> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://snagitpro.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Set Snagit as Default for Print Screen in Windows 11 - URL: https://snagitpro.com/snagit-print-screen-default/ - Published: 2026-05-26T18:02:34.000Z - Updated: 2026-08-17T08:03:02.000Z - Description: Make Print Screen open Snagit in Windows 11. Release the Snipping Tool shortcut, assign the global hotkey, and fix app, Logitech, or Fn conflicts. - Author: Adrian Foster - Tags: Guides, Windows **To make Snagit open when you press Print Screen in Windows 11, change two settings.** First, open Start > Settings > Accessibility > Keyboard and turn off Use the Print Screen button to open screen snipping. Then open the Snagit Capture window, click the shortcut field below the red Capture button, and press Print Screen. If the key is already in use, go to File > Capture Preferences > Hotkeys and enable Allow Snagit to override other hotkey assignments. Keep Snagit running in the background, then test the key from a different app. The full setup and exact conflict checks are below. ## What setting Snagit as the default actually changes Windows doesn't offer a normal default-app picker for the Print Screen key. What matters is two shortcut owners. Windows 11 can send PrtSc to screen snipping, while the Capture app can register the same key as a global hotkey. You have to release the Windows shortcut before the capture app can take ownership. PrtSc, PrtScn, and Print Screen are all labels for the same hardware key. On compact keyboards, the function may share a key with another command. That hardware layer only becomes relevant once the Windows and Capture settings are already correct. ![Print Screen shortcut ownership released in Windows settings and assigned as the Snagit global hotkey](https://storage.ghost.io/c/32/ae/32ae67dc-03a1-4a24-abcb-b731d79fd904/content/images/2026/08/01-shortcut-ownership.webp) This is not a Windows default-app association. Release the screen-snipping shortcut in Windows, then register Print Screen as the global capture hotkey in Snagit. TechSmith's current [Print Screen troubleshooting page](https://support.techsmith.com/hc/en-us/articles/203731428-Snagit-Print-Screen-Hotkey-Not-Working?ref=snagitpro.com) confirms that Windows 11 updates can bind the key to Snipping Tool again. So if a working setup breaks after an update, recheck the Windows toggle before you reinstall anything. ## How to set Snagit as the Print Screen tool in Windows 11 ### 1\. Release Print Screen from Windows Open Start > Settings > Accessibility > Keyboard. Find Use the Print Screen button to open screen snipping and switch it off. Microsoft's current [Windows keyboard shortcut reference](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/keyboard-shortcuts-in-apps-139014e7-177b-d1f3-eb2e-7298b2599a34?ref=snagitpro.com) gives this path and control name for Windows 11. ![Windows 11 Settings path to Accessibility and Keyboard with the Print Screen screen-snipping toggle turned off](https://storage.ghost.io/c/32/ae/32ae67dc-03a1-4a24-abcb-b731d79fd904/content/images/2026/08/02-release-windows-shortcut.webp) Open Settings, choose Accessibility > Keyboard, turn off the Print Screen screen-snipping setting, then restart before testing the key again. Press Print Screen once. If Snipping Tool still opens, restart Windows and test again. TechSmith includes the restart in its current procedure because the old binding can stay active until the next session. ### 2\. Assign Print Screen in Snagit Open the Snagit Capture window. Locate the shortcut field directly below the red Capture button, click it, and press Print Screen. TechSmith lists Print Screen as the default Windows global capture hotkey, but checking the field removes any doubt after an upgrade or profile change. Want a different combination? Click the same field and press it. The current [Snagit hotkey guide](https://www.techsmith.com/learn/tutorials/snagit/snagit-hotkeys/?ref=snagitpro.com) documents Print Screen on Windows and Control+Shift+C on Mac as the default global keys. ### 3\. Allow Snagit to override another app When Snagit warns that another program already uses the key, open File > Capture Preferences > Hotkeys. Enable Allow Snagit to override other hotkey assignments, click OK, and assign Print Screen again. This is the supported conflict path in TechSmith's current article. ![Snagit Capture hotkey field receiving Print Screen with the override-other-hotkeys option used only for a conflict](https://storage.ghost.io/c/32/ae/32ae67dc-03a1-4a24-abcb-b731d79fd904/content/images/2026/08/03-assign-hotkey.webp) Click