Circling a number, underlining a sentence or sketching an arrow is often the fastest way to explain something on a screen. Windows gives you a few ways to do it, and each one suits a different job. Here are the three you're most likely to use, and how to choose between them.

1. Mark up a screenshot with Snipping Tool

Snipping Tool is built into Windows 11 and 10. Press Windows + Shift + S, select an area, then open the capture in Snipping Tool to draw on it with a pen or highlighter.

Best for: marking up a still image to send to someone.

Watch out for: you're drawing on a picture of your screen, not the screen itself. Nothing underneath can move, scroll or be clicked, so it doesn't help when you're explaining something live.

2. Use the pen in PowerPoint

During a slide show, press Ctrl + P to turn your pointer into a pen, Ctrl + I for the highlighter and E to erase. PowerPoint's Draw tab also lets you ink on slides while you edit.

Best for: presenting a slide deck.

Watch out for: the pen only works inside PowerPoint. The moment you switch to a website, a PDF, a spreadsheet or a demo, it's gone.

3. Use a live screen pen

A screen pen like Epic Pen puts a transparent layer of ink over your whole screen. You can draw over any app — slides, browsers, PDFs, charts, video calls and games — and the app underneath stays live. Your ink stays put while you click, scroll and type, until you clear it.

Best for: explaining things live, on any app, as often as you need to.

Tips for drawing on your screen

• Use a pen if you have one. A graphics tablet, Surface pen or touchscreen makes handwriting far neater than a mouse. Epic Pen supports pen pressure and multi-touch.
• Learn the clear hotkey first. Clearing quickly keeps the screen readable and keeps you moving.
• Sharing your screen? Share your entire screen, not a single window, so everyone sees your ink. Here's how to draw in Zoom, Teams and Meet.
• Need text, arrows or a blank page? Epic Pen Pro adds a text tool, clean shapes and arrows, and a whiteboard and blackboard.

Want to see every tool? Browse the full feature list, or see how teachers and presenters use Epic Pen.