i3 Screenshot Workflow with maim and xclip

Configure screenshots in i3 with maim and xclip. This workflow captures a selected region and copies the image directly to the clipboard, which keeps screenshot handling fast and simple inside a minimal i3 setup.

Install screenshot tools

Install maim for screenshots, slop for region selection support, and xclip for copying the image to the clipboard.

sudo pacman -S maim xclip slop

Add the i3 screenshot shortcut

Add a keybinding to ~/.config/i3/config. The F8 shortcut captures a selected region and copies it to the clipboard as PNG data.

nano ~/.config/i3/config

# Screenshots
bindsym F8 exec maim -s | xclip -selection clipboard -t image/png

Reload i3

Reload i3 after adding or changing the keybinding.

i3-msg reload

Use the shortcut

• Press F8.
• Select the region with the mouse.
• Paste the copied image into a chat, document, note, or image-capable app.

Manual screenshot command

Use this command to test the workflow manually without the i3 keybinding.

maim -s | xclip -selection clipboard -t image/png

Debug commands

# Confirm tools are installed
command -v maim
command -v xclip
command -v slop

# Check screenshot binding
grep -n 'maim\|xclip\|F8' ~/.config/i3/config

# Reload i3 after changes
i3-msg reload

File locations

• i3 window manager config: ~/.config/i3/config
• Screenshot command: maim -s | xclip -selection clipboard -t image/png