the global hotkey field below Capture and press Print Screen. Enable the override option only when another application still owns the key. TechSmith names OneDrive and Dropbox as common examples of programs that may register Print Screen. Don't follow an old guide that sends you to OneDrive's Automatically save screenshots switch — [Microsoft now says that setting is no longer available](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/onedrive/save-screenshots-to-onedrive-automatically?ref=snagitpro.com). Use Snagit's override option, or change the competing app only when its current interface clearly exposes a hotkey control. ### 4\. Choose what Print Screen captures The global hotkey starts a capture with whatever settings are currently selected in the Capture window. Choose Image when you want a screenshot, then set Selection, Effects, and Share before you press Print Screen. TechSmith's [direct-to-image procedure](https://support.techsmith.com/hc/en-us/articles/204189118-Capture-Directly-To-Image-Using-Print-Screen-in-Snagit?ref=snagitpro.com) confirms this order. If you often switch between a region screenshot, [scrolling capture](https://snagitpro.com/snagit-scrolling-capture/), and video, give each preset its own key. The global hotkey follows the current Capture window settings; a preset hotkey always calls that preset's saved settings. The [capture-mode reference](https://support.techsmith.com/hc/en-us/articles/360002743452-Capture-Modes-in-Snagit-Windows?ref=snagitpro.com) documents that boundary. My [Snagit keyboard shortcuts guide](https://snagitpro.com/snagit-keyboard-shortcuts/) covers the wider shortcut set without repeating it here. Check the Share setting before your first real capture. A global hotkey can reuse a destination selected during the previous session. Set Share to None when you want to review the image in Editor before it goes anywhere. That one small check keeps an unfinished or sensitive screenshot out of a connected service. Preview in Editor matters just as much when you need to crop, blur private data, or add an arrow. If your goal is a fast capture straight to a file or application, save that behavior as a named preset. A preset makes the destination explicit and leaves the main Print Screen key free for ordinary reviewed captures. ### 5\. Keep Snagit running and test the result The app can only hold the global hotkey while its Capture process is available. Open File > Capture Preferences > General and enable Run Snagit when Windows starts. Berry College IT independently documents the same current startup path in its [Windows 11 Snagit setup](https://support.berry.edu/TDClient/156/Portal/KB/PrintArticle?ID=15700&ref=snagitpro.com). ![Snagit Windows startup setting followed by a Print Screen test capture and a repeat test after sign-in](https://storage.ghost.io/c/32/ae/32ae67dc-03a1-4a24-abcb-b731d79fd904/content/images/2026/08/04-startup-test.webp) Keep Capture available at sign-in, finish one test capture in Editor, then repeat the Print Screen test after the next Windows sign-in. Test from a browser or a document. Press Print Screen, draw a small region, finish the capture, and confirm it lands in Snagit Editor. Then close the Editor, leave Capture in the system tray, and test once more. Repeat the test after your next Windows sign-in. That last check proves both halves of the setup: Capture started in the background, and the operating system left the Print Screen key available. ## Fix Snagit Print Screen when it still does not work | Symptom | Likely owner | First check | | ------------------------- | -------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------- | | Snipping Tool opens | Windows screen-snipping shortcut | Turn off the Accessibility > Keyboard PrtSc setting, then restart | | Nothing happens | Snagit is closed or the key is blocked | Open Capture, confirm the shortcut field, then enable override | | Logitech capture UI opens | Logi Options+ Screen Capture action | Assign the separate Print Screen action in Logi Options+ | | Fn+PrtSc works | Laptop function layer | Use Fn+Esc only if your device uses it for Fn Lock | | Wrong capture type starts | Current Capture settings or a preset | Check the Image, Video, or All-in-One tab and hotkey source | ### Snipping Tool still opens Go back to Start > Settings > Accessibility > Keyboard and confirm the switch stayed off. Windows updates can restore the binding. Restart after changing it, then test before touching Capture preferences. That order isolates the operating-system