Useful macOS defaults: Screenshots

2012-01-16 17:00

com.apple.screencapture controls how screenshots work on macOS: where they are saved, what format they use, and whether they include shadows.

After changing any of these, restart the SystemUIServer for the change to take effect:

killall SystemUIServer

Change the save location

By default, screenshots land on your Desktop. To save them somewhere else:

defaults write com.apple.screencapture location -string "~/Pictures/Screenshots"

Make sure the folder exists first. You can use any path.

To go back to the Desktop:

defaults write com.apple.screencapture location -string "~/Desktop"

Change the file format

The default format is PNG. You can switch to JPG, PDF, TIFF, GIF, or BMP:

defaults write com.apple.screencapture type -string "jpg"

PNG gives lossless quality but large files. JPG gives smaller files with slight quality loss. PDF is useful if you plan to print or share the screenshot as a document.

To go back to PNG:

defaults write com.apple.screencapture type -string "png"

Remove the window shadow

When you take a screenshot of a single window (Command Shift 4, then Space), macOS adds a drop shadow around it. To turn this off:

defaults write com.apple.screencapture disable-shadow -bool true

To bring the shadow back:

defaults write com.apple.screencapture disable-shadow -bool false

Turn off the floating thumbnail

Since macOS Mojave, a small preview thumbnail floats in the corner after you take a screenshot. To skip it:

defaults write com.apple.screencapture show-thumbnail -bool false

Screenshots still save normally. You just do not see the preview.

To bring it back:

defaults write com.apple.screencapture show-thumbnail -bool true

Change the default file name

Screenshots are named "Screenshot" followed by the date and time. To change the prefix:

defaults write com.apple.screencapture name -string "Grab"

This gives you files named "Grab 2024-11-25 at 14.30.00.png" and so on.

Remove the date from the file name

defaults write com.apple.screencapture include-date -bool false

Files will just be called "Screenshot.png", "Screenshot 2.png", and so on.

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