How to enable screenshot on Android

If the Google Assistant won’t take screenshots, try these steps to fix the issue:

Step 1: Check your Android settings

Step 2: Check your Assistant settings

  1. On your Android phone or tablet, say "Hey Google, open Assistant settings." 
  2. Under "All settings," tap General.
  3. Turn on Use screen context.

Get more help or send feedback

Pixel phones

Visit the help forum

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  1. On your phone or tablet, open your Settings app
    How to enable screenshot on Android
    .
  2. Scroll down and tap Tips & support.
  3. Choose phone or chat support.

Send feedback

Say “Hey Google, send feedback” or follow the steps:

  1.  On your Android phone or tablet, say "Hey Google, open Assistant settings." 
  2. At the top right, tap More
    How to enable screenshot on Android
    How to enable screenshot on Android
    Send feedback.

Tip: We use your feedback to fix issues, but we won’t be able to reply to you directly.

Other Android phones

Visit the help forum

Contact your manufacturer

Send feedback

Say “Hey Google, send feedback” or follow the steps:

  1. On your Android phone or tablet, say "Hey Google, open Assistant settings." 
  2. At the top right, tap More
    How to enable screenshot on Android
    How to enable screenshot on Android
    Send feedback.

Tip: We use your feedback to fix issues, but we won’t be able to reply to you directly.

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One main advantage of Android that has made many tech enthusiasts prefer it over other mobile operating systems, is that it gives you the liberty to do anything you want. With Android, you can install anything, and you can customize virtually everything about your phone.

With all this being said, there are still some things that you can't do. As an example, for various reasons, some apps decide to restrict you from taking screenshots of the app. In turn, for various reasons, you might want to take a screenshot anyway. Read on to find out how you can bypass this restriction.

Why Do Some Apps Restrict Screenshots?

Annoying as it is, developers don't restrict screenshots for no reason. Be it privacy or security, there's always a grain of reason for doing this.

Most banking and payment apps block screenshots for security reasons. Chrome blocks screenshots in its Incognito tabs and windows for privacy reasons. Another example would be Telegram's self-destructing photos, where you can't screenshot them.

Regardless of why the developers decided to restrict screenshots, you can still take screenshots anywhere you want. You just have to get your hands dirty a bit.

There are various methods for taking screenshots in apps that don't let you. Some methods work in most apps though not all. Here we take a look at two of these methods: One easy method which works in some cases, and an advanced method that should work every time.

Method 1: Use Google Assistant

Some Android apps that block screenshots merely block the screenshot button combo on your phone. This means that you can bypass the restriction if you use any method other than pressing the button combo to capture a screenshot.

Google Assistant is a built-in app in most Android phones that lets you capture screenshots without using the button combination.

  1. Open the app that you want to screenshot.
  2. Activate Google Assistant. You can do this by saying Hey Google! or holding the home key depending on your settings.
  3. Say or type Take a screenshot. Google Assistant will now capture a screenshot.

Simple as this method is, it has low chances of success as most apps that are serious about blocking screenshots have predicted this method. For instance, using Google Assistant to take a screenshot from an Incognito tab in Chrome will take a screenshot, but the screenshot will be a black screen.

If this method didn't work for you, then move on to the next section where we'll describe a method that lets you screenshot any app on your phone.

Method 2: Take Screenshots Using scrcpy

This is the ultimate method as it can bypass virtually any sort of screenshot restriction in Android apps. scrcpy is a lightweight screen mirroring program that lets you view and control your Android phone's display on your PC. Once you mirror your Android phone's screen on your computer, you can simply use print screen or Snipping Tool to take screenshots.

scrcpy is available on Windows, macOS, and Linux. You can install scrcpy with Homebrew on macOS. Check the download link below for more details on installing scrcpy on Mac and Linux.

As for this article, we're going to install scrcpy on Windows, which you can do using Scoop. Read our article on how to install Scoop to get started.

Download: scrcpy (Free)

Once you have Scoop installed, it's time to install scrcpy.

  1. Open Command Prompt. You can do this by searching for cmd in the Start menu.
  2. Once inside Command Prompt, run the following command: scoop install scrcpy
  3. This command will call on Scoop to install scrcpy. This can take a while depending on how fast your connection is.

scoop scrcpy install

Now that you have scrcpy installed the next stage is preparing your phone. For scrcpy to access your phone's screen, you need to enable USB debugging on your Android device. You need to have Developer mode enabled to do this.

  1. Go to Settings on your Android phone.
  2. Scroll down to the bottom and select Developer options.
  3. Tap the switch next to USB Debugging to change it to On.

Now both your phone and your computer are ready. Connect your phone to your computer's USB and let's get to the final steps.

  1. Open Command Prompt.
  2. Type in the command scrcpy and press Enter.

scrcpy at work on Windows.

A window will pop open, and you'll be able to see your phone's screen. You can even use your computer's mouse and keyboard on your phone through this window to navigate and type. Now with your phone's screen mirrored onto your computer, you can freely capture screenshots using print screen and other screen capture methods.

Capture Anything and Everything

Though some apps try to restrict you from capturing screenshots in the app, try as they might, they will fail if you're persistent about getting your screenshots. Now having read this article, you know how to take screenshots in any app regardless of its restrictions. It's your phone, after all, and you should be able to do whatever you want with it.

How do I enable screenshot options?

Step 1: Check your Android settings.
On your Android phone or tablet, open the Settings app ..
Tap Apps & notifications Advanced Default apps. Assist & voice input..
Turn on Use screenshot..

Why is my phone not letting me screenshot?

Many times, less storage space is responsible for screenshots not working on Android. Some users get the “Can't take screenshot due to limited storage space” error as well. To check your storage, go to Settings > Storage or Settings > General Management > Storage.

Why is my screenshot not working on Android?

The reason you might not be able to take a screenshot could be because you did not grant the the required permissions to the screenshot app. Check your permission settings to make sure you have allowed access to Samsung capture. 1 Open your “Settings” menu and tap on “Apps” option.

Why is screenshot disabled?

A screenshot capturing restriction may have been put in place by an institution or the phone manufacturer: For Android devices supplied by work or school, it may have a device-based or account-based restriction to prevent screenshot capturing for company security policy reasons.