How to Share Your Screen on Zoom

Screen sharing in Zoom lets other meeting participants see your whole desktop, a single app window or part of your screen while you talk. This guide covers the desktop app and the mobile app. Button labels and menu layouts change between Zoom versions, so treat the names below as a guide and look for the closest match in your version.

Before you start

Screen sharing does not run only on your computer. What you share is sent through the Zoom meeting service to other participants, so you need to be in an active meeting with a working internet connection. If the meeting is being recorded, shared content may appear in the recording. Check your organization's recording and data-handling policies instead of assuming what is stored or for how long.

• The Zoom desktop app for Windows, macOS or Linux, or the Zoom mobile app, updated to a current version. Joining from a web browser also supports sharing, but the available options can differ from the desktop app.
• Permission to share in the meeting. The host decides whether participants can share their screens.
• On macOS, Zoom needs Screen Recording permission in the system Privacy & Security settings. macOS usually asks the first time you share, and you may need to quit and reopen Zoom after granting it.
• A tidy screen. Close or minimize windows, tabs and notifications that show private information before you begin.

Step-by-step instructions

Share from the desktop app

• Start or join the meeting.
• Click Share in the meeting controls toolbar. Older versions label this button Share Screen. If the toolbar is hidden, move your mouse over the meeting window.
• Choose what to share. Select Screen to show your entire desktop. If you use more than one monitor, each monitor appears as a separate option. Select an app window to show only that window. Look on the Advanced tab for other options, such as Portion of Screen, Computer Audio only, or Content from 2nd Camera.
• If you will play a video or anything with sound, turn on Share sound. For full-motion video, also turn on Optimize for video clip.
• Click Share to begin.
• To end the session, click Stop Share in the bar at the top of your screen. To show something else without stopping, click New Share in the same bar.

Sharing a single window keeps everything else on your screen private, but anything that opens in another app (a file dialog or a browser link, for example) will not be visible to others. Sharing the whole screen shows everything, including pop-up notifications. Pick the option that matches what you need to present.

Share from a phone or tablet

• In the meeting, tap Share in the meeting controls.
• Choose Screen to share your device display. Other options, such as photos or a whiteboard, depend on your app version.
• On iPhone or iPad, confirm the system prompt to start the broadcast. On Android, allow the screen capture prompt.
• Switch to the app you want to show. Zoom keeps sharing in the background.
• To finish, return to Zoom and tap Stop Share, or end the broadcast from the system controls on iOS.

Host settings for participant sharing

If you are the host, click the arrow next to Share and open the advanced sharing options. There you can choose whether only the host or all participants can share, and whether one or several people can share at once. Account-level settings managed by an administrator can override these in-meeting choices, so if an option is missing, ask whoever manages your Zoom account.

Check the output

While you share, Zoom marks the shared area with a colored border and shows a sharing control bar near the top of your screen. The most reliable check is to ask a participant to confirm what they see. You can also join the same meeting from a second device with its speaker and microphone muted to avoid feedback, and view your share as others do.

• Correct content: confirm viewers see the intended window or monitor, not a different screen.
• Readability: viewers on smaller displays get a scaled-down image. If text is hard to read, increase the font size or zoom level in the app you are sharing, or share a single window instead of a high-resolution desktop.
• Motion: shared screens usually update at a lower frame rate than your camera video. Use Optimize for video clip for moving content, and expect some trade-off in sharpness.
• Sound: if you play media, confirm viewers hear it. Without Share sound, they will hear only your microphone.
• Camera: your camera feed is separate from the screen share. If you also want to be visible, check that the selected camera is on and that your lighting works for the thumbnail other people see.

Common problems and next steps

• Share button is unavailable or shows a message that the host disabled sharing: ask the host to allow participants to share, or to make you a co-host.
• Viewers see a black screen: on macOS, check that Zoom has Screen Recording permission and restart the app. Some streaming services and protected apps block screen capture, so their content may appear black whatever your settings. Some Zoom versions also include hardware acceleration options in the screen sharing settings, and changing them can help on some systems.
• Viewers cannot hear your video: stop sharing, start again, and turn on Share sound before clicking Share.
• Wrong monitor or window appears: click New Share and pick the correct screen or window.
• Sharing is laggy or blurry: close bandwidth-heavy apps, share a single window instead of the full desktop, and use Optimize for video clip only when showing video.
• Content from 2nd Camera shows nothing: make sure the device has camera permission in your system settings and that the right camera is chosen in the share options.

If sharing still fails, update the Zoom app, restart it, and test in a new meeting. On a work or school account, your administrator may have restricted screen sharing. They can confirm which settings apply to you.