won’t cut it. This is where Snipping Tool in Windows 11 comes to the rescue. With just a few clicks, you can capture, edit, and share screenshots effortlessly, making your workflow smoother and more efficient.

In this article, we'll provide you with tips and tricks on how to use Snipping Tool to boost your productivity and make the most out of this powerful feature.

What is Snipping Tool?

Snipping Tool is a built-in Windows application designed for screen capturing. It enables you to take screenshots of your entire screen, specific windows, or custom areas. This tool is great for creating tutorials, capturing important information, or simply sharing visual content.

How to create screen captures with Snipping Tool

First open Snipping Tool by pressing the Windows key, typing Snipping Tool in the search bar, and selecting it from the results. Or use the keyboard shortcut Windows logo key + Shift + S, which opens the tool directly for immediate screen capture. To make a screen capture:

Select the type of snip you want to make: Free-form, Rectangular, Window, Video, or Full-screen.
Click and drag to capture the desired area.
Once captured, your snip is automatically copied to the Snipping Tool window where you make changes, annotate, save, and share.

A woman working from her home with her dog sitting next to her

Snipping Tool innovations: Keyboard shortcuts and more

With Snipping Tool, you can do all sorts of things to enhance your productivity and creativity. Let’s have a look at some of its features:

Capture video

If it’s on your screen, you can capture and record it with Snipping Tool and Screen Recorder. Just open Snipping Tool, select the Record button, select the area of the screen you wish to record, then select Start. Capture a single moment or motion, and feel free to record sound by pressing the microphone button. When you’re done, select Stop. Screen recordings are automatically saved to your Screen Recordings folder.

Select, extract, or redact text in screenshots

Snipping Tool can now detect text in screenshots, allowing you to select and copy words into other docs or message windows. It can also redact words you consider sensitive before you share them.¹

Once you've captured a snip, select the Text actions button. This allows you to extract text directly from your image. From here, you have the option to either select and copy specific text or use the tools to Copy all text or to Quick redact any email addresses or phone numbers in the snip.

Match colors and make measurements

Snipping Tool can also help you quickly analyze visual content in your screen captures. Want to know what shade of blue is in that logo? Use the color picker to find out RGB values. Or use Snipping Tool’s handy ruler to measure the distance between elements on a webpage.

Easily scan QR codes

Here’s another cool feature: Snipping Tool can detect QR codes. If the screenshot includes a QR code, Snipping Tool can scan the code and provide the link, contact, or Wi-Fi information within. No need to dig out your phone’s camera.

Make the most of your screenshots with Snipping Tool

Whether you're documenting issues, creating tutorials, or simply saving important information, Snipping Tool has you covered. It’s a game-changer for anyone who frequently works with screenshots, making it easy to capture, edit, and share images. Try Snipping Tool today in Windows 11.

DISCLAIMER: Features and functionality subject to change. Articles are written specifically for the United States market; features, functionality, and availability may vary by region.