One of the biggest differences between the Nintendo Switch and its predecessors is that we can now take screenshots left and right. This gives us visual proof to document funny moments while playing games like Animal Crossing: New Horizons , or even to remember encountering a Shiny Pokémon in Arceus Legends . Taking screenshots on the Nintendo Switch is easy, but transferring them from the console isn't so simple. Today, we'll show you how to extract your screenshots from the Nintendo Switch and how to transfer these images to your smartphone to share them via WhatsApp or social media.
What you should know about screenshots on Switch
Have you taken any screenshots while playing on your Nintendo Switch? Where are they stored? Can they be shared? Well, let's solve all these doubts first of all:
How do you take screenshots on the Switch?
You can take screenshots on your Nintendo Switch by pressing the square button on the left Joy-Con . You can usually take a screenshot at any time, with exceptions such as the Nintendo eShop and some protected cutscenes.
Whether you have a Nintendo Switch Lite or are using a Pro Controller, the procedure is the same. A single press will take a screenshot . Holding the button down will record a few seconds of video.
All this content is saved in your console's album . To access it, return to the Nintendo Switch main menu and tap the ' Album ' icon, located just below the strip where your games are displayed. Within this program, you'll find all the screenshots you've taken of your video games.
How can screenshots of the Nintendo Switch be extracted?
If you want to take screenshots from your Nintendo Switch, whether because you're running out of space, want to share them with friends, or want to have a backup, there are several ways :
Via USB-C cable
The traditional method is wired. Basically, it involves connecting the USB-C cable to the Nintendo Switch and then connecting it to your computer. The process is as follows:
- Go to Console Settings from the main menu of the Nintendo Switch.
- Locate the 'Data Management' option on the left sidebar.
- Enter the 'Manage captures and videos' option.
- Enter the option 'Copy to a computer via USB'.
This process is a bit slow and cumbersome. If you have Windows , your console's memory will appear in ' This PC ' and you can manually copy the photos and videos folder from your Nintendo Switch.
However, if you're using a Mac, it's not so simple. For this process to work, you'll need to use the Android File Transfer app . Once you have it, the app will recognize your Nintendo Switch's drive and you'll be able to take the screenshots.
Via microSD card
This option is only available if you have selected your microSD card as the location to save screenshots.
To check, go to the same location we explained in the previous section: Console Settings > Data Management > Manage Captures and Videos. The first line will say ' Save Location '. If your console is set to 'microSD Card', to retrieve captures from your console you simply need to turn it off, remove the microSD card, and insert it into a card reader. You will see the drive regardless of whether you are using Windows, macOS, or Linux.
If you have the option marked as 'Console Memory', you can change this option so that your screenshots are saved to the card, making it easier to extract the screenshots.
to a smartphone
This is the ideal way to take screenshots from your console. To use this feature, your console must be running version 11.0 or higher , as this functionality was not yet implemented in earlier versions. We'll explain how to do this step by step in the next section.
Extract screenshots from Switch to a smartphone step by step
Before you can do this process, you have to do a few small previous steps.
Prepare the console
As we mentioned earlier, this feature is not available if your console is not running version 11.0 or later. You can check your console's firmware version in Settings > Console.
If your Nintendo Switch is running an older version than this, you'll need to update. Go to the same location and click on ' Console Update '. You'll need an internet connection, and it's recommended to keep your device plugged into its original charger to prevent the console from running out of battery during the update process.
Once you have updated your hybrid console, it is time to continue with the tutorial.
Send screenshots to iOS and Android
This new process for managing screenshots is very simple:
- Just go to Album of your Nintendo Switch from the main menu.
- Now, open the screenshot you want.
- With the catch open, press 'A', that is, the function set to 'Publish and Edit'.
- Then a new menu will appear with several options. We will select the second one: 'Send to a smart device'.
- Before continuing, the wizard will ask us if we want to send one or more captures simultaneously. We choose the option that interests us the most.
- Now a first QR code. We will have to scan it with our mobile phone with an application like Google Lens. Then, our terminal will connect to a Wi-Fi network Created for the Nintendo Switch. Now, we will deactivate the mobile data of our mobile phone.
- Touch to scan a second QR which will take us to an address created by the Nintendo Switch to download the images. If you want to save part of the process, press '+' ('Connection problems?). It will tell you the URL that your console has generated to share the images. In my case it is http://192.168.0.1/index.html, and it should be identical in your case. It is interesting to know this information because you can enter it manually in the browser of your mobile and save it as favorite or marker. This way, you only have to scan the QR code the first time.
- Once you enter the URL, the screenshots you have sent from your console will appear. Can open and save directly to your gallery.
Once you do the process once, your mobile will be able to detect the Wi-Fi network of your Nintendo Switch, and it will not be necessary to scan the first code either. In this way, you can send not just one screenshot, but several to your mobile and share it with friends.