Print Screen Opens Snipping Tool Instead of ShareX: How to Fix It

If pressing the Print Screen key opens Windows Snipping Tool or Snip and Sketch instead of ShareX, Windows is probably claiming the shortcut before ShareX can use it. The other likely causes are a failed ShareX hotkey registration, an Fn-key requirement on the keyboard, or a permissions mismatch between ShareX and the active application. This guide focuses specifically on Print Screen shortcut ownership. If every ShareX hotkey or capture function has stopped working, the problem is broader and requires different troubleshooting.

1. Confirm the Symptom With a Simple Test

Begin by verifying exactly what happens when you press Print Screen. This prevents an unrelated capture, upload, or keyboard problem from being mistaken for a Windows shortcut conflict.

1. Open ShareX and confirm that its icon appears in the Windows notification area.
2. Close any open Snipping Tool window.
3. Press the Print Screen key once.
4. Observe whether the Windows snipping overlay appears, ShareX starts a capture, or nothing happens.
5. In ShareX, open Hotkey settings and identify the action assigned to Print Screen.

If the Windows snipping overlay appears, the keyboard is sending a recognizable Print Screen command, but Windows is handling it instead of ShareX. That is the central symptom addressed in this article.

If nothing happens, test the keyboard behavior before changing more software settings. Some laptops and compact keyboards require Fn + Print Screen. Others use Fn Lock to switch between function labels and media or system actions. Try Print Screen, Fn + Print Screen, and the keyboard's Fn Lock combination if one is documented by its manufacturer.

If another ShareX shortcut works, such as a temporary combination assigned to Ctrl + Shift + F11, ShareX itself is running and able to capture. The conflict is limited to Print Screen, so you can stop investigating uploads, image destinations, recording devices, and general application failures.

1.1 What a Successful Test Looks Like

Success means pressing the physical Print Screen key immediately runs the ShareX action assigned to that key. The Windows Snipping Tool overlay should not appear. After you reach that result, stop changing settings. Additional changes can create new shortcut conflicts without improving anything.

2. Check the ShareX Settings Related to Print Screen

ShareX uses global hotkeys so it can react even when another application is active. A global shortcut must be registered with Windows. If Windows or another program already owns that shortcut, ShareX may be unable to register it.

2.1 Verify the Print Screen Assignment

1. Open ShareX.
2. Select Hotkey settings.
3. Find the capture action you want Print Screen to trigger.
4. Confirm that its hotkey field shows Print Screen.
5. If necessary, select the field and press Print Screen to assign it again.

Choose the ShareX action deliberately. For example, Print Screen can start a region capture, capture the entire screen, capture the active window, or run a custom workflow. Fixing shortcut ownership does not change which ShareX task is assigned to the key.

If ShareX reports that the hotkey could not be registered, do not repeatedly reassign the same key. That message usually means another application or Windows feature owns it. Continue to the Windows setting in the next section.

2.2 Test a Different Global Hotkey

Assign the same ShareX action to a temporary shortcut that is unlikely to be occupied, such as Ctrl + Shift + F11. Avoid common combinations already used by browsers, communication tools, graphics applications, or accessibility software.

• If the temporary shortcut works, ShareX capture is functioning and Print Screen ownership is the problem.
• If the temporary shortcut also fails to register, another application may be intercepting global shortcuts or ShareX may have a permissions problem.
• If it registers but capture fails after activation, investigate the assigned task rather than the Print Screen key.

Remove the temporary shortcut after testing if you do not intend to keep it. A successful alternate-hotkey test is strong evidence that reinstalling ShareX is unnecessary.

2.3 Understand Why Both Apps Cannot Own the Shortcut

Windows routes a global shortcut to the application or operating-system feature that successfully claims it. ShareX and Snipping Tool cannot both reliably own the same Print Screen activation at the same time. The practical fix is to disable the Windows behavior that uses Print Screen for screen snipping, then allow ShareX to register the key.

This is different from two applications merely having similar menu shortcuts. Print Screen is handled at the operating-system level, so the conflict can occur even when Snipping Tool does not appear to be open.

