Annotate During a Zoom Screen Share

Questions

  • How do I annotate during a Zoom meeting?
  • How do I draw or highlight on a shared screen in Zoom?
  • How do I annotate a PDF in Zoom?
  • Can meeting participants annotate on my shared screen?
  • How do I clear annotations in Zoom?
  • How do I save an annotated file from a Zoom meeting?
  • How do I stop annotating in Zoom?

Environment

This article applies to Bowdoin faculty, staff, and students using the Zoom desktop app on Windows 11 or macOS Sequoia (15.x) or later. Annotation tools are available to the screen sharer and, if permitted by the host, to meeting participants. The examples below use a PDF, but annotation works on any shared screen or window.

Resolution

Start Annotating During a Screen Share

  1. Begin sharing your screen. When you do, the Zoom toolbar moves to the top of your screen.
  2. Click Annotate in the toolbar. A set of annotation tools appears.
  3. Select a tool and begin marking up the shared content:
    • Draw — Freehand drawing. Use it to circle elements, underline text, or highlight areas.
    • Text — Add a typed label anywhere on the screen.
    • Spotlight / Arrow — Places a spotlight or arrow that follows your cursor to draw attention to specific areas.
    • Stamp — Add a checkmark, star, or other icon.
    • Eraser — Remove individual annotations.

Clear Annotations

Click the Clear icon in the annotation toolbar to remove annotations. A menu appears with three options:

  • Clear All Drawings — Removes all annotations from all participants.
  • Clear My Drawings — Removes only your own annotations.
  • Clear Viewers' Drawings — Removes annotations made by participants (host only).

Save an Annotated File

To keep a copy of the screen with all annotations, click Save in the annotation toolbar. The image is saved to your computer. Save before ending the meeting or stopping the share, as annotations are not automatically preserved after the session ends.

Stop Annotating

Click the red X in the top-left corner of the annotation toolbar to close the annotation panel and return to the normal screen share view. Click Annotate again at any time to resume.

Allow Participants to Annotate

By default, participants can annotate on your shared screen. To disable this, click More in the sharing toolbar and uncheck Allow Participants to Annotate. Re-enable it the same way.

Teaching tip: Collaborative annotation is effective for close reading, case analysis, image analysis, or any activity where students practice marking up source material together. Participants can annotate simultaneously, making it a useful active-learning tool in synchronous Zoom sessions.

Additional Help

If you need further assistance, you have several options:

  • Bowdoin Bot: Chat with Bowdoin Bot directly from any KB page for instant answers.
  • Phone: Call the Bowdoin College Service Desk at (207) 725-3030.
  • In person: Visit the Tech Hub in Smith Union during business hours.
  • Submit a ticket: Request assistance through the Service Catalog.
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