To screenshot on Windows tablet mode, press and hold the Power button and the Volume Up button at the same time, this works on most modern Windows tablets, including Surface Pro, Surface Book, Surface Go, and Surface Studio. If you haven’t yet enabled the touch-friendly interface, first turn on tablet mode on Windows 11 so these hardware shortcuts function as expected. If your pen buttons aren’t responding as expected, you may need to adjust your Wacom tablet properties in Windows 10. The screen will briefly dim, and your full-screen capture is automatically saved as an image file, so you can grab a screenshot on Windows tablet mode without needing a keyboard or any extra apps.
How to screenshot on Windows tablet mode with the power and volume buttons
The hardware button method is the fastest and most reliable way to capture your entire screen when you're using your device as a tablet. On most current Windows tablets, the correct combination is pressing and holding the Power button and the Volume Up button simultaneously. You don't need to worry about timing, just press both at once, and the screen will dim briefly to confirm the capture. If your hardware buttons are unresponsive, you can take a screenshot in tablet mode Windows 10 using touch-friendly on-screen alternatives. The screenshot is then saved automatically as a PNG file, so you can find it later without any extra steps.
If you're using an older Surface model, such as the Surface 3 or earlier, the legacy shortcut is different: press the Windows Logo button and the Volume Down button together instead. This older combination still works on those devices, but for the vast majority of modern Windows tablets, Power + Volume Up is the method you'll want to use. Since this approach requires no menus or apps, it's ideal for quick captures when you're in the middle of a task and don't want to break your flow.
How to screenshot on Windows tablet mode with the snipping tool
When you need more control over what you capture, like a specific region, a freeform shape, or just one window, the built-in Snipping Tool is your best option. It's a native Windows app, so there's nothing to download, and it works entirely with touch input. This is especially useful if you want to screenshot on Windows tablet mode and then immediately annotate or share the result.
- Tap the Windows icon in the lower-left corner of the screen to open the Start menu.
- Scroll down to the "Windows Accessory" folder and tap it to expand it, then tap "Snipping Tool." Alternatively, you can swipe down from the top of the Start menu to open the search bar and type "Snipping Tool" to find it faster.
- Once the app opens, tap "New" in the toolbar. The screen will fade slightly, and a small toolbar will appear at the top.
- Use your finger or stylus to drag and select the area you want to capture for a rectangular or freeform snip. For a window or full-screen capture, tap the corresponding option on the toolbar instead of dragging.
- After you release your finger, the screenshot opens in the Snipping Tool editor. From there, you can save it by tapping the save icon or share it directly using the share button.
The Snipping Tool automatically copies your capture to the clipboard, and a preview notification appears in the lower-right corner of the screen. Tapping that notification opens the image in the editor, where you can save it to your preferred location or share it with others. This makes the tool perfect for situations where you need to capture a specific part of the screen, like a chart, a message, or a design detail, without including everything else on your display.
Finding your screenshots after capturing them
No matter which method you used, your screenshots are stored in the same default location: the "Screenshots" folder inside your Pictures library.
In the Screenshots folder, you'll see all your captures listed with date-and-time stamps as their filenames, which makes it easy to identify which image you're looking for. Screenshots taken with the Power + Volume Up method are saved here automatically, and any captures you save from the Snipping Tool can be placed here as well if you choose that location when saving.