owner first. ### A Logitech key opens the wrong capture interface Some Logitech keyboards expose a Screen Capture action that does not send the Print Screen keycode. Open Logi Options+, choose the device, open Keys or Buttons, select the physical capture key, and assign the separate Print Screen action. Logitech documents this exact change in its [Logi Options+ Print Screen notice](https://support.logi.com/hc/en-us/articles/29599461716887-Logi-Options-1-86-Print-Screen-changes?ref=snagitpro.com). ### A laptop needs Fn+Print Screen Try Fn+Print Screen once. If that works, your keyboard firmware controls the key before Windows ever sees it. TechSmith suggests Fn+Esc as a possible Function Lock toggle, but manufacturers use different combinations — check the key legend or the laptop manual before touching firmware utilities. ### Another app owns the same key Leave the Windows toggle off, reopen Capture, enable the override option, and assign the key again. Still conflicting? Close other screenshot tools one at a time and retest. Don't uninstall several apps at once — you lose the evidence that identifies the owner. When a managed computer stops you from changing the owner, use Ctrl+Print Screen or another unused combination as a temporary global hotkey. That keeps capture available without editing group policy or the registry. ## How to undo the change 1. Open the Snagit Capture window and replace Print Screen with another global hotkey. 2. Open Windows Settings > Accessibility > Keyboard. 3. Turn on Use the Print Screen button to open screen snipping if you want Snipping Tool back on PrtSc. 4. Disable Run Snagit when Windows starts if you do not want Capture in the system tray after sign-in. 5. Restart once and test the behavior you want. This rollback changes shortcut ownership and nothing else — no captures, presets, or Library files are deleted. If you're deciding between the two tools rather than fixing a key, use the focused [Snagit vs Snipping Tool comparison](https://snagitpro.com/snagit-vs-snipping-tool/). The [Snagit beginner tutorial](https://snagitpro.com/snagit-beginner-tutorial/) covers the capture, edit, and share workflow once the hotkey opens correctly. ## FAQ: Snagit and the Print Screen key ### How do I make Print Screen open Snagit instead of Snipping Tool? Turn off Use the Print Screen button to open screen snipping under Windows Settings > Accessibility > Keyboard. Then open Snagit Capture, click the global shortcut field below the Capture button, and press Print Screen. ### Is Snagit a Windows default screenshot app? Windows does not assign the Print Screen key through the normal default-app screen. You release the Windows screen-snipping shortcut and let Snagit register Print Screen as a global capture hotkey. ### Why does Print Screen open Snipping Tool again after an update? TechSmith says Windows 11 updates can bind Print Screen to Snipping Tool again. Recheck the Accessibility > Keyboard switch, turn it off, restart Windows, and test before changing Snagit. ### Does Snagit need to stay open for Print Screen to work? The Snagit Capture process must be running so it can register the global hotkey. Enable Run Snagit when Windows starts if you want Print Screen ready after each sign-in. ### Can I make Print Screen capture an image instead of All-in-One? Yes. Select the Image tab in the Capture window and set Selection, Effects, and Share. The global Print Screen hotkey uses those current settings when it starts the capture. ### Why does my Logitech capture key ignore Snagit? Logi Options+ may assign the key to Screen Capture instead of the Print Screen keycode. In Logi Options+, select the device and key, then choose the separate Print Screen action. ### Can I use another hotkey for Snagit? Yes. Click the global shortcut field below the Capture button and press an unused key combination. You can also assign separate combinations to presets for fixed capture settings. ### What is the Snagit Print Screen shortcut on Mac? Most Mac keyboards do not have a Print Screen key. TechSmith lists Control+Shift+C as Snagit's default global capture hotkey on Mac, and you can change it in Snagit settings. ## Related Snagit guides - [Snagit Keyboard Shortcuts: Complete List for Windows and Mac](https://snagitpro.com/snagit-keyboard-shortcuts/) - [Snagit Beginner Tutorial: Capture, Edit, and Share](https://snagitpro.com/snagit-beginner-tutorial/) - [Snagit vs Snipping Tool](https://snagitpro.com/snagit-vs-snipping-tool/) - [Snagit Black Screen Capture: Causes and Safe Fixes](https://snagitpro.com/snagit-black-screen-capture/)