Screenshot not working on Mac: 8 fixes

When ⇧⌘3 or ⇧⌘4 does nothing, the shortcut is usually turned off or taken by another app; when the keys work but no file appears, the save folder is usually missing or changed. Go through the checks below in order: most Macs are fixed by the first three.

Updated November 2, 2026

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Fix a screenshot that doesn’t work, step by step

Check the shortcuts are on: System Settings › Keyboard › Keyboard Shortcuts › Screenshots. Tick every line, or click Restore Defaults.
Try ⇧⌘5 and click Capture. If that works, only the shortcut was the problem; if the toolbar doesn’t open either, keep going.
Check where screenshots go: ⇧⌘5 › Options › Save to. A deleted folder or an unplugged drive makes screenshots vanish; choose Desktop.
Look for an app that takes the keys: cloud-storage apps (they can save screenshots into their own folder), other capture apps and keyboard tools. Quit them one by one and try again.
Wait a few seconds: while the thumbnail shows in the corner, the file isn’t written yet. Click the thumbnail away, or turn off Show Floating Thumbnail in ⇧⌘5 › Options.
Make sure there is free space on the disk: Apple menu › System Settings › General › Storage.
Restart the Mac. It resets the part of macOS that takes screenshots.
On a work or school Mac, ask the administrator: a management profile can turn screenshots off.

If the screenshot is black or empty

Films and TV shows: streaming apps and protected video in a browser show up black in every screenshot. That is the content’s protection, not a fault of the Mac.
A capture app shows only the wallpaper: it needs the Screen Recording permission. Open System Settings › Privacy & Security › Screen & System Audio Recording, turn the app on, and reopen it when macOS asks. Why an app asks for it: the Screen Recording permission.
A window is missing: macOS keeps its own security prompts, and windows their app marks as private, out of other apps’ captures.

When the built-in keys stay broken

SimpleShot, a free capture app for Mac, has its own shortcuts and a menu bar icon: click it and choose what to capture, so you can take a screenshot even with no working keys. It can use the standard keys (⇧⌘3, ⇧⌘4, ⇧⌘5, ⇧⌘6) or keys of your own in SimpleShot › Settings › Shortcuts; keys another app already uses are refused, so you see the conflict at once instead of a shortcut that silently does nothing. Every capture is copied, saved and kept in the Library, so it can’t get lost in a folder.

Questions

Why is ⇧⌘4 not working on my Mac?

Most often the shortcut is turned off in System Settings › Keyboard › Keyboard Shortcuts › Screenshots, or another app has taken it. Turn it back on (or click Restore Defaults), then quit apps that work with screenshots and try again.

Why don’t my screenshots show up on the desktop?

The save folder may have been changed: check ⇧⌘5 › Options › Save to. If you held Control, the picture went to the clipboard instead of a file. Search “Screenshot” in Spotlight to find files saved elsewhere. More in where screenshots go.

Why are my screenshots black?

Protected video shows up black in screenshots on purpose. If a capture app gives you only the wallpaper, turn it on in System Settings › Privacy & Security › Screen & System Audio Recording.

Why does a screenshot take a few seconds to appear?

The file is saved when the thumbnail in the corner goes away. Click it away or swipe it off the screen, or turn off Show Floating Thumbnail in ⇧⌘5 › Options to save at once.

Can I take a screenshot without the keyboard?

Yes. Open the Screenshot app from Applications › Utilities and click Capture, or click the SimpleShot icon in the menu bar.

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