3. Disable the Windows Print Screen Snipping Setting

Modern Windows versions can use the Print Screen key to launch screen snipping. The setting's wording and location can vary slightly between Windows releases, but it is commonly found under keyboard accessibility options.

3.1 Change the Accessibility Setting

1. Open Windows Settings.
2. Select Accessibility.
3. Open Keyboard.
4. Find the option named Use the Print Screen button to open screen snipping or similar wording.
5. Turn the option off.
6. Exit ShareX completely from its notification-area menu.
7. Start ShareX again.
8. Press Print Screen and test the assigned ShareX action.

Restarting ShareX is important. Turning off the Windows option releases the competing behavior, but an already-running ShareX process may not automatically retry a hotkey registration that previously failed. Exiting and reopening ShareX gives it a clean opportunity to claim Print Screen.

Success means the ShareX capture action starts and the Windows snipping interface no longer appears. If that happens, stop troubleshooting. You do not need to uninstall Snipping Tool, modify the registry, reset Windows, or change ShareX upload settings.

3.2 Check Snipping Tool Keyboard Shortcut Behavior

Snipping Tool can still be launched normally from the Start menu or with Windows + Shift + S after the Print Screen accessibility option is disabled. Turning off the option does not remove Snipping Tool. It only prevents the bare Print Screen key from being used as its launcher.

Test the exact keys separately:

• Print Screen: Should run the ShareX action you assigned.
• Windows + Shift + S: May continue opening the Windows snipping interface.
• Your temporary ShareX shortcut: Should run ShareX if you kept it assigned.

If Print Screen still opens Snipping Tool after the setting is disabled, confirm that the switch remained off. On managed work or school computers, organizational policy or configuration software may restore certain Windows settings. In that situation, contact the device administrator or keep a different ShareX hotkey.

4. Check Keyboard, Permission, and Application Conflicts

If the Windows option is off but ShareX still does not receive Print Screen, narrow the remaining causes. Display, audio, network, and upload destination settings do not determine which application receives the Print Screen key, so changing them will not fix this symptom.

4.1 Test Fn-Key and Keyboard Software Behavior

Laptops, compact keyboards, and gaming keyboards sometimes place Print Screen behind an Fn layer. The key may also be remapped by the keyboard manufacturer's software.

• Try both Print Screen and Fn + Print Screen.
• Check whether Fn Lock is enabled.
• Test with the Windows On-Screen Keyboard if available.
• Temporarily pause keyboard macro or remapping software.
• If practical, connect a standard external keyboard and test its Print Screen key.

If an external keyboard triggers ShareX but the built-in keyboard does not, ShareX hotkey registration is probably fine. Focus on the laptop's Fn behavior, keyboard utility, or manufacturer documentation.

4.2 Resolve an Administrator Mismatch

Windows permission boundaries can affect how applications interact with global input. A common example is running the foreground application as administrator while ShareX is running normally. ShareX may work on the desktop but fail while the elevated application is active.

Test Print Screen first while an ordinary application such as File Explorer is active. Then test while the problematic application is focused. If the shortcut fails only over an elevated program, close that program and reopen it without administrator privileges when possible.

Running ShareX as administrator can be used as a focused diagnostic test, but it should not be the first fix for a Print Screen conflict. Elevated applications receive broader system access. Prefer running both applications at the same normal permission level unless elevation is genuinely required.

4.3 Close Other Screenshot and Overlay Utilities

Other applications may attempt to capture Print Screen, including cloud storage screenshot features, graphics utilities, gaming overlays, remote-desktop tools, clipboard managers, and keyboard macro programs. Fully exit likely competitors from the notification area, restart ShareX, and test again.

Do not disable many startup applications at once. Close one likely screenshot-related program, restart ShareX, and test. This controlled approach identifies the actual conflict and makes it easy to reverse each change.

5. Run a Clean Temporary ShareX Test

A minimal test separates hotkey registration from complex ShareX workflows. It is especially useful if Print Screen appears to activate ShareX but the expected editor, upload, OCR step, or saved file never appears.

