In an age when practically everybody games and practically everybody is on social media, sharing screenshots and clips of gameplay has never been more popular — but it isn't always completely straightforward. The Xbox One and Series consoles may have some social network integration, but it's clunky and doesn't have many options outside of Twitter and Facebook. Thankfully, Microsoft makes it easy to download your screenshots right to your phone or tablet. Here's how.

The first thing you'll need is the Xbox app from the Play Store. Once it's downloaded, sign in using the same Microsoft account you use on the console.

Once you're signed in, tap the Library icon on the bottom bar, just next to your profile icon. Here you can see all of the captures you've taken on your Xbox, download them to your device, or share them to other apps. That last option is particularly useful because it lets you share the item straight to the app of your choice without having to download the image and open the app manually. I keep my favorite captures in a Google Photos album, so I use the share button to send it straight to my Photos library. The options are the same for photos and video.

It's really this simple.

The best part of the Xbox app is that it's simple and automatic. Whenever you take a screenshot or video clip on your console, it's automatically synced with the app; you don't need to do a thing. It takes a while for the capture to be uploaded — from a few seconds to a few minutes, depending on how large it is — but you'll get a helpful notification both on your Xbox and on your phone when it's ready to be viewed.

Xbox Developer: Microsoft Corporation
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You can also upload your captures to OneDrive from your console, but the process isn't quite as smooth. Unlike the Xbox app, which automatically makes all of your screenshots and clips available, the OneDrive method involves you manually uploading each individual capture. To do so, go to the capture library on your Xbox, select the captures you want to upload and select "upload to OneDrive." They'll appear in the OneDrive associated with the Microsoft account you're signed into on your Xbox.


And that's it! Compared to PlayStation and Nintendo Switch, Xbox has the easiest way to access your console captures, hands down — no fiddling with manually moving them to your device. Now go forth and tweet all those sick screen grabs.