Screen sharing basics

Zoom allows for screen sharing on desktop, tablet and mobile devices running Zoom.

• The host and attendee can screen share by clicking the Share Screen icon.
• The host does not need to grant screen share access for another participant to share their screen.
• The host can prevent participants from accessing screen share.

Sharing your screen

1. Click the Share Screen button located in your meeting controls.

2. Select the screen you want to share. You can also choose an individual application that is already open on your computer, the desktop, a whiteboard, or an iPhone/iPad.

(Optional) Enable these features:

Check Share Computer Sound: If you check this option, any sound played by your computer will be shared in the meeting.

Check Optimize for full screen video clip: Check this if you will be sharing a video clip in full screen mode. Do not check this otherwise, as it may cause the shared screen to be blurry.

Click Share.

Zoom will automatically switch to full screen to optimize the shared screen view. To exit full-screen, click Exit Full Screen in the top-right corner or press the Esc key.

3. To disable automatic full screen when viewing a shared screen, disable this option in your desktop client settings: Enter full screen automatically when a participant shares screen.

Screen Share for Participants

Click the small arrow to the right of the Share Screen button. Select Advanced Sharing Options.

Share screen menu

When you start sharing your screen, the meeting controls will move into a menu that you can drag around your screen.

• Mute/Unmute: Mute or unmute your microphone.
• Start/Stop Video: Start or stop your in-meeting video.
• Participants/Manage Participants: View or manage the participants (if the host).
• New Share: Start a new screen share. You will be prompted to select which screen you want to share again.
• Pause Share: Pause your current shared screen.
• Annotate / Whiteboard: Display annotation tools for drawing, adding text, etc.
• More: Hover over more for additional options.
  • Chat: Open the chat window.
  • Invite: Invite others to join the meeting.
  • Record: Start recording locally or to the cloud.
  • Allow/Disable participants annotation: Allow or prevent the participants from annotating on your shared screen.
  • Show/Hide Names of Annotators: Show or hide the participants’ name when they are annotating on a screen share. If set to show, the participant’s name will briefly display beside their annotation. 
  • Optimize Share for Full-screen Video Clip: Start optimizing for a video clip in full screen mode. Note: Do not enable this setting if you are not sharing a full screen video clip, as it will blur your screen share.
  • End Meeting:  Leave the meeting or end the meeting for all participants.

Using dual monitors

If you are using a dual monitor set-up, you can turn on the Use Dual Monitors feature to see the screen sharing on one monitor and participants on the second.

Note: On Mac OS 10.15 Catalina, you need to allow Zoom access to screen recording to share your screen. You can do this in your System Preferences > Security & Privacy > Privacy > Screen Recording (learn more)

To learn more about screen sharing, go to the Zoom support page: https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/115005759423