1. Open ShareX Hotkey settings.
2. Create or select a straightforward capture action such as region capture.
3. Assign a temporary uncommon shortcut.
4. Disable unnecessary after-capture and after-upload actions for this test.
5. Run the temporary shortcut over a normal, non-elevated application.
6. After it works, assign Print Screen to the same simple action.
7. Exit and restart ShareX, then test Print Screen again.

If the temporary shortcut works and Print Screen does not, the issue remains shortcut ownership or keyboard behavior. If both shortcuts start a capture but later automation fails, the original Print Screen problem is fixed. Investigate the failed workflow step separately.

For example, a screenshot can be captured successfully even if an upload destination is unavailable. Network connectivity can affect uploading, but it cannot make Windows Snipping Tool appear when Print Screen is pressed. Keep those two symptoms separate.

6. Check ShareX History, Logs, and Recent Output

Logs are most useful when you are unsure whether ShareX received the shortcut. After pressing Print Screen, look at ShareX task history, recent captures, or the configured output folder.

• If a new image appears, ShareX received the command and completed at least part of the workflow.
• If a task appears with an error, read the error before changing the hotkey again.
• If nothing appears and Snipping Tool opens, Windows still owns Print Screen.
• If nothing appears but another ShareX hotkey works, investigate the physical key or shortcut conflict.
• If no ShareX hotkey works, confirm that ShareX is running and broaden troubleshooting beyond Print Screen.

Errors involving uploads, authentication, file paths, image effects, OCR, or external programs occur after hotkey activation. They may explain why the final output is missing, but they do not explain why Windows opens Snipping Tool. Fix the first failing stage instead of changing unrelated settings.

7. Quick Fix Checklist

• Confirm that bare Print Screen opens Windows screen snipping.
• Open Settings, Accessibility, Keyboard.
• Turn off the option that uses Print Screen to open screen snipping.
• Exit ShareX completely and start it again.
• Confirm the intended ShareX action is assigned to Print Screen.
• Test an uncommon temporary hotkey to verify ShareX capture works.
• Try Fn + Print Screen and check Fn Lock on compact keyboards.
• Test over a normal application to rule out an administrator mismatch.
• Close other screenshot, overlay, macro, and keyboard-remapping tools one at a time.
• Stop changing settings as soon as Print Screen reliably triggers ShareX.

8. Frequently Asked Questions

8.1 Why Does Print Screen Open Snipping Tool Instead of ShareX?

The most common reason is that the Windows accessibility setting for Print Screen is enabled. Windows then uses the key to launch screen snipping, preventing ShareX from registering or receiving the same global shortcut reliably. Disable that setting and restart ShareX.

8.2 Do I Need to Uninstall Snipping Tool?

No. You can keep Snipping Tool installed and continue opening it from the Start menu or with Windows + Shift + S. Only the Windows option assigning bare Print Screen to screen snipping needs to be disabled.

8.3 Why Must I Restart ShareX After Changing the Windows Setting?

ShareX may have attempted to register Print Screen when it started and failed because Windows owned the key. Restarting ShareX makes it register its hotkeys again after the conflict has been removed.

8.4 What If ShareX Says the Print Screen Hotkey Cannot Be Registered?

Another application or Windows feature probably owns the key. Disable the Windows screen-snipping option, close competing screenshot or keyboard utilities, restart ShareX, and retry. Use a temporary uncommon shortcut to confirm that ShareX can register other global hotkeys.

8.5 Why Does Print Screen Work Except in One Application?

The other application may be running as administrator while ShareX is not, or it may intercept the key itself. Test while File Explorer is focused. If ShareX works there, compare the applications' permission levels and inspect the problematic program's shortcut settings.

8.6 What If Every ShareX Hotkey Has Stopped Working?

That is not the same as Windows taking only Print Screen. Confirm that ShareX is running, test an uncommon shortcut, check for hotkey registration errors, and review recent task output. If no hotkey registers, investigate broader application, security software, or permission issues rather than focusing only on Snipping Tool.