Changing the Mac OS X Screenshot Save Location

In this article in our Mac Tips section, we’ll look at how to change the save location for Mac OS X screenshots. In this section, prepared for those asking “how do we change where Macbook screenshots are saved,” we’ll learn how to save screenshots to the location of our choice using a few commands.

IMPORTANT NOTE:
If you’re using MACOS MOJAVE or later (CATALINA-BIG SUR), CLICK HERE

Changing the Mac OS X Screenshot Save Location

Taking a screenshot is something especially those working in web or graphic design need often. When a web design issue occurs, an error message is encountered, or a detail about the current state of a design needs to be shared, a screenshot of the screen at that moment is captured and saved. It’s usually sent to a coworker using a program like Telegram, and ideas are shared.

We explained in a previous article that on Mac OS X you can take a screenshot without needing any third-party software. With a few key combinations, you can capture a screenshot of part of the screen or the entire screen.

See the related article: Taking a screenshot on Mac OS X

Taking a screenshot on a Macbook Pro or Macbook Air running Mac OS X is easy and comes down to a few key combinations. So, where are screenshots saved on Mac OS X?

By default (the setting that comes with installation), Mac OS X saves screenshots to the desktop. However, it’s obvious that when working with a lot of screenshots, the desktop can become quite cluttered. That’s why some Mac users may want to change the screenshot save location.

How Do We Change Where Macbook Screenshots Are Saved

First, type Terminal.app into the search box (Spotlight Search) and open Terminal.

The Terminal program’s interface will look like the one shown below:

Type the following line into the Terminal window you opened and press enter:

defaults write com.apple.screencapture location ~/Desktop/Screenshots

You can copy the code above with Command+C and paste it into the Terminal program with Command+V.

Here, we set a folder named Screenshots on the desktop as the screenshot save location. You can change this if you prefer. For example, if you want the screenshot save location to be a “Documents/screenshots” folder, the code you’d write is:

defaults write com.apple.screencapture location~/Documents/screenshots

Finally, paste the following code and press enter:

killall SystemUIServer

After entering this code as well, you’re done with the Terminal program — you can close it.
If you did all the steps correctly, screenshots will now start being saved to the location of your choice.

If You’re Using MACOS MOJAVE OR LATER (CATALINA)

With recent updates, macOS Mojave and later added an option that lets you easily change the screenshot save location.
To do this, press the key combination SHIFT+CMD+5, then click the OPTIONS section in the mini bar that opens.

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In this article, we covered how to change the Mac OS X screenshot save location. We saw how to save screenshots to the folder of our choice. Looking forward to seeing you in the next Mac Tips articles.