How to change where screenshots are saved on a Mac, and keep your desktop clear

Screenshots land on the desktop by default. Move them to their own folder with the Screenshot app's Options menu or one command, and what changes.

Guide · Updated 16 October 2026

How do I change where screenshots are saved on a Mac?

Press ⌘ ⇧ 5 to open the Screenshot toolbar, click Options, and choose a folder under Save to, or Other Location to pick any folder. Every screenshot from then on goes there, including those taken with ⌘ ⇧ 3 and ⌘ ⇧ 4.

Where do screenshots go on a Mac?

To the desktop, unless you changed it. To see where yours go, press ⌘ ⇧ 5 and look at the tick under Save to. On our Mac they were set to a work folder, and the desktop held nothing at all.

How do I change the screenshot folder with Terminal?

Make the folder first, then point screenshots at it:

mkdir -p ~/Pictures/Screenshots
defaults write com.apple.screencapture location ~/Pictures/Screenshots
killall SystemUIServer

How do I copy a screenshot instead of saving it?

Add ⌃ to the shortcut: ⌃ ⌘ ⇧ 4 copies the selection to the clipboard, ready to paste, and saves no file. Or choose Clipboard under Save to.

Tidying what is already there: organize your Mac desktop.

Checked on 16 October 2026 on a MacBook Air (M1) running macOS 27.0.1, by reading its settings and the labels in System Settings. Nothing was changed. com.apple.screencapture location was set to a folder in the home folder on this Mac.

Questions

How do I change the default screenshot location on Mac?

Press Command Shift 5, click Options, and choose a folder under Save to.

Where are screenshots saved on Mac by default?

On the desktop. Command Shift 5, Options shows where yours go now.

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